Reunion (2002) | Oman (2004) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
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 | 5 regions (manaatiq, singular - mintaqat) and 3 governorates* (muhaafazaat, singular - muhaafaza) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al Batinah, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat*, Musandam*, Zufar* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.7% (male 120,864; female 115,251)
15-64 years: 62.5% (male 228,864; female 235,991) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 17,459; female 25,552) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.4% (male 628,078; female 603,829)
15-64 years: 55.1% (male 955,765; female 643,687) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 38,761; female 33,045) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn | dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish |
Airports | 2 (2001) | 135 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 6
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 130
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 52 914 to 1,523 m: 34 under 914 m: 35 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total: 212,460 sq km
land: 212,460 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Rhode Island | slightly smaller than Kansas |
Background | 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. | In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al Said ousted his father and has ruled as sultan ever since. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world and has preserved a long-standing political and military relationship with the UK. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries. |
Birth rate | 20.7 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 37.12 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $8.218 billion
expenditures: $7.766 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | Saint-Denis | Muscat |
Climate | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April | dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south |
Coastline | 207 km | 2,092 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a basic law considered by the government to be a constitution which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens |
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 |
conventional long form: Sultanate of Oman
conventional short form: Oman local long form: Saltanat Uman local short form: Uman former: Muscat and Oman |
Currency | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) | Omani rial (OMR) |
Death rate | 5.51 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 3.91 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $5.973 billion (2003 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Richard Lewis BALTIMORE III
embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat mailing address: P. O. Box 202, P.C. 115, Madinat Al-Sultan Qaboos, Muscat telephone: [968] 24-698989 FAX: [968] 24-699771 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Muhammad bin Ali bin Thani al-KHUSSAIBY
chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1981, 1988 FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933 |
Disputes - international | none | boundary agreement signed and ratified with UAE in 2003 for entire border, including Oman's Musandam Peninsula and Al Madhah enclaves |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France | $76.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture. 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 more than 40% 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 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. | Oman is a small, well-off middle Eastern economy with large oil and gas resources, a substantial trade surplus, and low inflation. The government is moving ahead with privatization of its utilities, the development of a body of commercial law to facilitate foreign investment, and increased budgetary outlays. Oman continues to liberalize its markets and joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in November 2000. In order to reduce unemployment and limit dependence on foreign countries, the government is encouraging the replacement of expatriate workers with local people, i.e., the process of Omanization. Training in information technology, business management, and English support this objective. Industrial development plans focus on gas resources. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.014 billion kWh (2000) | 8.625 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.09 billion kWh (2000) | 9.274 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 55%
hydro: 45% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, 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 | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian | Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997) | Omani rials per US dollar - 0.3845 (2003), 0.3845 (2002), 0.3845 (2001), 0.3845 (2000), 0.3845 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Gonthier FRIEDERICI (since NA)
head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) 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 |
chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
Exports | $214 million f.o.b. (1997) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993) | petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles |
Exports - partners | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (1994) | South Korea 18.7%, China 18.5%, Japan 16.2%, Thailand 12.2%, UAE 7.8%, Iran 4.1% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | three horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered near the top of the vertical band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.4 billion (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $36.7 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 3.1%
industry: 42.1% services: 54.8% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $13,100 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.8% (1998 est.) | 1.1% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 06 S, 55 36 E | 21 00 N, 57 00 E |
Geography - note | 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 | strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil |
Heliports | - | 1 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total: 2,724 km
paved: 1,300 km (including 73 km of four-lane road) unpaved: 1,424 km note: 370 km of road are maintained by national authorities, 754 km by departmental authorities and 1,600 km by local authorities (1994) |
total: 34,965 km
paved: 9,673 km (including 550 km of expressways) unpaved: 25,292 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | $2.5 billion c.i.f. (1997) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants |
Imports - partners | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (1994) | UAE 21.6%, Japan 17.1%, US 6.2%, UK 5.6%, Germany 4.4%, India 4.4% (2003) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 0.2% (2003 est.) |
Industries | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction | crude oil production and refining, natural gas production, construction, cement, copper |
Infant mortality rate | 8.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 20.26 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.18 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | -0.3% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, InOC, WFTU | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 120 sq km (1998 est.) | 620 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court
note: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, has judges who practice secular and Sharia (Islamic) law |
Labor force | 261,000 (1995) (1995) | 920,000 (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 8%, industry 19%, services 73% (1990) (1990) | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,374 km
border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km |
Land use | arable land: 13.2%
permanent crops: 2% other: 84.8% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0.12%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 99.74% (2001) |
Languages | French (official), Creole widely used | Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects |
Legal system | French law | based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to the monarch; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 2004); Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) 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 - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 19, UDF 9, RPR 8, various right-wing candidates 4, various left-wing candidates 5 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1 |
bicameral Majlis Oman consists of an upper chamber or Majlis al-Dawla (58 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory powers only) and a lower chamber or Majlis al-Shura (83 seats; members elected by universal suffrage for four-year term; body has some limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory powers)
elections: last held 4 October 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.18 years
male: 69.78 years female: 76.74 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 72.85 years
male: 70.66 years female: 75.16 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 79% male: 76% female: 80% (1982 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: 75.8% male: 83.1% female: 67.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar | Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE |
Map references | World | Middle East |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT
ships by type: chemical tanker 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: France 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 15,430 GRT/6,360 DWT
by type: passenger 2 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) | Royal Omani Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $242.07 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 11.4% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 194,485 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 796,792 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 99,251 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 443,006 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 6,243 (2002 est.) | males: 31,274 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Birthday of Sultan QABOOS, 18 November (1940) |
Nationality | noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
noun: Omani(s)
adjective: Omani |
Natural hazards | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano | summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | fish, arable land, hydropower | petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 3,754 km; oil 3,212 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 743,981 (July 2002 est.) | 2,903,165
note: includes 577,293 non-nationals (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.52% (2002 est.) | 3.35% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Le Port, Pointe des Galets | Matrah, Mina' al Fahl, Mina' Raysut |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Radios | 173,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) | Ibadhi Muslim 75%, Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.49 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.17 male(s)/female total population: 1.27 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | in Oman's most recent Majlis al-Shura elections in 2003, suffrage was universal for all Omanis over age 21 except for members of the military and security forces; the next Majlis al-Shura elections are scheduled for 2007 |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
domestic: modern open wire and microwave radio relay network international: radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: modern system consisting of open-wire, microwave, and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable
domestic: open-wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations international: country code - 968; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 268,500 (1999) | 233,900 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 197,000 (September 2000) | 464,900 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) | 13 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1999) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast | central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south |
Total fertility rate | 2.55 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 5.9 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 42.8% (1998) (1998) | NA |
Waterways | none | - |