Background Notes - St. Pierre et Miquelon

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Background:
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First settled by the French in the early 17th century, the islands represent the sole remaining vestige of France's once vast North American possessions.
Geography Saint Pierre and Miquelon Top of Page
Location:
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Northern North America, islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, south of Newfoundland (Canada)
Geographic coordinates:
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46 50 N, 56 20 W
Map references:
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North America
Area:
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total: 242 sq km
land: 242 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes eight small islands in the Saint Pierre and the Miquelon groups
Area - comparative:
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1.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
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0 km
Coastline:
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120 km
Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate:
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cold and wet, with much mist and fog; spring and autumn are windy
Terrain:
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mostly barren rock
Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne de la Grande Montagne 240 m
Natural resources:
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fish, deepwater ports
Land use:
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arable land: 12.5%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 87.5% (2005)
Irrigated land:
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NA
Natural hazards:
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persistent fog throughout the year can be a maritime hazard
Environment - current issues:
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recent test drilling for oil in waters around Saint Pierre and Miquelon may bring future development that would impact the environment
Geography - note:
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vegetation scanty
People Saint Pierre and Miquelon Top of Page
Population:
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7,036 (July 2007 est.)
Age structure:
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0-14 years: 23% (male 827/female 790)
15-64 years: 65.9% (male 2,352/female 2,288)
65 years and over: 11.1% (male 359/female 420) (2007 est.)
Median age:
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total: 34.6 years
male: 34.1 years
female: 35 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate:
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0.128% (2007 est.)
Birth rate:
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13.08 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate:
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6.82 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate:
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-4.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.047 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.028 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.855 male(s)/female
total population: 1.011 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
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total: 7.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.26 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 6.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 78.76 years
male: 76.41 years
female: 81.23 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate:
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2 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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NA
Nationality:
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noun: Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women)
adjective: French
Ethnic groups:
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Basques and Bretons (French fishermen)
Religions:
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Roman Catholic 99%, other 1%
Languages:
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French (official)
Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (1982 est.)
Government Saint Pierre and Miquelon Top of Page
Country name:
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conventional long form: Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon
conventional short form: Saint Pierre and Miquelon
local long form: Departement de Saint-Pierre et Miquelon
local short form: Saint-Pierre et Miquelon
Dependency status:
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self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France
Government type:
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NA
Capital:
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name: Saint-Pierre
geographic coordinates: 46 46 N, 56 11 W
time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November
Administrative divisions:
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none (territorial overseas collectivity of France); note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are two communes - Saint Pierre, Miquelon at the second order
Independence:
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none (territorial collectivity of France; has been under French control since 1763)
National holiday:
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Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Constitution:
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4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
Legal system:
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the laws of France, where applicable, apply
Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Nicolas SARKOZY (since 16 May 2007); represented by Prefect Yves FAUQUEUR (since 28 August 2006)
head of government: President of the General Council Marc PLANTAGENEST (since NA)
cabinet: NA
elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 April 2002 (first round) and 5 May 2002 (second round) (next to be held in 2007); prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the General Council is elected by the members of the council
Legislative branch:
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unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats, 15 from Saint Pierre and four from Miquelon; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: elections last held 19 and 26 in March 2006 (next to be held in March 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - AD 16, Cap sur l'Avenir 2, SPM Ensemble 1
note: Saint Pierre and Miquelon elect one seat to the French Senate; elections last held 26 September 2004 (next to be held in September 2013); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 1; Saint Pierre and Miquelon also elects one seat to the French National Assembly; elections last held, first round - 9 June 2002, second round - 16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UDF 1
Judicial branch:
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Superior Tribunal of Appeals or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel
Political parties and leaders:
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Archipelago Tomorrow or AD affiliated with UDF/RPR list; Cap sur l'Avenir affiliated with PRG; Left Radical Party or PRG; Rassemblement pour la Republique or RPR (now UMP); Saint Pierre and Miquelon 2000/Avenir Miquelon or SPM 2000/AM; Socialist Party or PS; Union pour la Democratie Francaise or UDF
Political pressure groups and leaders:
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NA
International organization participation:
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UPU, WFTU
Diplomatic representation in the US:
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none (territorial overseas collectivity of France)
Diplomatic representation from the US:
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none (territorial overseas collectivity of France)
Flag description:
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a yellow sailing ship facing the hoist side rides on a dark blue background with yellow wavy lines under the ship; on the hoist side, a vertical band is divided into three parts: the top part (called ikkurina) is red with a green diagonal cross extending to the corners overlaid by a white cross dividing the rectangle into four sections; the middle part has a white background with an ermine pattern; the third part has a red background with two stylized yellow lions outlined in black, one above the other; these three heraldic arms represent settlement by colonists from the Basque Country (top), Brittany, and Normandy; the flag of France is used for official occasions
Economy Saint Pierre and Miquelon Top of Page
Economy - overview:
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The inhabitants have traditionally earned their livelihood by fishing and by servicing fishing fleets operating off the coast of Newfoundland. The economy has been declining, however, because of disputes with Canada over fishing quotas and a steady decline in the number of ships stopping at Saint Pierre. In 1992, an arbitration panel awarded the islands an exclusive economic zone of 12,348 sq km to settle a longstanding territorial dispute with Canada, although it represents only 25% of what France had sought. France heavily subsidizes the islands to the great betterment of living standards. The government hopes an expansion of tourism will boost economic prospects. Fish farming, crab fishing, and agriculture are being developed to diversify the local economy. Recent test drilling for oil may pave the way for development of the energy sector.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$48.3 million
note: supplemented by annual payments from France of about $60 million (2003 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
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$NA
GDP - real growth rate:
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NA%
GDP - per capita (PPP):
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$7,000 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%
Labor force:
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3,450 (2005)
Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture: 18%
industry: 41%
services: 41% (1996 est.)
Unemployment rate:
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10.3% (1999)
Population below poverty line:
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NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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8.1% (2005)
Budget:
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revenues: $70 million
expenditures: $60 million; including capital expenditures of $24 million (1996 est.)
Agriculture - products:
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vegetables; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish
Industries:
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fish processing and supply base for fishing fleets; tourism
Industrial production growth rate:
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NA%
Electricity - production:
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50 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - consumption:
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46.5 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh (2004)
Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption:
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500 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports:
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NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
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NA bbl/day
Oil - proved reserves:
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0 bbl
Natural gas - production:
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0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
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0 cu m (2004 est.)
Exports:
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$5.5 million f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
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fish and fish products, soybeans, animal feed, mollusks and crustaceans, fox and mink pelts
Exports - partners:
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Spain 33.6%, Belgium 21.8%, India 18.3%, France 9.4%, US 7.5% (2006)
Imports:
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$68.2 million f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
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meat, clothing, fuel, electrical equipment, machinery, building materials
Imports - partners:
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France 51.3%, Canada 31.8%, Belgium 4.1% (2006)
Economic aid - recipient:
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approximately $60 million in annual grants from France
Debt - external:
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$NA
Currency (code):
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euro (EUR)
Exchange rates:
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euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002)
Fiscal year:
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calendar year
Communications Saint Pierre and Miquelon Top of Page
Telephones - main lines in use:
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4,800 (2002)
Telephone system:
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general assessment: adequate
domestic: NA
international: country code - 508; radiotelephone communication with most countries in the world; satellite earth station - 1 in French domestic satellite system
Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:
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0 (2 repeaters rebroadcast programs from France, Canada, and the US) (1997)
Internet country code:
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.pm
Internet hosts:
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0 (2007)
Internet users:
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NA
Transportation Saint Pierre and Miquelon Top of Page
Airports:
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2 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
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total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)
Ports and terminals:
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Saint-Pierre
Military Saint Pierre and Miquelon Top of Page
Military - note:
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defense is the responsibility of France
Transnational Issues Saint Pierre and Miquelon Top of Page
Disputes - international:
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none