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Background:
|
 First
settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of
notorious penal settlements until 1951. The European Space
Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou. |
|
Location:
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Northern South
America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil
and Suriname |
|
Map references:
|
South
America |
|
Area:
|
total:
91,000 sq km
water: 1,850 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
|
slightly smaller
than Indiana |
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Land boundaries:
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total:
1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
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Coastline:
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378 km |
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Climate:
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tropical; hot,
humid; little seasonal temperature variation |
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Terrain:
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low-lying coastal
plains rising to hills and small mountains |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
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Natural resources:
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bauxite, timber,
gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium,
tantalum, clay |
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Land use:
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arable land:
0.11% NEGL
permanent crops: 0.03%
other: 99.86% (90% forest, 10% other) (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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20 sq km (1998
est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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high frequency of
heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding |
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Environment - current issues:
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NA |
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Geography - note:
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mostly an
unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the
South American continent |
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Population:
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191,309 (July
2004 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years:
29.6% (male 28,959; female 27,657)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 66,388; female 57,020)
65 years and over: 5.9% (male 5,736; female 5,549)
(2004 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
28.3 years
male: 29.4 years
female: 27.2 years (2004 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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2.25% (2004 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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21 births/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Death rate:
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4.82 deaths/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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6.27 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female
total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
|
total:
12.46 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 11.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
|
total
population: 76.89 years
male: 73.57 years
female: 80.38 years (2004 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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NA% |
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Nationality:
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noun:
French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
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Ethnic groups:
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black or mulatto
66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other
10% |
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic |
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Languages:
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French |
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Literacy:
|
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83%
male: 84%
female: 82% (1982 est.) |
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana
local short form: Guyane
local long form: none |
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Dependency status:
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overseas
department of France |
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Government type:
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NA |
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Capital:
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Cayenne |
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Administrative divisions:
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none (overseas
department of France) |
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Independence:
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none (overseas
department of France) |
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National holiday:
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Bastille Day, 14
July (1789) |
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Constitution:
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28 September 1958
(French Constitution) |
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Legal system:
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French legal
system |
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Executive branch:
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chief of
state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May
1995), represented by Prefect Ange MANCINI (since 31 July
2002)
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 Interior; presidents of
the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members
of those councils
head of government: President of the General Council
Joseph HO-TEN-YOU (since 26 March 2001); President of the
Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992)
cabinet: NA |
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Legislative branch:
|
unicameral
General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are
elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a
unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000
(next to be held NA 2006); 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 - PSG 5, various left-wing parties
5, independents 7, other 2; Regional Council - percent of vote
by party - PS 28.28%, various left parties 22.56%, RPR 15.91%,
independents 8.6%, Walwari Committee 6%; seats by party - PS
11, various left parties 9, RPR 6, independents 3, Walwari
Committee 2
note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27
September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2007); results -
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; 2 seats
were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June
2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, Walwari Committee 1 |
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Judicial branch:
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Court of Appeals
or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with
jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Guyanese
Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist
Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Guyana Democratic Forces
or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Popular National Guyanese Party or
PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Socialist Party or PS [Paul DEBRIETTE];
Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [Muriel ICARE]; Walwari
Committee (aligned with the PRG in France) [Christine
TAUBIRA-DELANON] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
|
NA |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
none (overseas
department of France) |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
|
none (overseas
department of France) |
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Economy - overview:
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The economy is
tied closely to the larger French economy through subsidies
and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou (which
accounts for 25% of GDP), fishing and forestry are the most
important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90%
of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not
fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that
provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited
to the coastal area, where the population is largely
concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French
Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy.
Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger
workers. |
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GDP:
|
purchasing power
parity - $1.551 billion (2003 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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NA% |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power
parity - $8,300 (2003 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture:
NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% (2001 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
|
NA% |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
1.5% (2002 est.) |
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Labor force:
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58,800 (1997) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
|
services,
government, and commerce 60.6%, industry 21.2%, agriculture
18.2% (1980) |
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Unemployment rate:
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22% (2001) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital
expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
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Industries:
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construction,
shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining |
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Industrial production growth rate:
|
NA% |
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Electricity - production:
|
455 million kWh
(2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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423.2 million kWh
(2001) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - imports:
|
0 kWh (2001) |
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Oil - production:
|
0 bbl/day (2001
est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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6,500 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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corn, rice,
manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle,
pigs, poultry |
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Exports:
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$155 million
f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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shrimp, timber,
gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing |
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Exports - partners:
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France 62%,
Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001) |
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Imports:
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$625 million
c.i.f. (2002 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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food (grains,
processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and
chemicals |
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Imports - partners:
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France 63%, US,
Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002) |
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Debt - external:
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$1.2 billion
(1988) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
|
$NA (1995) |
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Currency:
|
euro (EUR) |
|
Currency code:
|
EUR |
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Exchange rates:
|
Euros per US
dollar - 0.89 (2003), 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 1.09 (2000),
0.94 (1999) |
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Fiscal year:
|
calendar year |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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51,000 (2001) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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138,200 (2002) |
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Telephone system:
|
general
assessment: NA
domestic: fair open-wire and microwave radio relay
system
international: country code - 594; satellite earth
station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 2, FM 14
(including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters)
(1998) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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3 (plus eight
low-power repeaters) (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.gf |
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Internet users:
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3,200 (2002) |
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Railways:
|
0 km |
|
Highways:
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total: 722
km
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km (1996) |
|
Waterways:
|
3,300 km
navigable by native craft
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and
coastal and river steamers |
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Ports and harbors:
|
Cayenne, Degrad
des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni |
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Merchant marine:
|
none |
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Airports:
|
11 (2003 est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
|
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 5 (2003 est.) |
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Military branches:
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no regular
military forces; Gendarmerie |
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Military manpower - availability:
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males age
15-49: 52,294 (2004 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service:
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males age
15-49: 33,914 (2004 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
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NA |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
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NA |
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Military - note:
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defense is the
responsibility of France |
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Disputes - international:
|
Suriname claims
area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both
headwaters of the |
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Illicit drugs:
|
small amount of
marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment
point to Europe |
This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004
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