| Background: |
First settled by
the French in the early 17th century, the islands represent
the sole remaining vestige of France's once vast North
American possessions. |
| Location: |
Northern North
America, islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, south of
Newfoundland (Canada) |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
46 50 N, 56 20 W |
| Map
references: |
North America |
| Area: |
total:
242 sq km
land: 242 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes eight small islands in the Saint
Pierre and the Miquelon groups |
| Area
- comparative: |
1.5 times the
size of Washington, DC |
| Maritime
claims: |
exclusive
economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
cold and wet,
with much mist and fog; spring and autumn are windy |
| Terrain: |
mostly barren
rock |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne de la Grande Montagne 240
m |
| Natural
resources: |
fish, deepwater
ports |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
13%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 4%
other: 83% (1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
persistent fog
throughout the year can be a maritime hazard |
| Environment
- current issues: |
NA |
| Geography
- note: |
vegetation scanty |
| Population: |
6,928 (July 2001
est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
25.85% (male 917; female 874)
15-64 years: 64.22% (male 2,273; female 2,176)
65 years and over: 9.93% (male 291; female 397)
(2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
0.43% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
15.88
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
6.64 deaths/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-4.91 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
8.39 deaths/1,000
live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 77.77 years
male: 75.51 years
female: 80.13 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
2.12 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
NA% |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women)
adjective: French |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Basques and
Bretons (French fishermen) |
| Religions: |
Roman Catholic
99% |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (1982 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: Territorial Collectivity of Saint
Pierre and Miquelon
conventional short form: Saint Pierre and
Miquelon
local long form: Departement de Saint-Pierre et
Miquelon
local short form: Saint-Pierre et Miquelon |
| Dependency
status: |
self-governing
territorial collectivity of France |
| Administrative
divisions: |
none (territorial
collectivity of France); note - there are no first-order
administrative divisions approved by the US Government, but
there are two communes - Saint Pierre, Miquelon |
| Independence: |
none (territorial
collectivity of France; has been under French control since
1763) |
| National
holiday: |
Bastille Day, 14
July (1789) |
| Constitution: |
28 September 1958
(French Constitution) |
| Legal
system: |
French law with
special adaptations for local conditions, such as housing
and taxation |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age;
universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since
17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Remi THUAU (since NA)
head of government: President of the General
Council Bernard LE SOAVEC (since NA 1996)
cabinet: NA
elections: French president elected by popular
vote for a seven-year term; election last held 7 May 1995
(next to be held NA May 2002); prefect appointed by the
French president on the advice of the French Ministry of
Interior; president of the General Council is elected by the
members of the council |
| Legislative
branch: |
unicameral
General Council or Conseil General (19 seats - 15 from Saint
Pierre and 4 from Miquelon; members are elected by popular
vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: elections last held NA April 2000
(next to be held NA April 2006)
election results: percent of vote by party -
NA%; seats by party - NA
note: Saint Pierre and Miquelon elect 1 seat to
the French Senate; elections last held NA September 1995
(next to be held NA September 2004); results - percent of
vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR 1; Saint Pierre and
Miquelon also elects 1 seat to the French National Assembly;
elections last held 25 May-1 June 1997 (next to be held NA
2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - UDF 1 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Superior Tribunal
of Appeals or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Rassemblement
pour la Republique or RPR [leader NA]; Socialist Party or PS
[leader NA]; Union pour la Democratie Francaise or UDF
[leader NA] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
NA |
| International
organization participation: |
FZ, WFTU |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
none (territorial
collectivity of France) |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
none (territorial
collectivity of France) |
| Flag
description: |
a yellow sailing
ship facing the hoist side rides on a dark blue background
with a black wave line under the ship; on the hoist side, a
vertical band is divided into three parts: the top part is
red with a green diagonal cross extending to the corners
overlaid by a white cross dividing the square into four
sections; the middle part has a white background with an
ermine pattern; the third part has a red background with two
stylized yellow lions outlined in black, one on top of the
other; the flag of France is used for official occasions |
| Economy
- overview: |
The inhabitants
have traditionally earned their livelihood by fishing and by
servicing fishing fleets operating off the coast of
Newfoundland. The economy has been declining, however,
because of disputes with Canada over fishing quotas and a
steady decline in the number of ships stopping at Saint
Pierre. In 1992, an arbitration panel awarded the islands an
exclusive economic zone of 12,348 sq km to settle a
longstanding territorial dispute with Canada, although it
represents only 25% of what France had sought. The islands
are heavily subsidized by France to the great betterment of
living standards. The government hopes an expansion of
tourism will boost economic prospects. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $74 million (1996 est.); supplemented by annual
payments from France of about $60 million |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
NA% |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $11,000 (1996 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
2.1% (1991-96
average) |
| Labor
force: |
3,000 (1997) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
fishing 18%,
industry (mainly fish-processing) 41%, services 41% (1996
est.) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
9.8% (1997) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$70 million
expenditures: $60 million, including capital
expenditures of $24 million (1996 est.) |
| Industries: |
fish processing
and supply base for fishing fleets; tourism |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
NA% |
| Electricity
- production: |
40 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
37.2 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
vegetables;
poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish |
| Exports: |
$12 million
(f.o.b., 1999) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
fish and fish
products, soybeans, animal feed, mollusks and crustaceans,
fox and mink pelts |
| Exports
- partners: |
US 43%, Egypt
14%, Japan 11%, Colombia 8% (1999) |
| Imports: |
$55 million
(f.o.b., 1999) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
meat, clothing,
fuel, electrical equipment, machinery, building materials |
| Imports
- partners: |
France 44%,
Canada 40% (1999) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
approximately $65
million in annual grants from France |
| Currency: |
French franc (FRF);
euro (EUR) |
| Exchange
rates: |
euros per US
dollar - 1.06594 (January 2001), 1.08540 (2000), 0.93863
(1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367
(1997), 5.1155 (1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
4,000 (1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
0 (1994) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: adequate
domestic: NA
international: radiotelephone communication
with most countries in the world; 1 earth station in French
domestic satellite system |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 1, FM 4,
shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
0 (there are,
however, two repeaters which rebroadcast programs from
France, Canada, and the US) (1997) |
| Televisions: |
4,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.pm |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
1 (2000) |
| Highways: |
total:
114 km
paved: 69 km
unpaved: 45 km (1994 est.) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Saint Pierre |
| Merchant
marine: |
none (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Military
- note: |
defense is the
responsibility of France |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
|
