Uruguay (2001) | Martinique (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 19 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Artigas, Canelones, Cerro Largo, Colonia, Durazno, Flores, Florida, Lavalleja, Maldonado, Montevideo, Paysandu, Rio Negro, Rivera, Rocha, Salto, San Jose, Soriano, Tacuarembo, Treinta y Tres | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
24.39% (male 419,932; female 399,605) 15-64 years: 62.61% (male 1,038,785; female 1,064,891) 65 years and over: 13% (male 180,130; female 256,762) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 22.8% (male 49,310; female 47,908)
15-64 years: 66.9% (male 142,242; female 142,688) 65 years and over: 10.3% (male 19,656; female 24,162) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, rice, barley, corn, sorghum; livestock; fish | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane |
Airports | 64 (2000 est.) | 2 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
15 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
49 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 31 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total:
176,220 sq km land: 173,620 sq km water: 2,600 sq km |
total: 1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than the state of Washington | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement, the Tupamaros, launched in the late 1960s, led Uruguay's president to agree to military control of his administration in 1973. By the end of the year the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold throughout the government. Civilian rule was not restored until 1985. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the continent. | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. |
Birth rate | 17.36 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 14.96 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$4 billion expenditures: $4.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2000 est.) |
revenues: $900 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
Capital | Montevideo | Fort-de-France |
Climate | warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown | tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid |
Coastline | 660 km | 350 km |
Constitution | 27 November 1966, effective February 1967, suspended 27 June 1973, new constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980; two constitutional reforms approved by plebiscite 26 November 1989 and 7 January 1997 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form:
Oriental Republic of Uruguay conventional short form: Uruguay local long form: Republica Oriental del Uruguay local short form: Uruguay former: Banda Oriental, Cisplatine Province |
conventional long form: Department of Martinique
conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
Currency | Uruguayan peso (UYU) | euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 9.03 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.41 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $8 billion (2000 est.) | $180 million (1994) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Christopher C. ASHBY embassy: Lauro Muller 1776, Montevideo 11100 mailing address: APO AA 34035 telephone: [598] (2) 408-777, 203-6061 FAX: [598] (2) 48 86 11 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Hugo FERNANDEZ Faingold chancery: 2715 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 331-1313 through 1316 FAX: [1] (202) 331-8142 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France |
Economy - overview | Uruguay's economy is characterized by an export-oriented agricultural sector, a well-educated workforce, relatively even income distribution, and high levels of social spending. After averaging growth of 5% annually in 1996-98, in 1999-2000 the economy suffered from lower demand in Argentina and Brazil, which together account for about half of Uruguay's exports. Despite the severity of the trade shocks, Uruguay's financial indicators remained more stable than those of its neighbors, a reflection of its solid reputation among investors and its investment-grade sovereign bond rating - one of only two in Latin America. Challenges for the government of President Jorge BATLLE include expanding Uruguay's trade ties beyond its MERCOSUR trade partners and reducing the costs of public services. GDP fell by 1.1% in 2000 and will grow by perhaps 1.5% in 2001. | The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry. Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France. The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism, which employs more than 11,000 people, has become more important than agricultural exports as a source of foreign exchange. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.89 billion kWh (1999) | 1.07 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 215 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 800 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 5.704 billion kWh (1999) | 1.151 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
3.86% hydro: 95.44% nuclear: 0% other: 0.7% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro Catedral 514 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from meat packing/tannery industry; inadequate solid/hazardous waste disposal | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban |
- |
Ethnic groups | white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%, Amerindian, practically nonexistent | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% |
Exchange rates | Uruguayan pesos per US dollar - 12.5610 (January 2001), 12.0996 (2000), 11.3393 (1999), 10.4719 (1998), 9.4418 (1997), 7.9718 (1996) | euros per US dollar - 1.06 euros per US dollar - 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Jorge BATLLE (since 1 March 2000) and Vice President Luis HIERRO (since 1 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Jorge BATLLE (since 1 March 2000) and Vice President Luis HIERRO (since 1 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president with parliamentary approval elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 31 October 1999 with run-off election on 28 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Jorge BATLLE elected president; percent of vote - Jorge BATLLE 52% in a runoff against Tabare VAZQUEZ 44% |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995); Prefect Michel CADOT (since 21 June 2000)
head of government: President of the General Council Claude LISE (since 22 March 1992); President of the Regional Council Alfred MARIE-JEANNE (since NA March 1998) 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 Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | $2.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | meat, rice, leather products, vehicles, dairy products, wool, electricity | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples (2001 est.) |
Exports - partners | MERCOSUR partners 45%, EU 20%, US 7% (1999 est.) | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | nine equal horizontal stripes of white (top and bottom) alternating with blue; there is a white square in the upper hoist-side corner with a yellow sun bearing a human face known as the Sun of May and 16 rays alternately triangular and wavy | a light blue background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag of France is used for official occasions |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $31 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.5 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 28% services: 62% (1999) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $9,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10,700 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -1.1% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 33 00 S, 56 00 W | 14 40 N, 61 00 W |
Geography - note | - | the island is dominated by Mount Pelee, which on 8 May 1902 erupted and completely destroyed the city of Saint Pierre, killing 30,000 inhabitants |
Highways | total:
8,983 km paved: 8,085 km unpaved: 898 km (1999) |
total: 2,105 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe |
Imports | $3.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | road vehicles, electrical machinery, metal manufactures, heavy industrial machinery, crude petroleum | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods |
Imports - partners | MERCOSUR partners 43%, EU 20%, US 11% (1999 est.) | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (2000) |
Independence | 25 August 1825 (from Brazil) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2.1% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | food processing, electrical machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, textiles, chemicals, beverages | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 14.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 7.44 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.85 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.8% (2000 est.) | 3.9% (1990) |
International organization participation | CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 7 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 7,700 sq km (1997 est.) | 30 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are nominated by the president and elected for 10-year terms by the General Assembly) | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 1.5 million (1999 est.) | 165,900 (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,564 km border countries: Argentina 579 km, Brazil 985 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 77% forests and woodland: 6% other: 10% (1997 est.) |
arable land: 9.43%
permanent crops: 11.32% other: 79.25% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Spanish, Portunol, or Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian frontier) | French, Creole patois |
Legal system | based on Spanish civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | French legal system |
Legislative branch | bicameral General Assembly or Asamblea General consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (30 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (99 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 31 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); Chamber of Representatives - last held 31 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Encuentro Progresista 12, Colorado Party 10, Blanco 7, New Sector/Space Coalition 1; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Encuentro Progresista 40, Colorado Party 33, Blanco 22, New Sector/Space Coalition 4 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Assembly or Conseil Regional (41 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 Assembly - last held on 15 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - left-wing candidates 13, PPM 11, RPR 6, right-wing candidates 5, PCM 3, UDF 3, PMS 2, independents 2; note - the PPM won a plurality; Regional Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR-UDF 14, MIM 13, PPM 7, left parties 4, PMS 3 note: Martinique elects 2 seats to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 2001 (next to be held September 2004); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPM 2; Martinique also elects 4 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held, first round - 9 June 2002, second round - 16 June 2002 (next to be held not later than June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, PS 1, MIM 1, left-wing candidate 1 (candidacy of the left-wing candidate was found invalid by the Constitutional Council; new elections will be called) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
75.44 years male: 72.11 years female: 78.96 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.72 years
male: 79.27 years female: 78.16 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.3% male: 96.9% female: 97.7% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.7% male: 97.4% female: 98.1% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Argentina and Brazil | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | South America | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 7,752 GRT/5,228 DWT ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Naval Air Arm, Coast Guard, Marines), Air Force, Police (Coracero Guard, Grenadier Guard) | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $172 million (FY98) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (FY98) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
817,535 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
661,777 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 25 August (1825) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Uruguayan(s) adjective: Uruguayan |
noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
Natural hazards | seasonally high winds (the pampero is a chilly and occasional violent wind which blows north from the Argentine pampas), droughts, floods; because of the absence of mountains, which act as weather barriers, all locations are particularly vulnerable to rapid changes in weather fronts | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) |
Natural resources | arable land, hydropower, minor minerals, fisheries | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land |
Net migration rate | -0.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Colorado Party [Jorge BATLLE]; National Party or Blanco [Alberto VOLONTE]; New Sector/Space Coalition or Nuevo Espacio [Rafael MICHELINI]; Progressive Encounter in the Broad Front or Encuentro Progresista [Tabare VAZQUEZ] | Martinique Communist Party or PCM [Pierre SUEDILLE]; Martinique Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE]; Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Camille DARSIERES]; Martinique Socialist Party or PMS [Ernest WAN-AJOUHU]; Movement of Democrats and Ecologists for a Sovereign Martinique or Modemas [Garcin MALSA]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michel CHARLONE]; Socialist Revolution Group or GRS [Philippe PIERRE-CHARLES]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Jean MAREN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance or ARC; Central Union for Martinique Workers or CSTM [Marc PULVAR]; Frantz Fanon Circle; League of Workers and Peasants; Proletarian Action Group or GAP |
Population | 3,360,105 (July 2001 est.) | 425,966 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.78% (2001 est.) | 0.85% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fray Bentos, Montevideo, Nueva Palmira, Paysandu, Punta del Este, Colonia, Piriapolis | Fort-de-France, La Trinite |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 94, FM 115, shortwave 14 (seven are inactive) (1998) | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.97 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,073 km standard gauge: 2,073 km 1.435-m gauge (2000) |
0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 66% (less than one-half of the adult population attends church regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, nonprofessing or other 31% | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 10.5%, Muslim 0.5%, Hindu 0.5%, other 3.5% (1997) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
some modern facilities domestic: most modern facilities concentrated in Montevideo; new nationwide microwave radio relay network international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: domestic facilities are adequate
domestic: NA international: microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 850,000 (2000) | 170,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 300,000 (2000) | 15,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 26 (plus ten low-power repeaters for the Montevideo station) (1997) | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano |
Total fertility rate | 2.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.79 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14% (2000 est.) | 27.2% (1998) |
Waterways | 1,600 km ( used by coastal and shallow-draft river craft) | none |