Compare Syria (2004) - New Caledonia (2008)

Compare Syria (2004) z New Caledonia (2008)

	Syria (2004)	New Caledonia (2008)

Administrative divisions	14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus	none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Province des Iles, Province Nord, and Province Sud
Age structure	0-14 years: 38% (male 3,524,406; female 3,319,323) 15-64 years: 58.7% (male 5,421,133; female 5,163,669) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 281,795; female 306,548) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 27.9% (male 31,578/female 30,270) 15-64 years: 65.3% (male 72,821/female 72,109) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 7,047/female 8,118) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk	vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products; fish
Airports	93 (2003 est.)	25 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 26 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)	total: 12 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 2 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 66 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 54 (2004 est.)	total: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 6 (2007)
Area	total: 185,180 sq km land: 184,050 sq km water: 1,130 sq km note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory	total: 19,060 sq km land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than North Dakota	slightly smaller than New Jersey
Background	Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon, ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. Over the past decade, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights.	Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s ended in the 1998 Noumea Accord, which over a period of 15 to 20 years will transfer an increasing amount of governing responsibility from France to New Caledonia. The agreement also commits France to conduct as many as three referenda between 2013 and 2018, to decide whether New Caledonia should assume full sovereignty and independence.
Birth rate	28.93 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	17.75 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $6.106 billion expenditures: $7.397 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6 billion (2003 est.)	revenues: $996 million expenditures: $1.072 billion (2001 est.)
Capital	Damascus	name: Noumea geographic coordinates: 22 16 S, 166 27 E time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus	tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid
Coastline	193 km	2,254 km
Constitution	13 March 1973	4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
Country name	conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic conventional short form: Syria local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah local short form: Suriyah former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt)	conventional long form: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies conventional short form: New Caledonia local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie
Currency	Syrian pound (SYP)	-
Death rate	4.96 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	5.72 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$21.55 billion (2003 est.)	$79 million (1998 est.)
Dependency status	-	territorial collectivity of France since 1998
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Margaret SCOBEY embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus telephone: [963] (11) 333-1342 FAX: [963] (11) 331-9678	none (overseas territory of France)
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Imad MUSTAFA chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313 FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548	none (overseas territory of France)
Disputes - international	Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied; Lebanon claims Shaba'a farms in Golan Heights; Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon since October 1976; Syria protests Turkish hydrological projects regulating upper Euphrates waters; settled border dispute with Jordan in 2004	Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu
Economic aid - recipient	$199 million (1997 est.)	$524.3 million annual subsidy from France (2004)
Economy - overview	Syria's predominantly statist economy lately has been growing more slowly than its 2.4% annual population growth rate. Recent legislation allows private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector will take years and further government cooperation to develop. Factors, including the war between the US-led coalition and Iraq, probably drove real annual GDP growth levels back below 1% in 2003 following growth of 3.5% in 2001 and 4.5% in 2002. A long-run economic constraint is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution.	New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, substantial financial support from France - equal to more than 15% of GDP - and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. Substantial new investment in the nickel industry, combined with the recovery of global nickel prices, brightens the economic outlook for the next several years.
Electricity - consumption	21.63 billion kWh (2001)	1.403 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	23.26 billion kWh (2001)	1.508 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water	erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification	-
Ethnic groups	Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%	Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3%
Exchange rates	Syrian pounds per US dollar - (Official rate): 11.225 (2003), 11.225 (2002), 11.225 (2001), 11.225 (2000), 11.225 (1999), (Free market rate): 49.65 (2001), 49.4 (2000), 51.7 (1999)	Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - NA (2007), 95.025 (2006), 95.89 (2005), 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim ibn Said KHADDAM (since 11 March 1984) and Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984) head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; referendum/election last held 10 July 2000 - after the death of President Hafiz al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held 2007); vice presidents appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29% note: Hafiz al-ASAD died on 10 June 2000; on 20 June 2000, the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council on 25 June 2000	chief of state: President Nicolas SARKOZY (since 16 May 2007); represented by High Commissioner Yves DASSONVILLE (since 9 November 2007) head of government: President of the Government Harold MARTIN (since 7 August 2007) cabinet: Cabinet consisting of 11 members elected from and by the Territorial Congress elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress for a five-year term (no term limits); note - last election held 7 August 2007 when Harold MARTIN was elected following the resignation of Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU as president on 24 July 2007 (next to be held in 2012)
Exports	NA (2001)	605.7 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat	ferronickels, nickel ore, fish
Exports - partners	Germany 20.9%, Italy 12.6%, UAE 7.6%, Lebanon 6.2%, Turkey 6%, France 5.4%, Croatia 4.8%, US 4.1% (2003)	Japan 17.4%, France 15.9%, Taiwan 14.5%, China 10.8%, Spain 9.4%, Belgium 7.3%, Italy 6%, Australia 4.6% (2006)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, colors associated with the Arab Liberation flag; two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; former flag of the United Arab Republic where the two stars represented the constituent states of Syria and Egypt; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band, and that of Egypt, which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; the current design dates to 1980	the flag of France is used
GDP	purchasing power parity - $58.01 billion (2003 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 28.5% industry: 29.4% services: 42.1% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 15% industry: 8.8% services: 76.2% (2003)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $3,300 (2003 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	0.9% (2003 est.)	NA%
Geographic coordinates	35 00 N, 38 00 E	21 30 S, 165 30 E
Geography - note	there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.)	consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls
Heliports	7 (2003 est.)	6 (2007)
Highways	total: 43,381 km paved: 10,021 km (including 877 km of expressways) unpaved: 33,360 km (1999)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets; weak anti-money-laundering controls, bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money-laundering	-
Imports	NA (2001)	11,980 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper	machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs
Imports - partners	Germany 7.2%, Italy 7.1%, China 6.3%, France 5.9%, Turkey 5.4% (2003)	France 39.4%, Singapore 15.1%, Australia 11.3%, NZ 4.8% (2006)
Independence	17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)	none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014
Industrial production growth rate	NA	-0.6% (1996)
Industries	petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining	nickel mining and smelting
Infant mortality rate	total: 30.6 deaths/1,000 live births male: 30.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 30.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 7.42 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.5% (2003 est.)	1.4% (2000 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO	ITUC, PIF (associate member), SPC, UPU, WFTU, WMO
Irrigated land	12,130 sq km (1998 est.)	100 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts	Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court
Labor force	4.97 million (2003 est.)	78,990 (2004)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture, industry, services NA	agriculture: 20% industry: 20% services: 60% (2002)
Land boundaries	total: 2,253 km border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 25.22% permanent crops: 4.43% other: 70.35% (2001)	arable land: 0.32% permanent crops: 0.22% other: 99.46% (2005)
Languages	Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood	French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects
Legal system	based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on French civil law; the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands
Legislative branch	unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 2-3 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, independents 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receives one-half of the seats	unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres du territoire (54 seats; members belong to the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 9 May 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPCR-UMP 16, AE 16, UNI-FLNKS 8, UC 7, FN 4, others 3 note: New Caledonia currently holds one seat in the French Senate; by 2010, New Caledonia will gain a second seat in the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held not later than September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 1; New Caledonia also elects two seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 10 and 17 June 2007 (next to be held on June 2012); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 69.71 years male: 68.47 years female: 71.02 years (2004 est.)	total population: 74.5 years male: 71.52 years female: 77.63 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 76.9% male: 89.7% female: 64% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96.2% male: 96.8% female: 95.5% (1996 census)
Location	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey	Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia
Map references	Middle East	Oceania
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 41 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 122 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 446,981 GRT/636,620 DWT by type: bulk 12, cargo 101, container 2, livestock carrier 4, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: Egypt 1, Germany 1, Greece 1, Italy 1, Lebanon 10, Romania 1 registered in other countries: 83 (2004 est.)	total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,566 GRT/2,543 DWT by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2007)
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of France
Military branches	Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (including Air Defense Command), Police and Security Force	no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.9% (FY00)	NA
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 4,876,040 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 2,716,054 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 216,077 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 17 April (1946)	Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Nationality	noun: Syrian(s) adjective: Syrian	noun: New Caledonian(s) adjective: New Caledonian
Natural hazards	dust storms, sandstorms	cyclones, most frequent from November to March
Natural resources	petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower	nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2007 est.)
Pipelines	gas 2,300 km; oil 2,183 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	National Progressive Front or NPF (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party; the governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallal Nasr Al-DIN]; Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yuusuf Rashid FAYSAL]; Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL]; Arab Socialist Unionist Movement [Ahmed al-AHMED]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan QUDSI]); Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI]	Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Caledonian Union or UC; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Francois BURCK]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independence) or RPCR-UMP [Jacques LAFLEUR]; The Future Together or AE [Harold MARTIN]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO]
Political pressure groups and leaders	conservative religious leaders; Kurdish Democratic Alliance [leader NA]; Kurdish Democratic Front [lader NA]; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in London) [Ali Badr Eddine al-BAYANOUNI]; National Democratic Front [Hassan Abd al-AZIM]	NA
Population	18,016,874 note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2004 est.)	221,943 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	20% (2003 est.)	NA%
Population growth rate	2.4% (2004 est.)	1.203% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors	Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways	total: 2,711 km standard gauge: 2,460 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 251 km 1.050-m gauge (2003)	-
Religions	Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)	Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.868 male(s)/female total population: 1.009 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 963; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel	general assessment: NA domestic: a submarine cable network connection between New Caledonia and Australia, scheduled for completion in 2008, will improve high-speed connectivity and access to international networks international: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	2,099,300 (2002)	55,300 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	400,000 (2002)	134,300 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995)	6 (plus 25 repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west	coastal plains with interior mountains
Total fertility rate	3.61 children born/woman (2004 est.)	2.25 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	20% (2002 est.)	17.1% (2004)
Waterways	900 km (not economically significant) (2002)	-

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