Reunion
Department of Reunion
NAIndependence none (overseas department of France)
Reunion as the 2003 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 113 fields, one of 17 editions from 1990 to 2006.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route.
Geography
Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
17 fieldsLand useshare of 2,517 sq km
Climate
tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April
Natural hazards
periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano
Geography - note
- this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise;
- there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean
People
19 fieldsPer 1,000 population(2003 est.)
Male · female
Age structure
- 0-14 years:
- 31.3% (male 121,119; female 115,501)
- 15-64 years:
- 62.8% (male 233,607; female 240,502)
- 65 years and over:
- 5.9% (male 18,036; female 26,406) (2003 est.)
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.05 male(s)/female
- under 15 years:
- 1.05 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years:
- 0.97 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.68 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Government
NA; President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Gonthier FRIEDERICI (since NA); President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993)
19 fieldsGeneral Council, 45 seats, elected 15 and 22 March 1998one dot, one seat
Country name
- conventional long form:
- Department of Reunion
- conventional short form:
- Reunion
- local short form:
- Ile de la Reunion
- local long form:
- none
- former:
- Bourbon Island
Administrative divisions
none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Gonthier FRIEDERICI (since 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 the Interior;
- the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils
- head of government:
- President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993)
- cabinet:
- NA
Legislative branch
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)
- elections:
- General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004); 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 - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2;
- Regional Council - percent of vote by party - NA%;
- seats by party - PCR 19, UDF 9, RPR 8, various right-wing candidates 4, various left-wing candidates 5
note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%;
seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1
Political parties and leaders
- Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES];
- Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE];
- Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU];
- Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]
Economy
The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate.
36 fieldsGDP - composition by sector(2000 est.)
Trading partnersexports left, imports right
Electricity
Economy - overview
The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force.
The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent.
The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France.
Imports - commodities
manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products
Exchange rates
euros per US dollar - 1.06 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998)
Communications
8 fieldsTelephone system
- general assessment:
- adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
- domestic:
- modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network
- international:
- radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar;
- new microwave route to Mauritius;
- satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Transportation
6 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved only
Networkskm
Military
No regular indigenous military forces; French forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie)
6 fieldsMilitary branches
no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie)
Transnational Issues
1 fieldCite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Reunion.” The World Factbook 2003. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/reunion/2003.