Netherlands Antilles (2002) | French Guiana (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
note: each island has its own government |
none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 25% (male 27,351; female 26,135)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 68,431; female 75,312) 65 years and over: 7.9% (male 7,049; female 9,980) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.3% (male 29,262/female 27,947)
15-64 years: 64.7% (male 67,895/female 58,534) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 6,038/female 5,830) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 5 (2001) | 11 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 960 sq km
land: 960 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin) |
total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
Area - comparative | more than five times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Indiana |
Background | Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is shared with France; its northern portion is named Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe, and its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles. | First settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of notorious penal settlements until 1951. The European Space Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou. |
Birth rate | 16.16 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 20.7 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $710.8 million
expenditures: $741.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
Capital | Willemstad | Cayenne |
Climate | tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 364 km | 378 km |
Constitution | 29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Netherlands Antilles local long form: none local short form: Nederlandse Antillen former: Curacao and Dependencies |
conventional long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
Currency | Netherlands Antillean guilder (ANG) | - |
Death rate | 6.4 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 4.85 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.35 billion (1996) (1996) | $1.2 billion (1988) |
Dependency status | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 1954; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Consul General Deborah A. BOLTON
consulate(s) general: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Willemstad AN, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 4613066 FAX: [599] (9) 4616489 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | none | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) in French Guiana |
Economic aid - recipient | IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its support with $40 million | NA |
Economy - overview | Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP has declined in each of the past five years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. | The economy is tied closely to the much larger French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou (which accounts for 25% of GDP), fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90% of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.093 billion kWh (2000) | 427.9 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 1.175 billion kWh (2000) | 460.1 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Scenery 862 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Ethnic groups | mixed black 85%, Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% |
Exchange rates | Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - 1.790 (fixed rate since 1989) | Euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Frits GOEDGEDRAG (since 1 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Etienne YS (since 3 June 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the Staten elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch for a six-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the Staten; election last held 18 January 2002 (next to be held by NA 2006) note: government coalition - PDB, DP-St. M, FOL, PLKP, PNP |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Ange MANCINI (since 31 July 2002)
head of government: President of the General Council Joseph HO-TEN-YOU (since 26 March 2001); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992) 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; presidents of the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members of those councils |
Exports | $276 million f.o.b. (2000) | NA |
Exports - commodities | petroleum products | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing |
Exports - partners | US 35.9%, Guatemala 9.4%, Venezuela 8.7%, France 5.4%, Singapore 2.8% (2000) | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | white, with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band, also centered; five white, five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.4 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 15% services: 84% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,300 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -3.5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 12 15 N, 68 45 W | 4 00 N, 53 00 W |
Geography - note | the five islands of the Netherlands Antilles are divided geographically into the Leeward Islands (northern) group (Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten) and the Windward Islands (southern) group (Bonaire and Curacao) | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent |
Highways | total: 600 km
paved: 300 km unpaved: 300 km (1992) |
total: 817 km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe |
Imports | $1.5 billion f.o.b. (2000) | NA |
Imports - commodities | crude petroleum, food, manufactures | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals |
Imports - partners | US 25.8%, Mexico 20.7%, Gabon 6.6%, Italy 5.8%, Netherlands 5.5% (2000) | France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002 est.) |
Independence | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao) | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | 11.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 12.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 12.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.8% (2000 est.) | 1.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), CCC, ECLAC (associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCL, WMO, WToO (associate) | UPU, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 20 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch) | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana) |
Labor force | 89,000 | 58,800 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1%, industry 13%, services 86% (1994 est.) | agriculture 18.2%, industry 21.2%, services, government, and commerce 60.6% (1980) |
Land boundaries | total: 10.2 km
border countries: Guadeloupe (Saint Martin) 10.2 km |
total: 1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
Land use | arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 0% other: 90% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0.14%
permanent crops: 0.05% other: 99.81% (90% forest, 10% other) (2001) |
Languages | Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect) predominates, English widely spoken, Spanish | French |
Legal system | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence | French legal system |
Legislative branch | unicameral States or Staten (22 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 18 January 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FOL 5, PAR 4, PNP 3, PLKP 2, DP-St.M 2, UPB 2, DP 1, MAN 1, PDB 1, WIPM 1 note: the government of Prime Minister Miguel POURIER is a coalition of several parties; current seats by party - PAR 4, PNP 3, FOL 2, MAN 2, UPB 2, DP-St. M 2, PDB 1, SEA 1, WIPM 1, other 4 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 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 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 - PSG 5, various left-wing parties 5, independents 7, other 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - PS 28.28%, various left parties 22.56%, RPR 15.91%, independents 8.6%, Walwari Committee 6%; seats by party - PS 11, various left parties 9, RPR 6, independents 3, Walwari Committee 2 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; 2 seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, Walwari Committee 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.15 years
male: 72.96 years female: 77.46 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 77.09 years
male: 73.77 years female: 80.58 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 99% (1981 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - one includes Curacao and Bonaire north of Venezuela; the other is east of the Virgin Islands | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 12 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 123 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,056,362 GRT/1,341,735 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 39, chemical tanker 2, combination ore/oil 4, container 24, liquefied gas 5, multi-functional large-load carrier 15, passenger 1, refrigerated cargo 24, roll on/roll off 7 note: includes foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 3, Denmark 2, Germany 43, Monaco 8, Netherlands 52, New Zealand 1, Norway 3, Peru 1, Spain 1, Sweden 3, United Kingdom 5 (2002 est.) |
registered in other countries: 3 |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Netherlands Navy, Marine Corps, Royal Netherlands Air Force, National Guard, Police Force | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 54,752 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 30,642 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 1,610 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Dutch Antillean(s)
adjective: Dutch Antillean |
noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
Natural hazards | Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt and are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding |
Natural resources | phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only) | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium, tantalum, clay |
Net migration rate | -0.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 5.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Antillean Restructuring Party or PAR [Miguel POURIER]; C 93 [Stanley BROWN]; Democratic Party of Bonaire or PDB [Jopi ABRAHAM]; Democratic Party of Curacao or DP [Errol HERNANDEZ]; Democratic Party of Sint Eustatius or DP-St. E [Julian WOODLEY]; Democratic Party of Sint Maarten or DP-St. M [Sarah WESCOTT-WILLIAMS]; Foundation Energetic Management Anti-Narcotics or FAME [Eric LODEWIJKS]; Labor Party People's Crusade or PLKP [Errol COVA]; National People's Party or PNP [Susanne F. C. CAMELIA-ROMER]; New Antilles Movement or MAN [Kenneth GIJSBERTHA]; Patriotic Union of Bonaire or UPB [Ramon BOOI]; Patriotic Movement of Sint Maarten or SPA [Vance JAMES, Jr.]; People's Party or PAPU [Richard Hodi]; Pro Curacao Party or PPK [Winston LOURENS]; Saba Democratic Labor Movement [Steve HASSELL]; Saba Unity Party [Carmen SIMMONDS]; St. Eustatius Alliance or SEA [Kenneth VAN PUTTEN]; Serious Alternative People's Party or Sapp [Julian ROLLOCKS]; Social Action Cause or KAS [Benny DEMEI]; Windward Islands People's Movement or WIPM [Will JOHNSTON]; Workers' Liberation Front or FOL [Anthony GODETT, Rignald LAK, Editha WRIGHT]
note: political parties are indigenous to each island |
Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Popular National Guyanese Party or PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Socialist Party or PS [Paul DEBRIETTE]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (includes RPR) [Muriel ICARE]; Walwari Committee (aligned with the PRG in France) [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 214,258 (July 2002 est.) | 195,506 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.93% (2002 est.) | 2.1% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Kralendijk, Philipsburg, Willemstad | Degrad des Cannes |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) |
Radios | 217,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km (2002) | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Seventh-Day Adventist | Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.04 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: generally adequate facilities
domestic: extensive interisland microwave radio relay links international: submarine cables - 2; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fair open-wire and microwave radio relay system international: country code - 594; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 76,000 (1995) | 51,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 13,977 (1996) | 138,200 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (there is also a cable service which supplies programs received from various US satellite networks and two Venezuelan channels) (1997) | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | generally hilly, volcanic interiors | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.06 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 3.01 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1998 est.) | 22% (2001) |
Waterways | none | 3,760 km
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft (2004) |