French Guiana

Department of Guiana

NAIndependence none (overseas department of France)

French Guiana as the 2006 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 114 fields, one of 17 editions from 1990 to 2006.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalCayenne, UTC-3

Position4 00 N, 53 00 W

Area91,000 sq km

LocationNorthern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname

2006

Every edition of French Guiana

Populationas each edition published it

199,509 people July 2006 est. · 97,781 in 1990

Population growth% a year

1.96% 2006 est. · 4.42% in 1993

Median ageyears

28.6 years 2006 est. · 28.2 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

77.27 years 2006 est. · 74.87 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

2.98 children per woman 2006 est. · 3.8 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

11.76 deaths per 1,000 live births 2006 est. · 19 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$8,300 2003 est. · $4,390 in 1993

Introduction

1 field

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

Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname

17 fields

Land useshare of 91,000 sq km

permanent crops 0.04%other 99.83% (90% forest, 10% other) (2005)arable land 0.13% in all · irrigated 20 sq km (2003)

Area

91,000sq km

land: 89,150 sq kmwater: 1,850 sq kmslightly smaller than Indiana

Coastline

378km

territorial sea: 12 nmexclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Highest point

851m

Bellevue de l'Ininilowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m

Land boundaries

1,240.4km

border countries: Brazil 730.4 km, Suriname 510 km

Location

Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname

Climate

tropical;
hot, humid;
little seasonal temperature variation

Terrain

low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains

Natural resources

bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium, tantalum, clay

Natural hazards

high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding

Geography - note

mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent

People

19 fields

Age structuremale left, female right · (2006 est.)

6,350

65 and over6.3%

6,127

69,302

15-6464.8%

59,980

29,540

0-1428.9%

28,210

MaleFemale

Population

199,509

(July 2006 est.)growth rate: 1.96% (2006 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2006 est.)

Birth

20.46Death

4.88Net migration

4.01

Male · female

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years (2006 est.)77.27

73.95 · 80.75Infant mortality deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)11.76

12.58 · 10.89

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy (1982 est.)83%

84% · 82%Median age years (2006 est.)28.6

29.6 · 27.4

MaleFemaleLiteracy definition: age 15 and over can read and write

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:: 1.04 male(s)/female
total population:: 1.12 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

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%

Government

NA; President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean-Pierre LAFLAQUIERE (since 19 July 2006); President of the General Council Pierre DESERT (since 26 March 2004)

19 fields

General Council, 31 seats, elected in March 2000one dot, one seat

PS 17UMP 7FDG/Walwari 7

Country name

conventional long form:: Department of Guiana
conventional short form:: French Guiana
local long form:: none
local short form:: Guyane

Capital

name:: Cayenne
geographic coordinates:: 4 56 N, 52 20 W
time difference:: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Executive branch

chief of state:: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean-Pierre LAFLAQUIERE (since 19 July 2006)
head of government:: President of the General Council Pierre DESERT (since 26 March 2004); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992)
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;
presidents of the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members of those councils

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 in March 2000 (next to be held March 2006); Regional Council - last held 21 and 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2010)
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 - (second election results) percent of vote by party - PS 37.24%, UMP 31.58%, FDG/Walwari 31.18%;
seats by party - PS 17, UMP 7, FDG/Walwari 7

note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held 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 in 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

Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY];
Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE];
Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN];
Popular National Guyanese Party or PNPG [Jose DORCY];
Socialist Party or PS [Alix LABBE];
Union for French Democracy or UDF [Georges HABRAN-MERY];
Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (includes RPR) [Remi Louis DUBOC];
Walwari Committee (aligned with the PRG in France) [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON]

Political pressure groups and leaders

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

The economy is tied closely to the much larger French economy through subsidies and imports.

37 fields

GDP, purchasing power parity

$1.551billion

(2003 est.)official exchange rate: NA

GDP per capita, PPP

$8,300

(2003 est.)

Inflation, consumer prices

(2003)

Unemployment rate

19.2%

(December 2003)

Budget

Revenues

$135.5 millionExpenditures

$135.5 million (1996)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $105 million

Electricity

Electricity production

465.2 million (2003)Electricity consumption

432.6 million (2003)

Economy - overview

The economy is tied closely to the much 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 - real growth rate

NA%

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture:: NA% 6.6%
industry:: NA% 15.6%
services:: NA% 77.8%

Labor force

62,630 (1999)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture:: 18.2%
industry:: 21.2%
services:: 60.6% (1980)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Agriculture - products

corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry

Industries

construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining

Oil - production

0 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption

6,600 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports

NA bbl/day

Oil - imports

NA bbl/day

Natural gas - production

0 cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption

0 cu m (2003 est.)

Exports

$137.5 million f.o.b. (2003)

Exports - commodities

shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing

Exports - partners

France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2004)

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 (2004)

Debt - external

$800.3 million (2003)

Economic aid - recipient

$NA

Currency (code)

euro (EUR)

note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries;

on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries

Exchange rates

euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields

Mobile cellular

98,000

(2004)

Internet users

106

(2006)

Fixed lines

51,000

(2001) · country code .gf

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)