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Background:
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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. |
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Location:
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Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Brazil and Suriname |
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Geographic coordinates:
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4 00 N, 53 00 W |
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Map references:
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South
America |
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Area:
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total:
91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km
water: 1,850 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than Indiana |
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Land boundaries:
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total:
1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
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Coastline:
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378 km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial
sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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Climate:
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tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation |
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Terrain:
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low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
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Natural resources:
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bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish,
niobium, tantalum, clay |
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Land use:
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arable
land: 0.14%
permanent crops: 0.05%
other: 99.81% (90% forest, 10% other) (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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20 sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding
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Environment - current issues:
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NA |
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Geography - note:
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mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of
the South American continent
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Population:
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191,309 (July 2004 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 29.6% (male 28,959; female 27,657)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 66,388; female 57,020)
65 years and over: 5.9% (male 5,736; female 5,549) (2004 est.)
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Median age:
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total:
28.3 years
male: 29.4 years
female: 27.2 years (2004 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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2.25% (2004 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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21 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Death rate:
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4.82 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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6.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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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: 1.03 male(s)/female
total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
12.46 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 11.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 76.89 years
male: 73.57 years
female: 80.38 years (2004 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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3.05 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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NA |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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NA |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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NA |
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Nationality:
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noun:
French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
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Ethnic groups:
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black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian
12%, other 10% |
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic |
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Languages:
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French |
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Literacy:
|
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83%
male: 84%
female: 82% (1982 est.)
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Country
name:
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conventional
long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana
local long form: none
local short form: Guyane |
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Dependency
status:
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overseas department of France |
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Government
type:
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NA |
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Capital:
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Cayenne |
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Administrative
divisions:
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none (overseas department of France) |
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Independence:
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none (overseas department of France) |
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National
holiday:
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Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
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Constitution:
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28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
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Legal
system:
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French legal system |
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal |
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Executive
branch:
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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 |
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Legislative
branch:
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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 NA 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 |
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Judicial
branch:
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Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique
with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana)
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Political
parties and leaders:
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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 [Muriel ICARE]; Walwari Committee (aligned with the PRG in
France) [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] |
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Political
pressure groups and leaders:
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NA |
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International
organization participation:
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WCL, WFTU |
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Diplomatic
representation in the US:
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none (overseas department of France) |
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Diplomatic
representation from the US:
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none (overseas department of France) |
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Flag
description:
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the flag of France is used
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Economy
- overview:
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The economy is tied closely to the 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. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $1.551 billion (2003 est.) |
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GDP
- real growth rate:
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NA |
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GDP
- per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $8,300 (2001 est.) |
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GDP
- composition by sector:
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agriculture:
NA
industry: NA
services: NA (2001 est.) |
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Population
below poverty line:
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NA |
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Household
income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest
10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
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Inflation
rate (consumer prices):
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1.5% (2002 est.) |
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Labor
force:
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58,800 (1997) |
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Labor
force - by occupation:
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agriculture 18.2%, industry 21.2%, services, government, and commerce
60.6% (1980) |
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Unemployment
rate:
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22% (2001) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures
of $105 million (1996) |
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Agriculture
- products:
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corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle,
pigs, poultry |
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Industries:
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construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining
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Industrial
production growth rate:
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NA |
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Electricity
- production:
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455 million kWh (2001) |
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Electricity
- consumption:
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423.2 million kWh (2001) |
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Electricity
- exports:
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0 kWh (2001) |
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Electricity
- imports:
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0 kWh (2001) |
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Oil
- production:
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0 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil
- consumption:
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6,500 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil
- exports:
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NA (2001) |
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Oil
- imports:
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NA (2001) |
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Exports:
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$155 million f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Exports
- commodities:
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shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing |
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Exports
- partners:
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France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001) |
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Imports:
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$625 million c.i.f. (2002 est.) |
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Imports
- commodities:
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food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment,
fuels and chemicals |
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Imports
- partners:
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France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002 est.) |
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Debt
- external:
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$1.2 billion (1988) |
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Economic
aid - recipient:
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NA (1995) |
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Currency:
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euro (EUR) |
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Currency
code:
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EUR |
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Exchange
rates:
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Euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001),
1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999) |
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Fiscal
year:
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calendar year
|
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Telephones
- main lines in use:
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51,000 (2001) |
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Telephones
- mobile cellular:
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138,200 (2002) |
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Telephone
system:
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general
assessment: NA
domestic: fair open-wire and microwave radio relay system
international: country code - 594; satellite earth station
- 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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Radio
broadcast stations:
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AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters)
(1998) |
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Television
broadcast stations:
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3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) |
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Internet
country code:
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gf |
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Internet
users:
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3,200 (2002)
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Highways:
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total:
722 km
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km (1996) |
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Waterways:
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3,760 km
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal
and river steamers; 3,300 km by native craft (2004) |
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Ports
and harbors:
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Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni |
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Merchant
marine:
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none |
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Airports:
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11 (2003 est.) |
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Airports
- with paved runways:
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total:
4
over 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
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Airports
- with unpaved runways:
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total:
7
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 5 (2003 est.)
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Military branches:
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no regular military forces; Gendarmerie |
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Military manpower - availability:
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males
age 15-49: 52,294 (2004 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military
service:
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males
age 15-49: 33,914 (2004 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
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NA |
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Military expenditures - percent of
GDP:
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NA |
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Military - note:
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defense is the responsibility of France
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Disputes - international:
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Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both
headwaters of the Lawa) |
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Illicit drugs:
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small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment
point to Europe
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This page was last updated on 5
October, 2004
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