Compare Saint Martin (2007) - Christmas Island (2008)

Compare Saint Martin (2007) z Christmas Island (2008)

	Saint Martin (2007)	Christmas Island (2008)

Administrative divisions	-	none (territory of Australia)
Age structure	-	0-14 years: NA 15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA
Agriculture - products	-	NA
Airports	1	1 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)
Area	total: 54.4 sq km land: 54.4 sq km water: NEGL	total: 135 sq km land: 135 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	more than one-third the size of Washington, DC	about three-quarters the size of Washington, DC
Background	Although sighted by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1493 and claimed for Spain, it was the Dutch who occupied the island in 1631 and set about exploiting its salt deposits. The Spanish retook the island in 1633, but continued to be harassed by the Dutch. The Spanish finally relinquished St. Martin to the French and Dutch, who divided it amongst themselves in 1648. The cultivation of sugar cane introduced slavery to the island in the late 18th century; the practice was not abolished until 1848. The island became a free port in 1939; the tourism industry was dramatically expanded during the 1970s and 1980s. In 2003, the populace of St. Martin voted to secede from Guadeloupe and in 2007, the northern portion of the island became a French overseas collectivity.	Named in 1643 for the day of its discovery, the island was annexed and settlement began by the UK in 1888. Phosphate mining began in the 1890s. The UK transferred sovereignty to Australia in 1958. Almost two-thirds of the island has been declared a national park.
Birth rate	-	NA
Budget	-	revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA
Capital	name: Marigot geographical coordinates: 18 04 N, 63 05 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time) daylight savings: +1 hour	name: The Settlement geographic coordinates: 10 25 S, 105 43 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	temperature averages 80-85 degrees all year long; low humidity, gentle trade winds, brief, intense rain showers; July-Novemeber is the hurricane season	tropical with a wet season (December to April) and dry season; heat and humidity moderated by trade winds
Coastline	58.9 km (for entire island)	138.9 km
Constitution	4 October 1958 (French Constitution)	Christmas Island Act of 1958-59 (1 October 1958) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992
Country name	conventional long form: Overseas Collectivity of Saint Martin conventional short form: Saint Martin local long form: Collectivity d'outre mer de Saint-Martin local short form: Saint-Martin	conventional long form: Territory of Christmas Island conventional short form: Christmas Island
Death rate	-	NA
Dependency status	-	non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Attorney-General's Department
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas collectivity of France)	none (territory of Australia)
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (overseas collectivity of France)	none (territory of Australia)
Disputes - international	-	none
Economic aid - recipient	-	$NA
Economy - overview	The economy of Saint Martin centers around tourism with 85% of the labor force engaged in this sector. Over one million visitors come to the island each year with most arriving through the Princess Juliana International Airport in Sint Maarten. No significant agriculture and limited local fishing means that almost all food must be imported. Energy resources and manufactured goods are also imported, primarily from Mexico and the United States. Saint Martin is reported to have the highest per capita income in the Caribbean.	Phosphate mining had been the only significant economic activity, but in December 1987 the Australian Government closed the mine. In 1991, the mine was reopened. With the support of the government, a $34 million casino opened in 1993, but closed in 1998. The Australian Government in 2001 agreed to support the creation of a commercial space-launching site on the island, expected to begin operations in the near future.
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Ocean 0 m highest point: Pic du Paradis 424 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Murray Hill 361 m
Environment - current issues	fresh water supply is dependent on desalinization of sea water	loss of rainforest; impact of phosphate mining
Ethnic groups	creole (mulatto), black, Guadeloupe Mestizo (French-East Asia), white, East Indian	Chinese 70%, European 20%, Malay 10% note: no indigenous population (2001)
Exchange rates	euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002)	Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.2137 (2007), 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Nicolas SARKOZY (since 16 May 2007), represented by Prefect Dominique LACROIX (since 21 March 2007) head of government: President of the Territorial Council Louis-Constant FLEMING (since 16 July 2007) cabinet: Executive Council; note - there is also an advisory economic, social, and cultural council election: French president elected by popular vote to a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the Territorial Council is elected by the members of the Council for a five-year term election results: Louis-Constant FLEMING unanimously elected president by the Territorial Council on 16 July 2007	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general head of government: Administrator Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia
Exports	-	$NA
Exports - commodities	-	phosphate
Exports - partners	-	Australia, NZ (2006)
Fiscal year	-	1 July - 30 June
Flag description	the flag of France is used	territorial flag; divided diagonally from upper hoist to lower fly; the upper triangle is green with a yellow image of the Golden Bosun Bird superimposed, while the lower triangle is blue with the Southern Cross constellation, representing Australia, superimposed; a centered yellow disk displays a green map of the island note: the flag of Australia is used for official purposes
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1% industry: 15% services: 84% (2000)	-
Geographic coordinates	18 05 N, 63 57 W	10 30 S, 105 40 E
Geography - note	the island of Saint Martin is the smallest landmass in the World shared by two independent states, the French territory of Saint Martin and the Dutch territory of Sint Maarten	located along major sea lanes of Indian Ocean
Imports	-	$NA
Imports - commodities	crude petroleum, food, manufactured items	consumer goods
Imports - partners	US, Mexico (2006)	principally Australia (2006)
Independence	none (overseas collectivity of France)	none (territory of Australia)
Industries	tourism, light industry and manufacturing, heavy industry	tourism, phosphate extraction (near depletion)
Infant mortality rate	-	total: NA male: NA female: NA
International organization participation	UPU	none
Irrigated land	-	NA
Judicial branch	-	Supreme Court; District Court; Magistrate's Court
Labor force	-	NA
Labor force - by occupation	85% directly or indirectly employed in tourist industry	-
Land boundaries	total: 15 km border countries: Netherlands Antilles (Sint Maarten) 15 km	0 km
Land use	-	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (mainly tropical rainforest; 63% of the island is a national park) (2005)
Languages	French (official language), English, Dutch, French Patois, Spanish, Papiamento (dialect of Netherlands Antilles)	English (official), Chinese, Malay
Legal system	the laws of France, where applicable, apply	under the authority of the governor general of Australia and Australian law
Legislative branch	unicameral Territorial Council (23 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 1 and 8 July 2007 (next to be held July 2012) election results: percent of seats by party - UPP 49%, RRR 42.2%, Reussir Saint-Martin 8.9%; seats by party - UPP 16, RRR 6, Reussir Saint-Martin 1	unicameral Christmas Island Shire Council (9 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held 20 October 2007 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 9
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: NA male: NA female: NA
Literacy	-	NA
Location	island 300 km southeast of Puerto Rico	Southeastern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of Indonesia
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	-	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of France	defense is the responsibility of Australia
National holiday	Bastille Day, 14 July (1789); note - local holiday is Schoalcher Day (Slavery Abolition Day) 12 July (1848)	Australia Day, 26 January (1788)
Nationality	-	noun: Christmas Islander(s) adjective: Christmas Island
Natural hazards	-	the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard
Natural resources	salt	phosphate, beaches
Net migration rate	-	NA
Political parties and leaders	Union Pour le Progres or UPP [Louis Constant FLEMING]; Rassemblement Responsabilite Reussite or RRR [Alain RICHARDSON]; Reussir Saint-Martin [Jean-Luc HAMLET]	none
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	none
Population	33,102 (October 2004 census)	1,402 (July 2006 est.) (July 2007 est.)
Population growth rate	-	0% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	FM 3 (2007)	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2006)
Religions	Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witness, Protestant, Hindu	Buddhist 36%, Muslim 25%, Christian 18%, other 21% (1997)
Sex ratio	-	NA
Suffrage	18 years of age, universal	-
Telephone system	general assessment: fully integrated access domestic: direct dial capability with both fixed and wireless systems international: country code - 590; undersea fiber-optic cable provides voice and data connectivity to Puerto Rico and Gudaloupe	general assessment: service provided by the Australian network domestic: GSM mobile telephone service replaced older analog system in February 2005 international: country code - 61-8; satellite earth stations - 1 INTELSAT earth station provides telephone and telex service (2005)
Telephones - main lines in use	-	NA
Television broadcast stations	-	0 (TV broadcasts received via satellite from mainland Australia) (2006)
Terrain	-	steep cliffs along coast rise abruptly to central plateau
Total fertility rate	-	NA
Transportation - note	nearest airport for international flights is Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) located in Sint Maarten	-

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