Martinique (2003) | Guyana (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 10 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper Demerara-Berbice, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.8% (male 49,310; female 47,908)
15-64 years: 66.9% (male 142,242; female 142,688) 65 years and over: 10.3% (male 19,656; female 24,162) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.5% (male 95,431; female 91,806)
15-64 years: 68.3% (male 243,224; female 239,047) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 16,000; female 20,295) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | sugar, rice, wheat, vegetable oils; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish (shrimp) |
Airports | 2 (2002) | 49 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 41
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 32 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total: 214,970 sq km
land: 196,850 sq km water: 18,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Idaho |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | Originally a Dutch colony in the 17th century, by 1815 Guyana had become a British possession. The abolition of slavery led to black settlement of urban areas and the importation of indentured servants from India to work the sugar plantations. This ethnocultural divide has persisted and has led to turbulent politics. Guyana achieved independence from the UK in 1966, but until the early 1990s it was ruled mostly by socialist-oriented governments. In 1992, Cheddi JAGAN was elected president, in what is considered the country's first free and fair election since independence. Upon his death five years later, he was succeeded by his wife Janet, who resigned in 1999 due to poor health. Her successor, Bharrat JAGDEO, was reelected in 2001. |
Birth rate | 14.96 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 17.85 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $900 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues: $263.4 million
expenditures: $326.7 million, including capital expenditures of $93.4 million (2003) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | Georgetown |
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; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to mid-January) |
Coastline | 350 km | 459 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 6 October 1980 |
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: Co-operative Republic of Guyana
conventional short form: Guyana former: British Guiana |
Currency | euro (EUR) | Guyanese dollar (GYD) |
Death rate | 6.41 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 9.71 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $1.2 billion (2002) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Roland BULLEN
embassy: 100 Young and Duke Streets, Kingston, Georgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 10507, Georgetown telephone: [592] 225-4900 through 4909 FAX: [592] 225-8497 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Bayney KARRAN
chancery: 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 232-1297 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | all of the area west of the Essequibo (river) is claimed by Venezuela preventing any discussion of a maritime boundary; Guyana has expressed its intention to join Barbados in asserting claims before UNCLOS that Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela extends into their waters; Suriname claims a triangle of land between the New and Kutari/Koetari rivers in a historic dispute over the headwaters of the Courantyne; Guyana seeks UNCLOS arbitration to resolve the long-standing dispute with Suriname over the axis of the territorial sea boundary in potentially oil-rich waters |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France | $84 million (1995), Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC) $253 million (1997) (2000 est.) |
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 Guyanese economy exhibited moderate economic growth in 2001-02, based on expansion in the agricultural and mining sectors, a more favorable atmosphere for business initiatives, a more realistic exchange rate, fairly low inflation, and the continued support of international organizations. Growth then slowed in 2003. Chronic problems include a shortage of skilled labor and a deficient infrastructure. The government is juggling a sizable external debt against the urgent need for expanded public investment. The bauxite mining sector should benefit in the near term by restructuring and partial privatization. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.07 billion kWh (2001) | 792.4 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.151 billion kWh (2001) | 852 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial chemicals; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
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% | East Indian 50%, black 36%, Amerindian 7%, white, Chinese, and mixed 7% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.06 euros per US dollar - 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998) | Guyanese dollars per US dollar - NA (2003), 190.665 (2002), 187.321 (2001), 182.43 (2000), 177.995 (1999) |
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 Bharrat JAGDEO (since 11 August 1999); note - assumed presidency after resignation of President Janet JAGAN
head of government: Prime Minister Samuel HINDS (since NA December 1997) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president, responsible to the legislature elections: president elected by the majority party in the National Assembly following legislative elections, which must be held at least every five years; elections last held 19 March 2001 (next to be held by March 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Bharrat JAGDEO reelected; percent of legislative vote - NA |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples (2001 est.) | sugar, gold, bauxite/alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses, rum, timber |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (2000) | Canada 23.2%, US 21.8%, UK 13.5%, Portugal 6.7%, Belgium 6.5%, Jamaica 6.1% (2003) |
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 | green, with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed on a long, yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow, black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow, white border between the yellow and the green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.5 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.797 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 37.2%
industry: 22.7% services: 40.1% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $10,700 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 0.5% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 5 00 N, 59 00 W |
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 | the third-smallest country in South America after Suriname and Uruguay; substantial portions of its western and eastern territories are claimed by Venezuela and Suriname respectively |
Highways | total: 2,105 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (2000) |
total: 7,970 km
paved: 590 km unpaved: 7,380 km (1999 est.) |
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 | transshipment point for narcotics from South America - primarily Venezuela - to Europe and the US; producer of cannabis |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (2000) | US 22.6%, Trinidad and Tobago 19.2%, Italy 11.2%, UK 7.2%, Cuba 5.2% (2003) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 26 May 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 7.1% (1997 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, textiles, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.44 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.85 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 37.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 41.28 deaths/1,000 live births female: 32.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) | 5.7% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,500 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court of Judicature; Judicial Court of Appeal; High Court |
Labor force | 165,900 (1998) | 418,000 (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,462 km
border countries: Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.43%
permanent crops: 11.32% other: 79.25% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 2.44%
permanent crops: 0.15% other: 97.41% (2001) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu |
Legal system | French legal system | based on English common law with certain admixtures of Roman-Dutch law; 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 not later than June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, PS 1, MIM 1, left-wing candidate 1 (candidacy of the left-wing candidate was found invalid by the Constitutional Council; new elections will be called) |
unicameral National Assembly (68 seats, 65 elected by popular vote, 1 elected Speaker of the National Assembly, and 2 nonvoting members appointed by the president; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PPP/C 34, PNC 27, GAP and WPA 2, ROAR 1, TUF 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.72 years
male: 79.27 years female: 78.16 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 62.43 years
male: 60.12 years female: 64.84 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.7% male: 97.4% female: 98.1% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98.8% male: 99.1% female: 98.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Suriname and Venezuela |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,475 GRT/8,758 DWT
by type: cargo 3, container 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: Barbados 1, Panama 1 registered in other countries: 8 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | Guyana Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Corps; Guyana People's Militia |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $6.5 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 209,545 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 157,264 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Republic Day, 23 February (1970) |
Nationality | noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
noun: Guyanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Guyanese |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish |
Net migration rate | -0.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -2.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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]; 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] | Alliance for Guyana or AFG (includes Guyana Labor Party or GLP and Working People's Alliance or WPA) [Rupert ROOPNARAINE]; Guyana Action Party or GAP [Paul HARDY]; Guyana Labor Party or GLP [leader NA]; People's National Congress or PNC/R [Robert Herman Orlando CORBIN]; People's Progressive Party/Civic or PPP/C [Bharrat JAGDEO]; Rise, Organize, and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; The United Force or TUF [Manzoor NADIR]; Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPNARAINE] |
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 | Civil Liberties Action Committee or CLAC; Guyana Council of Indian Organizations or GCIO; Trades Union Congress or TUC
note: the GCIO and the CLAC are small and active but not well organized |
Population | 425,966 (July 2003 est.) | 705,803
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 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 0.85% (2003 est.) | 0.61% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite | Bartica, Georgetown, Linden, New Amsterdam, Parika |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 187 km
standard gauge: 139 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 48 km 0.914-m gauge note: all dedicated to ore transport (2001 est.) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 10.5%, Muslim 0.5%, Hindu 0.5%, other 3.5% (1997) | Christian 50%, Hindu 35%, Muslim 10%, other 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 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: fair system for long-distance calling
domestic: microwave radio relay network for trunk lines international: country code - 592; tropospheric scatter to Trinidad; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 170,000 (1997) | 80,400 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (1997) | 87,300 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 3 (one public station; two private stations which relay US satellite services) (1997) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south |
Total fertility rate | 1.79 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.06 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | 9.1% (understated) (2000) |
Waterways | none | 1,077 km
note: Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km respectively (2004) |