Guadeloupe

Department of GuadeloupeDepartement de la Guadeloupe

NAIndependence none (overseas department of France)

Guadeloupe as the 2006 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 112 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.

CapitalBasse-Terre, UTC-4

Position16 15 N, 61 35 W

Area1,780 sq km

LocationCaribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Puerto Rico

2006

Every edition of Guadeloupe

Populationas each edition published it

452,776 people July 2006 est. · 342,175 in 1990

Population growth% a year

0.88% 2006 est. · 1.67% in 1993

Median ageyears

32.2 years 2006 est. · 31 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

78.06 years 2006 est. · 76.72 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

1.9 children per woman 2006 est. · 2.1 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

8.41 deaths per 1,000 live births 2006 est. · 17 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$7,900 2003 est. · $4,700 in 1993

Introduction

1 field

Background

Guadeloupe has been a French possession since 1635. The island of Saint Martin is shared with the Netherlands; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles and its northern portion is named Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe

Geography

Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Puerto Rico

17 fields

Land useshare of 1,780 sq km

arable land 11.7%permanent crops 2.92%other 85.38% (2005)irrigated 60 sq km (2003)

Area

1,780sq km

land: 1,706 sq kmwater: 74 sq km10 times the size of Washington, DC

Note

note: Guadeloupe is an archipelago of nine inhabited islands, including Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Desirade, Iles des Saintes (2), Saint-Barthelemy, Iles de la Petite Terre, and Saint-Martin (French part of the island of Saint Martin)

Coastline

306km

territorial sea: 12 nmexclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Highest point

1,484m

Soufrierelowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m

Land boundaries

15km

border countries: Netherlands Antilles (Sint Maarten) 15 km

Location

Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Puerto Rico

Geographic coordinates

16 15 N, 61 35 W

Map references

Central America and the Caribbean

Climate

subtropical tempered by trade winds; moderately high humidity

Terrain

Basse-Terre is volcanic in origin with interior mountains;
Grande-Terre is low limestone formation;
most of the seven other islands are volcanic in origin

Natural resources

cultivable land, beaches and climate that foster tourism

Natural hazards

hurricanes (June to October); Soufriere de Guadeloupe is an active volcano

Environment - current issues

Geography - note

a narrow channel, the Riviere Salee, divides Guadeloupe proper into two islands: the larger, western Basse-Terre and the smaller, eastern Grande-Terre

People

19 fields

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

17,353

65 and over9.2%

24,322

150,934

15-6467.1%

153,094

54,725

0-1423.6%

52,348

MaleFemale

Population

452,776

(July 2006 est.)growth rate: 0.88% (2006 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2006 est.)

Birth

15.05Death

6.09Net migration

-0.15

Male · female

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years (2006 est.)78.06

74.91 · 81.37Infant mortality deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)8.41

9.59 · 7.16

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy (1982 est.)90%

90% · 90%Median age years (2006 est.)32.2

31.3 · 33.2

MaleFemaleLiteracy definition: age 15 and over can read and write

Religions

Roman Catholic 95%Hindu and pagan African 4%Protestant 1%

Sex ratio

at birth:: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years:: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over:: 0.71 male(s)/female
total population:: 0.97 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.9 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

HIV/AIDS - deaths

Nationality

noun:: Guadeloupian(s)
adjective:: Guadeloupe

Ethnic groups

black or mulatto 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Lebanese, Chinese less than 5%

Languages

French (official) 99%, Creole patois

Government

NA; President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean-Jacques BROT (since 12 June 2006); President of the General Council Jacques GILLOT (since 26 March 2001)

19 fields

General Council, 41 seats, elected March 2004one dot, one seat

PS 29UMP 12

Country name

conventional long form:: Department of Guadeloupe
conventional short form:: Guadeloupe
local long form:: Departement de la Guadeloupe
local short form:: Guadeloupe

Dependency status

overseas department of France

Government type

Capital

name:: Basse-Terre
geographic coordinates:: 16 00 N, 61 44 W
time difference:: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions

none (overseas department of France)

Independence

none (overseas department of France)

National holiday

Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)

Constitution

4 October 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 Jean-Jacques BROT (since 12 June 2006)
head of government:: President of the General Council Jacques GILLOT (since 26 March 2001); President of the Regional Council Victorin LUREL (since 2 April 2004)
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
election results:: NA

Legislative branch

unicameral General Council or Conseil General (42 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)

elections:: General Council - last held March 2004 (next to be held by in 2010);
Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in March 2008 to elect half of the body)
election results:: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - left-wing candidates 11, PS 8, RPR 8, PPDG 6, right-wing candidates 5, PCG 3, UDF 1;
Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PS 58.4%, UMP 41.6%;
seats by party - PS 29, UMP 12

note: Guadeloupe elects two representatives to the French Senate; elections last held September 2004 (next to be held September 2013); percent of vote by party - NA;

seats by party - NA, Guadeloupe elects four representatives to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR 2, PS 1, different right parties 1

Judicial branch

Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel with jurisdiction over Guadeloupe, French Guiana, and Martinique

Political parties and leaders

Communist Party of Guadeloupe or PCG [Mona CADOCE];
FGPS [Dominique LARIFLA];
Left Radical Party or PRG [Flavien FERRANT];
Progressive Democratic Party or PPDG [Henri BANGOU];
Socialist Party or PS [Jules OTTO];
Union for French Democracy or UDF [Claudine LACAVE];
Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (including Rassemblement pour la Republique or RPR) [Gabrielle LOUIS-CARABIN]

Political pressure groups and leaders

Christian Movement for the Liberation of Guadeloupe or KLPG;
General Federation of Guadeloupe Workers or CGT-G;
General Union of Guadeloupe Workers or UGTG;
Movement for Independent Guadeloupe or MPGI;
The Socialist Renewal Movement

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

unofficial, local flag based upon the arms of the city of Pointe-a-Pitre;
the field is divided horizontally with a narrow, blue stripe along the top edge charged with three gold fleurs-de-lis;
the wider, lower portion of the field is black and charged with green sugar cane leaves - representing one of Guadeloupe's main crops - surmounted by a gold radiant sun representing the tropical climate;
the only official flag is the national flag of France

Economy

This Caribbean economy depends on agriculture, tourism, light industry, and services.

37 fields

GDP, purchasing power parity

$3.513billion

(2003 est.)official exchange rate: NA

GDP per capita, PPP

$7,900

(2003 est.)

Unemployment rate

26.9%

(2003)

Labor force

191,400

(1999)

GDP - composition by sector(2002 est.)

agriculture 15%industry 17%services 68% (2002 est.)

Trading partnersexports left, imports right

60%

France

63%

18%

Martinique

Germany

Japan

Netherlands Antilles

Exports $147.8 million f.o.b. (2002)Imports $1.766 billion c.i.f. (2002)(2004)

Budget

Revenues

$637.7 millionExpenditures

$680.1 million (2002)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $112.5 million

Electricity

Electricity production

1.165 billion (2003)Electricity consumption

1.084 billion (2003)

Economy - overview

This Caribbean economy depends on agriculture, tourism, light industry, and services. It also depends on France for large subsidies and imports. Tourism is a key industry, with most tourists from the US; an increasingly large number of cruise ships visit the islands. The traditional sugarcane crop is slowly being replaced by other crops, such as bananas (which now supply about 50% of export earnings), eggplant, and flowers.

Other vegetables and root crops are cultivated for local consumption, although Guadeloupe is still dependent on imported food, mainly from France. Light industry features sugar and rum production. Most manufactured goods and fuel are imported. Unemployment is especially high among the young. Hurricanes periodically devastate the economy.

GDP - real growth rate

NA%

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture:: 15%
industry:: 20%
services:: 65% (2002)

Communications

8 fields

Mobile cellular

314,700

(2004)

Internet users

422

(2006)

Fixed lines

210,000

(2001) · country code .gp

Telephone system

general assessment:: domestic facilities inadequate
domestic:: NA
international:: country code - 590;
satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean);
microwave radio relay to Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, and Martinique

Transportation

5 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved only

over 3,047 m

1914 to 1,523 m

2under 914 m

Airports by runway lengthunpaved only

under 914 m

Military

No regular military forces

5 fields

Transnational Issues

1 field

Disputes - international

none

Central Intelligence Agency. “Guadeloupe.” The World Factbook 2006. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/guadeloupe.

How to cite ← 2005 edition

Introduction

Geography

People

Government

Economy

Communications

Transportation

Military

Transnational Issues

Cite this entry