Reunion (2006) | French Guiana (2001) | |
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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 (overseas department of France) |
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.) |
0-14 years:
30.47% (male 27,669; female 26,428) 15-64 years: 64.05% (male 61,457; female 52,266) 65 years and over: 5.48% (male 4,937; female 4,805) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn | rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 2 (2006) | 11 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total:
91,000 sq km land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Rhode Island | slightly smaller than Indiana |
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. | First settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of notorious penal settlements until 1951. The European Space Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou. |
Birth rate | 18.9 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 22.02 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $554.7 million
expenditures: $554.7 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (1998) |
revenues:
$225 million expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
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) |
Cayenne |
Climate | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry (May to November), hot and rainy (November to April) | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 207 km | 378 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | 28 September 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 |
conventional long form:
Department of Guiana conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
Currency | - | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 4.77 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $1.2 billion (1988) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | none | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.) | $NA |
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 illustrated the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. | The economy is tied closely to that of France through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou, fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry which provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.107 billion kWh (2003) | 409.2 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.19 billion kWh (2003) | 440 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Ethnic groups | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) | Euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997), 5.1155 (1996) |
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 |
chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Dominique VIAN (since NA January 1997) head of government: President of the General Council Andre LECANTE (since NA March 1998); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; presidents of the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members of those councils |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $155 million (f.o.b., 1997) |
Exports - commodities | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3% | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing |
Exports - partners | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2004) | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (1997) |
Fiscal year | calendar 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 | the flag of France is used |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1 billion (1998 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 - $6,000 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 21 06 S, 55 36 E | 4 00 N, 53 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 | mostly an unsettled wilderness |
Highways | - | total:
1,817 km paved: 817 km unpaved: 1,000 km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $625 million (c.i.f., 1997) |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals |
Imports - partners | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2004) | France 52%, US 14%, Trinidad and Tobago 6% (1997) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining |
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.) |
13.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 2.5% (1992) |
International organization participation | InOC, UPU, WFTU | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 120 sq km (2003) | 20 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana) |
Labor force | 299,000 (2002) | 58,800 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 13%
industry: 12% services: 75% (2000) |
services, government, and commerce 60.6%, industry 21.2%, agriculture 18.2% (1980) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
1,183 km border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
Land use | arable land: 13.94%
permanent crops: 1.59% other: 84.47% (2005) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 90% other: 10% (1996 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Creole widely used | French |
Legal system | French law | French legal system |
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 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); 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 - NA; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - PS 28.28%, various left parties 22.56%, RPR 15.91%, independents 8.6%, Walwari Committee 6%; seats by party - PS 11, various left parties 9, RPR 6, independents 3, Walwari Committee 2 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; 2 seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 25 May - 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR 1, PSG 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.18 years
male: 70.78 years female: 77.75 years (2006 est.) |
total population:
76.3 years male: 72.97 years female: 79.79 years (2001 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: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname |
Map references | World | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | registered in other countries: 1 (Bahamas 1) (2006) | none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) (2005) | French Forces, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
49,495 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
32,052 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
noun:
French Guianese (singular and plural) adjective: French Guianese |
Natural hazards | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding |
Natural resources | fish, arable land, hydropower | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 10.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 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 | Guianese Socialist Party or PSG [Antoine KARAM]; Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Roland HO-WEN-SZE]; Socialist Party or PS [Pierre RIBARDIERE] (may be a subset of PSG); Walwari Committee [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 787,584 (July 2006 est.) | 177,562 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.34% (2006 est.) | 2.74% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) |
Radios | - | 104,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km (1995) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) | Roman Catholic |
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.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.18 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.13 male(s)/female (2001 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: 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 |
general assessment:
NA domestic: fair open wire and microwave radio relay system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 300,000 (2001) | 47,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 579,200 (2004) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.45 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 3.17 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 31% (2002) | 21.4% (1998) |
Waterways | - | 3,300 km navigable by native craft
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers |