Airports: 11 total, 11 usable; 5 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 1 with
runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: fair open wire and radio relay system;
18,100 telephones; stations--5 AM, 7 FM, 9 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean
INTELSAT earth station
- Defense Forces
1Military manpower: males 15-49 27,866; 18,430 fit for military
service
Note: defense is the responsibility of France
----------------------------------------------------
Country: French Polynesia
(overseas territory of France)
- Geography
Total area: 3,941 km2; land area: 3,660 km2
Comparative area: slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 2,525 km
Maritime claims:
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical, but moderate
Terrain: mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs
Natural resources: timber, fish, cobalt
Land use: 1% arable land; 19% permanent crops; 5% meadows and pastures;
31% forest and woodland; 44% other
Environment: occasional cyclonic storm in January; includes five
archipelagoes
Note: Makatea is one of three great phosphate rock islands in
the Pacific (others are Banaba or Ocean Island in Kiribati and Nauru)
- People
Population: 190,181 (July 1990), growth rate 2.5% (1990)
Birth rate: 31 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 23 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 66 years male, 71 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 3.9 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--French Polynesian(s); adjective--French Polynesian
Ethnic divisions: 78% Polynesian, 12% Chinese, 6% local French,
4% metropolitan French
Religion: mainly Christian; 55% Protestant, 32% Roman Catholic
Language: French (official), Tahitian
Literacy: NA%
Labor force: 57,863 employed (1983)
Organized labor: NA
- Government
Long-form name: Territory of French Polynesia
Type: overseas territory of France
Capital: Papeete
Administrative divisions: none (overseas territory of France)
Independence: none (overseas territory of France)
Constitution: 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Legal system: based on French system
National holiday: Taking of the Bastille, 14 July (1789)
Executive branch: French president, high commissioner of the republic,
president of the Council of Ministers, vice president of the Council of
Ministers, Council of Ministers
Legislative branch: unicameral Territorial Assembly
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal
Leaders:
Chief of State--President Francois MITTERRAND (since
21 May 1981); High Commissioner of the Republic Jean MONTPEZAT
(since NA November 1987);
Head of Government--President of the Council of Ministers
Alexandre LEONTIEFF (since 9 December 1987); Vice President of the
Council of Ministers Georges KELLY (since 9 December 1987)
Political parties and leaders: Tahoeraa Huiraatira (Gaullist),
Gaston Flosse; Pupu Here Ai'a, Jean Juventin; Front de Liberation, Oscar
Temaru; Ai'a Api, Emile Vernaudon; Ia Mana Te Nunaa, Jacques Drollet;
Pupu Taina, Michel Law; Toatiraa Polynesia, Arthur Chung; Te E'a Api,
Francis Sanford
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
Territorial Assembly--last held 16 March 1986 (next to be held
March 1991); results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(41 total) Tahoeraa Huiraatira 24, Amuitahiraa Mo
Porinesia 6, Pupu Here Ai'a 4, Ia Mana 3, Front de Liberation 2,
other 2;
French Senate--last held 24 September 1989 (next to be held
September 1992); results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(1 total) Democrats for Progress 1;
French National Assembly last held 5 and 12 June 1988 (next to be
held June 1993); results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(2 total) Rally for the Republic 1, Ai'a Api 1
Diplomatic representation: as an overseas territory of France,
French Polynesian interests are represented in the US by France
Flag: the flag of France is used
- Economy
Overview: Since 1962, when France stationed military personnel in
the region, French Polynesia has changed from a subsistence economy to one
in which a high proportion of the work force is either employed by the military
or supports the tourist industry. Tourism accounts for about 20% of GDP
and is a primary source of hard currency earnings.
GDP: $2.24 billion, per capita $6,400; real growth rate NA% (1986)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.2% (1987)
Unemployment rate: 8% (1986 est.)
Budget: revenues $431; expenditures $418, including capital expenditures
of $NA (1986)
Exports: $75 million (f.o.b., 1987);
commodities--coconut products 79%, mother-of-pearl 14%, vanilla, shark
meat;
partners--France 44%, US 21%
Imports: $767 million (c.i.f., 1986);
commodities--fuels, foodstuffs, equipment;
partners--France 50%, US 16%, New Zealand 6%
External debt: $NA
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
Electricity: 72,000 kW capacity; 265 million kWh produced, 1,350 kWh
per capita (1989)
Industries: tourism, pearls, agricultural processing, handicrafts
Agriculture: coconut and vanilla plantations; vegetables and fruit;
poultry, beef, dairy products
Aid: Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-87), $3.6 billion
Currency: Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (plural--francs);
1 CFP franc (CFPF) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates: Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (CFPF) per
US$1--104.71 (January 1990), 115.99 (1989), 108.30 (1988), 109.27 (1987),
125.92 (1986), 163.35 (1985); note--linked at the rate of 18.18 to the French
franc
Fiscal year: calendar year
- Communications
Highways: 600 km (1982)
Ports: Papeete, Bora-bora
Merchant marine: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,732
GRT/4,191 DWT; includes 1 cargo, 1 refrigerated cargo; note--a subset of
the French register
Civil air: about 6 major transport aircraft
Airports: 43 total, 41 usable; 23 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 12 with
runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: 33,200 telephones; 84,000 radio receivers; 26,400 TV
sets; stations--5 AM, 2 FM, 6 TV; 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth station
- Defense Forces
Note: defense is responsibility of France
----------------------------------------------------
Country: French Southern and Antarctic Lands
(overseas territory of France)
- Geography
Total area: 7,781 km2; land area: 7,781 km2; includes Ile Amsterdam,
Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles Crozet; excludes claim not
recognized by the US of about 500,000 km2 in Antarctica known as Terre Adelie
Comparative area: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of Delaware
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 1,232 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 12 nm;
Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploration;
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Disputes: claim in Antarctica (Terre Adelie) not recognized by the US
Climate: antarctic
Terrain: volcanic
Natural resources: fish, crayfish
Land use: 0% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 0% meadows and
pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 100% other
Environment: Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes
Note: located in the southern Indian Ocean about equidistant
between Africa, Antarctica, and Australia
- People
Population: 210 (July 1990), growth rate 0.00% (1990); mostly
researchers
- Government
Long-form name: Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Type: overseas territory of France governed by High Administrator
Claude CORBIER (since NA 1988)
Flag: the flag of France is used
- Economy
Overview: Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and
geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fishing
catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships
are exported to France and Reunion.
- Communications
Ports: none; offshore anchorage only
Merchant marine: 10 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling
217,203 GRT/348,632 DWT; includes 2 cargo, 3 refrigerated cargo,
1 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 2 liquefied gas, 2 bulk;
note--a subset of the French register
Telecommunications: NA
- Defense Forces
Note: defense is the responsibility of France
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Gabon
- Geography
Total area: 267,670 km2; land area: 257,670 km2
Comparative area: slightly smaller than Colorado
Land boundaries: 2,551 km total; Cameroon 298 km, Congo 1,903 km,
Equatorial Guinea 350 km
Coastline: 885 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Disputes: maritime boundary with Equatorial Guinea
Climate: tropical; always hot, humid
Terrain: narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and south
Natural resources: crude oil, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore
Land use: 1% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 18% meadows and pastures;
78% forest and woodland; 2% other
Environment: deforestation
- People
Population: 1,068,240 (July 1990), growth rate 0.8% (1990)
Birth rate: 28 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 15 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: - 6 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 106 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 50 years male, 56 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 4.0 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Gabonese (sing., pl.); adjective--Gabonese
Ethnic divisions: about 40 Bantu tribes, including four major tribal
groupings (Fang, Eshira, Bapounou, Bateke); about 100,000 expatriate Africans
and Europeans, including 27,000 French
Religion: 55-75% Christian, less than 1% Muslim, remainder animist
Language: French (official), Fang, Myene, Bateke, Bapounou/Eschira,
Bandjabi
Literacy: 61.6%
Labor force: 120,000 salaried; 65.0% agriculture, 30.0% industry and
commerce, 2.5% services, 2.5% government; 58% of population of working age
(1983)
Organized labor: there are 38,000 members of the national trade union,
the Gabonese Trade Union Confederation (COSYGA)
- Government
Long-form name: Gabonese Republic
Type: republic; one-party presidential regime since 1964
Capital: Libreville
Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue,
Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, Nyanga, Ogooue-Ivindo, Ogooue-Lolo,
Ogooue-Maritime, Woleu-Ntem
Independence: 17 August 1960 (from France)
Constitution: 21 February 1961, revised 15 April 1975
Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law;
judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme
Court; compulsory ICJ jurisdiction not accepted
National holiday: Renovation Day (Gabonese Democratic Party established),
12 March (1968)
Executive branch: president, prime minister, Cabinet
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Assemble Nationale)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
Leaders:
Chief of State--President El Hadj Omar BONGO (since 2 December 1967);
Head of Government--Prime Minister Leon MEBIAME (since 16 April 1975)
Political parties and leaders: only party--Gabonese Social
Democratic Rally (RSDG), El Hadj Omar Bongo, president; formerly
Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG), which was dissolved in February 1990
Suffrage: universal at age 21
Elections:
President--last held on 9 November 1986 (next to be held
November 1993);
results--President Omar BONGO was reelected without opposition;
National Assembly--last held on 17 February 1985 (next to be
held by February 1992);
results--PDG was the only party;
seats--(120 total, 111 elected) PDG 111
Communists: no organized party; probably some Communist sympathizers
Member of: ACP, AfDB, CCC, Conference of East and Central
African States, EAMA, EIB (associate), FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICCO, ICO, IDA, IDB--Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO,
IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPEC, UDEAC,
UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Jean Robert ODZAGA; Chancery
at 2034 20th Street NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone (202) 797-1000;
US--Ambassador Keith L. WAUCHOPE; Embassy at Boulevard de la Mer,
Libreville (mailing address is B. P. 4000, Libreville); telephone 762003
or 762004, 761337, 721348, 740248
Flag: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue
- Economy
Overview: The economy, dependent on timber and manganese until the early
1970s, is now dominated by the oil sector. During the period 1981-85 oil
accounted for about 46% of GDP, 83% of export earnings, and 65% of government
revenues on average. The high oil prices of the early 1980s contributed to a
substantial increase in per capita income, stimulated domestic demand,
reinforced migration from rural to urban areas, and raised the level of real
wages to among the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa. The three-year slide of
Gabon's economy, which began with falling oil prices in 1985, stabilized
in 1989 because of a near doubling of oil prices over their 1988 lows.
The agricultural and industrial sectors are relatively underdeveloped,
accounting for only 8% and 10%, respectively, of GDP in 1986.
GDP: $3.2 billion, per capita $3,200; real growth rate 0% (1989)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3% (1989)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues $927 million; expenditures $1.2 billion,
including capital expenditures of $33 million (1988)
Exports: $1.14 billion (f.o.b., 1989 est.);
commodities--crude oil 70%, manganese 11%, wood 12%, uranium 6%;
partners--France 53%, US 22%, FRG, Japan
Imports: $0.76 billion (c.i.f., 1989);
commodities--foodstuffs, chemical products, petroleum products,
construction materials, manufactures, machinery;
partners--France 48%, US 2.6%, FRG, Japan, UK
External debt: $2.0 billion (October 1989)
Industrial production: growth rate 1.7% (1986)
Electricity: 310,000 kW capacity; 980 million kWh produced,
920 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: sawmills, petroleum, food and beverages; mining of
increasing importance (especially manganese and uranium)
Agriculture: accounts for 8% of GDP (including fishing and forestry);
cash crops--cocoa, coffee, palm oil; livestock not developed; importer of food;
small fishing operations provide a catch of about 20,000 metric tons; okoume
(a tropical softwood) is the most important timber product
Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $64 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $1.7 billion;
Communist countries (1970-88), $27 million
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (plural--francs);
1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF)
per US$1--287.99 (January 1990), 319.01 (1989), 297.85 (1988), 300.54 (1987),
346.30 (1986), 449.26 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
- Communications
Railroads: 649 km 1.437-meter standard-gauge single track
(Transgabonese Railroad)
Highways: 7,500 km total; 560 km paved, 960 km laterite, 5,980 km earth
Inland waterways: 1,600 km perennially navigable
Pipelines: crude oil, 270 km; refined products, 14 km
Ports: Owendo, Port-Gentil, Libreville
Merchant marine: 2 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 18,563
GRT/25,330 DWT
Civil air: 11 major transport aircraft
Airports: 79 total, 68 usable; 10 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 21 with
runways
1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: adequate system of open-wire, radio relay,
tropospheric scatter links and radiocommunication stations; 13,800 telephones;
stations--6 AM, 6 FM, 8 TV; satellite earth stations--2 Atlantic Ocean
INTELSAT and 12 domestic satellite
- Defense Forces
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary Gendarmerie
Military manpower: males 15-49, 266,110; 133,158 fit for military
service; 9,282 reach military age (20) annually
Defense expenditures: 3.2% of GDP, or $102 million (1990 est.)
----------------------------------------------------
Country: The Gambia
- Geography
Total area: 11,300 km2; land area: 10,000 km2
Comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Delaware
Land boundary: 740 km with Senegal
Coastline: 80 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 18 nm;
Continental shelf: not specific;
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Disputes: short section of boundary with Senegal is indefinite
Climate: tropical; hot, rainy season (June to November); cooler,
dry season (November to May)
Terrain: flood plain of the Gambia River flanked by some low hills
Natural resources: fish
Land use: 16% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 9% meadows and pastures;
20% forest and woodland; 55% other; includes 3% irrigated
Environment: deforestation
Note: almost an enclave of Senegal; smallest country on the continent
of Africa
- People
Population: 848,147 (July 1990), growth rate 3.1% (1990)
Birth rate: 48 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 18 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 140 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 46 years male, 50 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 6.5 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Gambian(s); adjective--Gambian
Ethnic divisions: 99% African (42% Mandinka, 18% Fula, 16% Wolof, 10%
Jola, 9% Serahuli, 4% other); 1% non-Gambian
Religion: 90% Muslim, 9% Christian, 1% indigenous beliefs
Language: English (official); Mandinka, Wolof, Fula, other indigenous
vernaculars
Literacy: 25.1%
Labor force: 400,000 (1986 est.); 75.0% agriculture, 18.9% industry,
commerce, and services, 6.1% government; 55% population of working age (1983)
Organized labor: 25-30% of wage labor force
- Government
Long-form name: Republic of The Gambia
Type: republic
Capital: Banjul
Administrative divisions: 5 divisions and 1 city*; Banjul*, Lower River,
MacCarthy Island, North Bank, Upper River, Western
Independence: 18 February 1965 (from UK); The Gambia and Senegal signed
an agreement on 12 December 1981 (effective 1 February 1982) that called
for the creation of a loose confederation to be known as Senegambia, but the
agreement was dissolved on 30 September 1989
Constitution: 24 April 1970
Legal system: based on a composite of English common law, Koranic law,
and customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
National holiday: Independence Day, 18 February (1965)
Executive branch: president, vice president, Cabinet
Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Alhaji Sir Dawda Kairaba
JAWARA (since 24 April 1970); Vice President Bakary Bunja DARBO (since 12
May 1982)
Political parties and leaders: People's Progressive Party (PPP),
Dawda K. Jawara, secretary general; National Convention Party (NCP),
Sheriff Dibba; Gambian People's Party (GPP), Assan Musa Camara; United
Party (UP); People's Democratic Organization of Independence and Socialism
(PDOIS)
Suffrage: universal at age 21
Elections:
President--last held on 11 March 1987 (next to be held March 1992);
results--Sir Dawda Jawara (PPP) 61.1%, Sherif Mustapha Dibba (NCP) 25.2%,
Assan Musa Camara (GPP) 13.7%;
House of Representatives--last held on 11 March 1987 (next to
be held by March 1992);
results--PPP 56.6%, NCP 27.6%, GPP 14.7%, PDOIS 1%;
seats--(43 total, 36 elected) PPP 31, NCP 5
Communists: no Communist party
Member of: ACP, AfDB, APC, Commonwealth, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, GATT,
IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB--Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, IMF, IMO, IRC,
ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Ousman A. SALLAH; Chancery at
Suite 720, 1030 15th Street NW, Washington DC 20005;
telephone (202) 842-1356 or 842-1359;
US--Ambassador (vacant); Embassy at Pipeline Road
(Kairaba Avenue), Fajara, Banjul (mailing address is P. M. B. No. 19,
Banjul); telephone Serrekunda [220] 92856 or 92858, 91970, 91971
Flag: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue with white edges,
and green
- Economy
Overview: The Gambia has no important mineral or other natural
resources and has a limited agricultural base. It is one of the world's
poorest countries with a per capita income of about $250. About 75% of
the population is engaged in crop production and livestock raising, which
contributes about 30% to GDP. Small-scale manufacturing
activity--processing peanuts, fish, and hides--accounts for less than
10% of GDP. Tourism is a growing industry. The Gambia imports about 33%
of its food, all fuel, and most manufactured goods. Exports are
concentrated on peanut products (over 75% of total value).
GDP: $195 million, per capita $250; real growth rate 4.6% (FY89 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 8.0% (FY89 est.)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues $75 million; expenditures $67 million, including
capital expenditures of $21 million (FY89)
Exports: $133 million (f.o.b., FY89);
commodities--peanuts and peanut products, fish, cotton lint, palm kernels;
partners--Ghana 49%, Europe 27%, Japan 12%, US 1% (1986)
Imports: $105 million (c.i.f., FY89);
commodities--foodstuffs, manufactures, raw materials, fuel, machinery
and transport equipment;
partners--Europe 55% (EC 39%, other 16%), Asia 20%, US 11%, Senegal 4%
(1986)
External debt: $330 million (December 1989 est.)
Industrial production: growth rate 7.3% (FY88)
Electricity: 29,000 kW capacity; 64 million kWh produced, 80 kWh per
capita (1989)
Industries: peanut processing, tourism, beverages, agricultural
machinery assembly, woodworking, metalworking, clothing
Agriculture: accounts for 30% of GDP and employs about 75% of the
population; imports one-third of food requirements; major export crop is
peanuts; the principal crops--millet, sorghum, rice, corn, cassava,
palm kernels; livestock--cattle, sheep, and goats; forestry and fishing
resources not fully exploited
Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $84 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $422 million;
Communist countries (1970-88), $39 million
Currency: dalasi (plural--dalasi); 1 dalasi (D) = 100 bututs
Exchange rates: dalasi (D) per US$1--8.3232 (December 1989),
7.5846 (1989), 6.7086 (1988), 7.0744 (1987), 6.9380 (1986), 3.8939 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June
- Communications
Highways: 3,083 km total; 431 km paved, 501 km gravel/laterite, and 2,151
km unimproved earth
Inland waterways: 400 km
Ports: Banjul
Civil air: 2 major transport aircraft
Airports: 1 with permanent-surface runway 2,440-3,659 m
Telecommunications: adequate network of radio relay and wire; 3,500
telephones; stations--3 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
- Defense Forces
Branches: Army, paramilitary Gendarmerie
Military manpower: males 15-49, 182,308; 92,001 fit for military service