Martinique (2002) | Saudi Arabia (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 13 provinces (mintaqat, singular - mintaqah); Al Bahah, Al Hudud ash Shamaliyah, Al Jawf, Al Madinah, Al Qasim, Ar Riyad, Ash Sharqiyah (Eastern Province), 'Asir, Ha'il, Jizan, Makkah, Najran, Tabuk |
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: 38.2% (male 5,261,530/female 5,059,041)
15-64 years: 59.4% (male 9,159,519/female 6,895,616) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 342,020/female 302,005) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | wheat, barley, tomatoes, melons, dates, citrus; mutton, chickens, eggs, milk |
Airports | 2 (2001) | 208 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 73
over 3,047 m: 32 2,438 to 3,047 m: 13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 135
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 75 914 to 1,523 m: 40 under 914 m: 12 (2006) |
Area | total: 1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total: 1,960,582 sq km
land: 1,960,582 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than one-fifth the size of the US |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | In 1902, ABD AL-AZIZ bin Abd al-Rahman Al Saud captured Riyadh and set out on a 30-year campaign to unify the Arabian Peninsula. A son of ABD AL-AZIZ rules the country today, and the country's Basic Law stipulates that the throne shall remain in the hands of the aging sons and grandsons of the kingdom's founder. Following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, Saudi Arabia accepted the Kuwaiti royal family and 400,000 refugees while allowing Western and Arab troops to deploy on its soil for the liberation of Kuwait the following year. The continuing presence of foreign troops on Saudi soil after Operation Desert Storm remained a source of tension between the royal family and the public until the US military's near-complete withdrawal to neighboring Qatar in 2003. The first major terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia in several years, which occurred in May and November 2003, prompted renewed efforts on the part of the Saudi government to counter domestic terrorism and extremism, which also coincided with a slight upsurge in media freedom and announcement of government plans to phase in partial political representation. As part of this effort, the government permitted elections - held nationwide from February through April 2005 - for half the members of 179 municipal councils. A burgeoning population, aquifer depletion, and an economy largely dependent on petroleum output and prices are all ongoing governmental concerns. |
Birth rate | 15.37 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 29.34 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $900 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) (1996) |
revenues: $143.7 billion
expenditures: $89.65 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | name: Riyadh
geographic coordinates: 24 38 N, 46 43 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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 | harsh, dry desert with great temperature extremes |
Coastline | 350 km | 2,640 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | governed according to Shari'a law; the Basic Law that articulates the government's rights and responsibilities was introduced in 1993 |
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: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
conventional short form: Saudi Arabia local long form: Al Mamlakah al Arabiyah as Suudiyah local short form: Al Arabiyah as Suudiyah |
Currency | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) | - |
Death rate | 6.4 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 2.58 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) (1994) | $36.78 billion (2005 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador James C. OBERWETTER
embassy: Collector Road M, Diplomatic Quarter, Riyadh mailing address: American Embassy, Unit 61307, APO AE 09803-1307; International Mail: P. O. Box 94309, Riyadh 11693 telephone: [966] (1) 488-3800 FAX: [966] (1) 488-3989 consulate(s) general: Dhahran, Jiddah (Jeddah) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador TURKI al-Faysal bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud
chancery: 601 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 342-3800 FAX: [1] (202) 944-3113 consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | none | despite resistance from nomadic groups, the demarcation of the Saudi Arabia-Yemen boundary established under the 2000 Jeddah Treaty is almost complete; Saudi Arabia still maintains the concrete-filled pipe as a security barrier along sections of the border with Yemen in 2004 to stem illegal cross-border activities; Kuwait and Saudi Arabia continue discussions on a maritime boundary with Iran; the United Arab Emirate 2006 Yearbook published a map and text rescinding the 1974 boundary with Saudi Arabia, as stipulated in a treaty filed with the UN in 1993, on the grounds that the agreement was not formally ratified |
Economic aid - donor | - | pledged $100 million in 1993 to fund reconstruction of Lebanon; since 2000, Saudi Arabia has committed $307 million for assistance to the Palestinians; pledged $230 million to development in Afghanistan; pledged $1 billion in export guarantees and soft loans to Iraq; pledged $133 million in direct grant aid, $187 million in concessional loans, and $153 million in export credits for Pakistan earthquake relief |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France | - |
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. | This is an oil-based economy with strong government controls over major economic activities. Saudi Arabia possesses 25% of the world's proven petroleum reserves, ranks as the largest exporter of petroleum, and plays a leading role in OPEC. The petroleum sector accounts for roughly 75% of budget revenues, 45% of GDP, and 90% of export earnings. About 40% of GDP comes from the private sector. Roughly 5.5 million foreign workers play an important role in the Saudi economy, particularly, in the oil and service sectors. The government is encouraging private sector growth to lessen the kingdom's dependence on oil and increase employment opportunities for the swelling Saudi population. The government has begun to permit private sector and foreign investor participation in the power generation and telecom sectors. As part of its effort to attract foreign investment and diversify the economy, Saudi Arabia acceded to the WTO in 2005 after many years of negotiations. With high oil revenues enabling the government to post large budget surpluses, Riyadh has been able to substantially boost spending on job training and education, infrastructure development, and government salaries. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.046 billion kWh (2000) | 134.9 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 1.125 billion kWh (2000) | 145.1 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal Sawda' 3,133 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | desertification; depletion of underground water resources; the lack of perennial rivers or permanent water bodies has prompted the development of extensive seawater desalination facilities; coastal pollution from oil spills |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% | Arab 90%, Afro-Asian 10% |
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) | Saudi riyals per US dollar - 3.747 (2005), 3.75 (2004), 3.75 (2003), 3.75 (2002), 3.75 (2001) |
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: King and Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud (since 1 August 2005); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SULTAN bin Abd al- Aziz Al Saud (half brother of the monarch, born 5 January 1928) note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: King and Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud (since 1 August 2005); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SULTAN bin Abd al- Aziz Al Saud (half brother of the monarch, born 5 January 1928) note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers is appointed by the monarch and includes many royal family members elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
Exports | $250 million f.o.b. (1997) | 7.92 million bbl/day (2003) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples | petroleum and petroleum products 90% |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) | US 16.4%, Japan 16.1%, South Korea 9.1%, China 6.9%, Singapore 5.1%, Taiwan 4.2% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 March - 28 February |
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 | green, a traditional color in Islamic flags, with the Shahada or Muslim creed in large white Arabic script (translated as "There is no god but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God") above a white horizontal saber (the tip points to the hoist side); design dates to the early twentieth century and is closely associated with the Al Saud family which established the kingdom in 1932 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 3.3%
industry: 61.3% services: 35.4% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 6.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 25 00 N, 45 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 | extensive coastlines on Persian Gulf and Red Sea provide great leverage on shipping (especially crude oil) through Persian Gulf and Suez Canal |
Heliports | - | 6 (2006) |
Highways | total: 2,105 km (2000)
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
- |
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 | death penalty for traffickers; increasing consumption of heroin, cocaine, and hashish; improving anti-money-laundering legislation and enforcement |
Imports | $2 billion c.i.f. (1997) | 0 bbl/day (2003) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, motor vehicles, textiles |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) | US 13%, Germany 9.5%, Japan 7.9%, China 7.3%, France 4.7%, Italy 4.2% (2005) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 23 September 1932 (unification of the kingdom) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 5.3% (2005 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | crude oil production, petroleum refining, basic petrochemicals; ammonia, industrial gases, sodium hydroxide (caustic soda), cement, fertilizer, plastics; metals, commercial ship repair, commercial aircraft repair, construction |
Infant mortality rate | 7.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 12.81 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) (1990) | 0.4% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, BIS, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 16,200 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Council of Justice |
Labor force | 170,000 (1997) (1997) | 6.76 million
note: more than 35% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) (1997) | agriculture: 12%
industry: 25% services: 63% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 4,431 km
border countries: Iraq 814 km, Jordan 744 km, Kuwait 222 km, Oman 676 km, Qatar 60 km, UAE 457 km, Yemen 1,458 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.43%
permanent crops: 11.32% other: 79.25% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 1.67%
permanent crops: 0.09% other: 98.24% (2005) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | Arabic |
Legal system | French legal system | based on Shari'a law, several secular codes have been introduced; commercial disputes handled by special committees; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 |
Consultative Council or Majlis al-Shura (120 members and a chairman appointed by the monarch for four-year terms); note - in October 2003, Council of Ministers announced its intent to introduce elections for half of the members of local and provincial assemblies and a third of the members of the national Consultative Council or Majlis al-Shura, incrementally over a period of four to five years; in November 2004, the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs initiated voter registration for partial municipal council elections held nationwide from February through April 2005 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.56 years
male: 79.19 years female: 77.92 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 75.67 years
male: 73.66 years female: 77.78 years (2006 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: 78.8% male: 84.7% female: 70.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, north of Yemen |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 18 nm continental shelf: not specified |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 60 ships (1000 GRT or over) 837,272 GRT/1,064,377 DWT
by type: cargo 5, chemical tanker 15, container 4, passenger/cargo 8, petroleum tanker 18, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 9 foreign-owned: 9 (Egypt 2, Kuwait 5, Sudan 1, UAE 1) registered in other countries: 55 (Bahamas 12, Comoros 3, Dominica 3, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 1, Liberia 24, Marshall Islands 1, Norway 3, Panama 8) (2006) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | Land Forces (Army), Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force, National Guard, Ministry of Interior Forces (paramilitary) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $18 billion (2002) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 10% (2002) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Unification of the Kingdom, 23 September (1932) |
Nationality | noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
noun: Saudi(s)
adjective: Saudi or Saudi Arabian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | frequent sand and dust storms |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, copper |
Net migration rate | -0.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -4.94 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 212 km; gas 1,880 km; liquid petroleum gas 1,183 km; oil 4,531 km; refined products 1,150 km (2006) |
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] | none |
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 | none |
Population | 422,277 (July 2002 est.) | 27,019,731
note: includes 5,576,076 non-nationals (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.89% (2002 est.) | 2.18% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 43, FM 31, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | 82,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km (2002) | total: 1,392 km
standard gauge: 1,392 km 1.435-m gauge (with branch lines and sidings) (2005) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% | Muslim 100% |
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: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.33 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female total population: 1.2 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | adult male citizens age 21 or older
note: voter registration began in November 2004 for partial municipal council elections held nationwide from February through April 2005 |
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: modern system
domestic: extensive microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and fiber-optic cable systems international: country code - 966; microwave radio relay to Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Yemen, and Sudan; coaxial cable to Kuwait and Jordan; submarine cable to Djibouti, Egypt and Bahrain; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (3 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Arabsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 170,000 (1997) | 3.8 million (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (1997) | 13.3 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 117 (1997) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | mostly uninhabited, sandy desert |
Total fertility rate | 1.79 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) (1998) | 13% among Saudi males only (local bank estimate; some estimates range as high as 25%) (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |