New Caledonia (2001) | Antigua and Barbuda (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Iles Loyaute, Nord, and Sud | 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*, Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter, Saint Philip |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
30.31% (male 31,674; female 30,416) 15-64 years: 63.95% (male 66,014; female 65,006) 65 years and over: 5.74% (male 5,548; female 6,205) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 27.6% (male 9,716/female 9,375)
15-64 years: 68.5% (male 23,801/female 23,524) 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 1,020/female 1,672) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products | cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock |
Airports | 29 (2000 est.) | 3 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
6 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
23 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
Area | total:
19,060 sq km land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
total: 442.6 sq km (Antigua 280 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km)
land: 442.6 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Redonda, 1.6 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s seems to have dissipated. | The Siboney were the first to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 B.C., but Arawak Indians populated the islands when Columbus landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early settlements by the Spanish and French were succeeded by the English who formed a colony in 1667. Slavery, established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in 1834. The islands became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981. |
Birth rate | 20.37 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.93 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$861.3 million expenditures: $735.3 million, including capital expenditures of $52 million (1996 est.) |
revenues: $123.7 million
expenditures: $145.9 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Noumea | name: Saint John's
geographic coordinates: 17 06 N, 61 51 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid | tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 2,254 km | 153 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 1 November 1981 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies conventional short form: New Caledonia local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda |
Currency | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF) | - |
Death rate | 5.62 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.37 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $79 million (1998 est.) | $427.3 million; note - data are for public external debt, not total external debt (2000) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of France since 1956 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of France) | the US does not have an embassy in Antigua and Barbuda (embassy closed 30 June 1994); the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Antigua and Barbuda |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Deborah Mae LOVELL
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 362-5122 FAX: [1] (202) 362-5225 consulate(s) general: Miami |
Disputes - international | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $880 million annual subsidy from France | $1.65 million (2004) |
Economy - overview | New Caledonia has more than 20% of the world's known nickel resources. In recent years, the economy has suffered because of depressed international demand for nickel, the principal source of export earnings. Only a negligible amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, the substantial financial support from France and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. The situation in 1998 was clouded by the spillover of financial problems in East Asia and by lower prices for nickel. Nickel prices jumped in 1999-2000, and large additions were made to capacity. French Government interests in the New Caledonian nickel industry are being transferred to local ownership. | Tourism continues to dominate the economy, accounting for more than half of GDP. Weak tourist arrival numbers since early 2000 have slowed the economy, however, and pressed the government into a tight fiscal corner. The dual-island nation's agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited water supply and a labor shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction. Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialized world, especially in the US, which accounts for slightly more than one-third of tourist arrivals. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.414 billion kWh (1999) | 93 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 1.52 billion kWh (1999) | 100 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
78.95% hydro: 21.05% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m |
Environment - current issues | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires | water management - a major concern because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall to run off quickly |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% | black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian |
Exchange rates | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 127.11 (January 2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (1998), 106.11 (1997), 93.00 (1996); note - linked at the rate of 119.25 XPF to the euro | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001)
note: fixed rate since 1976 |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Thierry LATASTE (since 19 July 1999) head of government: President of the Government Jean LEQUES (since 28 May 1999) cabinet: Consultative Committee elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir James B. CARLISLE (since 10 June 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Winston Baldwin SPENCER (since 24 March 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general chosen by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
Exports | $411 million (f.o.b., 1999) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish | petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, machinery and transport equipment 17%, food and live animals 4%, other 8% |
Exports - partners | Japan 27%, France 17%, Taiwan 12%, South Korea 9% (1999) | Spain 34%, Germany 20.7%, Italy 7.7%, Singapore 5.8%, UK 4.9% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | red, with an inverted isosceles triangle based on the top edge of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands of black (top), light blue, and white, with a yellow rising sun in the black band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3 billion (1998 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
4% industry: 30% services: 66% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 3.8%
industry: 22% services: 74.3% (2002) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (1998 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (1998 est.) | 3.8% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 30 S, 165 30 E | 17 03 N, 61 48 W |
Geography - note | - | Antigua has a deeply indented shoreline with many natural harbors and beaches; Barbuda has a very large western harbor |
Heliports | 6 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
4,825 km paved: 2,287 km unpaved: 2,538 km (1999) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; more significant as an offshore financial center |
Imports | $843 million (f.o.b., 1999) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | transport equipment, machinery and electrical equipment, fuels, minerals, wine, sugar, rice | food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil |
Imports - partners | France 49%, Australia 14%, Singapore 6%, New Zealand 5%, US 5% (1999) | US 21.1%, China 16.4%, Germany 13.3%, Singapore 12.7%, Spain 6.5% (2005) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass | 1 November 1981 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.6% (1996) | 6% (1997 est.) |
Industries | nickel mining and smelting | tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances) |
Infant mortality rate | 8.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 18.86 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (1998 est.) | 0.9% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ESCAP (associate), FZ, ICFTU, SPC, WFTU, WMO | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 160 sq km (1991) | NA |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction); member Caribbean Court of Justice |
Labor force | 79,395 (including 15, 018 unemployed, 1996) | 30,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 7%, industry 23%, services 70% (1999 est.) | agriculture: 7%
industry: 11% services: 82% (1983) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 12% forests and woodland: 39% other: 49% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 18.18%
permanent crops: 4.55% other: 77.27% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects | English (official), local dialects |
Legal system | the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (54 seats; members are members of the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPCR 24, FLNKS 12, UNI 6, FCCI 4, FN 4, Alliance pour la Caledonie 3, LKS 1 note: New Caledonia elects 1 seat to the French Senate; elections last held 27 September 1992 (next to be held NA September 2001); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR 1; New Caledonia also elects 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 25 May-1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR 2 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (17-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 23 March 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ALP 4, UPP 13 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
73.02 years male: 70.08 years female: 76.11 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 72.16 years
male: 69.78 years female: 74.66 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 91% male: 92% female: 90% (1976 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling
total population: 85.8% male: NA% female: NA% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,261 GRT/1,600 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1,011 ships (1000 GRT or over) 7,452,503 GRT/9,783,309 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 40, cargo 596, chemical tanker 7, container 321, liquefied gas 11, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 21 foreign-owned: 984 (Australia 1, Bangladesh 4, Belgium 4, Colombia 2, Denmark 14, Estonia 12, France 1, Germany 858, Iceland 8, Isle of Man 2, Latvia 5, Lebanon 1, Lithuania 3, Netherlands 14, Norway 11, NZ 1, Poland 3, Russia 6, Singapore 1, Slovenia 6, Switzerland 4, Turkey 8, UK 7, US 7, Vietnam 1) (2006) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force | Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $192.3 million (1996) | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.3% (1996) | NA |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day (National Day), 1 November (1981) |
Nationality | noun:
New Caledonian(s) adjective: New Caledonian |
noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s)
adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan |
Natural hazards | cyclones, most frequent from November to March | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts |
Natural resources | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper | NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -6.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance pour la Caledonie [Didier LEROUX]; Developper Ensemble pour Construire l'Avenir or DEPCA [Robert FROUIN]; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Leopald SOREDIE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Groupe de l'Alliance Multiraciale or GAM [Dany DALMAYRAE]; Independance et Progres [Alphonse PUJAPUJANE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS [Rock WAMYTAN] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); La Caledonie Autrement [Denis MILLIARD]; Loyalty Islands Development Front or FDIL [Cono HAMU]; National Front or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Charles WASHETINE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic or RPCR [Jacques LAFLEUR]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [leader NA]; Renouveau [Thierry VALET]; Socialist Kanak Liberation or LKS [Nidoish NAISSELINE]; Union Caledonienne or UC [Bernard LEPEU]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Andre GOPEA] | Antigua Labor Party or ALP [Lester Bryant BIRD]; Barbuda People's Movement or BPM [Thomas H. FRANK]; National Democratic Congress [Tillman THOMAS]; United Progressive Party or UPP [Baldwin SPENCER] (a coalition of three opposition parties - Antigua Caribbean Liberation Movement or ACLM, Progressive Labor Movement or PLM, United National Democratic Party or UNDP) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Antigua Trades and Labor Union or ATLU [William ROBINSON]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh MARSHALL] |
Population | 204,863 (July 2001 est.) | 69,108 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.48% (2001 est.) | 0.55% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mueo, Noumea, Thio | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 107,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% | Christian (predominantly Anglican with other Protestant, and some Roman Catholic) |
Sex ratio | 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: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: good automatic telephone system international: country code - 1-268; 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 2; tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands Antilles) and Guadeloupe |
Telephones - main lines in use | 47,000 (1997) | 38,000 (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 13,040 (1998) | 54,000 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | coastal plains with interior mountains | mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas |
Total fertility rate | 2.48 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.24 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 19% (1996) | 11% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |