Aminet 6/Aminet 6 - June 1995.iso/Aminet/docs/misc/wfbook93_texi.lha/texi/82.data

Text File | 1995-03-27 | 7.5 KB | 323 lines

@node Header (French Guiana)
@section Header (French Guiana)

@display

Affiliation:
  (overseas department of France)



@end display

@node Geography (French Guiana)
@section Geography (French Guiana)

@display

Location:
  northern South America, bordering on the North Atlantic Ocean between
  Suriname and Brazil
Map references:
  South America, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
 total area:
  91,000 km2
 land area:
  89,150 km2
 comparative area:
  slightly smaller than Indiana
Land boundaries:
  total 1,183 km, Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km
Coastline:
  378 km
Maritime claims:
 exclusive economic zone:
  200 nm
 territorial sea:
  12 nm
International disputes:
  Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both
  headwaters of the Lawa)
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), cinnabar, kaolin, fish
Land use:
 arable land:
  0%
 permanent crops:
  0%
 meadows and pastures:
  0%
 forest and woodland:
  82%
 other:
  18%
Irrigated land:
  NA km2
Environment:
  mostly an unsettled wilderness



@end display

@node People (French Guiana)
@section People (French Guiana)

@display

Population:
  133,376 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
  4.42% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
  26.46 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
  4.72 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
  22.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
  16.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
 total population:
  74.87 years
 male:
  71.59 years
 female:
  78.32 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
  3.54 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality:
 noun:
  French Guianese (singular and plural)
 adjective:
  French Guianese
Ethnic divisions:
  black or mulatto 66%, Caucasian 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%,
  other 10%
Religions:
  Roman Catholic
Languages:
  French
Literacy:
  age 15 and over can read and write (1982)
 total population:
  82%
 male:
  81%
 female:
  83%
Labor force:
  23,265
 by occupation:
  services, government, and commerce 60.6%, industry 21.2%, agriculture 18.2%
  (1980)



@end display

@node Government (French Guiana)
@section Government (French Guiana)

@display

Names:
 conventional long form:
  Department of Guiana
 conventional short form:
  French Guiana
 local long form:
  none
 local short form:
  Guyane
Digraph:
  FG
Type:
  overseas department of France
Capital:
  Cayenne
Administrative divisions:
  none (overseas department of France)
Independence:
  none (overseas department of France)
Constitution:
  28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Legal system:
  French legal system
National holiday:
  National Day, Taking of the Bastille, 14 July (1789)
Political parties and leaders:
  Guianese Socialist Party (PSG), Gerard HOLDER; Rally for the Republic (RPR),
  Paulin BRUNE; Union of the Center Rally (URC); Union for French Democracy
  (UDF), Claude Ho A CHUCK; Guyana Democratic Front (FDG), Georges OTHILY
Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal
Elections:
 French National Assembly:
  last held 24 September 1989 (next to be held March 1993); results - percent
  of vote by party NA; seats - (2 total) PSG 1, RPR 1
 French Senate:
  last held 24 September 1989 (next to be held September 1998); results -
  percent of vote by party NA; seats - (1 total) PSG 1
 Regional Council:
  last held 22 March 1992 (next to be held NA); results - percent of vote by
  party NA; seats - (31 total) PSG 16
Executive branch:
  French president, commissioner of the republic
Legislative branch:
  unicameral General Council and a unicameral Regional Council
Judicial branch:
  Court of Appeals (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction
  over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana)
Leaders:
 Chief of State:
  President Francois MITTERRAND (since 21 May 1981)
 Head of Government:   Prefect Jean-Francois CORDET (since NA 1992)
Member of:
  FZ, WCL
Diplomatic representation in US:
  as an overseas department of France, the interests of French Guiana are
  represented in the US by France



@end display

@node Government (French Guiana 2. usage)
@section Government (French Guiana 2. usage)

@display

US diplomatic representation:
  none (overseas department of France)
Flag:
  the flag of France is used



@end display

@node Economy (French Guiana)
@section Economy (French Guiana)

@display

Overview:
  The economy is tied closely to that of France through subsidies and imports.
  Besides the French space center at Kourou, fishing and forestry are the most
  important economic activities, with exports of fish and fish products
  (mostly shrimp) accounting for more than 60% of total revenue in 1987. The
  large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an
  expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation
  of crops - rice, cassava, bananas, and sugarcane - is limited to the coastal
  area, where the population is largely concentrated. French Guiana is heavily
  dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem,
  particularly among younger workers.
National product:
  GDP - exchange rate conversion - $421 million (1986)
National product real growth rate:
  NA%
National product per capita:
  $4,390 (1986)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  4.1% (1987)
Unemployment rate:
  13% (1990)
Budget:
  revenues $735 million; expenditures $735 million, including capital
  expenditures of $NA (1987)
Exports:
  $64.8 million (f.o.b., 1990)
 commodities:
  shrimp, timber, rum, rosewood essence
 partners:
  France 36%, US 14%, Japan 6% (1990)
Imports:
  $435 million (c.i.f., 1990)
 commodities:
  food (grains, processed meat), other consumer goods, producer goods,
  petroleum
 partners:   France 62%, Trinidad and Tobago 9%, US 4%, FRG 3% (1987)
External debt:
  $1.2 billion (1988)
Industrial production:
  growth rate NA%
Electricity:
  92,000 kW capacity; 185 million kWh produced, 1,450 kWh per capita (1992)
Industries:
  construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining
Agriculture:
  some vegetables for local consumption; rice, corn, manioc, cocoa, bananas,
  sugar; livestock - cattle, pigs, poultry
Economic aid:
  Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89),
  $1.51 billion
Currency:
  1 French franc (F) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates:
  French francs (F) per US$1 - 5.4812 (January 1993), 5.2938 (1992), 5.6421
  (1991), 5.4453 (1990), 6.3801 (1989), 5.9569 (1988)
Fiscal year:
  calendar year



@end display

@node Communications (French Guiana)
@section Communications (French Guiana)

@display

Highways:
  680 km total; 510 km paved, 170 km improved and unimproved earth
Inland waterways:
  460 km, navigable by small oceangoing vessels and river and coastal
  steamers; 3,300 km navigable by native craft
Ports:
  Cayenne
Airports:
 total:
  10
 usable:
  10
 with permanent-surface runways:
  4
 with runways over 3,659 m:
  0
 with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
  1
 with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
  1
Telecommunications:
  fair open-wire and microwave radio relay system; 18,100 telephones;
  broadcast stations - 5 AM, 7 FM, 9 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth
  station



@end display

@node Defense Forces (French Guiana)
@section Defense Forces (French Guiana)

@display

Branches:
  French Forces, Gendarmerie
Manpower availability:
  males 15-49 39,005; fit for military service 25,477 (1993 est.)
Defense expenditures:
  $NA, NA% of GDP
Note:
  defense is the responsibility of France



@end display