Country:  St. Pierre and Miquelon
(territorial collectivity of France)
- Geography
Total area: 242 km2; land area: 242 km2; includes eight small islands
in the St. Pierre and the Miquelon groups
 
Comparative area: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC
 
Land boundaries: none
 
Coastline: 120 km
 
Maritime claims:
 
Contiguous zone: 12 nm;
 
Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploitation;
 
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
 
Territorial sea: 12 nm
 
Disputes: focus of maritime boundary dispute between Canada and
France
 
Climate: cold and wet, with much mist and fog; spring and autumn are windy
 
Terrain: mostly barren rock
 
Natural resources: fish, deepwater ports
 
Land use: 13% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 0% meadows and pastures;
4% forest and woodland; 83% other
 
Environment: vegetation scanty
 
Note: located 25 km south of Newfoundland, Canada, in the
North Atlantic Ocean
 
- People
Population: 6,330 (July 1990), growth rate 0.4% (1990)
 
Birth rate: 17 births/1,000 population (1990)
 
Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
 
Net migration rate: - 6 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
 
Infant mortality rate: 9 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
 
Life expectancy at birth: 72 years male, 79 years female (1990)
 
Total fertility rate: 2.2 children born/woman (1990)
 
Nationality: noun--Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women); adjective--French
 
Ethnic divisions: originally Basques and Bretons (French fishermen)
 
Religion: 98% Roman Catholic
 
Language: French
 
Literacy: NA%, but compulsory education between 6 and 16 years of age
 
Labor force: 2,510 (1982)
 
Organized labor: Workers' Force trade union
 
- Government
Long-form name: Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon
 
Type: territorial collectivity of France
 
Capital: St. Pierre
 
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: National Day, 14 July
 
Executive branch: commissioner of the Republic
 
Legislative branch: unicameral General Council
 
Judicial branch: Superior Tribunal of Appeals (Tribunal Superieur
d'Appel)
 
Leaders:
Chief of State--President Francois MITTERRAND (since 21 May 1981);
 
Head of Government--Commissioner of the Republic Jean-Pierre MARQUIE
(since February 1989); President of the General Council Marc PLANTEGENEST
(since NA)
 
Political parties and leaders: Socialist Party (PS);
Union for French Democracy (UDF/CDS), Gerard Grignon
 
Suffrage: universal at age 18
 
Elections:
General Council--last held September-October 1988 (next to be
held September 1994);
results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(19 total) Socialist and other left-wing parties 13, UDF and
right-wing parties 6;
 
French President--last held 8 May 1988 (next to be held May 1995);
results--(second ballot) Jacques Chirac 56%, Francois Mitterrand 44%;
 
French Senate--last held 24 September 1989 (next
to be held September 1992);
results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(1 total) PS 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) UDF/CDS 1
 
Diplomatic representation: as a territorial collectivity of France,
local interests are represented in the US by France
 
Flag: the flag of France is used
 
- Economy
Overview: 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 the number
of ships stopping at St. Pierre has steadily dropped over the years. In
March 1989, an agreement between France and Canada set fish quotas for
St. Pierre's trawlers fishing in Canadian and Canadian-claimed waters for
three years. The agreement settles a longstanding dispute that had
virtually brought fish exports to a halt. The islands are heavily
subsidized by France. Imports come primarily from Canada.
 
GDP: $NA, per capita $2,495 (1984); real growth rate NA%
 
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
 
Unemployment rate: 13.3% (1987)
 
Budget: revenues $NA million; expenditures $13.9 million,
including capital expenditures of $NA (1988)
 
Exports: $23.3 million (f.o.b., 1986); commodities--fish and fish
products, fox and mink pelts; partners--US 58%, France 17%, UK 11%,
Canada, Portugal
 
Imports: $50.3 million (c.i.f., 1986); commodities--meat, clothing,
fuel, electrical equipment, machinery, building materials;
partners--Canada, France, US, Netherlands, UK
 
External debt: $NA
 
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
 
Electricity: 10,000 kW capacity; 25 million kWh produced,
3,970 kWh per capita (1989)
 
Industries: fishing and supply base for fishing fleets; tourism
 
Agriculture: vegetables, cattle, sheep and pigs for local
consumption; fish catch, 14,750 metric tons (1986)
 
Aid: Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-87), $477 million
 
Currency: French franc (plural--francs); 1 French franc (F) = 100 centimes
 
Exchange rates: French francs (F) per US$1--5.7598 (January 1990),
6.3801 (1989), 5.9569 (1988), 6.0107 (1987), 6.9261 (1986), 8.9852 (1985)
 
Fiscal year: calendar year
 
- Communications
Highways: 120 km total; 60 kM paved (1985)
 
Ports: St. Pierre
 
Civil air: Air Saint-Pierre
 
Airports: 2 total, 2 usable; 2 with permanent-surface runways,
none with runways over 2,439 m; 1 with runway 1,220-2,439 m
 
Telecommunications: 3,601 telephones; stations--1 AM, 3 FM, no TV;
radiotelecommunication with most countries in the world; 1 satellite earth
station in French domestic system
 
- Defense Forces
Note: defense is the responsibility of France