Background: Although sighted by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1493 and claimed for Spain it was the Dutch who occupied the island in 1631 and set about exploiting its salt deposits. The Spanish retook the island in 1633 but continued to be harassed by the Dutch. The Spanish finally relinquished St. Martin to the French and Dutch who divided it amongst themselves in 1648. The cultivation of sugar cane introduced slavery to the island in the late 18th century; the practice was not abolished until 1848. The island became a free port in 1939; the tourism industry was dramatically expanded during the 1970s and 1980s. In 2003 the populace of St. Martin voted to secede from Guadeloupe and in 2007 the northern portion of the island became a French overseas collectivity.

Geographic coordinates: 18 05 N 63 57 W

Map reference: Central America and the Caribbean

Area
Total: 54.4 km²
Land: 54.4 km²
Water: NEGL
Comparative: more than one-third the size of Washington DC

Land boundaries
Total: 15 km
Border countries: (0) Netherlands Antilles (Sint Maarten) 15 km

Coastline: 58.9 km (for entire island)

Climate: temperature averages 80-85 degrees all year long; low humidity gentle trade winds brief intense rain showers; July-Novemeber is the hurricane season

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Caribbean Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Pic du Paradis 424 m

Natural resources: salt

Geography
Note: the island of Saint Martin is the smallest landmass in the world shared by two independent states the French territory of Saint Martin and the Dutch territory of Sint Maarten

Population: 29,376 (July 2008 est.)

Ethnic groups: creole (mulatto) black Guadeloupe Mestizo (French-East Asia) white East Indian

Languages: French (official language) English Dutch French Patois Spanish Papiamento (dialect of Netherlands Antilles)

Religions: Roman Catholic Jehovah's Witness Protestant Hindu

Environment
Current issues: fresh water supply is dependent on desalinization of sea water

Country name
Conventional long form: Overseas Collectivity of Saint Martin
Conventional short form: Saint Martin
Local long form: Collectivity d'outre mer de Saint-Martin
Local short form: Saint-Martin

Capital
Name: Marigot
Geographical coordinates: 18 04 N, 63 05 W
Time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight savings: +1 hour

Independence: none (overseas collectivity of France)

National holiday: Bastille Day 14 July (1789); note - local holiday is Schoalcher Day (Slavery Abolition Day) 12 July (1848)

Constitution: 4 October 1958 (French Constitution)

Legal system: the laws of France where applicable apply

Suffrage: 18 years of age universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Nicolas SARKOZY (since 16 May 2007), represented by Prefect Dominique LACROIX (since 21 March 2007)
Head of government: President of the Territorial Council Frantz GUMBS (since 7 August 2008)
Cabinet: Executive Council; note - there is also an advisory economic, social, and cultural council
Election: French president elected by popular vote to a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the Territorial Council is elected by the members of the Council for a five-year term
Election results: Frantz GUMBS elected president by the Territorial Council on 7 August 2008

Legislative branch
Elections: last held 1 and 8 July 2007 (next to be held July 2012)
Election results: percent of seats by party - UPP 49%, RRR 42.2%, Reussir Saint-Martin 8.9%; seats by party - UPP 16, RRR 6, Reussir Saint-Martin 1

Political parties and leaders: Union Pour le Progres or UPP [Louis-Constant FLEMING]; Rassemblement Responsabilite Reussite or RRR [Alain RICHARDSON]; Reussir Saint-Martin [Jean-Luc HAMLET]

International organization participation: UPU WFTU

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

Flag description: the flag of France is used

Economy overview: The economy of Saint Martin centers around tourism with 85% of the labor force engaged in this sector. Over one million visitors come to the island each year with most arriving through the Princess Juliana International Airport in Sint Maarten. No significant agriculture and limited local fishing means that almost all food must be imported. Energy resources and manufactured goods are also imported primarily from Mexico and the United States. Saint Martin is reported to have the highest per capita income in the Caribbean.

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 1%
Industry: 15%
Services: 84% (2000)

Industries: tourism light industry and manufacturing heavy industry

Labor force
By occupation: 85% directly or indirectly employed in tourist industry

Imports
Commodities: crude petroleum food manufactured items
Partners: US Mexico (2006)

Exchange rates: euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.7345 (2007) 0.7964 (2006) 0.8041 (2005) 0.8054 (2004) 0.886 (2003)

Telephone system
General assessment: fully integrated access
Domestic: direct dial capability with both fixed and wireless systems
International: country code - 590; undersea fiber-optic cable provides voice and data connectivity to Puerto Rico and Guadeloupe

Internet
Country code: .mf; note - .gp the ccTLD for Guadeloupe and .fr the ccTLD for France might also be encountered

Airports: 1
With paved runways total: 1
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1