| Background: |
Colonized by
France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a
French possession except for three brief periods of foreign
occupation. |
| Location: |
Caribbean, island
in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
14 40 N, 61 00 W |
| Map
references: |
Central America
and the Caribbean |
| Area: |
total:
1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km
water: 40 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly more
than six times the size of Washington, DC |
| Maritime
claims: |
exclusive
economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
tropical;
moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to October);
vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight
years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid |
| Terrain: |
mountainous with
indented coastline; dormant volcano |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
| Natural
resources: |
coastal scenery
and beaches, cultivable land |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
8%
permanent crops: 8%
permanent pastures: 17%
forests and woodland: 44%
other: 23% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
40 sq km (1993
est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
hurricanes,
flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major
natural disaster every five years) |
| Environment
- current issues: |
NA |
| Population: |
418,454 (July
2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
23.1% (male 49,016; female 47,653)
15-64 years: 66.77% (male 139,106; female
140,291)
65 years and over: 10.13% (male 18,893; female
23,495) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
0.93% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
15.76
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
6.39 deaths/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-0.08 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
7.8 deaths/1,000
live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 78.41 years
male: 79.11 years
female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
1.8 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
NA% |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
| Ethnic
groups: |
African and
African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian,
Chinese less than 5% |
| Religions: |
Roman Catholic
95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% |
| Languages: |
French, Creole
patois |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93%
male: 92%
female: 93% (1982 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: Department of Martinique
conventional short form: Martinique
local long form: Departement de la Martinique
local short form: Martinique |
| Dependency
status: |
overseas
department of France |
| Administrative
divisions: |
none (overseas
department of France) |
| Independence: |
none (overseas
department of France) |
| National
holiday: |
Bastille Day, 14
July (1789) |
| Constitution: |
28 September 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); Prefect Jean-Francois CORDET (since NA)
head of government: President of the General
Council Claude LISE (since 22 March 1992); President of the
Regional Council Alfred MARIE-JEANNE (since NA March 1998)
cabinet: NA
elections: French president elected by popular
vote for a seven-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 |
| Legislative
branch: |
unicameral
General Council or Conseil General (45 seats; members are
elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a
unicameral Regional Assembly or Conseil Regional (41 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March
2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Assembly - last
held on 15 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2004)
election results: General Council - percent of
vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - the PPM won
a plurality; Regional Assembly - percent of vote by party -
NA%; seats by party - RPR-UDF 14, MIM 13, PPM 7, left
parties 4, PMS 3
note: Martinique elects 2 seats to the French
Senate; elections last held NA September 1998 (next to be
held September 2001); results - percent of vote by party -
NA%; seats by party - PPM 2; Martinique also elects 4 seats
to the French National Assembly; elections last held 1 June
1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 2, PS 1, independent 1 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Court of Appeal
or Cour d'Appel |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Martinique
Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE];
Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Camille DARSIERES];
Martinique Socialist Party or PMS [Ernest WAN-AJOUHU]; Rally
for the Republic or RPR [Michel CHARLONE]; Union for French
Democracy or UDF (replaced by Martinique Forces of Progress)
[Jean MAREN] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Association for
the Protection of Martinique's Heritage (ecologist) [Garcin
MALSA]; Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance or ARC; Central
Union for Martinique Workers or CSTM [Marc PULVAR]; Frantz
Fanon Circle; League of Workers and Peasants; Proletarian
Action Group or GAP; Socialist Revolution Group or GRS
[Philippe PIERRE-CHARLES] |
| International
organization participation: |
FZ, WCL, WFTU |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
none (overseas
department of France) |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
none (overseas
department of France) |
| Flag
description: |
a light blue
background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross;
in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag
of France is used for official occasions |
| Economy
- overview: |
The economy is
based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry.
Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small
industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined,
with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of
rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France.
The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be
imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that
requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism
has become more important than agricultural exports as a
source of foreign exchange. The majority of the work force
is employed in the service sector and in administration. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
NA% |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
6%
industry: 11%
services: 83% (1997 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
3.9% (1990) |
| Labor
force: |
170,000 (1997) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture 10%,
industry 17%, services 73% (1997) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
27.2% (1998) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$900 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital
expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
| Industries: |
construction,
rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
NA% |
| Electricity
- production: |
1.1 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
1.023 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
pineapples,
avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane |
| Exports: |
$250 million
(f.o.b., 1997) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
refined petroleum
products, bananas, rum, pineapples |
| Exports
- partners: |
France 45%,
Guadeloupe 28% (1997) |
| Imports: |
$2 billion
(c.i.f., 1997) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
petroleum
products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials,
vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods |
| Imports
- partners: |
France 62%,
Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) |
| Debt
- external: |
$180 million
(1994) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$NA; note -
substantial annual aid from France |
| Currency: |
French franc (FRF);
euro (EUR) |
| Exchange
rates: |
euros per US
dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386
(1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367
(1997), 5.1155 (1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
170,000 (1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
15,000 (1997) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: domestic facilities are adequate
domestic: NA
international: microwave radio relay to
Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth
stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 0, FM 14,
shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
11 (plus nine
repeaters) (1997) |
| Televisions: |
66,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.mq |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
2 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
5,000 (2000) |
| Highways: |
total:
2,105 km (2000)
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Fort-de-France,
La Trinite |
| Merchant
marine: |
none (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
1
under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
French forces
(Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie |
| Military
- note: |
defense is the
responsibility of France |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
| Illicit
drugs: |
transshipment
point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe |
|
