Part 40
_#_Suffrage universal at age 18
_#_Elections:
Legislative Assembly--last held on 15 September 1991 (next to be held by 15 September 1996); results--MSM/MMM 53%, MLP/PMSD 38%; seats--(70 total, 62 elected) MSM/MMM alliance 59 (MSM 29, MMM 26, OPR 2, MTD 2); opposition 3
_#_Communists: may be 2,000 sympathizers; several Communist organizations; Mauritius Lenin Youth Organization, Mauritius Women's Committee, Mauritius Communist Party, Mauritius People's Progressive Party, Mauritius Young Communist League, Mauritius Liberation Front, Chinese Middle School Friendly Association, Mauritius/USSR Friendship Society
_#_Other political or pressure groups: various labor unions
_#_Member of: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Chitmansing JESSERAMSING; Chancery at Suite 134, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 244-1491 or 1492;
US--Ambassador Penne Percy KORTH; Embassy at 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis; telephone [230] 208-9763 through 208-9767
_#_Flag: four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green
_*_Economy _#_Overview: The economy is based on sugar, manufacturing (mainly textiles), and tourism. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 32% of export earnings. The government's development strategy is centered on industrialization (with a view to exports), agricultural diversification, and tourism. Economic performance in 1989 was impressive, with 5.0% real growth and low unemployment.
_#_GDP: $2.1 billion, per capita $2,000; real growth rate 5.5% (FY89)
_#_Inflation rate (consumer prices): 12.7% (1989)
_#_Unemployment rate: 2.7% (1989 est.)
_#_Budget: revenues $477 million; expenditures $540 million, including capital expenditures of $112 million (FY89)
_#_Exports: $993 million (f.o.b., 1989);
commodities--textiles 44%, sugar 40%, light manufactures 10%;
partners--EC and US have preferential treatment, EC 77%, US 15%
_#_Imports: $1.2 billion (f.o.b., 1989);
commodities--manufactured goods 50%, capital equipment 17%, foodstuffs 13%, petroleum products 8%, chemicals 7%;
partners--EC, US, South Africa, Japan
_#_External debt: $670 million (December 1989)
_#_Industrial production: growth rate 12.9% (FY87); accounts for 25% of GDP
_#_Electricity: 233,000 kW capacity; 420 million kWh produced, 375 kWh per capita (1989)
_#_Industries: food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, wearing apparel, chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery, tourism
_#_Agriculture: accounts for 10% of GDP; about 90% of cultivated land in sugarcane; other products--tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses, cattle, goats, fish; net food importer, especially rice and fish
_#_Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade
_#_Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $76 million; Western (non-US) countries (1970-88), $628 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $54 million
_#_Currency: Mauritian rupee (plural--rupees); 1 Mauritian rupee (MauR) = 100 cents
_#_Exchange rates: Mauritian rupees (MauRs) per US$1--14.295 (January 1991), 14.839 (1990), 15.250 (1989), 13.438 (1988), 12.878 (1987), 13.466 (1986), 15.442 (1985)
_#_Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June
_*_Communications _#_Highways: 1,800 km total; 1,640 km paved, 160 km earth
_#_Ports: Port Louis
_#_Merchant marine: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 94,619 GRT/140,345 DWT; includes 2 passenger-cargo, 2 cargo, 1 container, 1 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 1 liquefied gas, 2 bulk
_#_Civil air: 4 major transport aircraft
_#_Airports: 5 total, 4 usable; 2 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 3 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
_#_Telecommunications: small system with good service; new microwave link to Reunion; high-frequency radio links to several countries; 48,000 telephones; stations--2 AM, no FM, 4 TV; 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station
_*_Defense Forces _#_Branches: paramilitary Special Mobile Force, Special Support Units, National Police Force, National Coast Guard
_#_Manpower availability: males 15-49, 302,588; 155,176 fit for military service
_#_Defense expenditures: $4 million, 0.2% of GDP (1988) _%_ _@_Mayotte (territorial collectivity of France) _*_Geography _#_Total area: 375 km2; land area: 375 km2
_#_Comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC
_#_Land boundaries: none
_#_Coastline: 185.2 km
_#_Maritime claims:
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
_#_Disputes: claimed by Comoros
_#_Climate: tropical; marine; hot, humid, rainy season during northeastern monsoon (November to May); dry season is cooler (May to November)
_#_Terrain: generally undulating with ancient volcanic peaks, deep ravines
_#_Natural resources: negligible
_#_Land use: arable land NA%; permanent crops NA%; meadows and pastures NA%; forest and woodland NA%; other NA%
_#_Environment: subject to cyclones during rainy season
_#_Note: part of Comoro Archipelago; located in the Mozambique Channel about halfway between Africa and Madagascar
_*_People _#_Population: 75,027 (July 1991), growth rate 3.9% (1991)
_#_Birth rate: 50 births/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Death rate: 12 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Infant mortality rate: 87 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
_#_Life expectancy at birth: 54 years male, 59 years female (1991)
_#_Total fertility rate: 6.8 children born/woman (1991)
_#_Nationality: noun--Mahorais (sing., pl.); adjective--Mahoran
_#_Religion: Muslim 99%; remainder Christian, mostly Roman Catholic
_#_Language: Mahorian (a Swahili dialect), French
_#_Literacy: NA% (male NA%, female NA%)
_#_Labor force: NA
_#_Organized labor: NA
_*_Government _#_Long-form name: Territorial Collectivity of Mayotte
_#_Type: territorial collectivity of France
_#_Capital: Dzaoudzi
_#_Administrative divisions: none (territorial collectivity of France)
_#_Independence: none (territorial collectivity of France)
_#_Constitution: 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
_#_Legal system: French law
_#_National holiday: Taking of the Bastille, 14 July (1789)
_#_Executive branch: government commissioner
_#_Legislative branch: unicameral General Council (Conseil General)
_#_Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Tribunal Superieur d'Appel)
_#_Leaders:
Chief of State--President Francois MITTERRAND (since 21 May 1981);
Head of Government--Prefect, Representative of the French Government Daniel LIMODIN (since NA 1990); President of the General Council Youssouf BAMANA (since NA 1976)
_#_Political parties and leaders: Mahoran Popular Movement (MPM), Younoussa BAMANA; Party for the Mahoran Democratic Rally (PRDM), Daroueche MAOULIDA; Mahoran Rally for the Republic (RMPR), Mansour KAMARDINE; Union of the Center (UDC)
_#_Suffrage: universal at age 18
_#_Elections:
General Council--last held NA June 1988 (next to be held June 1993); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(17 total) MPM 9, RPR 6, other 2;
French Senate--last held on 24 September 1989 (next to be held September 1992); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(1 total) MPM 1;
French National Assembly--last held 5 and 12 June 1988 (next to be held June 1993); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(1 total) UDC 1
_#_Communists: probably none
_#_Member of: FZ
_#_Diplomatic representation: as a territorial collectivity of France, Mahoran interests are represented in the US by France
_#_Flag: the flag of France is used
_*_Economy _#_Overview: Economic activity is based primarily on the agricultural sector, including fishing and livestock raising. Mayotte is not self-sufficient and must import a large portion of its food requirements, mainly from France. The economy and future development of the island is heavily dependent on French financial assistance.
_#_GDP: $NA, per capita $NA; real growth rate NA%
_#_Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
_#_Unemployment rate: NA%
_#_Budget: revenues NA; expenditures $37.3 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1985)
_#_Exports: $4.0 million (f.o.b., 1984);
commodities--ylang-ylang, vanilla;
partners--France 79%, Comoros 10%, Reunion 9%
_#_Imports: $21.8 million (f.o.b., 1984);
commodities--building materials, transportation equipment, rice, clothing, flour;
partners--France 57%, Kenya 16%, South Africa 11%, Pakistan 8%
_#_External debt: $NA
_#_Industrial production: growth rate NA%
_#_Electricity: NA kW capacity; NA million kWh produced, NA kWh per capita
_#_Industries: newly created lobster and shrimp industry
_#_Agriculture: most important sector; provides all export earnings; crops--vanilla, ylang-ylang, coffee, copra; imports major share of food needs
_#_Economic aid: Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $323.8 million
_#_Currency: French franc (plural--francs); 1 French franc (F) = 100 centimes
_#_Exchange rates: French francs (F) per US$1--5.1307 (January 1991), 5.4453 (1990), 6.3801 (1989), 5.9569 (1988), 6.0107 (1987), 6.9261 (1986), 8.9852 (1985)
_#_Fiscal year: calendar year
_*_Communications _#_Highways: 42 km total; 18 km bituminous
_#_Civil air: no major transport aircraft
_#_Airports: 1 with permanent-surface runway 1,220-2,439 m
_#_Ports: Dzaoudzi
_#_Telecommunications: small system administered by French Department of Posts and Telecommunications; includes radio relay and high-frequency radio communications for links with Comoros and international communications; 450 telephones; stations--1 AM, no FM, no TV
_*_Defense Forces _#_Note: defense is the responsibility of France _%_ _@_Mexico _*_Geography _#_Total area: 1,972,550 km2; land area: 1,923,040 km2
_#_Comparative area: slightly less than three times the size of Texas
_#_Land boundaries: 4,538 km total; Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,326 km
_#_Coastline: 9,330 km
_#_Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
Continental shelf: natural prolongation of continental margin or 200 nm;
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
_#_Disputes: claims Clipperton Island (French possession)
_#_Climate: varies from tropical to desert
_#_Terrain: high, rugged mountains, low coastal plains, high plateaus, and desert
_#_Natural resources: crude oil, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber
_#_Land use: arable land 12%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures 39%; forest and woodland 24%; other 24%; includes irrigated 3%
_#_Environment: subject to tsunamis along the Pacific coast and destructive earthquakes in the center and south; natural water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; deforestation; erosion widespread; desertification; serious air pollution in Mexico City and urban centers along US-Mexico border
_#_Note: strategic location on southern border of US
_*_People _#_Population: 90,007,304 (July 1991), growth rate 2.2% (1991)
_#_Birth rate: 29 births/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Death rate: 5 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Net migration rate: - 1 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Infant mortality rate: 29 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
_#_Life expectancy at birth: 68 years male, 76 years female (1991)
_#_Total fertility rate: 3.4 children born/woman (1991)
_#_Nationality: noun--Mexican(s); adjective--Mexican
_#_Ethnic divisions: mestizo (Indian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%, white or predominantly white 9%, other 1%
_#_Religion: nominally Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3%
_#_Language: Spanish
_#_Literacy: 87% (male 90%, female 85%) age 15 and over can read and write (1985 est.)
_#_Labor force: 26,100,000 (1988); services 31.4%, agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing 26%, commerce 13.9%, manufacturing 12.8%, construction 9.5%, transportation 4.8%, mining and quarrying 1.3%, electricity 0.3% (1986)
_#_Organized labor: 35% of labor force
_*_Government _#_Long-form name: United Mexican States
_#_Type: federal republic operating under a centralized government
_#_Capital: Mexico
_#_Administrative divisions: 31 states (estados, singular--estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Distrito Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Yucatan, Zacatecas
_#_Independence: 16 September 1810 (from Spain)
_#_Constitution: 5 February 1917
_#_Legal system: mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
_#_National holiday: Independence Day, 16 September (1810)
_#_Executive branch: president, Cabinet
_#_Legislative branch: bicameral National Congress (Congreso de la Union) consists of an upper chamber or Senate (Camara de Senadores) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados)
_#_Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Suprema Corte de Justicia)
_#_Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Carlos SALINAS de Gortari (since 1 December 1988)
_#_Political parties and leaders: (recognized parties) Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Luis Donaldo COLOSIO Murrieta; National Action Party (PAN), Luis ALVAREZ; Popular Socialist Party (PPS), Indalecio SAYAGO Herrera; Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano; Cardenist Front for the National Reconstruction Party (PFCRN), Rafael AGUILAR Talamantes; Authentic Party of the Mexican Revolution (PARM), Carlos Enrique CANTU Rosas
_#_Suffrage: universal and compulsory (but not enforced) at age 18
_#_Elections:
President--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held September 1994); results--Carlos SALINAS de Gortari (PRI) 50.74%, Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (FDN) 31.06%, Manuel CLOUTHIER (PAN) 16.81%; other 1.39%; note--several of the smaller
## parties ran a common candidate under a coalition called the National
Democratic Front (FDN);
Senate--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held mid-year 1991); results--PRI 94%, FDN (now PRD) 6%; seats--(64 total) number of seats by party NA;
Chamber of Deputies--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held mid-year 1991); results--PRI 53%, PAN 20%, PFCRN 10%, PPS 6%, PARM 7%, PMS (now part of PRD) 4%; seats--(500 total) number of seats by party NA
_#_Other political or pressure groups: Roman Catholic Church, Confederation of Mexican Workers (CTM), Confederation of Industrial Chambers (CONCAMIN), Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce (CONCANACO), National Peasant Confederation (CNC), UNE (no expansion), Revolutionary Workers Party (PRT), Mexican Democratic Party (PDM), Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants (CROC), Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers (CROM), Confederation of Employers of the Mexican Republic (COPARMEX), National Chamber of Transformation Industries (CANACINTRA), Business Coordination Council (CCE)
_#_Member of: AG (observer), CCC, CDB, CG, EBRD, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-6, G-11, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, LORCS, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Gustavo PETRICIOLI Iturbide; Chancery at 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington DC 20006; telephone (202) 728-1600; there are Mexican Consulates General in Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Antonio, San Diego, and Consulates in Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Kansas City (Missouri), Laredo, McAllen (Texas), Miami, Nogales (Arizona), Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Phoenix, Presidio (Texas), Sacramento, St. Louis, St. Paul (Minneapolis), Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Seattle;
US--Ambassador John D. NEGROPONTE, Jr.; Embassy at Paseo de la Reforma 305, 06500 Mexico, D.F. (mailing address is P. O. Box 3087, Laredo, TX 78044-3087); telephone [52] (5) 211-0042; there are US Consulates General in Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Tijuana, and Consulates in Hermosillo, Matamoros, Mazatlan, Merida, and Nuevo Laredo
_#_Flag: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake is its beak) is centered in the white band
_*_Economy _#_Overview: Mexico's economy is a mixture of state-owned industrial plants (notably oil), private manufacturing and services, and both large-scale and traditional agriculture. In the 1980s Mexico experienced severe economic difficulties: the nation accumulated large external debts as world petroleum prices fell; rapid population growth outstripped the domestic food supply; and inflation, unemployment, and pressures to emigrate became more acute. Growth in national output, however, appears to be recovering, rising from 1.4% in 1988 to 3.9% in 1990. The US is Mexico's major trading partner, accounting for two-thirds of its exports and imports. After petroleum, border assembly plants and tourism are the largest earners of foreign exchange. The government, in consultation with international economic agencies, is implementing programs to stabilize the economy and foster growth. In 1991 the government also plans to begin negotiations with the US and Canada on a free trade agreement.
_#_GDP: $236 billion, per capita $2,680; real growth rate 3.9% (1990)
_#_Inflation rate (consumer prices): 30% (1990)
_#_Unemployment rate: 15-18% (1990 est.)
_#_Budget: revenues $44.3 billion; expenditures $55.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.8 billion (1989)
_#_Exports: $26.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990);
commodities--crude oil, oil products, coffee, shrimp, engines, cotton;
partners--US 66%, EC 16%, Japan 11%
_#_Imports: $29.8 billion (c.i.f., 1990);
commodities--grain, metal manufactures, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment;
partners--US 62%, EC 18%, Japan 10%
_#_External debt: $96.0 billion (1990)
_#_Industrial production: growth rate 5.3% (1989); accounts for 27% of GDP
_#_Electricity: 27,600,000 kW capacity; 108,976 million kWh produced, 1,240 kWh per capita (1990)
_#_Industries: food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, transportation equipment, tourism
_#_Agriculture: accounts for 9% of GDP and over 25% of work force; large number of small farms at subsistence level; major food crops--corn, wheat, rice, beans; cash crops--cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; fish catch of 1.4 million metric tons among top 20 nations (1987)
_#_Illicit drugs: illicit cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis continues in spite of government eradication efforts; major link in chain of countries used to smuggle cocaine from South American dealers to US markets
_#_Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $3.1 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $7.1 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $110 million
_#_Currency: Mexican peso (plural--pesos); 1 Mexican peso (Mex$) = 100 centavos
_#_Exchange rates: market rate of Mexican pesos (Mex$) per US$1--2,940.9 (January 1991), 2,812.6 (1990), 2,461.3 (1989), 2,273.1 (1988), 1,378.2 (1987), 611.8 (1986), 256.9 (1985)
_#_Fiscal year: calendar year
_*_Communications _#_Railroads: 20,680 km total; 19,950 km 1.435-meter standard gauge; 730 km 0.914-meter narrow gauge
_#_Highways: 210,000 km total; 65,000 km paved, 30,000 km semipaved or cobblestone, 60,000 km rural roads (improved earth) or roads under construction, 55,000 km unimproved earth roads
_#_Inland waterways: 2,900 km navigable rivers and coastal canals
_#_Pipelines: crude oil, 28,200 km; refined products, 10,150 km; natural gas, 13,254 km; petrochemical, 1,400 km
_#_Ports: Acapulco, Coatzacoalcos, Ensenada, Guaymas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Progreso, Puerto Vallarta, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Veracruz
_#_Merchant marine: 64 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 999,423 GRT/1,509,939 DWT; includes 4 short-sea passenger, 9 cargo, 2 refrigerated cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 31 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 3 chemical tanker, 7 liquefied gas, 3 bulk, 3 combination bulk
_#_Civil air: 174 major transport aircraft
_#_Airports: 1,815 total, 1,537 usable; 195 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 33 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 276 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
_#_Telecommunications: highly developed system with extensive radio relay links; connection into Central American Microwave System; 6.41 million telephones; stations--679 AM, no FM, 238 TV, 22 shortwave; 120 domestic satellite terminals; earth stations--4 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT
_*_Defense Forces _#_Branches: National Defense (includes Army and Air Force), Navy (includes Marines)
_#_Manpower availability: males 15-49, 22,340,628; 16,360,596 fit for military service; 1,107,163 reach military age (18) annually
_#_Defense expenditures: $1 billion, 0.6% of GDP (1988) _%_ _@_Micronesia, Federated States of _*_Geography _#_Total area: 702 km2; land area: 702 km2; includes Pohnpei, Truk, Yap, and Kosrae
_#_Comparative area: slightly less than four times the size of Washington, DC
_#_Land boundaries: none
_#_Coastline: 6,112 km
_#_Maritime claims:
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
_#_Climate: tropical; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasional severe damage
_#_Terrain: islands vary geologically from high mountainous islands to low, coral atolls; volcanic outcroppings on Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Truk
_#_Natural resources: forests, marine products, deep-seabed minerals
_#_Land use: arable land NA%; permanent crops NA%; meadows and pastures NA%; forest and woodland NA%; other NA%
_#_Environment: subject to typhoons from June to December; four major island groups totaling 607 islands
_#_Note: located 5,150 km west-southwest of Honolulu in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way between Hawaii and Indonesia
_*_People _#_Population: 107,662 (July 1991), growth rate 2.5% (1991)
_#_Birth rate: 34 births/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Death rate: 5 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Net migration rate: - 4 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Infant mortality rate: 26 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
_#_Life expectancy at birth: 68 years male, 73 years female (1991)
_#_Total fertility rate: 5.0 children born/woman (1991)
_#_Nationality: noun--Micronesian(s); adjective--Micronesian; Kosrae(s), Pohnpeian(s), Trukese, Yapese
_#_Ethnic divisions: nine ethnic Micronesian and Polynesian groups
_#_Religion: predominantly Christian, divided between Roman Catholic and Protestant; other churches include Assembly of God, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventist, Latter Day Saints, and the Baha'i Faith
_#_Language: English is the official and common language; most indigenous languages fall within the Austronesian language family, the exceptions are the Polynesian languages; major indigenous languages are Trukese, Pohnpeian, Yapese, and Kosrean
_#_Literacy: 90% (male 90%, female 85%) age 15 and over can read and write (1980)
_#_Labor force: NA; two-thirds are government employees; 45,000 people are between the ages of 15 and 65
_#_Organized labor: NA
_*_Government _#_Long-form name: Federated States of Micronesia (no short-form name)
_#_Type: constitutional government in free association with the US; the Compact of Free Association entered into force 3 November 1986
_#_Capital: Kolonia (on the island of Pohnpei); note--a new capital is being built about 10 km southwest in the Palikir valley
_#_Administrative divisions: 4 states; Kosrae, Pohnpei, Chuuk, Yap
_#_Independence: 3 November 1986 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship; formerly the Kosrae, Pohnpei, Truk, and Yap districts of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands)
_#_Constitution: 10 May 1979
_#_Legal system: based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws
_#_National holiday: Proclamation of the Federated States of Micronesia, 10 May (1979)
_#_Executive branch: president, vice president, Cabinet
_#_Legislative branch: unicameral Congress
_#_Judicial branch: Supreme Court
_#_Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Bailey OLTER (since 11 May 1991); Vice President Jacob NENA (since 11 May 1991)
_#_Political parties and leaders: no formal parties
_#_Suffrage: universal at age 18
_#_Elections:
President--last held 5 March 1991 (next to be held March 1994); results--Vice President Bailey OLTER elected president;
Congress--last held on 5 March 1991 (next to be held March 1993); results--percent of vote NA; seats--(14 total)
_#_Communists: none
_#_Member of: ESCAP (associate), ICAO, SPC, SPF, UN
_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Jesse B. MAREHALAU; Embassy at 706 G Street SE, Washington DC 20003; telephone (202) 544-2640;
US--Ambassador Aurelia BRAZEAL; Embassy at address NA, Kolonia (mailing address is P. O. Box 1286, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia 96941); telephone 691-320-2187
_#_Flag: light blue with four white five-pointed stars centered; the stars are arranged in a diamond pattern
_*_Economy _#_Overview: Financial assistance from the US is the primary source of revenue, with the US pledged to spend $1 billion in the islands in the 1990s; also in December 1990 the US authorized the use of disaster relief funds for Micronesia because of damage from Typhoon Russ. In addition Micronesia earns about $4 million a year in fees from foreign commercial fishing concerns. Economic activity consists primarily of subsistence farming and fishing. The islands have few mineral deposits worth exploiting, except for high-grade phosphate. The potential for a tourist industry exists, but the remoteness of the location and a lack of adequate facilities hinder development.
_#_GNP: $150 million, per capita $1,500; real growth rate NA% (1989 est.); note--GNP numbers reflect US spending
_#_Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
_#_Unemployment rate: 80% (1988)
_#_Budget: revenues $110.8 million; expenditures NA, including capital expenditures of NA (1987 est.)
_#_Exports: $1.6 million (f.o.b., 1983);
commodities--copra;
partners--NA
_#_Imports: $48.9 million (c.i.f., 1983);
commodities--NA;
partners--NA
_#_External debt: $NA
_#_Industrial production: growth rate NA%
_#_Electricity: 18,000 kW capacity; 40 million kWh produced, 380 kWh per capita (1990)
_#_Industries: tourism, craft items from shell, wood, and pearl
_#_Agriculture: mainly a subsistence economy; copra, black pepper; tropical fruits and vegetables, coconuts, cassava, sweet potatoes, pigs, chickens
_#_Economic aid: under terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US will provide $1.3 billion in grant aid during the period 1986-2001
_#_Currency: US currency is used
_#_Exchange rates: US currency is used
_#_Fiscal year: 1 October-30 September
_*_Communications _#_Highways: 39 km of paved macadam and concrete roads on major islands, otherwise 187 km stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads
_#_Ports: Colonia (Yap), Truk (Kosrae), Okat (Kosrae)
_#_Airports: 11 total, 10 usable; 7 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 2,439 m; 6 with runways 1,220-2,439
_#_Telecommunications: 16,000 radio receivers, 1,125 TV sets (est. 1987); telephone network--960 telephone lines at both Kolonia and Truk; islands interconnected by shortwave radio (used mostly for government purposes); stations--5 AM, 1 FM, 6 TV, 1 shortwave; 4 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth stations
_*_Defense Forces _#_Note: defense is the responsibility of the US _%_ _@_Midway Islands (territory of the US) _*_Geography _#_Total area: 5.2 km2; land area: 5.2 km2; includes Eastern Island and Sand Island
_#_Comparative area: about nine times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
_#_Land boundaries: none
_#_Coastline: 15 km
_#_Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 12 nm;
Continental shelf: 200 m (depth);
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
_#_Climate: tropical, but moderated by prevailing easterly winds
_#_Terrain: low, nearly level
_#_Natural resources: fish and wildlife
_#_Land use: arable land 0%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures 0%; forest and woodland 0%; other 100%
_#_Environment: coral atoll
_#_Note: located 2,350 km west-northwest of Honolulu at the western end of Hawaiian Islands group, about one-third of the way between Honolulu and Tokyo; closed to the public
_*_People _#_Population: 453 US military personnel (1991)
_*_Government _#_Long-form name: none