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| French Guiana |

Introduction | French Guiana

Background: | First settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of notorious penal settlements until 1951. The European Space Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou.

Geography | French Guiana

Location: | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname
Geographic coordinates: | 4 00 N, 53 00 W
Map references: | South America
Area: | total: 91,000 sq km water: 1,850 sq km land: 89,150 sq km
Area - comparative: | slightly smaller than Indiana
Land boundaries: | total: 1,183 km border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km
Coastline: | 378 km
Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate: | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains
Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m
Natural resources: | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium, tantalum, clay
Land use: | arable land: 0.14% permanent crops: 0.05% other: 99.81% (90% forest, 10% other) (2001)
Irrigated land: | 20 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding
Environment - current issues: | NA
Geography - note: | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent

People | French Guiana

Population: | 191,309 (July 2004 est.)
Age structure: | 0-14 years: 29.6% (male 28,959; female 27,657) 15-64 years: 64.5% (male 66,388; female 57,020) 65 years and over: 5.9% (male 5,736; female 5,549) (2004 est.)
Median age: | total: 28.3 years male: 29.4 years female: 27.2 years (2004 est.)
Population growth rate: | 2.25% (2004 est.)
Birth rate: | 21 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Death rate: | 4.82 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Net migration rate: | 6.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Infant mortality rate: | total: 12.46 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 76.89 years male: 73.57 years female: 80.38 years (2004 est.)
Total fertility rate: | 3.05 children born/woman (2004 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: | NA
Nationality: | noun: French Guianese (singular and plural) adjective: French Guianese
Ethnic groups: | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10%
Religions: | Roman Catholic
Languages: | French
Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.)

Government | French Guiana

Country name: | conventional long form: Department of Guiana conventional short form: French Guiana local short form: Guyane local long form: none
Dependency status: | overseas department of France
Government type: | NA
Capital: | Cayenne
Administrative divisions: | none (overseas department of France)
Independence: | none (overseas department of France)
National holiday: | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Constitution: | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Legal system: | French legal system
Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Ange MANCINI (since 31 July 2002) 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; presidents of the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members of those councils head of government: President of the General Council Joseph HO-TEN-YOU (since 26 March 2001); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA
Legislative branch: | unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 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 Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PSG 5, various left-wing parties 5, independents 7, other 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - PS 28.28%, various left parties 22.56%, RPR 15.91%, independents 8.6%, Walwari Committee 6%; seats by party - PS 11, various left parties 9, RPR 6, independents 3, Walwari Committee 2 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; 2 seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, Walwari Committee 1
Judicial branch: | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana)
Political parties and leaders: | Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Popular National Guyanese Party or PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Socialist Party or PS [Paul DEBRIETTE]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [Muriel ICARE]; Walwari Committee (aligned with the PRG in France) [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON]
Political pressure groups and leaders: | NA
International organization participation: | UPU, WCL, WFTU
Diplomatic representation in the US: | none (overseas department of France)
Diplomatic representation from the US: | none (overseas department of France)
Flag description: | the flag of France is used

Economy | French Guiana

Economy - overview: | The economy is tied closely to the larger French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou (which accounts for 25% of GDP), fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90% of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers.
GDP: | purchasing power parity - $1.551 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: | NA
GDP - per capita: | purchasing power parity - $8,300 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: NA industry: NA services: NA (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line: | NA
Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 1.5% (2002 est.)
Labor force: | 58,800 (1997)
Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture 18.2%, industry 21.2%, services, government, and commerce 60.6% (1980)
Unemployment rate: | 22% (2001)
Budget: | revenues: $225 million expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996)
Agriculture - products: | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry
Industries: | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining
Industrial production growth rate: | NA
Electricity - production: | 455 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - consumption: | 423.2 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports: | 0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production: | 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: | 6,500 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: | NA (2001)
Oil - imports: | NA (2001)
Exports: | $155 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities: | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing
Exports - partners: | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001)
Imports: | $625 million c.i.f. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities: | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals
Imports - partners: | France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002 est.)
Debt - external: | $1.2 billion (1988)
Economic aid - recipient: | NA (1995)
Currency: | euro (EUR)
Currency code: | EUR
Exchange rates: | Euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999)
Fiscal year: | calendar year

Communications | French Guiana

Telephones - main lines in use: | 51,000 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular: | 138,200 (2002)
Telephone system: | general assessment: NA domestic: fair open-wire and microwave radio relay system international: country code - 594; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998)
Radios: | 104,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: | 30,000 (1997)
Internet country code: | .gf
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 2 (2000)
Internet users: | 3,200 (2002)

Transportation | French Guiana

Highways: | total: 722 km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1996)
Waterways: | 3,760 km note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft (2004)
Ports and harbors: | Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni
Airports: | 11 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: | total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.)

Military | French Guiana

Military branches: | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie
Military manpower - availability: | males age 15-49: 52,294 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: | males age 15-49: 33,914 (2004 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: | NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | NA
Military - note: | defense is the responsibility of France

Transnational Issues | French Guiana

Disputes - international: | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa)
Illicit drugs: | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005