Overview: Offshore banking, manufacturing, and tourism are key sectors of
the economy. The government's policy of offering incentives to high-technology
companies and financial institutions to locate on the island has paid off in
expanding employment opportunities in high-income industries. As a result,
agriculture and fishing, once the mainstays of the economy, have declined in
their shares of GNP. Banking now contributes over 20% to GNP and manufacturing
about 15%. Trade is mostly with the UK.
GNP: $490 million, per capita $7,573; real growth rate NA% (1988)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
Unemployment rate: 1.5% (1988)
Budget: revenues $130.4 million; expenditures $114.4 million, including
capital expenditures of $18.1 million (FY85 est.)
Exports: $NA; commodities--tweeds, herring, processed shellfish
meat; partners--UK
Imports: $NA; commodities--timber, fertilizers, fish;
partners--UK
External debt: $NA
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
Electricity: 61,000 kW capacity; 190 million kWh produced,
2,930 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: an important offshore financial center; financial services,
light manufacturing, tourism
Agriculture: cereals and vegetables; cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry
Aid: NA
Currency: Manx pound (plural--pounds); 1 Manx pound (LM) = 100 pence
Exchange rates: Manx pounds (LM) per US$1--0.6055 (January 1990),
0.6099 (1989), 0.5614 (1988), 0.6102 (1987), 0.6817 (1986), 0.7714 (1985);
the Manx pound is at par with the British pound
Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
- Communications
Railroads: 36 km electric track, 24 km steam track
Highways: 640 km motorable roads
Ports: Douglas, Ramsey, Peel
Merchant marine: 77 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,656,216
GRT/2,984,047 DWT; includes 1 short-sea passenger, 8 cargo, 5 container,
6 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 32 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker,
5 chemical tanker, 2 combination ore/oil, 6 liquefied gas, 12 bulk;
note--a captive register of the United Kingdom, although not all
ships on the register are British-owned
Airports: 2 total; 1 usable with permanent-surface runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: 24,435 telephones; stations--1 AM, 4 FM, 4 TV
- Defense Forces
Note: defense is the responsibility of the UK
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Marshall Islands
- Geography
Total area: 181.3 km2; land area: 181.3 km2; includes the atolls
of Bikini, Eniwetak, and Kwajalein
Comparative area: slightly larger than Washington, DC
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 370.4 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Disputes: claims US-administered Wake Island
Climate: wet season May to November; hot and humid; islands border
typhoon belt
Terrain: low coral limestone and sand islands
Natural resources: phosphate deposits, marine products, deep seabed
minerals
Land use: 0% arable land; 60% permanent crops; 0% meadows and
pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 40% other
Environment: occasionally subject to typhoons; two archipelagic
island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands
Note: located 3,825 km southwest of Honolulu in the North Pacific Ocean,
about two-thirds of the way between Hawaii and Papua New Guinea; Bikini and
Eniwetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II
battleground, is now used as a US missile test range
- People
Population: 43,417 (July 1990), growth rate 3.2% (1990)
Birth rate: 39 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 5 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: - 1 migrant/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 43 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 70 years male, 75 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 5.9 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Marshallese; adjective--Marshallese
Ethnic divisions: almost entirely Micronesian
Religion: predominantly Christian, mostly Protestant
Language: English universally spoken and is the official language;
two major Marshallese dialects from Malayo-Polynesian family; Japanese
Literacy: 90%
Labor force: 4,800 (1986)
Organized labor: none
- Government
Long-form name: Republic of the Marshall Islands
Type: constitutional government in free association with the US;
the Compact of Free Association entered into force 21 October 1986
Capital: Majuro
Administrative divisions: none
Independence: 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship;
formerly the Marshall Islands District of the Trust Territory of the Pacific
Islands)
Constitution: 1 May 1979
Legal system: based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the
legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws
National holiday: Proclamation of the Republic of the Marshall Islands,
1 May (1979)
Executive branch: president, Cabinet
Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament (Nitijela)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Amata KABUA (since 1979)
Political parties and leaders: no formal parties; President Kabua
is chief political (and traditional) leader
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
President--last held NA November 1987 (next to be held November
1991); results--President Amata Kabua was reelected;
Parliament--last held NA November 1987 (next to be held November
1991); results--percent of vote NA;
seats--(33 total)
Communists: none
Member of: SPF, ESCAP (associate)
Diplomatic representation: Representative Wilfred I. KENDALL;
Representative Office at Suite 1004, 1901 Pennsylvania Avenue NW,
Washington DC 20006; telephone (202) 223-4952;
US--Representative Samuel B. THOMSEN; US Office at NA address (mailing
address is P. O. Box 680, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960);
telephone 692-9-3348
Flag: blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side
corner--orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large
rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes
- Economy
Overview: Agriculture and tourism are the mainstays of the economy.
Agricultural production is concentrated on small farms, and the most important
commercial crops are coconuts, tomatoes, melons, and breadfruit. A few cattle
ranches supply the domestic meat market. Small-scale industry is limited to
handicrafts, fish processing, and copra. The tourist industry is the primary
source of foreign exchange and employs about 10% of the labor force. The islands
have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. In 1987 the US
Government provided grants of $40 million out of the Marshallese budget of
$55 million.
GDP: $63 million, per capita $1,500; real growth rate NA% (1989 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.6% (1981)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues $55 million; expenditures NA, including capital
expenditures of NA (1987 est.)
Exports: $2.5 million (f.o.b., 1985); commodities--copra, copra oil,
agricultural products, handicrafts; partners--NA
Imports: $29.2 million (c.i.f., 1985); commodities--foodstuffs,
beverages, building materials; partners--NA
External debt: $NA
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
Electricity: 12,000 kW capacity; 10 million kWh produced, 240 kWh per
capita (1989)
Industries: copra, fish, tourism; craft items from shell, wood, and pearl;
offshore banking (embryonic)
Agriculture: coconuts, cacao, taro, breadfruit, fruits, copra; pigs,
chickens
Aid: under the terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US is to
provide approximately $40 million in aid annually
Currency: US currency is used
Exchange rates: US currency is used
Fiscal year: 1 October-30 September
- Communications
Highways: macadam and concrete roads on major islands (Majuro, Kwajalein),
otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads and tracks
Ports: Majuro
Merchant marine: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 475,968
GRT/949,888 DWT; includes 2 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker,
1 bulk carrier; note--a flag of convenience registry
Airports: 5 total, 5 usable; 4 with permanent-surface runways;
5 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: telephone network--570 lines (Majuro) and 186
(Ebeye); telex services; islands interconnected by shortwave radio (used
mostly for government purposes); stations--1 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV, 1 shortwave;
2 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth stations; US Government satellite communications
system on Kwajalein
- Defense Forces
Note: defense is the responsibility of the US
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Martinique
(overseas department of France)
- Geography
Total area: 1,100 km2; land area: 1,060 km2
Comparative area: slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 290 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploitation;
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to
October)
Terrain: mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano
Natural resources: coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land
Land use: 10% arable land; 8% permanent crops; 30% meadows and
pastures; 26% forest and woodland; 26% other; includes 5% irrigated
Environment: subject to hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity that
result in an average of one major natural disaster every five years
Note: located 625 km southeast of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean Sea
- People
Population: 340,381 (July 1990), growth rate 0.9% (1990)
Birth rate: 19 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: - 3 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 11 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 71 years male, 77 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 2.1 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Martiniquais (sing. and pl.); adjective--Martiniquais
Ethnic divisions: 90% African and African-Caucasian-Indian mixture, 5%
Caucasian, less than 5% East Indian, Lebanese, Chinese
Religion: 95% Roman Catholic, 5% Hindu and pagan African
Language: French, Creole patois
Literacy: over 70%
Labor force: 100,000; 31.7% service industry, 29.4% construction and
public works, 13.1% agriculture, 7.3% industry, 2.2% fisheries, 16.3% other
Organized labor: 11% of labor force
- Government
Long-form name: Department of Martinique
Type: overseas department of France
Capital: Fort-de-France
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: Taking of the Bastille, 14 July (1789)
Executive branch: government commissioner
Legislative branch: unicameral General Council and unicameral Regional
Council
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Leaders:
Chief of State--President Francois MITTERRAND (since
21 May 1981);
Head of Government--Government Commissioner Jean Claude ROURE (since
5 May 1989); President of the General Council Emile MAURICE (since NA
1988)
Political parties: Rally for the Republic (RPR), Stephen Bago;
Union of the Left composed of the Progressive Party of Martinique (PPM),
Aime Cesaire; Socialist Federation of Martinique, Michael Yoyo; and the
Communist Party of Martinique (PCM), Armand Nicolas; Union for French Democracy
(UDF), Jean Maran
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
General Council--last held on NA October 1988
(next to be held by March 1991); results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(44 total) number of seats by party NA;
Regional Assembly--last held on 16 March 1986 (next to be held by
March 1992); results--UDF/RPR coalition 49.8%, PPM/FSM/PCM
coalition 41.3%, others 8.9%;
seats--(41 total) PPM/FSM/PCM coalition 21, UDF/RPR coalition 20;
French Senate--last held 24 September 1989 (next to be held
September 1992); results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(2 total) UDF 1, PPM 1;
French National Assembly--last held on 5 and 12 June 1988 (next
to be held June 1993); results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(4 total) PPM 1, FSM 1, RPR 1, UDF 1
Communists: 1,000 (est.)
Other political or pressure groups: Proletarian Action Group (GAP);
Alhed Marie-Jeanne Socialist Revolution Group (GRS), Martinique Independence
Movement (MIM), Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance (ARC), Central Union for
Martinique Workers (CSTM), Marc Pulvar; Frantz Fanon Circle; League of
Workers and Peasants
Member of: WFTU
Diplomatic representation: as an overseas department of France,
Martiniquais interests are represented in the US by France;
US--Consul General Ray ROBINSON; Consulate General at 14 Rue Blenac,
Fort-de-France (mailing address is B. P. 561, Fort-de-France);
telephone [596] 63-13-03
Flag: the flag of France is used
- Economy
Overview: The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light
industry. Agriculture accounts for about 7% of GDP and the small industrial
sector for 10%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now
used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, however, 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. In 1984 the
annual per capita income was relatively high at $3,650. During 1985 the
unemployment rate was between 25% and 30% and was particularly severe among
younger workers.
GDP: $1.3 billion, per capita $3,650; real growth rate NA% (1984)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.4% (1986)
Unemployment rate: 25-30% (1985)
Budget: revenues $223 million; expenditures $223 million, including
capital expenditures of $NA (1987 est.)
Exports: $209 million (f.o.b., 1986); commodities--refined petroleum
products, bananas, rum, pineapples; partners--France 65%, Guadeloupe 26%
(1986)
Imports: $879 million (c.i.f., 1986); commodities--petroleum
products, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other
consumer goods; partners--France 64% (1986)
External debt: $NA
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
Electricity: 108,000 kW capacity; 330 million kWh produced,
990 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism
Agriculture: accounts for about 7% of GDP; principal crops--pineapples,
avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, and sugarcane for rum; dependent on
imported food, particularly meat and vegetables
Aid: Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-87), $9.8 billion
Currency: French franc (plural--francs); 1 French franc (F) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates: French francs (F) per US$1--5.7598 (January 1990),
6.3801 (1989), 5.9569 (1988), 6.0107 (1987), 6.9261 (1986), 8.9852 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
- Communications
Highways: 1,680 km total; 1,300 km paved, 380 km gravel and earth
Ports: Fort-de-France
Civil air: no major transport aircraft
Airports: 2 total; 2 usable; 1 with permanent-surface runways;
1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 1 with runways less than 2,439 m
Telecommunications: domestic facilities are adequate; 68,900 telephones;
interisland radio relay links to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and St. Lucia;
stations--1 AM, 6 FM, 10 TV; 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations
- Defense Forces
Note: defense is the responsibility of France
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Mauritania
- Geography
Total area: 1,030,700 km2; land area: 1,030,400 km2
Comparative area: slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico
Land boundaries: 5,074 km total; Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal
813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km
Coastline: 754 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm;
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Disputes: armed conflict in Western Sahara; boundary with Senegal
Climate: desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty
Terrain: mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills
Natural resources: iron ore, gypsum, fish, copper, phosphate
Land use: 1% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; 38% meadows and
pastures; 5% forest and woodland; 56% other; includes NEGL% irrigated
Environment: hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily
in March and April; desertification; only perennial river is the Senegal
- People
Population: 1,934,549 (July 1990), growth rate 3.1% (1990)
Birth rate: 49 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: 96 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 44 years male, 49 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 7.3 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Mauritanian(s); adjective--Mauritanian
Ethnic divisions: 40% mixed Maur/black, 30% Maur, 30% black
Religion: nearly 100% Muslim
Language: Hasaniya Arabic (national); French (official); Toucouleur, Fula,
Sarakole, Wolof
Literacy: 17%
Labor force: 465,000 (1981 est.); 45,000 wage earners (1980);
47% agriculture, 29% services, 14% industry and commerce, 10% government;
53% of population of working age (1985)
Organized labor: 30,000 members claimed by single union, Mauritanian
Workers' Union
- Government
Long-form name: Islamic Republic of Mauritania
Type: republic; military first seized power in bloodless coup 10 July
1978; a palace coup that took place on 24 December 1984 brought President
Taya to power
Capital: Nouakchott
Administrative divisions: 12 regions (regions, singular--region);
Adrar, Brakna, Dakhlet Nouadhibou, El Acaba, Gorgol, Guidimaka,
Hodh Ech Chargui, Hodh El Gharbi, Inchiri, Tagant, Tiris Zemmour, Trarza;
note--there may be a new capital district of Nouakchott
Independence: 28 November 1960 (from France)
Constitution: 20 May 1961, abrogated after coup of 10 July 1978;
provisional constitution published 17 December 1980 but abandoned in 1981; new
constitutional charter published 27 February 1985
Legal system: based on Islamic law
National holiday: Independence Day, 28 November (1960)
Executive branch: president, Military Committee for National
Salvation (CMSN), Council of Ministers (cabinet)
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Assemblee
Nationale), dissolved after 10 July 1978 coup; legislative power
resides with the CMSN
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Col. Maaouiya Ould
SidAhmed TAYA (since 12 December 1984)
Political parties and leaders: suspended
Suffrage: none
Elections: none; last presidential election August 1976;
National Assembly dissolved 10 July 1978; no national elections
are scheduled
Communists: no Communist party, but there is a scattering of Maoist
sympathizers
Member of: ACP, AfDB, AIOEC, Arab League, CCC, CEAO, CIPEC (associate),
EAMA, EIB (associate), FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB--Islamic
Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, ITU, NAM,
OAU, OIC, OMVS (Organization for the Development of the Senegal River Valley),
UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Abdellah OULD DADDAH; Chancery at
2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 232-5700;
US--Ambassador William H. TWADDELL; Embassy at address NA, Nouakchott
(mailing address is B. P. 222, Nouakchott); telephone [2222] 52660 or 52663
Flag: green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow, horizontal
crescent; the closed side of the crescent is down; the crescent, star, and color
green are traditional symbols of Islam
- Economy
Overview: A majority of the population still depends on agriculture
and livestock for a livelihood, even though most of the nomads and many
subsistence farmers were forced into the cities by recurrent drought in 1983.
Mauritania has extensive deposits of iron ore that account for almost 50% of
total exports. The decline in world demand for this ore, however, has led to
cutbacks in production in recent years. The nation's coastal waters are among
the richest fishing areas in the world, but overexploitation by foreigners
threatens this key source of revenue. The country's first deepwater
port opened near Nouakchott in 1986.
GDP: $1.0 billion, per capita $520; real growth rate 3.6% (1988)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.4% (1988 est.)
Unemployment rate: 50% (1988 est.)
Budget: revenues $358 million; expenditures $334 million, including
capital expenditures of $79 million (1988 est.)
Exports: $424 million (f.o.b., 1988); commodities--iron ore,
processed fish, small amounts of gum arabic and gypsum, unrecorded but
numerically significant cattle exports to Senegal; partners--EC 57%,
Japan 39%, Ivory Coast 2%
Imports: $365 million (c.i.f., 1988); commodities--foodstuffs,
consumer goods, petroleum products, capital goods; partners--EC 79%,
Africa 5%, US 4%, Japan 2%
External debt: $2.3 billion (December 1989)
Industrial production: growth rate 4.4% (1988 est.)
Electricity: 189,000 kW capacity; 136 million kWh produced,
70 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: fishing, fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum
Agriculture: accounts for 29% of GDP (including fishing); largely
subsistence farming and nomadic cattle and sheep herding except in Senegal
river valley; crops--dates, millet, sorghum, root crops; fish products
number-one export; large food deficit in years of drought
Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $160 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $1.1 billion;
OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $490 million; Communist countries (1970-88),
$277 million
Currency: ouguiya (plural--ouguiya); 1 ouguiya (UM) = 5 khoums
Exchange rates: ouguiya (UM) per US$1--83.838 (January 1990),
83.051 (1989), 75.261 (1988), 73.878 (1987), 74.375 (1986), 77.085 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
- Communications
Railroads: 670 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, single track, owned and
operated by government mining company
Highways: 7,525 km total; 1,685 km paved; 1,040 km gravel, crushed stone,
or otherwise improved; 4,800 km unimproved roads, trails, tracks
Inland waterways: mostly ferry traffic on the Senegal River
Ports: Nouadhibou, Nouakchott
Merchant marine: 1 cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,272 GRT/
1,840 DWT
Civil air: 2 major transport aircraft
Airports: 30 total, 29 usable; 9 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 4 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 17 with
runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: poor system of cable and open-wire lines, minor
radio relay links, and radio communications stations; 5,200 telephones;
stations--2 AM, no FM, 1 TV; satellite earth stations--1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT
and 2 ARABSAT, with a third planned
- Defense Forces
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary Gendarmerie, paramilitary
National Guard, paramilitary National Police, paramilitary Presidential Guard,
paramilitary Nomad Security Guards
Military manpower: males 15-49, 410,153; 200,212 fit for military service;
conscription law not implemented
Defense expenditures: 4.2% of GDP (1987)
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Mauritius
- Geography
Total area: 1,860 km2; land area: 1,850 km2; includes Agalega
Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (St. Brandon) and Rodrigues
Comparative area: slightly less than 10.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 177 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm;
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm