Statistical information Guadeloupe 1999

Guadeloupe in the World
top of pageBackground: Guadeloupe has been a French possession since 1635. The island of Saint-Martin is divided with the Netherlands (whose southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles).
top of pageLocation: Caribbean, islands in the eastern Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico
Geographic coordinates: 16 15 N, 61 35 W
Map reference:
Central America and the CaribbeanAreaTotal: 1,780 km²
Land: 1,706 km²
Water: 74 km²
Note: Guadeloupe is an archipelago of nine inhabited islands, including Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Desirade, Iles des Saintes, Saint Barthelemy, and part of Saint Martin
Comparative: 10 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundariesTotal: 10.2 km
Border countries: (0) Netherlands Antilles (Sint Maarten) 10.2 kmCoastline: 306 km
Maritime claimsClimate: subtropical tempered by trade winds; moderately high humidity
Terrain: Basse-Terre is volcanic in origin with interior mountains; Grande-Terre is low limestone formation; most of the seven other islands are volcanic in origin
ElevationNatural resources: cultivable land beaches and climate that foster tourism
Land useIrrigated land: 30 km² (1993 est.)
Major riversMajor watersheds area km²Total water withdrawalTotal renewable water resourcesNatural hazards: hurricanes (June to October); Soufriere is an active volcano
Geographytop of pagePopulation: 426,493 (July 1999 est.)
Growth rate: 1.11% (1999 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%
NationalityEthnic groups: black or mulatto 90% white 5% East Indian Lebanese Chinese less than 5%
Languages: French (official) 99% Creole patois
Religions: Roman Catholic 95% Hindu and pagan African 4% Protestant 1%
Demographic profileAge structureDependency ratiosMedian agePopulation growth rate: 1.11% (1999 est.)
Birth rate: 17.25 births/1000 population (1999 est.)
Death rate: 6.01 deaths/1000 population (1999 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.15 migrant(s)/1000 population (1999 est.)
Population distributionUrbanizationMajor urban areasEnvironmentCurrent issues: NA
Air pollutantsSex ratioMothers mean age at first birthMaternal mortality ratioInfant mortality rate: 9.77 deaths/1000 live births (1999 est.)
Life expectancy at birthTotal fertility rate: 1.93 children born/woman (1999 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rateDrinking water sourceCurrent health expenditurePhysicians densityHospital bed densitySanitation facility accessHiv/AidsMajor infectious diseasesObesity adult prevalence rateAlcohol consumptionTobacco useChildren under the age of 5 years underweightEducation expendituresLiteracySchool life expectancy primary to tertiary educationYouth unemploymenttop of pageCountry nameGovernment type: NA
Capital: Basse-Terre
Administrative divisions: none (overseas department of France)
Dependent areasIndependence: none (overseas department of France)
National holiday: National Day Taking of the Bastille 14 July (1789)
Constitution: 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Legal system: French legal system
International law organization participationCitizenshipSuffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branchLegislative branch: unicameral General Council or Conseil General (42 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel with jurisdiction over Guadeloupe French Guiana and Martinique
Political parties and leaders: Christian Movement for the Liberation of Guadeloupe or KLPG; Communist Party of Guadeloupe or PCG [Christian CELESTE]; diverse left parties [Jacques GILLOT]; diverse right parties [Simon IBO]; FGPS Dissidents or FRUI.G [Dominique LARIFLA]; Movement for an Independent Guadeloupe or MPGI [Luc REINETTE]; Popular Union for the Liberation of Guadeloupe or UPLG [Lucien PERRUTIN]; Progressive Democratic Party or PPDG [Henri BANGOU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Aldo BLAISE]; Socialist Party or PS [Abdon SAMAN]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Marcel ESDRAS]
International organization participation: FZ WCL WFTU
Diplomatic representationIn the us: none (overseas department of France)
From the us: none (overseas department of France)
Flag description
: three horizontal bands a narrow green band (top) a wide red band and a narrow green band; the green bands are separated from the red band by two narrow white stripes; a gold five-pointed star is centered in the red band toward the hoist side; the flag of France is used for official occasions
National symbolsNational anthemNational heritagetop of pageEconomy overview: The economy depends on agriculture tourism light industry and services. It also depends on France for large subsidies and imports. Tourism is a key industry with most tourists from the US; an increasingly large number of cruise ships visit the islands. The traditional sugarcane crop is slowly being replaced by other crops such as bananas (which now supply about 50% of export earnings) eggplant and flowers. Other vegetables and root crops are cultivated for local consumption although Guadeloupe is still dependent on imported food mainly from France. Light industry features sugar and rum production. Most manufactured goods and fuel are imported. Unemployment is especially high among the young. Hurricanes periodically devastate the economy.
Real gdp purchasing power parityReal gdp growth rate: NA%
Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $9,000 (1996 est.)
Gross national savingGdp composition by sector of origin
Gdp composition by end useGdp composition by sector of originAgriculture products: bananas sugarcane tropical fruits and vegetables; cattle pigs goats
Industries: construction cement rum sugar tourism
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Labor force: 125,900 (1997)
By occupation agriculture: 15%
By occupation industry: 17%
By occupation services: 68% (1997)
Unemployment rate: 27.8% (1998)
Youth unemploymentPopulation below poverty line: NA%
Gini indexHousehold income or consumption by percentage shareDistribution of family income gini indexBudgetTaxes and other revenuesPublic debtRevenueFiscal year: calendar year
Inflation rate consumer prices: NA
Central bank discount rateCommercial bank prime lending rateStock of narrow moneyStock of broad moneyStock of domestic creditMarket value of publicly traded sharesCurrent account balanceExports: $140 million (f.o.b. 1997)
Commodities: bananas sugar rum
Partners: France 60% Martinique 18% US 4% (1997)
Imports: $1.7 billion (c.i.f. 1997)
Commodities: foodstuffs fuels vehicles clothing and other consumer goods construction materials
Partners: France 63% Germany 4% US 3% Japan 2% Netherlands Antilles 2% (1997)
Reserves of foreign exchange and goldDebt external: $N/A
Stock of direct foreign investment at homeStock of direct foreign investment abroadExchange rates: euros per US$1 - 0.9867 (January 1999) 0.9386 (1999); French francs (F) per US$1 - 5.65 (January 1999) 5.8995 (1998) 5.8367 (1997) 5.1155(1996) 4.9915 (1995)
top of pageElectricityProduction: 1.22 billion kWh (1998)
Consumption: 1.135 billion kWh (1998)
Exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Imports: 0 kWh (1998)
CoalPetroleumCrude oilRefined petroleumNatural gasCarbon dioxide emissionsEnergy consumption per capitatop of pageTelephonesMain lines in use: 159,000 (1995)
Mobile cellular: 814 (1990)
Telephone system: domestic facilities inadequate
Broadcast mediaInternetService providers isps: NA
Broadband fixed subscriptionstop of pageMilitary expendituresMilitary and security forcesMilitary service age and obligationSpace programTerrorist groupstop of pageNational air transport systemCivil aircraft registration country code prefixAirports: 9 (1999 est.)
HeliportsPipelinesRailwaysRoadwaysWaterwaysMerchant marinePorts and terminalstop of pageDisputes international: none
Refugees and internally displaced personsIllicit drugs