CATEGORIES
◆ COMMUNICATIONS(8 fields)
Internet country code
.re
Internet hosts
29 (2006)
Internet users
200,000 (2005)
Radio broadcast stations
AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001)
Telephone system
general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
Telephones - main lines in use
300,000 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular
579,200 (2004)
Television broadcast stations
35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001)
◆ ECONOMY(37 fields)
Agriculture - products
sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn
Budget
revenues: $554.7 million expenditures: $554.7 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (1998)
Currency (code)
euro (EUR)
Debt - external
$NA
Economic aid - recipient
$NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.)
Economy - overview
The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrated the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France.
Electricity - consumption
1.107 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports
0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports
0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production
1.19 billion kWh (2003)
Exchange rates
euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
Exports
$248.5 million f.o.b. (2002)
Exports - commodities
sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%
Exports - partners
France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2004)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP (official exchange rate)
NA
GDP (purchasing power parity)
$4.79 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 8% industry: 19% services: 73% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)
$6,200 (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate
2.5% (2005 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Imports
$3.306 billion c.i.f. (2002)
Imports - commodities
manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products
Imports - partners
France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2004)
Industrial production growth rate
NA%
Industries
sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
NA%
Labor force
299,000 (2002)
Labor force - by occupation
agriculture: 13% industry: 12% services: 75% (2000)
Natural gas - consumption
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - production
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption
18,500 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports
NA bbl/day
Oil - production
0 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Population below poverty line
NA%
Unemployment rate
31% (2002)
◆ GEOGRAPHY(17 fields)
Area
total: 2,517 sq km land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km
Area - comparative
slightly smaller than Rhode Island
Climate
tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry (May to November), hot and rainy (November to April)
Coastline
207 km
Elevation extremes
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m
Environment - current issues
NA
Geographic coordinates
21 06 S, 55 36 E
Geography - note
this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean
Irrigated land
120 sq km (2003)
Land boundaries
0 km
Land use
arable land: 13.94% permanent crops: 1.59% other: 84.47% (2005)
Location
Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Map references
World
Maritime claims
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Natural hazards
periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano
Natural resources
fish, arable land, hydropower
Terrain
mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast
◆ GOVERNMENT(19 fields)
Administrative divisions
none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons
Capital
name: Saint-Denis geographic coordinates: 20 52 S, 55 28 E time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Constitution
4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
Country name
conventional long form: Department of Reunion conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon Island
Dependency status
overseas department of France
Diplomatic representation from the US
none (overseas department of France)
Diplomatic representation in the US
none (overseas department of France)
Executive branch
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Pierre-Henry MACCIONI (since 28 August 2006) head of government: President of the General Council Nassimah DINDAR (since NA March 2004) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) cabinet: NA 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 the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils
Flag description
unofficial, local flag designed to emphasize solidarity among the people of Reunion; the field is divided vertically with three narrow stripes of blue, white, and red along the hoist edge representing the French national flag; the remainder of the field is divided diagonally into four triangles colored (clockwise from the hoist side) blue, golden yellow, red, and green; in the center, the apexes of the triangles are surmounted by a white disk; the only official flag is the national flag of France
Government type
NA
Independence
none (overseas department of France)
International organization participation
InOC, UPU, WFTU
Judicial branch
Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel
Legal system
French law
Legislative branch
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2010) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens 22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held in 2001 (next to be held in 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRC 1, UDF 1, UMP 1; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 3, PS 1, independent 1
National holiday
Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Political parties and leaders
Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Elie HOARAU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Michel VERGOZ]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP
Political pressure groups and leaders
NA
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
◆ INTRODUCTION(1 fields)
Background
The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route.
◆ MILITARY(6 fields)
Manpower available for military service
males age 18-49: 183,421 females age 18-49: 185,606 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service
males age 18-49: 142,578 females age 18-49: 154,273 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually
males age 18-49: 7,339 females age 18-49: 7,007 (2005 est.)
Military - note
defense is the responsibility of France
Military branches
no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) (2005)
Military service age and obligation
18 years of age (2004)
◆ PEOPLE(19 fields)
Age structure
0-14 years: 29.8% (male 120,147/female 114,589) 15-64 years: 64% (male 248,895/female 255,156) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 19,847/female 28,950) (2006 est.)
Birth rate
18.9 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate
5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Ethnic groups
French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS
NA
Infant mortality rate
total: 7.63 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.37 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Languages
French (official), Creole widely used
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 74.18 years male: 70.78 years female: 77.75 years (2006 est.)
Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 88.9% male: 87% female: 90.8% (2003 est.)
Median age
total: 26.9 years male: 25.7 years female: 28.1 years (2006 est.)
Nationality
noun: Reunionese (singular and plural) adjective: Reunionese
Net migration rate
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Population
787,584 (July 2006 est.)
Population growth rate
1.34% (2006 est.)
Religions
Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.45 children born/woman (2006 est.)
◆ TRANSNATIONAL ISSUES(1 fields)
Disputes - international
none
◆ TRANSPORTATION(5 fields)
Airports
2 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways
total: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
Merchant marine
registered in other countries: 1 (Bahamas 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals
Le Port
Roadways
total: 1,214 km (including 88 km of four-lane roads) (2001)