Saint Martin (2007) | Norfolk Island (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (territory of Australia) |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry |
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: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | more than one-third the size of Washington, DC | about 0.2 times 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. | Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony (1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. |
Birth rate | - | NA |
Budget | - | revenues: $4.6 million
expenditures: $4.8 million (FY99/00) |
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: Kingston
geographic coordinates: 29 03 S, 167 58 E time difference: UTC+11.5 (16.5 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 | subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 58.9 km (for entire island) | 32 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | Norfolk Island Act of 1979, as amended in 2005 |
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 Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
Death rate | - | NA |
Debt - external | - | $NA |
Dependency status | - | 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. | Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs. |
Electricity - consumption | - | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | - | NA kWh |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pic du Paradis 424 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
Environment - current issues | fresh water supply is dependent on desalinization of sea water | NA |
Ethnic groups | creole (mulatto), black, Guadeloupe Mestizo (French-East Asia), white, East Indian | descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesian |
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 Grant TAMBLING (since 1 November 2003) cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and acts as an advisor to the administrator elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
Exports | - | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY91/92) |
Exports - commodities | - | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados |
Exports - partners | - | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe (2006) |
Fiscal year | - | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 15% services: 84% (2000) |
- |
Geographic coordinates | 18 05 N, 63 57 W | 29 02 S, 167 57 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 | most of the 32 km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs, but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated |
Imports | - | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92) |
Imports - commodities | crude petroleum, food, manufactured items | NA |
Imports - partners | US, Mexico (2006) | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas collectivity of France) | none (territory of Australia) |
Industries | tourism, light industry and manufacturing, heavy industry | tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
International organization participation | UPU | UPU |
Irrigated land | - | NA |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions |
Labor force | - | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | 85% directly or indirectly employed in tourist industry | agriculture: 10%
industry and services: 90% |
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% (2005) |
Languages | French (official language), English, Dutch, French Patois, Spanish, Papiamento (dialect of Netherlands Antilles) | English (official), Norfolk - a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian |
Legal system | the laws of France, where applicable, apply | based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or Norfolk Island 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 Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be given to any one candidate; to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 20 October 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: seats - independents 9 (note - no political parties) |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Literacy | - | NA |
Location | island 300 km southeast of Puerto Rico | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
Maritime claims | - | territorial sea: 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) | Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856) |
Nationality | - | noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
Natural hazards | - | typhoons (especially May to July) |
Natural resources | salt | fish |
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) | 2,114 (July 2007 est.) |
Population growth rate | - | 0.006% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | FM 3 (2007) | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) |
Religions | Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witness, Protestant, Hindu | Anglican 34.9%, Roman Catholic 11.7%, Uniting Church in Australia 11.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist 2.8%, Australian Christian 2.4%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, other 2.7%, unspecified 15.2%, none 18.1% (2001 census) |
Sex ratio | - | NA |
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: adequate
domestic: free local calls international: country code - 672; undersea coaxial cable links with Australia and New Zealand; satellite earth station |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 0; note - proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 1 (local programming station plus 2 repeaters that air Australian programs by satellite) (2005) |
Terrain | - | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains |
Total fertility rate | - | NA |
Transportation - note | nearest airport for international flights is Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) located in Sint Maarten | - |