Martinique (2005) | Luxembourg (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 3 districts; Diekirch, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.4% (male 49,112/female 47,697)
15-64 years: 67.2% (male 145,531/female 145,250) 65 years and over: 10.5% (male 20,423/female 24,887) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.8% (male 46,478/female 43,656)
15-64 years: 66.6% (male 161,466/female 158,261) 65 years and over: 14.7% (male 28,530/female 41,831) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | wine, grapes, barley, oats, potatoes, wheat, fruits; dairy products, livestock products |
Airports | 2 (2004 est.) | 2 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Area | total: 1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total: 2,586 sq km
land: 2,586 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Rhode Island |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | Founded in 963, Luxembourg became a grand duchy in 1815 and an independent state under the Netherlands. It lost more than half of its territory to Belgium in 1839, but gained a larger measure of autonomy. Full independence was attained in 1867. Overrun by Germany in both World Wars, it ended its neutrality in 1948 when it entered into the Benelux Customs Union and when it joined NATO the following year. In 1957, Luxembourg became one of the six founding countries of the European Economic Community (later the European Union), and in 1999 it joined the euro currency area. |
Birth rate | 14.14 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 11.84 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $900 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues: $18.68 billion
expenditures: $18.65 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | name: Luxembourg
geographic coordinates: 49 36 N, 6 07 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
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 | modified continental with mild winters, cool summers |
Coastline | 350 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | 17 October 1868; occasional revisions |
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: Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
conventional short form: Luxembourg local long form: Grand Duche de Luxembourg local short form: Luxembourg |
Death rate | 6.44 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.42 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $NA |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Ann WAGNER
embassy: 22 Boulevard Emmanuel Servais, L-2535 Luxembourg City mailing address: American Embassy Luxembourg, Unit 1410, APO AE 09126-1410 (official mail); American Embassy Luxembourg, PSC 9, Box 9500, APO AE 09123 (personal mail) telephone: [352] 46 01 23 FAX: [352] 46 14 01 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph WEYLAND
chancery: 2200 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-4171/72 FAX: [1] (202) 328-8270 consulate(s) general: New York, San Francisco |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $235.6 million (2004) |
Economic aid - recipient | NA; note - substantial annual aid from France (1998) | - |
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. | This stable, high-income economy - benefiting from its proximity to France, Belgium, and Germany - features solid growth, low inflation, and low unemployment. The industrial sector, initially dominated by steel, has become increasingly diversified to include chemicals, rubber, and other products. Growth in the financial sector, which now accounts for about 28% of GDP, has more than compensated for the decline in steel. Most banks are foreign-owned and have extensive foreign dealings. Agriculture is based on small family-owned farms. The economy depends on foreign and cross-border workers for about 60% of its labor force. Although Luxembourg, like all EU members, has suffered from the global economic slump, the country enjoys an extraordinarily high standard of living - GDP per capita ranks second in the world. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.095 billion kWh (2002) | 6.315 billion kWh (2005 est.) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 3.131 billion kWh (2005 est.) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 6.392 billion kWh (2005 est.) |
Electricity - production | 1.178 billion kWh (2002) | 3.156 billion kWh (2005 est.) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point: Moselle River 133 m
highest point: Buurgplaatz 559 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | air and water pollution in urban areas, soil pollution of farmland |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% | Celtic base (with French and German blend), Portuguese, Italian, Slavs (from Montenegro, Albania, and Kosovo) and European (guest and resident workers) |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995); Prefect Yves DASSONVILLE (since 14 January 2004); note - took office 8 February 2004
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: Grand Duke HENRI (since 7 October 2000); Heir Apparent Prince GUILLAUME (son of the monarch)
head of government: Prime Minister Jean-Claude JUNCKER (since 1 January 1995); Deputy Prime Minister Jean ASSELBORN (since 31 July 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers recommended by the prime minister and appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following popular elections to the Chamber of Deputies, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch; the deputy prime minister is appointed by the monarch; they are responsible to the Chamber of Deputies note: government coalition - CSV and LSAP |
Exports | NA | 283 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples (2001 est.) | machinery and equipment, steel products, chemicals, rubber products, glass |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (2000) | Germany 19.3%, France 15.5%, Italy 9.5%, UK 9.5%, Belgium 8.8%, Spain 5.3%, Netherlands 4.5% (2006) |
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 | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and light blue; similar to the flag of the Netherlands, which uses a darker blue and is shorter; design was based on the flag of France |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 13% services: 86% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $14,400 (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 6.2% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 49 45 N, 6 10 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 | landlocked; the only Grand Duchy in the world |
Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
Highways | total: 2,105 km (2000) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | NA | 61,070 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | minerals, metals, foodstuffs, quality consumer goods |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (2000) | Belgium 26.3%, Germany 20.1%, China 16.7%, France 8.5%, UK 5.5%, Netherlands 4.2% (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 1839 (from the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 4.3% (2006 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | banking and financial services, iron and steel, information technology, telecommunications, cargo transportation, food processing, chemicals, metal products, engineering, tires, glass, aluminum, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.09 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 4.68 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.67 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) | 2.7% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU, WCL, WFTU | ACCT, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | judicial courts and tribunals (3 Justices of the Peace, 2 district courts, and 1 Supreme Court of Appeals); administrative courts and tribunals (State Prosecutor's Office, administrative courts and tribunals, and the Constitutional Court); judges for all courts are appointed for life by the monarch |
Labor force | 165,900 (1998) | 203,000 of whom 121,600 are foreign cross-border workers commuting primarily from France, Belgium, and Germany (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) | agriculture: 1%
industry: 13% services: 86% (2004 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 359 km
border countries: Belgium 148 km, France 73 km, Germany 138 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.38%
permanent crops: 9.43% other: 80.19% (2001) |
arable land: 23.94%
permanent crops: 0.39% other: 75.67% (includes Belgium) (2005) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | Luxembourgish (national language), German (administrative language), French (administrative language) |
Legal system | French legal system | based on civil law system; accepts 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 28 March 2004 (next to be held by March 2010) 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 (second round) - percent of vote by party - MIM 53.8%, PPM 30.6%; seats by party - MIM 28, PPM 9, other 4 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 Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 13 June 2004 (next to be held by June 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - CSV 36.1%, LSAP 23.4%, DP 16.1%, Green Party 11.6%, ADR 10%, other 2.8%; seats by party - CSV 24, LSAP 14, DP 10, Green Party 7, ADR 5 note: there is also a Council of State that serves as an advisory body to the Chamber of Deputies; the Council of State has 21 members appointed by the Grand Duke on the advice of the prime minister |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.04 years
male: 79.43 years female: 78.64 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 79.03 years
male: 75.76 years female: 82.52 years (2007 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 can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2000 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Western Europe, between France and Germany |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | - | total: 45 ships (1000 GRT or over) 682,955 GRT/858,985 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 7, chemical tanker 14, container 7, liquefied gas 2, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, roll on/roll off 7 foreign-owned: 44 (Belgium 9, France 14, Germany 10, Netherlands 1, UK 7, US 3) (2007) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie | Army |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.9% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | National Day (Birthday of Grand Duchess Charlotte) 23 June; note - the actual date of birth was 23 January 1896, but the festivities were shifted by five months to allow observance during a more favorable time of year |
Nationality | noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
noun: Luxembourger(s)
adjective: Luxembourg |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | NA |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | iron ore (no longer exploited), arable land |
Net migration rate | -0.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.64 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 155 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Martinique Communist Party or PCM [Georges ERICHOT]; Martinique Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE]; Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Pierre SUEDILE]; 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] | Action Committee for Democracy and Justice or ADR [Gast GIBERYEN]; Christian Social People's Party or CSV [Francois BILTGEN] (also known as Christian Social Party or PCS); Democratic Party or DP [Claude MEISCH]; Green Party [Francois BAUSCH]; Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party or LSAP [Alex BODRY]; dei Lenk/la Gauche (the Left); other minor parties |
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 | ABBL (bankers' association); ALEBA (financial sector trade union); Centrale Paysanne (federation of agricultural producers); CEP (professional sector chamber); CGFP (trade union representing civil service); Chambre de Commerce (Chamber of Commerce); Chambre des Metiers (Chamber of Artisans); FEDIL (federation of industrialists); Greenpeace (environment protection); LCGP (center-right trade union); Mouvement Ecologique (protection of ecology); OGBL (center-left trade union) |
Population | 432,900 (July 2005 est.) | 480,222 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.76% (2005 est.) | 1.207% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite, Marin | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Railways | - | total: 275 km
standard gauge: 275 km 1.435-m gauge (243 km electrified) (2006) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 10.5%, Muslim 0.5%, Hindu 0.5%, other 3.5% (1997) | Roman Catholic 87%, other (includes Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 13% (2000) |
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: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.065 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.682 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: domestic facilities are adequate
domestic: NA international: country code - 596; microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: highly developed, completely automated and efficient system, mainly buried cables
domestic: nationwide cellular telephone system; buried cable international: country code - 352; 3 channels leased on TAT-6 coaxial submarine cable (Europe to North America) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 172,000 est (2001) | 246,700 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 319,900 (2002) | 713,800 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 5 (1999) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | mostly gently rolling uplands with broad, shallow valleys; uplands to slightly mountainous in the north; steep slope down to Moselle flood plain in the southeast |
Total fertility rate | 1.79 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.78 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | 4.1% (2006 est.) |
Waterways | - | 37 km (on Moselle River) (2007) |