Martinique (2006) | United Arab Emirates (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 7 emirates (imarat, singular - imarah); Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi), 'Ajman, Al Fujayrah, Ash Shariqah (Sharjah), Dubayy (Dubai), Ra's al Khaymah, Umm al Qaywayn |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.1% (male 48,988/female 47,525)
15-64 years: 67.3% (male 147,082/female 146,470) 65 years and over: 10.6% (male 20,791/female 25,275) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years:
28.86% (male 354,298; female 340,498) 15-64 years: 68.74% (male 1,047,839; female 607,020) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 40,626; female 17,179) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | dates, vegetables, watermelons; poultry, eggs, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 2 (2006) | 40 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2006) |
total:
22 over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
total:
18 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total:
82,880 sq km land: 82,880 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maine |
Background | The French began to settle this island in 1635, overcoming resistance from the local Carib inhabitants. In 1660, the suviving natives were rounded up and permanently expelled. The island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | The Trucial States of the Persian Gulf coast granted the UK control of their defense and foreign affairs in 19th century treaties. In 1971, six of these states - Abu Zaby, 'Ajman, Al Fujayrah, Ash Shariqah, Dubayy, and Umm al Qaywayn - merged to form the UAE. They were joined in 1972 by Ra's al Khaymah. The UAE's per capita GDP is not far below those of the leading West European nations. Its generosity with oil revenues and its moderate foreign policy stance have allowed it to play a vital role in the affairs of the region. |
Birth rate | 13.74 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 18.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $317.5 million
expenditures: $317.5 million; including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues:
$6.5 billion expenditures: $7.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Fort-de-France
geographic coordinates: 14 36 N, 61 05 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Abu Dhabi |
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 | desert; cooler in eastern mountains |
Coastline | 350 km | 1,318 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | 2 December 1971 (made permanent in 1996) |
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:
United Arab Emirates conventional short form: none local long form: Al Imarat al Arabiyah al Muttahidah local short form: none former: Trucial Oman, Trucial States abbreviation: UAE |
Currency | - | Emirati dirham (AED) |
Death rate | 6.48 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 3.79 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $12.6 billion (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Theodore H. KATTOUF embassy: Al-Sudan Street, Abu Dhabi mailing address: P. O. Box 4009, Abu Dhabi; American Embassy Abu Dhabi, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-6010 (pouch); note - work week is Saturday through Wednesday telephone: [971] (2) 4436691 FAX: [971] (2) 4435441 consulate(s) general: Dubai |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Asri Said Ahmad al-DHAHIRI chancery: Suite 700, 1255 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 955-7999 |
Disputes - international | none | location and status of boundary with Saudi Arabia is not final, de facto boundary reflects 1974 agreement; boundary with Oman has not been bilaterally defined; northern section in the Musandam Peninsula is an administrative boundary; claims two islands in the Persian Gulf occupied by Iran: Lesser Tunb (called Tunb as Sughra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek in Persian by Iran) and Greater Tunb (called Tunb al Kubra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg in Persian by Iran); claims island in the Persian Gulf jointly administered with Iran (called Abu Musa in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Abu Musa in Persian by Iran) - over which Iran has taken steps to exert unilateral control since 1992, including access restrictions and a military build-up on the island; the UAE has garnered significant diplomatic support in the region in protesting these Iranian actions |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France (1998) | $NA |
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 UAE has an open economy with a high per capita income and a sizable annual trade surplus. Its wealth is based on oil and gas output (about 33% of GDP), and the fortunes of the economy fluctuate with the prices of those commodities. Since 1973, the UAE has undergone a profound transformation from an impoverished region of small desert principalities to a modern state with a high standard of living. At present levels of production, oil and gas reserves should last for more than 100 years. Despite higher oil revenues in 1999-2000, the government has not drawn back from the economic reforms implemented during the 1998 oil price depression. The government has increased spending on job creation and infrastructure expansion and is opening up its utilities to greater private-sector involvement. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.12 billion kWh (2003) | 34.131 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.205 billion kWh (2003) | 36.7 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point:
Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Jabal Yibir 1,527 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | lack of natural freshwater resources being overcome by desalination plants; desertification; beach pollution from oil spills |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian and Chinese less than 5% | Emirati 19%, other Arab and Iranian 23%, South Asian 50%, other expatriates (includes Westerners and East Asians) 8% (1982)
note: less than 20% are UAE citizens (1982) |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) | Emirati dirhams per US dollar - central bank mid-point rate: 3.6725 (since 1998); 3.6711 (1997), 3.6710 (1995-96) |
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 for six-year terms |
chief of state:
President ZAYID bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan (since 2 December 1971), ruler of Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi) (since 6 August 1966) and Vice President MAKTUM bin Rashid al-Maktum (since 8 October 1990), ruler of Dubayy (Dubai) head of government: Prime Minister MAKTUM bin Rashid al-Maktum (since 8 October 1990), ruler of Dubayy (Dubai); Deputy Prime Minister SULTAN bin Zayid Al Nuhayyan (since 20 November 1990) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president note: there is also a Federal Supreme Council (FSC) which is composed of the seven emirate rulers; the council is the highest constitutional authority in the UAE; establishes general policies and sanctions federal legislation, Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi) and Dubayy (Dubai) rulers have effective veto power; meets four times a year elections: president and vice president elected by the FSC (a group of seven electors) for five-year terms; election last held NA October 1996 (next to be held NA October 2001); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president election results: ZAYID bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan reelected president; percent of FSC vote - NA, but believed to be unanimous; MAKTUM bin Rashid al-Maktum elected vice president; percent of FSC vote - NA%, but believed to be unanimous |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $46 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples | crude oil 45%, natural gas, reexports, dried fish, dates |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (2004) | Japan 30%, India 7%, Singapore 6%, South Korea 4%, Oman, Iran (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | unofficial flag, derives from the civil ensign flown by French merchant ships and dates to 1766; a blue field quartered by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white, coiled snake representing the venomous Fer-de-lance; the flag of France is used for official occasions | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and black with a thicker vertical red band on the hoist side |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $54 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture:
3% industry: 52% services: 45% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $22,800 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 4% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 24 00 N, 54 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 | strategic location along southern approaches to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil |
Heliports | - | 2 (2000 est.) |
Highways | - | total:
4,835 km paved: 4,835 km unpaved: 0 km (1998 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 | growing role as heroin transshipment and money-laundering center due to its proximity to southwest Asian producing countries and the bustling free trade zone in Dubai |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $34 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (2004) | Japan 9%, US 8%, UK 8%, Italy 6%, Germany, South Korea (1999) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 2 December 1971 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 4% (2000) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | petroleum, fishing, petrochemicals, construction materials, some boat building, handicrafts, pearling |
Infant mortality rate | total: 6.95 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
16.68 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 4.5% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU, WCL, WFTU | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 70 sq km (2003) | 50 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Union Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 165,900 (1998) | 1.4 million (1998 est.)
note: 75% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (July 1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 10%
industry: 17% services: 73% (1997) |
services 60%, industry 32%, agriculture 8% (1996 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
867 km border countries: Oman 410 km, Saudi Arabia 457 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.09%
permanent crops: 10% other: 80.91% (2005) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 2% forests and woodland: 0% other: 98% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | Arabic (official), Persian, English, Hindi, Urdu |
Legal system | French legal system | federal court system introduced in 1971; all emirates except Dubayy (Dubai) and Ra's al Khaymah have joined the federal system; all emirates have secular and Islamic law for civil, criminal, and high courts |
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 Council or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held March 2000 (next to be held in 2006); Regional Council - 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 Council (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 September 2004 (next to be held September 2008); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PPM 1, left-wing candidate 1; 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, PMS 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 Federal National Council or Majlis al-Ittihad al-Watani (40 seats; members appointed by the rulers of the constituent states to serve two-year terms)
elections: none note: reviews legislation, but cannot change or veto |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.18 years
male: 79.5 years female: 78.85 years (2006 est.) |
total population:
74.29 years male: 71.84 years female: 76.86 years (2001 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: 79.2% male: 78.9% female: 79.8% (1995 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, between Oman and Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
70 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,094,256 GRT/1,421,333 DWT ships by type: cargo 16, chemical tanker 3, container 17, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 24, roll on/roll off 6, specialized tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie | Army, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense, paramilitary (includes Federal Police Force) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $1.6 billion (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 3.1% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
778,842 note: includes non-nationals (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
420,484 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
25,482 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, 2 December (1971) |
Nationality | noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
noun:
Emirati(s) adjective: Emirati |
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 |
Net migration rate | -0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 1.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 830 km; natural gas, including natural gas liquids, 870 km |
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] | 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 | NA |
Population | 436,131 (July 2006 est.) | 2,407,460
note: includes 1,576,472 non-nationals (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.72% (2006 est.) | 1.59% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | 'Ajman, Al Fujayrah, Das Island, Khawr Fakkan, Mina' Jabal 'Ali, Mina' Khalid, Mina' Rashid, Mina' Saqr, Mina' Zayid, Umm al Qaywayn |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 13, FM 7, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | - | 820,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 10.5%, Muslim 0.5%, Hindu 0.5%, other 3.5% (1997) | Muslim 96% (Shi'a 16%), Christian, Hindu, and other 4% |
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 (2006 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.73 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 2.36 male(s)/female total population: 1.5 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | none |
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:
modern system consisting of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable; key centers are Abu Dhabi and Dubai domestic: microwave radio relay and coaxial cable international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; submarine cables to Qatar, Bahrain, India, and Pakistan; tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 172,000 (2001) | 915,223 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 319,900 (2002) | 1 million (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 15 (1997) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of vast desert wasteland; mountains in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.79 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 3.23 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | NA% |
Waterways | - | none |