Background: The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries French immigration supplemented by influxes of Africans Chinese Malays and Malabar Indians gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route.

Geographic coordinates: 21 06 S 55 36 E

Map reference: World

Area
Total: 2,512 km²
Land: 2,502 km²
Water: 10 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Rhode Island

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 207 km

Maritime claims
Exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: tropical but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November hot and rainy from November to April

Terrain: mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m

Natural resources: fish arable land: hydropower

Land use
Arable land: 17%
Permanent crops: 2%
Permanent pastures: 5%
Forests and woodland: 35%
Other: 41% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 60 km² (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: periodic devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano

Population: 732,570 (July 2001 est.)
Growth rate: 1.57% (2001 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
Adjective: Reunionese

Ethnic groups: French African Malagasy Chinese Pakistani Indian

Languages: French (official) Creole widely used

Religions: Roman Catholic 86% Hindu Muslim Buddhist (1995)

Age structure
0-14 years: 32.07% (male 120,259; female 114,669)
15-64 years: 62.25% (male 224,347; female 231,698)
65 years and over: 5.68% (male 16,892; female 24,705) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.57% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: 21.26 births/1000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: 5.52 deaths/1000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2001 est.)

Environment
Current issues: NA

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.05 male/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male/female
Total population: 0.97 male/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 8.49 deaths/1000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 72.93 years
Male: 69.53 years
Female: 76.49 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.58 children born/woman (2001 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: NA%
People living with hivaids: NA
Deaths: NA

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 79%
Male: 76%
Female: 80% (1982 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Department of Reunion
Conventional short form: Reunion
Local long form: none
Local short form: Ile de la Reunion
Former: Bourbon Island

Government type: NA

Capital: Saint-Denis

Administrative divisions: none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government but there are 4 arrondissements 24 communes and 47 cantons

Independence: none (overseas department of France)

National holiday: Bastille Day 14 July (1789)

Constitution: 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)

Legal system: French law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Robert POMMIES (since NA 1996)
Head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993)
Cabinet: NA
Elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils

Legislative branch
Elections: General Council - last held NA March 1994 (next to be held NA 2000); 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 - PCR 12, PS 12, UDF 11, RPR 5, others 7; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 7, UDF 8, PS 6, RPR 4, various right-wing candidates 15, various left-wing candidates 5
Note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held 14 April 1996 (next to be held NA 2001); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 1, PCR 2; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 25 May and 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 3, PS 1, and RPR-UDF 1

Judicial branch: Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel

Political parties and leaders: Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]

International organization participation: FZ InOC WFTU

Diplomatic representation
In the us: none (overseas department of France)
From the us: none (overseas department of France)

Flag description: the flag of France is used

Economy overview: The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment which amounts to more than 40% of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population often approaching European standards whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France.

Real gdp growth rate: 3.8% (1998 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $4,800 (1998 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: NA%
Industry: NA%
Services: NA%

Agriculture products: sugarcane vanilla tobacco tropical fruits vegetables corn

Industries: sugar rum cigarettes handicraft items flower oil extraction

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Labor force: 261,000 (1995)
By occupation agriculture: 8%
By occupation industry: 19%
By occupation services: 73% (1990)

Unemployment rate: 42.8% (1998)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Budget
Revenues: NA
Expenditures: NA

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: NA%

Exports: $214 million (f.o.b. 1997)
Commodities: sugar 63% rum and molasses 4% perfume essences 2% lobster 3% (1993)
Partners: France 74% Japan 6% Comoros 4% (1994)

Imports: $2.5 billion (c.i.f. 1997)
Commodities: manufactured goods food beverages tobacco machinery and transportation equipment raw materials and petroleum products
Partners: France 64% Bahrain 3% Germany 3% Italy 3% (1994)

Debt external: $NA

Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 1.06594 (January 2001) 1.08540 (2000) 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998) 5.8367 (1997) 5.1155 (1996)

Electricity
Production: 1.1 billion kWh (1999)
Production by source fossil fuel: 54.55%
Production by source hydro: 45.45%
Production by source nuclear: 0%
Production by source other: 0% (1999)
Consumption: 1.023 billion kWh (1999)
Exports: 0 kWh (1999)
Imports: 0 kWh (1999)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 236,500 (1997)
Mobile cellular: 85,000 (1999)

Telephone system
General assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
Domestic: modern open wire and microwave radio relay network
International: radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)

Internet
Country code: .re
Service providers isps: 1 (2000)
Users: 10,000 (2000)

Airports: 2 (2000 est.)
With paved runways total: 2
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1 (2000 est.)

Railways: 0 km

Waterways: none

Merchant marine
Total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT
Ships by type: chemical tanker 1 (2000 est.)