Reunion (2003) | American Samoa (2003) | |
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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 | none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three districts and two islands* at the second order; Eastern, Manu'a, Rose Island*, Swains Island*, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.3% (male 121,119; female 115,501)
15-64 years: 62.8% (male 233,607; female 240,502) 65 years and over: 5.9% (male 18,036; female 26,406) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 37.5% (male 13,557; female 12,818)
15-64 years: 57% (male 19,712; female 20,346) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 2,081; female 1,746) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, taro, breadfruit, yams, copra, pineapples, papayas; dairy products, livestock |
Airports | 2 (2002) | 3 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total: 199 sq km
land: 199 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Rose Island and Swains Island |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Rhode Island | slightly larger than Washington, DC |
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. | Settled as early as 1000 B.C., Samoa was "discovered" by European explorers in the 18th century. International rivalries in the latter half of the 19th century were settled by an 1899 treaty in which Germany and the US divided the Samoan archipelago. The US formally occupied its portion - a smaller group of eastern islands with the excellent harbor of Pago Pago - the following year. |
Birth rate | 20.17 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 23.26 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.26 billion
expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998) |
revenues: $121 million (37% in local revenue and 63% in US grants)
expenditures: $127 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY96/97) |
Capital | Saint-Denis | Pago Pago |
Climate | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April | tropical marine, moderated by southeast trade winds; annual rainfall averages about 3 m; rainy season from November to April, dry season from May to October; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 207 km | 116 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | ratified 1966, in effect 1967 |
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: Territory of American Samoa
conventional short form: American Samoa abbreviation: AS |
Currency | euro (EUR) | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 4.38 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $NA |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | unincorporated and unorganized territory of the US; administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | none (territory of the US) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | none (territory of the US) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France | important financial support from the US, more than $40 million in 1994 |
Economy - overview | 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 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. | This is a traditional Polynesian economy in which more than 90% of the land is communally owned. Economic activity is strongly linked to the US, with which American Samoa conducts most of its foreign trade. Tuna fishing and tuna processing plants are the backbone of the private sector, with canned tuna the primary export. Transfers from the US Government add substantially to American Samoa's economic well-being. Attempts by the government to develop a larger and broader economy are restrained by Samoa's remote location, its limited transportation, and its devastating hurricanes. Tourism, a developing sector, has been held back by the recurring financial difficulties in East Asia. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.005 billion kWh (2001) | 120.9 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.08 billion kWh (2001) | 130 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 55.5%
hydro: 44.5% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Lata 966 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | limited natural fresh water resources; the water division of the government has spent substantial funds in the past few years to improve water catchments and pipelines |
Ethnic groups | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian | Samoan (Polynesian) 89%, Caucasian 2%, Tongan 4%, other 5% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.06 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998) | the US dollar is used |
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: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001) and Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Togiola TULAFONO (since 7 April 2003) following the death of Governor Tauese P. SUNIA on 26 March 2003; TULAFONO had been the Lieutenant Governor cabinet: NA elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: Tauese P. SUNIA reelected governor; percent of vote - Tauese P. SUNIA (Democrat) 50.7%, Lealaifuaneva Peter REID (independent) 47.8% note: Togiola TULAFONO became acting governor 26 March 2003 upon the death of Governor Tauese P. SUNIA |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993) | canned tuna 93% |
Exports - partners | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2000) | Indonesia 71.1%, Japan 7.7%, Samoa 7.7%, Australia 6.7% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | blue, with a white triangle edged in red that is based on the outer side and extends to the hoist side; a brown and white American bald eagle flying toward the hoist side is carrying two traditional Samoan symbols of authority, a staff and a war club |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.174 billion (1999 est.) | purchasing power parity - $500 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8%
industry: 19% services: 73% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,600 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 21 06 S, 55 36 E | 14 20 S, 170 00 W |
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 | Pago Pago has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered by shape from rough seas and protected by peripheral mountains from high winds; strategic location in the South Pacific Ocean |
Highways | total: 2,724 km
paved: 1,300 km (including 73 km of four-lane road) unpaved: 1,424 km (1994) |
total: 350 km
paved: 150 km unpaved: 200 km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products | materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum products 7%, machinery and parts 6% |
Imports - partners | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2000) | Australia 41%, New Zealand 23%, South Korea 18% (2002) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | none (territory of the US) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction | tuna canneries (largely supplied by foreign fishing vessels), handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | total: 8.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 9.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 11.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.93 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | NA% |
International organization participation | FZ, InOC, WFTU | ESCAP (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, SPC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 120 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel | High Court (chief justice and associate justices are appointed by the US Secretary of the Interior) |
Labor force | 309,900 (2000) | 14,000 (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 13%, industry 12%, services 75% (2000) | government 33%, tuna canneries 34%, other 33% (1990) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 13.2%
permanent crops: 2% other: 84.8% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 5%
permanent crops: 10% other: 85% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Creole widely used | Samoan (closely related to Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages), English
note: most people are bilingual |
Legal system | French law | NA |
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 Fono or Legislative Assembly consists of the House of Representatives (21 seats - 20 of which are elected by popular vote and 1 is an appointed, nonvoting delegate from Swains Island; members serve two-year terms) and the Senate (18 seats; members are elected from local chiefs and serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 7 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004); Senate - last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - independents 18 note: American Samoa elects one nonvoting representative to the US House of Representatives; election last held 7 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004); results - Eni F. H. FALEOMAVAEGA (Democrat) reelected as delegate |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.43 years
male: 70.03 years female: 77 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 75.75 years
male: 71.35 years female: 80.41 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88.9% male: 87% female: 90.8% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 98% female: 97% (1980 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and New Zealand |
Map references | World | Oceania |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | defense is the responsibility of the US |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 198,341 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 101,116 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 6,795 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Flag Day, 17 April (1900) |
Nationality | noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
noun: American Samoan(s)
adjective: American Samoan |
Natural hazards | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano | typhoons common from December to March |
Natural resources | fish, arable land, hydropower | pumice, pumicite |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 3.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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] | Democratic Party [leader NA]; Republican Party [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 755,171 (July 2003 est.) | 70,260 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.47% (2003 est.) | 2.22% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Le Port, Pointe des Galets | Aunu'u (new construction), Auasi, Faleosao, Ofu, Pago Pago, Ta'u |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) | Christian Congregationalist 50%, Roman Catholic 20%, Protestant and other 30% |
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 (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.19 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 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: radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: good telex, telegraph, facsimile and cellular telephone services; domestic satellite system with 1 Comsat earth station international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 268,500 (1999) | 13,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 197,000 (September 2000) | 2,550 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast | five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island) |
Total fertility rate | 2.53 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.3 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 36% (1999 est.) | 6% (2000) |
Waterways | none | none |