Chad (2001) | Martinique (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture); Batha, Biltine, Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Chari-Baguirmi, Guera, Kanem, Lac, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mayo-Kebbi, Moyen-Chari, Ouaddai, Salamat, Tandjile | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
47.73% (male 2,091,724; female 2,064,514) 15-64 years: 49.46% (male 2,035,099; female 2,271,389) 65 years and over: 2.81% (male 101,579; female 142,773) (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane |
Airports | 50 (2000 est.) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
7 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
43 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
1.284 million sq km land: 1,259,200 sq km water: 24,800 sq km |
total:
1,100 sq km land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than three times the size of California | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of ethnic warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. The government eventually suppressed or came to terms with most political-military groups, settled a territorial dispute with Libya on terms favorable to Chad, drafted a democratic constitution, and held multiparty presidential and National Assembly elections in 1996 and 1997 respectively. In 1998 a new rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which continued to escalate throughout 2000. Despite movement toward democratic reform, power remains in the hands of a northern ethnic oligarchy. | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. |
Birth rate | 48.28 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$198 million expenditures: $218 million, including capital expenditures of $146 million (1998 est.) |
revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
Capital | N'Djamena | Fort-de-France |
Climate | tropical in south, desert in north | 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 |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 350 km |
Constitution | passed by referendum 31 March 1995 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Chad conventional short form: Chad local long form: Republique du Tchad local short form: Tchad |
conventional long form:
Department of Martinique conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 15.4 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1 billion (1999 est.) | $180 million (1994) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Christopher E. GOLDTHWAIT embassy: Avenue Felix Eboue, N'Djamena mailing address: B. P. 413, N'Djamena telephone: [235] (51) 70-09, (51) 90-52, (51) 92-33 FAX: [235] (51) 56-54 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Hassaballah Abdelhadi Ahmat SOUBIANE chancery: 2002 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 462-4009 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1937 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, has been completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $238.3 million (1995); note - $125 million committed by Taiwan (August 1997); $30 million committed by African Development Bank | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France |
Economy - overview | Landlocked Chad's economic development suffers from its geographic remoteness, drought, lack of infrastructure, and political turmoil. About 85% of the population depends on agriculture, including the herding of livestock. Of Africa's Francophone countries, Chad benefited least from the 50% devaluation of their currencies in January 1994. Financial aid from the World Bank, the African Development Fund, and other sources is directed largely at the improvement of agriculture, especially livestock production. The World Bank's decision to back the Doba oil field development and the Chad-Cameroon pipeline will add Chad to the group of already booming West African oil exporters. However, the rank and file may not benefit much from the oil development projects. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (1999) | 1.023 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (1999) | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Djourab Depression 160 m highest point: Emi Koussi 3,415 m |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; improper waste disposal in rural areas contributes to soil and water pollution; desertification | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
- |
Ethnic groups | Muslims, commonly referred to as "northerners" or "gorane" (Arabs, Toubou, Hadjerai, Fulbe, Kotoko, Kanembou, Baguirmi, Boulala, Zaghawa, and Maba); non-Muslims, commonly referred to as "southerners" (Sara, Ngambaye, Mbaye, Goulaye, Moundang, Moussei, Massa) including nonindigenous 150,000 (of whom 1,000 are French)
note: ethnicity and regional background more commonly used to identify Chadians than religious affiliation |
African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro | 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) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY (since 4 December 1990) head of government: Prime Minister Nagoum YAMASSOUM (since 13 December 1999) cabinet: Council of State, members appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote to serve five-year term; if no candidate receives at least 50% of the total vote, the two candidates receiving the most votes must stand for a second round of voting; last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY elected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY 63%, Ngarlegy YORONGAR 16%, Saleh KEBZABO 7% note: government coalition - MPS, UNDR, and URD |
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 |
Exports | $172 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $250 million (f.o.b., 1997) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, cattle, textiles | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples |
Exports - partners | Portugal 38%, Germany 12%, Thailand, Costa Rica, South Africa, France (1999) | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; similar to the flag of Romania; also similar to the flags of Andorra and Moldova, both of which have a national coat of arms centered in the yellow band; design was based on the flag of France | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $8.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
40% industry: 14% services: 46% (1998) |
agriculture:
6% industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 19 00 E | 14 40 N, 61 00 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; Lake Chad is the most significant water body in the Sahel | - |
Highways | total:
33,400 km paved: 267 km unpaved: 33,133 km (1996) |
total:
2,105 km (2000) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe |
Imports | $223 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $2 billion (c.i.f., 1997) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs, textiles | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods |
Imports - partners | France 40%, Cameroon 13%, Nigeria 12%, India 5% (1999) | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) |
Independence | 11 August 1960 (from France) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (1995) | NA% |
Industries | cotton textiles, meatpacking, beer brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 95.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2000 est.) | 3.9% (1990) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 140 sq km (1993 est.) | 40 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Magistrate Courts | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | NA | 170,000 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 85% (subsistence farming, herding, and fishing) | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) |
Land boundaries | total:
5,968 km border countries: Cameroon 1,094 km, Central African Republic 1,197 km, Libya 1,055 km, Niger 1,175 km, Nigeria 87 km, Sudan 1,360 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 36% forests and woodland: 26% other: 35% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
8% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 44% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Arabic (official), Sara and Sango (in south), more than 100 different languages and dialects | French, Creole patois |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and Chadian customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | French legal system |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (125 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); replaces the Higher Transitional Council or the Conseil Superieur de Transition
elections: National Assembly - last held in two rounds on 5 January and 23 February 1997 (next to be held in late 2001); in the first round of voting some candidates won clear victories by receiving 50% or more of the vote; where that did not happen, the two highest scoring candidates stood for a second round of voting election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPS 65, URD 29, UNDR 15, RDP 3, others 13 |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
50.88 years male: 48.86 years female: 52.98 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
78.41 years male: 79.11 years female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write French or Arabic total population: 48.1% male: 62.1% female: 34.7% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 92% female: 93% (1982 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, south of Libya | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Armed Forces (includes Ground Force, Air Force, and Gendarmerie), Republican Guard, Rapid Intervention Force, Police, Rural and Nomadic Guard (GNNT) | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $39 million (FY96) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.5% (FY96) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,814,578 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
949,997 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
82,003 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 11 August (1960) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Chadian(s) adjective: Chadian |
noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural) adjective: Martiniquais |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) |
Natural resources | petroleum (unexploited but exploration under way), uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad) | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | National Union for Development and Renewal or UNDR [Saleh KEBZABO]; Patriotic Salvation Movement or MPS [Mahamat Saleh AHMAT, chairman] (originally in opposition but now the party in power and the party of the president); Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Lal Mahamat CHOUA]; Union for Renewal and Democracy or URD [Gen. Wadal Abdelkader KAMOUGUE] | 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 | NA | 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] |
Population | 8,707,078 (July 2001 est.) | 418,454 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% (1995 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.29% (2001 est.) | 0.93% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Fort-de-France, La Trinite |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 5 (1998) | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.67 million (1997) | 82,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Muslim 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs (mostly animism) 25% | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
primitive system domestic: fair system of radiotelephone communication stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 7,000 (1997) | 170,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 15,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | broad, arid plains in center, desert in north, mountains in northwest, lowlands in south | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano |
Total fertility rate | 6.56 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 27.2% (1998) |
Waterways | 2,000 km | none |