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: 2,517 km²
Land: 2,507 km²
Water: 10 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Rhode Island

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 207 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 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: 13.6%
Permanent crops: 1.2%
Other: 85.2% (2001)

Irrigated land: 120 km² (1998 est.)

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

Geography
Note: this mountainous volcanic island has an active volcano Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean

Population: 776,948 (July 2005 est.)
Growth rate: 1.38% (2005 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: 30.4% (male 120,698/female 115,108)
15-64 years: 63.6% (male 243,668/female 250,143)
65 years and over: 6.1% (male 19,234/female 28,097) (2005 est.)

Median age
Total: 26.72 years
Male: 25.53 years
Female: 27.92 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.38% (2005 est.)

Birth rate: 19.26 births/1000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate: 5.48 deaths/1000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2005 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: 0.98 male/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 7.78 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 8.52 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 6.99 deaths/1000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 73.95 years
Male: 70.55 years
Female: 77.52 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.47 children born/woman (2005 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: 88.9%
Male: 87%
Female: 90.8% (2003 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: 4 October 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 Laurent CAYREL (since 16 July 2005)
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 five-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 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2010)
Election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens 22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7
Note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 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]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [leader NA]

International organization participation: InOC UPU 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 but services now dominate. 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 one-third 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 purchasing power parity: $4.57 billion (2004 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 2.5% (2004 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $6,000 (2004 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 8%
Industry: 19%
Services: 73% (2000 est.)

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: 309,900 (2000)
By occupation agriculture: 13%
By occupation industry: 12%
By occupation services: 75% (2000)

Unemployment rate: 36% (1999 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

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

Budget
Revenues: $1.26 billion
Expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (1998)

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% (2000)

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% (2000)

Debt external: $NA

Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004) 0.886 (2003) 1.0626 (2002) 1.1175 (2001) 1.0854 (2000)

Electricity
Production: 1.166 billion kWh (2002)
Consumption: 1.084 billion kWh (2002)
Exports: 0 kWh (2002)
Imports: 0 kWh (2002)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 300,000 est (2001)
Mobile cellular: 489,800 (2002)

Telephone system
General assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
Domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network
International: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia

Internet
Country code: .re
Users: 150,000 (2002)

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age (2004)

Airports: 2 (2004 est.)
With paved runways total: 2
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Merchant marine
Total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT
By type: chemical tanker 1
Foreign owned: 1 (France 1)
Registered in other countries: 1 (2005)

Disputes international: none