France

Airports

total: 472 usable: 461 with permanent-surface runways: 258 with runways over 3,659 m: 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 37 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 136

Highways

total: 1,510,750 km paved: 747,750 km (including 7,450 km of controlled access divided highway) unpaved: 763,000 km

Inland waterways

14,932 km; 6,969 km heavily traveled

Merchant marine

124 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,226,175 GRT/5,109,375 DWT, bulk 9, cargo 10, chemical tanker 8, container 21, liquefied gas 6, multifunction large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 37, passenger 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 21, short-sea passenger 7, specialized tanker 3 note: France also maintains a captive register for French-owned ships in the Kerguelen Islands (French Southern and Antarctic Lands) and French Polynesia

Pipelines

crude oil 3,059 km; petroleum products 4,487 km; natural gas 24,746 km

Ports

coastal - Bordeaux, Boulogne, Brest, Cherbourg, Dunkerque, Fos-Sur-Mer, Le Havre, Marseille, Nantes, Sete, Toulon; inland - Rouen

Railroads

French National Railways (SNCF) operates 34,322 km 1,435-mm standard gauge; 12,434 km electrified, 15,132 km double or multiple track; 99 km of various gauges (1,000-mm), privately owned and operated

Telecommunications

highly developed; extensive cable and microwave radio relay networks; large-scale introduction of optical-fiber systems; satellite systems for domestic traffic; 39,200,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 41 AM, 800 (mostly repeaters) FM, 846 (mostly repeaters) TV; 24 submarine coaxial cables; 2 INTELSAT earth stations (with total of 5 antennas - 2 for the Indian Ocean INTELSAT and 3 for the Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT); HF radio communications with more than 20 countries; INMARSAT service; EUTELSAT TV service

Affiliation

(overseas department of France)

Branches

Army, Navy (including Naval Air), Air Force, National Gendarmerie

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $33.0 billion, 3.3% of GDP (1993)

Manpower availability

males age 15-49 14,717,461; fit for military service 12,265,874; reach military age (18) annually 376,485 (1994 est.)

Agriculture

accounts for 4% of GDP (including fishing and forestry); one of the world's top five wheat producers; other principal products - beef, dairy products, cereals, sugar beets, potatoes, wine grapes; self-sufficient for most temperate-zone foods; shortages include fats and oils and tropical produce, but overall net exporter of farm products; fish catch of 850,000 metric tons ranks among world's top 20 countries and is all used domestically

Budget

revenues: $220.5 billion expenditures: $249.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $47 billion (1993 budget)

Currency

1 French franc (F) = 100 centimes

Economic aid

donor: ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $75.1 billion

Electricity

capacity: 110 million kW production: 426 billion kWh consumption per capita: 7,430 kWh (1992)

Exchange rates

French francs (F) per US$1 - 5.9205 (January 1994), 5.6632 (1993), 5.2938 (1992), 5.6421 (1991), 5.4453 (1990), 6.3801 (1989)

Exports

$270.5 billion (f.o.b., 1993) commodities: machinery and transportation equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, agricultural products, iron and steel products, textiles and clothing partners: Germany 18.6%, Italy 11.0%, Spain 11.0%, Belgium-Luxembourg 9.1%, UK 8.8%, Netherlands 7.9%, US 6.4%, Japan 2.0%, former USSR 0.7% (1991 est.)

External debt

$300 billion (1993 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Imports

$250.2 billion (c.i.f., 1993) commodities: crude oil, machinery and equipment, agricultural products, chemicals, iron and steel products partners: Germany 17.8%, Italy 10.9%, US 9.5%, Netherlands 8.9%, Spain 8.8%, Belgium-Luxembourg 8.5%, UK 7.5%, Japan 4.1%, former USSR 1.3% (1991 est.)

Industrial production

growth rate -4.3% (1993)

Industries

steel, machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy, aircraft, electronics, mining, textiles, food processing, tourism

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

2.1% (1993)

National product

GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $1.05 trillion (1993)

National product per capita

$18,200 (1993)

National product real growth rate

-0.7% (1993)

Overview

One of the world's most developed economies, France has substantial agricultural resources and a highly diversified modern industrial sector. Large tracts of fertile land, the application of modern technology, and subsidies have combined to make it the leading agricultural producer in Western Europe. Largely self-sufficient in agricultural products, France is a major exporter of wheat and dairy products. The industrial sector generates about one-quarter of GDP, and the growing services sector has become crucial to the economy. Although French GDP contracted by 0.7% in 1993, the economy showed signs of life by yearend. GDP growth, however, will remain sluggish in 1994 - perhaps reaching only 1.0%. Rapidly increasing unemployment will still pose a major problem for the government. Paris remains committed to maintaining the franc-deutsche mark parity, which has kept French interest rates high despite France's low inflation. Although the pace of economic integration within the European Community has slowed down, integration presumably will remain a major force shaping the fortunes of the various economic sectors.

Unemployment rate

12.2% (May 1994)

Area

total area: 547,030 sq km land area: 545,630 sq km comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Colorado note: includes Corsica and the rest of metropolitan France, but excludes the overseas administrative divisions

Climate

generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild winters and hot summers along the Mediterranean

Coastline

3,427 km (mainland 2,783 km, Corsica 644 km)

Environment

current issues: some forest damage from acid rain; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from urban wastes, agricultural runoff natural hazards: NA international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Law of the Sea

International disputes

Madagascar claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, and Tromelin Island; Comoros claims Mayotte; Mauritius claims Tromelin Island; Seychelles claims Tromelin Island; Suriname claims part of French Guiana; Mexico claims Clipperton Island; territorial claim in Antarctica (Adelie Land); Saint Pierre and Miquelon is focus of maritime boundary dispute between Canada and France

Irrigated land

11,600 sq km (1989 est.)

Land boundaries

total 2,892.4 km, Andorra 60 km, Belgium 620 km, Germany 451 km, Italy 488 km, Luxembourg 73 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Spain 623 km, Switzerland 573 km

Land use

arable land: 32% permanent crops: 2% meadows and pastures: 23% forest and woodland: 27% other: 16%

Location

Western Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean between Spain and Germany

Map references

Europe, Standard Time Zones of the World

Maritime claims

contiguous zone: 12-24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm

Natural resources

coal, iron ore, bauxite, fish, timber, zinc, potash

Note

largest West European nation; occasional warm tropical wind known as mistral

Terrain

mostly flat plains or gently rolling hills in north and west; remainder is mountainous, especially Pyrenees in south, Alps in east

Administrative divisions

22 regions (regions, singular - region); Alsace, Aquitaine, Auvergne, Basse-Normandie, Bourgogne, Bretagne, Centre, Champagne-Ardenne, Corse, Franche-Comte, Haute-Normandie, Ile-de-France, Languedoc-Roussillon, Limousin, Lorraine, Midi-Pyrenees, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Pays de la Loire, Picardie, Poitou-Charentes, Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur, Rhone-Alpes note: the 22 regions are subdivided into 96 departments; see separate entries for the overseas departments (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion) and the territorial collectivities (Mayotte, Saint Pierre and Miquelon)

Capital

Paris

Constitution

28 September 1958, amended concerning election of president in 1962, amended to comply with provisions of EC Maastricht Treaty in 1992; amended to tighten immigration laws 1993

Dependent areas

Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, New Caledonia, Tromelin Island, Wallis and Futuna note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica

Digraph

FR

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission: Ambassador Jacques ANDREANI chancery: 4101 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: (202) 944-6000 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)

Executive branch

chief of state: President Francois MITTERRAND (since 21 May 1981); election last held 8 May 1988 (next to be held by May 1995); results - Second Ballot Francois MITTERRAND 54%, Jacques CHIRAC 46% head of government: Prime Minister Edouard BALLADUR (since 29 March 1993) cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed by the president on the suggestion of the prime minister

FAX

[33] (1) 4266-9783 consulate(s) general: Bordeaux, Marseille, Strasbourg

Flag

three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), white, and red; known as the French Tricouleur (Tricolor); the design and colors are similar to a number of other flags, including those of Belgium, Chad, Ireland, Cote d'Ivoire, and Luxembourg; the official flag for all French dependent areas

Independence

486 (unified by Clovis)

Judicial branch

Constitutional Court (Cour Constitutionnelle)

Legal system

civil law system with indigenous concepts; review of administrative but not legislative acts

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament (Parlement)

Member of

ACCT, AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CERN, COCOM, CSCE, EBRD, EC, ECA (associate), ECE, ECLAC, EIB, ESA, ESCAP, FAO, FZ, GATT, G-5, G-7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LORCS, MINURSO, MTCR, NACC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUSAL, PCA, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNOSOM, UNPROFOR, UNRWA, UN Security Council, UNTAC, UN Trusteeship Council, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Names

conventional long form: French Republic conventional short form: France local long form: Republique Francaise local short form: France

National Assembly (Assemblee Nationale)

elections last held 21 and 28 March 1993 (next to be held NA 1998); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (577 total) RPR 247, UDF 213, PS 67, PCF 24, independents 26

National holiday

National Day, Taking of the Bastille, 14 July (1789)

Other political or pressure groups

Communist-controlled labor union (Confederation Generale du Travail - CGT) nearly 2.4 million members (claimed); Socialist-leaning labor union (Confederation Francaise Democratique du Travail or CFDT) about 800,000 members (est.); independent labor union (Force Ouvriere) 1 million members (est.); independent white-collar union (Confederation Generale des Cadres) 340,000 members (claimed); National Council of French Employers (Conseil National du Patronat Francais - CNPF or Patronat)

Political parties and leaders

Rally for the Republic (RPR), Jacques CHIRAC; Union for French Democracy (UDF, federation of UREI, UC, RDE), Valery Giscard d'ESTAING; Republican Party (PR), Gerard LONGUET; Center for Social Democrats (CDS), Pierre MEHAIGNERIE; Radical (RAD), Yves GALLAND; Socialist Party (PS), Henri EMMAMUELLI, interim party leader; Left Radical Movement (MRG), Jean-Francois HORY; Communist Party (PCF), Robert HUE; National Front (FN), Jean-Marie LE PEN; Union of Republican and Independents (UREI); Centrist Union (UC); Democratic Assembly (RDE); The Greens, Antoine WAECHTER, Jean-Louis VIDAL, Guy CAMBOT; Generation Ecology (GE), Brice LALONDE

Senate (Senat)

elections last held 27 September 1992 (next to be held September 1995 - nine-year term, elected by thirds every three years); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (321 total; 296 metropolitan France, 13 for overseas departments and territories, and 12 for French nationals abroad) RPR 91, UDF 142 (UREI 51, UC 68, RDE 23), PS 66, PCF 16, independents 2, other 4

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Type

republic

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission: Ambassador Pamela C. HARRIMAN embassy: 2 Avenue Gabriel, 75382 Paris Cedex 08 mailing address: Unit 21551, Paris; APO AE 09777 telephone: [33] (1) 4296-12-02 or 42-61-80-75

Birth rate

13.13 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Death rate

9.3 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Ethnic divisions

Celtic and Latin with Teutonic, Slavic, North African, Indochinese, Basque minorities

Infant mortality rate

6.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)

Labor force

24.17 million by occupation: services 61.5%, industry 31.3%, agriculture 7.2% (1987)

Languages

French 100%, rapidly declining regional dialects and languages (Provencal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 78.19 years male: 74.27 years female: 82.3 years (1994 est.)

Literacy

age 15 and over can read and write (1980 est.) total population: 99% male: NA% female: NA%

Nationality

noun: Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women) adjective: French

Net migration rate

0.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Population

57,840,445 (July 1994 est.)

Population growth rate

0.47% (1994 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim (North African workers) 1%, unaffiliated 6%

Total fertility rate

1.8 children born/woman (1994 est.)