Compare Pacific Ocean (2008) - Reunion (2006)

Compare Pacific Ocean (2008) z Reunion (2006)

	Pacific Ocean (2008)	Reunion (2006)

Administrative divisions	-	none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 29.8% (male 120,147/female 114,589) 15-64 years: 64% (male 248,895/female 255,156) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 19,847/female 28,950) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn
Airports	-	2 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	-	total: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
Area	total: 155.557 million sq km note: includes Bali Sea, Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Gulf of Tonkin, Philippine Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, South China Sea, Tasman Sea, and other tributary water bodies	total: 2,517 sq km land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km
Area - comparative	about 15 times the size of the US; covers about 28% of the global surface; larger than the total land area of the world	slightly smaller than Rhode Island
Background	The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the world's five oceans (followed by the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean). Strategically important access waterways include the La Perouse, Tsugaru, Tsushima, Taiwan, Singapore, and Torres Straits. The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Pacific Ocean south of 60 degrees south.	The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route.
Birth rate	-	18.9 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $554.7 million expenditures: $554.7 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (1998)
Capital	-	name: Saint-Denis geographic coordinates: 20 52 S, 55 28 E time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	planetary air pressure systems and resultant wind patterns exhibit remarkable uniformity in the south and east; trade winds and westerly winds are well-developed patterns, modified by seasonal fluctuations; tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico from June to October and affect Mexico and Central America; continental influences cause climatic uniformity to be much less pronounced in the eastern and western regions at the same latitude in the North Pacific Ocean; the western Pacific is monsoonal - a rainy season occurs during the summer months, when moisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a dry season during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asian landmass back to the ocean; tropical cyclones (typhoons) may strike southeast and east Asia from May to December	tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry (May to November), hot and rainy (November to April)
Coastline	135,663 km	207 km
Constitution	-	4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
Country name	-	conventional long form: Department of Reunion conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon Island
Death rate	-	5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	-	$NA
Dependency status	-	overseas department of France
Diplomatic representation from the US	-	none (overseas department of France)
Diplomatic representation in the US	-	none (overseas department of France)
Disputes - international	some maritime disputes (see littoral states)	none
Economic aid - recipient	-	$NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.)
Economy - overview	The Pacific Ocean is a major contributor to the world economy and particularly to those nations its waters directly touch. It provides low-cost sea transportation between East and West, extensive fishing grounds, offshore oil and gas fields, minerals, and sand and gravel for the construction industry. In 1996, over 60% of the world's fish catch came from the Pacific Ocean. Exploitation of offshore oil and gas reserves is playing an ever-increasing role in the energy supplies of the US, Australia, NZ, China, and Peru. The high cost of recovering offshore oil and gas, combined with the wide swings in world prices for oil since 1985, has led to fluctuations in new drillings.	The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrated the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France.
Electricity - consumption	-	1.107 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	-	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	-	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	-	1.19 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench -10,924 m highest point: sea level 0 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m
Environment - current issues	endangered marine species include the dugong, sea lion, sea otter, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in Philippine Sea and South China Sea	NA
Ethnic groups	-	French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian
Exchange rates	-	euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
Executive branch	-	chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Pierre-Henry MACCIONI (since 28 August 2006) head of government: President of the General Council Nassimah DINDAR (since NA March 2004) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) 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 the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils
Exports	-	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	-	sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%
Exports - partners	-	France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2004)
Fiscal year	-	calendar year
Flag description	-	unofficial, local flag designed to emphasize solidarity among the people of Reunion; the field is divided vertically with three narrow stripes of blue, white, and red along the hoist edge representing the French national flag; the remainder of the field is divided diagonally into four triangles colored (clockwise from the hoist side) blue, golden yellow, red, and green; in the center, the apexes of the triangles are surmounted by a white disk; the only official flag is the national flag of France
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 8% industry: 19% services: 73% (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	2.5% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	0 00 N, 160 00 W	21 06 S, 55 36 E
Geography - note	the major chokepoints are the Bering Strait, Panama Canal, Luzon Strait, and the Singapore Strait; the Equator divides the Pacific Ocean into the North Pacific Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean; dotted with low coral islands and rugged volcanic islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean	this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean
Household income or consumption by percentage share	-	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Imports	-	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	-	manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products
Imports - partners	-	France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2004)
Independence	-	none (overseas department of France)
Industrial production growth rate	-	NA%
Industries	-	sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction
Infant mortality rate	-	total: 7.63 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.37 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	NA%
International organization participation	-	InOC, UPU, WFTU
Irrigated land	-	120 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	-	Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel
Labor force	-	299,000 (2002)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture: 13% industry: 12% services: 75% (2000)
Land boundaries	-	0 km
Land use	-	arable land: 13.94% permanent crops: 1.59% other: 84.47% (2005)
Languages	-	French (official), Creole widely used
Legal system	-	French law
Legislative branch	-	unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2010) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens 22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held in 2001 (next to be held in 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRC 1, UDF 1, UMP 1; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 3, PS 1, independent 1
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 74.18 years male: 70.78 years female: 77.75 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 88.9% male: 87% female: 90.8% (2003 est.)
Location	body of water between the Southern Ocean, Asia, Australia, and the Western Hemisphere	Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Map references	Political Map of the World	World
Maritime claims	-	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	-	registered in other countries: 1 (Bahamas 1) (2006)
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of France
Military branches	-	no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) (2005)
National holiday	-	Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Nationality	-	noun: Reunionese (singular and plural) adjective: Reunionese
Natural hazards	surrounded by a zone of violent volcanic and earthquake activity sometimes referred to as the "Pacific Ring of Fire"; subject to tropical cyclones (typhoons) in southeast and east Asia from May to December (most frequent from July to October); tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico and strike Central America and Mexico from June to October (most common in August and September); cyclical El Nino/La Nina phenomenon occurs in the equatorial Pacific, influencing weather in the Western Hemisphere and the western Pacific; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme north from October to May; persistent fog in the northern Pacific can be a maritime hazard from June to December	periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano
Natural resources	oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, fish	fish, arable land, hydropower
Net migration rate	-	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Political parties and leaders	-	Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Elie HOARAU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Michel VERGOZ]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	NA
Population	-	787,584 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	NA%
Population growth rate	-	1.34% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	-	AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001)
Religions	-	Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995)
Sex ratio	-	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	-	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	-	general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
Telephones - main lines in use	-	300,000 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	579,200 (2004)
Television broadcast stations	-	35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001)
Terrain	surface currents in the northern Pacific are dominated by a clockwise, warm-water gyre (broad circular system of currents) and in the southern Pacific by a counterclockwise, cool-water gyre; in the northern Pacific, sea ice forms in the Bering Sea and Sea of Okhotsk in winter; in the southern Pacific, sea ice from Antarctica reaches its northernmost extent in October; the ocean floor in the eastern Pacific is dominated by the East Pacific Rise, while the western Pacific is dissected by deep trenches, including the Mariana Trench, which is the world's deepest	mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast
Total fertility rate	-	2.45 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Transportation - note	Inside Passage offers protected waters from southeast Alaska to Puget Sound (Washington state)	-
Unemployment rate	-	31% (2002)

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