New Caledonia (2003) | Jamaica (2002) | |
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 | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 29.7% (male 31,990; female 30,695)
15-64 years: 64.2% (male 68,093; female 67,205) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 6,016; female 6,799) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.1% (male 399,249; female 380,864)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 858,433; female 859,174) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 81,321; female 100,988) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk |
Airports | 30 (2002) | 35 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 21
914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2002) |
Area | total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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. | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a dropoff in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Subsequent governments have been open market oriented. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. |
Birth rate | 19.45 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 17.74 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $861.3 million
expenditures: $735.3 million, including capital expenditures of $52 million (1996 est.) |
revenues: $2.23 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million |
Capital | Noumea | Kingston |
Climate | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior |
Coastline | 2,254 km | 1,022 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 6 August 1962 |
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: Jamaica |
Currency | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF); note - may adopt the euro in 2003 | Jamaican dollar (JMD) |
Death rate | 5.63 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 5.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $79 million (1998 est.) | $5.2 billion (2001 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of France since 1956 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Sue McCourt COBB
embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 926-6743 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Seymour MULLINGS
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
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 | $102.7 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, substantial financial support from France - equal to more than one-fourth of GDP - and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. Substantial new investment in the nickel industry, combined with the recovery of global nickel prices, brightens the economic outlook for the next several years. | The economy, which depends heavily on tourism and bauxite, has been stagnant since 1995. After five years of recession, the economy grew 0.8% in 2000 and 1.1% in 2001, but the global economic slowdown, particularly in the United States after the 11 September terrorist attacks, has stunted the economic recovery. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including a mounting crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.5 billion kWh (2001) | 6.27 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 1.613 billion kWh (2001) | 6.74 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 76.3%
hydro: 23.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 89%
hydro: 3% nuclear: 0% other: 7% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
Environment - current issues | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
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 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% |
Exchange rates | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 135.04 (January 2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (1998) | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 47.277 (December 2001), 45.996 (2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044 (1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Daniel CONSTANTIN (since 3 July 2002)
head of government: President of the Government Pierre FROGIER (since 5 April 2001) cabinet: Consultative Committee elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-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; note - last election held 28 November 2002 when Pierre FROGIER was reelected |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA 1993) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister |
Exports | NA (2001) | $1.6 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish | alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum |
Exports - partners | Japan 20.6%, France 20.4%, Taiwan 16.3%, South Africa 11.3%, Spain 7.7%, South Korea 5.4%, Australia 5.4%, Italy 5.3% (2002) | US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.9%, UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9.8 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 5%
industry: 30% services: 65% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 7%
industry: 28% services: 65% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $14,000 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 1.1% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 30 S, 165 30 E | 18 15 N, 77 30 W |
Geography - note | consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal |
Heliports | 5 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 4,825 km
paved: 2,287 km unpaved: 2,538 km (1999) |
total: 19,000 km
paved: 13,433 km unpaved: 5,567 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 29% (1996) (1996) |
Illicit drugs | - | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions |
Imports | NA (2001) | $3.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs | machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers |
Imports - partners | France 52.8%, Australia 12.7%, Singapore 9.8% (2002) | US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%, Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding UK) 4.7% (1999) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014 | 6 August 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.6% (1996) | -2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | nickel mining and smelting | tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products |
Infant mortality rate | total: 8.06 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.76 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
13.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.6% (2000 est.) | 6.9% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ESCAP (associate), FZ, ICFTU, SPC, WFTU, WMO | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 21 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 160 sq km (1991) | 250 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 79,395 (including 15,018 unemployed, 1996) | 1.13 million (1998) (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 7%, industry 23%, services 70% (1999 est.) | services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998) (1998) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.38%
permanent crops: 0.33% other: 99.29% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 16.07%
permanent crops: 9.23% other: 74.7% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects | English, patois English |
Legal system | the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 24 September 2001 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; New Caledonia also elects 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 and 16 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP 2 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 16 October 2002 (next to be held NA October 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 52%, JLP 47.3%; seats by party - PNP 34, JLP 26 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.52 years
male: 70.57 years female: 76.62 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 75.64 years
male: 73.65 years female: 77.73 years (2002 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 ever attended school
total population: 85% male: 80.8% female: 89.1% (1995 est.) |
Location | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,261 GRT/1,600 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Malaysia 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 21,954 GRT/25,250 DWT
ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Latvia 2, United States 2 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force | Jamaica Defense Force (including Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $192.3 million (FY96) | $30 million (FY95/96 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.3% (FY96) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 747,043 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 523,550 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 27,729 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) |
Nationality | noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican |
Natural hazards | cyclones, most frequent from November to March | hurricanes (especially July to November) |
Natural resources | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper | bauxite, gypsum, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -6.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 10 km |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Francois BURCK]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS [leader NA] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independent) or RPCR [Jacques LAFLEUR]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO] | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) |
Population | 210,798 (July 2003 est.) | 2,680,029 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 34% (1992 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.38% (2003 est.) | 0.56% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mueo, Noumea, Thio | Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 1.215 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 272 km
standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km, belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation, were in common carrier service but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite (2000) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other, including some spiritual cults 34.7% |
Sex ratio | 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: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2002 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: fully automatic domestic telephone network
domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 47,000 (1997) | 353,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 13,040 (1998) | 54,640 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) | 7 (1997) |
Terrain | coastal plains with interior mountains | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain |
Total fertility rate | 2.39 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.05 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 19% (1996) | 16% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |