Saint Martin (2007) | Israel (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 6 districts (mehozot, singular - mehoz); Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years:
27.36% (male 831,523; female 792,982) 15-64 years: 62.73% (male 1,869,114; female 1,855,707) 65 years and over: 9.91% (male 253,105; female 335,662) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | citrus, vegetables, cotton; beef, poultry, dairy products |
Airports | 1 | 55 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 |
total:
30 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
25 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 54.4 sq km
land: 54.4 sq km water: NEGL |
total:
20,770 sq km land: 20,330 sq km water: 440 sq km |
Area - comparative | more than one-third the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
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. | Following World War II, the British withdrew from their mandate of Palestine, and the UN partitioned the area into Arab and Jewish states, an arrangement rejected by the Arabs. Subsequently, the Israelis defeated the Arabs in a series of wars without ending the deep tensions between the two sides. The territories occupied by Israel since the 1967 war are not included in the Israel country profile, unless otherwise noted. In keeping with the framework established at the Madrid Conference in October 1991, bilateral negotiations are being conducted between Israel and Palestinian representatives (from the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip) and Israel and Syria, to achieve a permanent settlement. On 25 April 1982, Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty. Outstanding territorial and other disputes with Jordan were resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace. On 25 May 2000, Israel withdrew unilaterally from southern Lebanon, which it had occupied since 1982. |
Birth rate | - | 19.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues:
$40 billion expenditures: $42.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
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 |
Jerusalem; note - Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, but the US, like nearly all other countries, maintains its Embassy in Tel Aviv |
Climate | temperature averages 80-85 degrees all year long; low humidity, gentle trade winds, brief, intense rain showers; July-Novemeber is the hurricane season | temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas |
Coastline | 58.9 km (for entire island) | 273 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | no formal constitution; some of the functions of a constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948), the Basic Laws of the parliament (Knesset), and the Israeli citizenship law |
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:
State of Israel conventional short form: Israel local long form: Medinat Yisra'el local short form: Yisra'el |
Currency | - | new Israeli shekel (ILS) |
Death rate | - | 6.22 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $38 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas collectivity of France) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Martin S. INDYK embassy: 71 Hayarkon Street, Tel Aviv mailing address: PSC 98, Unit 7228, APO AE 09830 telephone: [972] (3) 519-7575 FAX: [972] (3) 517-3227 consulate(s) general: Jerusalem; note - an independent US mission, established in 1928, whose members are not accredited to a foreign government |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas collectivity of France) | chief of mission:
Ambassador David IVRY chancery: 3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 364-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 364-5607 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | - | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied (Lebanon claims the Shab'a Farms area of Golan Heights) |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $1.1 billion from the US (1999) |
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. | Israel has a technologically advanced market economy with substantial government participation. It depends on imports of crude oil, grains, raw materials, and military equipment. Despite limited natural resources, Israel has intensively developed its agricultural and industrial sectors over the past 20 years. Israel is largely self-sufficient in food production except for grains. Cuts diamonds, high-technology equipment, and agricultural products (fruits and vegetables) are the leading exports. Israel usually posts sizable current account deficits, which are covered by large transfer payments from abroad and by foreign loans. Roughly half of the government's external debt is owed to the US, which is its major source of economic and military aid. The influx of Jewish immigrants from the former USSR topped 750,000 during the period 1989-99, bringing the population of Israel from the former Soviet Union to 1 million, one-sixth of the total population, and adding scientific and professional expertise of substantial value for the economy's future. The influx, coupled with the opening of new markets at the end of the Cold War, energized Israel's economy, which grew rapidly in the early 1990s. But growth began moderating in 1996 when the government imposed tighter fiscal and monetary policies and the immigration bonus petered out. Growth was a strong 5.9% in 2000. But the outbreak of Palestinian unrest in late September and the collapse of the BARAK Government - coupled with a cooling off in the high-technology and tourist sectors - undercut the boom and foreshadows a slowdown to 2%-3% in 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 31.899 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | - | 1.061 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | - | 4 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | - | 35.437 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
99.89% hydro: 0.11% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pic du Paradis 424 m |
lowest point:
Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Har Meron 1,208 m |
Environment - current issues | fresh water supply is dependent on desalinization of sea water | limited arable land and natural fresh water resources pose serious constraints; desertification; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; groundwater pollution from industrial and domestic waste, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | creole (mulatto), black, Guadeloupe Mestizo (French-East Asia), white, East Indian | Jewish 80.1% (Europe/America-born 32.1%, Israel-born 20.8%, Africa-born 14.6%, Asia-born 12.6%), non-Jewish 19.9% (mostly Arab) (1996 est.) |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.0810 (December 2000), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997), 3.1917 (1996) |
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:
President Moshe KATSAV (since 31 July 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Ariel SHARON (since 2 March 2001) cabinet: Cabinet selected by prime minister and approved by the Knesset elections: president elected by the Knesset for a five-year term; election last held 31 July 2000 (next to be held NA July 2005); prime minister elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 6 February 2001 (next to be held NA 2005); note - in March 1992, the Knesset approved legislation, effective in 1996, which allowed for the direct election of the prime minister, but in 2001 the Knesset voted to restore the previous method under which the legislators will choose the next prime minister after the next legislative elections in 2003 election results: Moshe KATSAV elected president by the 120-member Knesset with a total of 60 votes, other candidate, Shimon PERES, received 57 votes (there were three abstentions); Ariel SHARON elected prime minister; percent of vote - Ariel SHARON 62.5%, Ehud BARAK 37.4%; note - after the next legislative elections scheduled for 2003, the prime minister will be elected by the Knesset |
Exports | - | $31.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | - | machinery and equipment, software, cut diamonds, agricultural products, chemicals, textiles and apparel |
Exports - partners | - | US 36%, UK 6%, Benelux 5%, Hong Kong 4%, Netherlands 4% (1999) |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | white with a blue hexagram (six-pointed linear star) known as the Magen David (Shield of David) centered between two equal horizontal blue bands near the top and bottom edges of the flag |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $110.2 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 15% services: 84% (2000) |
agriculture:
4% industry: 37% services: 59% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $18,900 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 5.9% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 05 N, 63 57 W | 31 30 N, 34 45 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 | there are 231 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank, 42 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 25 in the Gaza Strip, and 29 in East Jerusalem (August 2000 est.) |
Heliports | - | 2 (2000 est.) |
Highways | - | total:
15,965 km paved: 15,965 km (including 56 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%:
2.8% highest 10%: 26.9% (1992) |
Illicit drugs | - | increasingly concerned about cocaine and heroin abuse; drugs arrive in country from Lebanon and increasingly Jordan |
Imports | - | $35.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | crude petroleum, food, manufactured items | raw materials, military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, fuels, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | US, Mexico (2006) | US 20%, Benelux 11%, Germany 8%, UK 8%, Switzerland 6%, Italy 5% (1999) |
Independence | none (overseas collectivity of France) | 14 May 1948 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 7% (2000) |
Industries | tourism, light industry and manufacturing, heavy industry | high-technology projects (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design and manufactures, medical electronics), wood and paper products, potash and phosphates, food, beverages, and tobacco, caustic soda, cement, diamond cutting |
Infant mortality rate | - | 7.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 0.1% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU | BSEC (observer), CCC, CE (observer), CERN (observer), EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 21 (2000) |
Irrigated land | - | 1,800 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court (justices appointed for life by the president) |
Labor force | - | 2.4 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | 85% directly or indirectly employed in tourist industry | public services 31.2%, manufacturing 20.2%, finance and business 13.1%, commerce 12.8%, construction 7.5%, personal and other services 6.4%, transport, storage, and communications 6.2%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 2.6% (1996) |
Land boundaries | total: 15 km
border countries: Netherlands Antilles (Sint Maarten) 15 km |
total:
1,006 km border countries: Egypt 255 km, Gaza Strip 51 km, Jordan 238 km, Lebanon 79 km, Syria 76 km, West Bank 307 km |
Land use | - | arable land:
17% permanent crops: 4% permanent pastures: 7% forests and woodland: 6% other: 66% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official language), English, Dutch, French Patois, Spanish, Papiamento (dialect of Netherlands Antilles) | Hebrew (official), Arabic used officially for Arab minority, English most commonly used foreign language |
Legal system | the laws of France, where applicable, apply | mixture of English common law, British Mandate regulations, and, in personal matters, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim legal systems; in December 1985, Israel informed the UN Secretariat that it would no longer accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 Knesset or parliament (120 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 May 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - One Israel 20.2%, Likud Party 14.1%, Shas 13%, MERETZ 7.6%, Yisra'el Ba'Aliya 5.1%, Shinui 5%, Center Party 5%, National Religious Party 4.2%, United Torah Judaism 3.7%, United Arab List 3.4%, National Union 3%, Hadash 2.6%, Yisra'el Beiteinu 2.6%, Balad 1.9%, One Nation 1.9%, Democratic Movement NA (party formed after election, members elected under Yisra'el Ba'Aliya list); seats by party - One Israel 26, Likud Party 19, Shas 17, MERETZ 10, Yisra'el Ba'Aliya 4, Shinui 6, Center Party 6, National Religious Party 5, United Torah Judaism 5, United Arab List 5, National Union 4, Hadash 3, Yisra'el Beiteinu 4, Democratic Movement 2 (party formed after election, members elected under Yisra'el Ba'Aliya list), Balad 2, One Nation 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population:
78.71 years male: 76.69 years female: 80.84 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95% male: 97% female: 93% (1992 est.) |
Location | island 300 km southeast of Puerto Rico | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | - | continental shelf:
to depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
17 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 631,582 GRT/745,011 DWT ships by type: container 16, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | - | Israel Defense Forces (includes ground, naval, and air components), Pioneer Fighting Youth (Nahal), Frontier Guard, Chen (women); note - historically there have been no separate Israeli military services |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $8.7 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 9.4% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
1,522,003 females age 15-49: 1,482,027 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,245,757 females age 15-49: 1,208,973 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
49,206 females: 53,379 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789); note - local holiday is Schoalcher Day (Slavery Abolition Day) 12 July (1848) | Independence Day, 14 May (1948); note - Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, but the Jewish calendar is lunar and the holiday may occur in April or May |
Nationality | - | noun:
Israeli(s) adjective: Israeli |
Natural hazards | - | sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; droughts |
Natural resources | salt | timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand, oil |
Net migration rate | - | 2.85 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 708 km; petroleum products 290 km; natural gas 89 km |
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] | Balad or National Democratic Alliance [Amnon LIPKIN-SHAHAK]; Center Party [Yitzhak MORDECHAI]; Democratic Movement [Roman BRONFMAN]; Gesher [David LEVI]; Hadash [Muhammad BARAKA]; Labor Party [leader vacant]; Likud Party [Ariel SHARON]; MERETZ [Yossi SARID]; National Democratic Alliance (Balad) [leader NA]; National Religious Party [Yitzhak LEVY]; National Union [Rehavam ZEEVI] (includes Herut, Tekuma, and Moledet); One Israel [leader NA] (includes Labor, Gesher, and Meimad); One Nation [Amir PERETZ]; Shas [Eliyahu YISHAI]; Shinui [Tommy LAPID]; United Arab List [Abd al-Malik DAHAMSHAH]; United Torah Judaism [Rabbi Eliezer SHACK, spiritual leader]; Yisra'el Ba'Aliya [Natan SHARANSKY]; Yisra'el Beiteinu [Avigdor LIEBERMAN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | Gush Emunim, Israeli nationalists advocating Jewish settlement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Peace Now supports territorial concessions in the West Bank and is critical of government's Lebanon policy |
Population | 33,102 (October 2004 census) | 5,938,093 (July 2001 est.)
note: includes about 176,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank, about 20,000 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, about 6,900 in the Gaza Strip, and about 173,000 in East Jerusalem (August 2000 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 1.58% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Ashdod, Ashqelon, Elat (Eilat), Hadera, Haifa, Tel Aviv-Yafo |
Radio broadcast stations | FM 3 (2007) | AM 23, FM 15, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3.07 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
610 km standard gauge: 610 km 1.435-m gauge (1996) |
Religions | Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witness, Protestant, Hindu | Jewish 80.1%, Muslim 14.6% (mostly Sunni Muslim), Christian 2.1%, other 3.2% (1996 est.) |
Sex ratio | - | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age, universal | 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:
most highly developed system in the Middle East although not the largest domestic: good system of coaxial cable and microwave radio relay; all systems are digital international: 3 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 2.8 million (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 2.5 million (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 17 (plus 36 low-power repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | - | Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central mountains; Jordan Rift Valley |
Total fertility rate | - | 2.57 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Transportation - note | nearest airport for international flights is Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) located in Sint Maarten | - |
Unemployment rate | - | 9% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |