Martinique (2002) | Congo, Republic of the (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 9 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 commune*; Bouenza, Brazzaville*, Cuvette, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 23% (male 49,261; female 47,843)
15-64 years: 66.8% (male 140,616; female 141,460) 65 years and over: 10.2% (male 19,274; female 23,823) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.4% (male 630,985; female 622,024)
15-64 years: 54.3% (male 783,238; female 823,882) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 39,369; female 58,950) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products |
Airports | 2 (2001) | 33 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 27
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 11 (2002) |
Area | total: 1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total: 342,000 sq km
land: 341,500 sq km water: 500 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Montana |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government installed in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President SASSOU-NGUESSO. |
Birth rate | 15.37 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 37.91 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $900 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) (1996) |
revenues: $870 million
expenditures: $970 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | Brazzaville |
Climate | tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid | tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); constantly high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator |
Coastline | 350 km | 169 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | constitution approved by referendum in January 2002 |
Country name | conventional long form: Department of Martinique
conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
conventional long form: Republic of the Congo
conventional short form: Congo (Brazzaville) local long form: Republique du Congo local short form: none former: Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo |
Currency | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States |
Death rate | 6.4 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 16.1 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) (1994) | $5 billion (1999 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Robin R. SANDERS
embassy: NA mailing address: NA telephone: [243] (88) 43608 note: the embassy is temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (US Embassy Kinshasa, 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Serge MOMBOULI
chancery: 4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1860 |
Disputes - international | none | most of the Congo River boundary with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Stanley Pool/Pool Malebo area) |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France | $159.1 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry. Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France. The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism, which employs more than 11,000 people, has become more important than agricultural exports as a source of foreign exchange. The majority of the work force is employed in the service sector and in administration. | The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based largely on oil, support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings, contributing to a shortage of revenues. The 12 January 1994 devaluation of Franc Zone currencies by 50% resulted in inflation of 61% in 1994, but inflation has subsided since. Economic reform efforts continued with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. The reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. However, economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. Given a fragile peace, agreements with the IMF and the World Bank, and general international support for reconstruction and development, prospects for structural reform and 4% growth in 2002-03 appear strong. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.046 billion kWh (2000) | 406.9 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 126 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.125 billion kWh (2000) | 302 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 1%
hydro: 99% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% | Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3%
note: Europeans estimated at 8,500, mostly French, before the 1997 civil war; may be half that in 1998, following the widespread destruction of foreign businesses in 1997 |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995); Prefect Michel CADOT (since 21 June 2000)
head of government: President of the General Council Claude LISE (since 22 March 1992); President of the Regional Council Alfred MARIE-JEANNE (since NA March 1998) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
chief of state: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second seven-year term); election last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO reelected president; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO 89.4%, Joseph Kignoumbi Kia MBOUNGOU 2.7% |
Exports | $250 million f.o.b. (1997) | $2.6 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples | petroleum 90%, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) | US 20.9%, South Korea 15.5%, China 6.7%, Germany 3.2% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | a light blue background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag of France is used for official occasions | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.5 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 10%
industry: 48% services: 42% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $900 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 4.2% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 1 00 S, 15 00 E |
Geography - note | the island is dominated by Mount Pelee, which on 8 May 1902 erupted and completely destroyed the city of Saint Pierre, killing 30,000 inhabitants | about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them |
Highways | total: 2,105 km (2000)
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total: 12,800 km
paved: 1,242 km unpaved: 11,558 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $2 billion c.i.f. (1997) | $725 million f.o.b. (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | petroleum products, capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) | France 20.5%, US 9.8%, Italy 7.5%, Belgium 3.8% (2000) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 15 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes |
Infant mortality rate | 7.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 97.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) (1990) | 3% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CCC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 10 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme |
Labor force | 170,000 (1997) (1997) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) (1997) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 5,504 km
border countries: Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.43%
permanent crops: 11.32% other: 79.25% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0.5%
permanent crops: 0.13% other: 99.37% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo has the most users) |
Legal system | French legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law |
Legislative branch | unicameral General Council or Conseil General (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Assembly or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Assembly - last held on 15 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - left-wing candidates 13, PPM 11, RPR 6, right-wing candidates 5, PCM 3, UDF 3, PMS 2, independents 2; note - the PPM won a plurality; Regional Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR-UDF 14, MIM 13, PPM 7, left parties 4, PMS 3 note: Martinique elects 2 seats to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 2001 (next to be held September 2004); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPM 2; Martinique also elects 4 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held, first round - 9 June 2002, second round - 16 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, PMS 1, MIM 1, left-wing candidate 1 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (66 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (137 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 11 July 2002 (next to be held NA July 2007); National Assembly - last held 27 May and 26 June 2002 (next to be held by NA May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 56, other 10; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 83, UDR 6, UPADS 3, other 45 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.56 years
male: 79.19 years female: 77.92 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 47.71 years
male: 44.27 years female: 51.24 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93% male: 92% female: 93% (1982 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 74.9% male: 83.1% female: 67.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 200 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | Army, Air Force, Navy, Gendarmerie, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $84 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.8% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 702,048 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 356,388 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 32,350 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, 15 August (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | seasonal flooding |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, natural gas, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -0.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 25 km |
Political parties and leaders | Martinique Communist Party or PCM [Pierre SUEDILLE]; Martinique Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE]; Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Camille DARSIERES]; note - may no longer be in existence; Martinique Socialist Party or PMS [Ernest WAN-AJOUHU]; Movement of Democrats and Ecologists for a Sovereign Martinique or Modemas [Garcin MALSA]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michel CHARLONE]; Socialist Revolution Group or GRS [Philippe PIERRE-CHARLES]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Jean MAREN] | the most important of the many parties are the Democratic and Patriotic Forces or FDP (an alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy, Congolese Labor Party or PCT, Liberal Republican Party, National Union for Democracy and Progress, Patriotic Union for the National Reconstruction, and Union for the National Renewal) [Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, president]; Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Rally for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA, president]; Rally for Democracy and the Republic or RDR [Raymond Damasge NGOLLO]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR [leader NA]; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance or ARC; Central Union for Martinique Workers or CSTM [Marc PULVAR]; Frantz Fanon Circle; League of Workers and Peasants; Proletarian Action Group or GAP | Congolese Trade Union Congress or CSC; General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students or UGEEC; Revolutionary Union of Congolese Women or URFC; Union of Congolese Socialist Youth or UJSC |
Population | 422,277 (July 2002 est.) | 2,958,448
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.89% (2002 est.) | 2.18% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite | Brazzaville, Impfondo, Ouesso, Oyo, Pointe-Noire |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 3 (2001) |
Radios | 82,000 (1997) | 341,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km (2002) | total: 894 km
narrow gauge: 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2000 est.) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% | Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: domestic facilities are adequate
domestic: NA international: microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out-of-order
domestic: primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 170,000 (1997) | 22,000 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (1997) | 3,300 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 1 (2002) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin |
Total fertility rate | 1.79 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.94 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) (1998) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 1,120 km
note: the Congo and Ubangi (Oubangui) rivers provide 1,120 km of commercially navigable water transport; other rivers are used for local traffic only |