French Polynesia

The French annexed various Polynesian island groups during the 19th century. In September 1995, France stirred up widespread protests by resuming nuclear testing on the Mururoa Atoll after a three-year moratorium. The tests were halted in January 1996. In recent years, French Polynesia's autonomy has been considerably expanded.

agricultural land:

12.5%;

• arable land 0.7%;
• permanent crops 6.3%;
• permanent pasture 5.5%

forest:

43.7%

other:

43.8% (2011 est.)

includes five archipelagoes:

• four volcanic (Iles Gambier, Iles Marquises, Iles Tubuai, Society Islands) and one coral (Archipel des Tuamotu);
• Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru

noun:

French Polynesian(s)

adjective:

French Polynesian

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.08 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.94 male(s)/female

total population:

1.05 male(s)/female (2015 est.)

• overseas lands of France;
• overseas territory of France from 1946-2003;
• overseas collectivity of France since 2003, though it is often referred to as an overseas country due to its degree of autonomy

name:

Papeete (located on Tahiti)

geographic coordinates:

17 32 S, 149 34 W

time difference:

UTC-10 (5 hours behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

chief of state:

President Francois HOLLANDE (since 15 May 2012), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Lionel BEFFRE (since 16 September 2013)

head of government:

President of French Polynesia Edouard FRITCH (since 12 September 2014)

cabinet:

Council of Ministers approved by the Assembly from a list of its members submitted by the president

elections/appointments:

• French president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term);
• high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior;
• French Polynesia president indirectly elected by Assembly of French Polynesia for a 5-year term (no term limits)

highest court(s):

Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel (composition NA); note - appeals beyond the French Polynesia Court of Appeal are heard by the Court of Cassation (in Paris)

judge selection and term of office:

NA

subordinate courts:

Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif

• A Tia Porinetia [Teva ROHFRITSCH]
• Alliance for a New Democracy or ADN (includes the parties The New Star and This Country is Yours)
• New Fatherland Party (Ai'a Api) [Emile VERNAUDON]
• Our Home alliance
• People's Servant Party (Tavini Huiraatira) [Oscar TEMARU]
• Popular Rally (Tahoeraa Huiraatira) [Gaston FLOSSE]
• Union for Democracy alliance or UPD [Oscar TEMARU]

• two red horizontal bands encase a wide white band in a 1:2:1 ratio;
• centered on the white band is a disk with a blue and white wave pattern depicting the sea on the lower half and a gold and white ray pattern depicting the sun on the upper half;
• a Polynesian canoe rides on the wave pattern;
• the canoe has a crew of five represented by five stars that symbolize the five island groups;
• red and white are traditional Polynesian colors

note: similar to the red-white-red flag of Tahiti, the largest of the islands in French Polynesia, which has no emblem in the white band; the flag of France is used for official occasions

name:

"Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" (Long Live Tahiti Nui)

lyrics/music:

Maeva BOUGES, Irmine TEHEI, Angele TEROROTUA, Johanna NOUVEAU, Patrick AMARU, Louis MAMATUI, and Jean-Pierre CELESTIN (the compositional group created both the lyrics and music)

note: adopted 1993; serves as a local anthem; as a territory of France, "La Marseillaise" is official (see France)

• under certain acts of France, French Polynesia has acquired autonomy in all areas except those relating to police and justice, monetary policy, tertiary education, immigration, and defense and foreign affairs;
• the duties of its president are fashioned after those of the French prime minister

• coconuts, vanilla, vegetables, fruits, coffee;
• poultry, beef, dairy products;
• fish

agriculture:

13%

industry:

19%

services:

68% (2013 est.)

lowest 10%:

NA%

highest 10%:

NA%

domestic:

combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular density is roughly 100 per 100 persons

international:

country code - 689; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2011)

• the publicly owned French Overseas Network (RFO), which operates in France's overseas departments and territories, broadcasts on 2 TV channels and 1 radio station;
• 1 government-owned TV station;
• a small number of privately owned radio stations (2008)

total:

2,590 km

paved:

1,735 km

unpaved:

855 km (1999)

country comparison to the world: 172

males age 16-49:

67,363

females age 16-49:

66,053 (2010 est.)

male:

2,498

female:

2,390 (2010 est.)