OFFICIAL NAME: French Republic
CAPITAL: Paris
SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT: Multiparty Republic
AREA: 549,183 Sq Km (212,041 Sq Mi)
ESTIMATED 2000 POPULATION 59,047,000
LOCATION & GEOGRAPHY: France is located in West Europe
and the territory includes the island of Corsica in the
Mediterranean Sea as well as various other overseas departments
and territories. It is bound by Belgium, Luxembourg and
Germany to the north and northeast, Switzerland, Italy and
Monaco to the east, the Mediterranean Sea to the southeast,
Spain and Andorra to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to
the west. France is distinguished topographically by the
four Hercynian Massifs. (1.) The Ardennes in the western
tip. (2.) The Vosges to the south. (3.) The Armorican which
protects the Paris Basin to the west and (4.) the Central
Massif which separates the north and south of France. All
of these massifs are composed of granite, sandstone or shale.
Between the massifs lie undulating floors of lowland corridors
which include the Paris Basin, the Poiteau Gate, the Basin
of Aquitaine, the Garonne Basin and the coastal plain. Beyond
these lowland corridors rise the walls of the Jura Mountains,
the Alps and the Pyrenees which form the frontiers of France.
The drainage system of France is based on its five major
rivers, the Loire, Garonne, Rhone, Rhine and Seine. Major
Cities (pop. est.); Paris (metropolitan area) 9,060,000,
Marseille 1,231,100, Lyon 1.262,200, Toulouse 608,400, Nice
475,500, Strasbourg 338,500, Nantes 492,300 (1990). Land
Use; forested 27%, pastures 20%, agricultural-cultivated
35%, other 18% (1993).
CLIMATE: France's climate ranges from a Mediterranean in the
south with warm humid winters and hot dry summers to a maritime in the
northwest with mild winters and cool summers as well as frequent fine rain
or drizzle. In the east a continental climate is dominant, characterized
by cold winters with frost, long periods of snow cover and warm summers
with thunderstorms. France receives an average of 450 billion cubic metres
of precipitation per annum as either rain or snow and no part of the country
receives less than 508 mm (20 inches) annually. Average temperature ranges
in Paris are from 1 to 6 degrees Celsius (34 to 46 degrees Fahrenheit)
in January to 14 to 25 degrees Celsius (57 to 77 degrees Fahrenheit) in
July.
PEOPLE: The French are largely of Celtic or Latin origin and
account for around 91% of the population. Other ethnic minorities include
people of Teutonic, Slavic, North African, Indo-Chinese and Basque origins.
DEMOGRAPHIC/VITAL STATISTICS: Density; 104.7 persons per sq km
(271.1 persons per sq mi) (1991). Urban-Rural; 74.3% urban, 25.7% rural
(1990). Sex Distribution; 48.7% male, 51.3% female (1990). Life Expectancy
at Birth; 72.7 years male, 80.9 years female (1990). Age Breakdown; 19%
under 15, 22% 15 to 29, 23% 30 to 44, 16% 45 to 59, 13% 60 to 74, 7% 75
and over (1990). Birth Rate; 13.5 per 1,000 (1990). Death Rate; 9.3 per
1,000 (1990). Increase Rate; 4.2 per 1,000 (1990). Infant Mortality Rate;
7.4 per 1,000 live births (1990)
RELIGIONS: Mostly Christians with around 76% of the population
Roman Catholic while other Christian denominations account for 4% and Muslims
account for 3% of the population.
LANGUAGES: The official language is French. Other languages and/or
dialects spoken are Provencal, Breton, Corsican, German, Dutch and Basque.
EDUCATION: Employed adult population having attained: primary
60.2%, lower secondary 22.9%, upper secondary 9.2%, higher 7.7% (1982).
Literacy; literate population aged 15 or over 41,112,000 or 98.8% (1980).
MODERN HISTORY - WWII TO 1993: After World War II France became
one of the five great UN powers and played an important part in the Cold
War between the communist countries and the western nations. In 1949 France
became a charter member of the anticommunist North Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO), while in 1946 the first revolt by a French colony began in Indo-China
led by the communist Ho Chi Minh rebels. On May 7, 1954 after a humiliating
defeat France was forced at the Geneva Convention to withdraw from Indo-China
which was eventually divided into Kampuchea (Cambodia), Laos, North Vietnam
and South Vietnam. In the same year a revolution broke out in the French
territory of Algeria and Pres. Charles de Gaulle sent troops to Algeria
resulting in a full scale civil war. To prevent revolutions in Morocco
and Tunisia, France granted them independence in 1956 while other French
Colonies in Africa received their independence by 1960. In 1957 France
and other West European nations formed the European Union (EU) and by 1958
large numbers of French people wanted to end the fighting in Algeria which
angered French army leaders. In May 1958 they rebelled and threatened to
overthrow the government. A new constitution was set up on Sept. 28, 1958
which established the fifth French republic. In 1961 it was realized that
only Algerian independence would end their civil war and Pres. de Gaulle
negotiated a ceasefire in March 1962. Algeria gained its independence in
July 1962 and in March 1966 France withdrew militarily from NATO but remained
a member politically. In May 1968 many demonstrations, strikes and violence
due to the dissatisfaction with de Gaulle's government resulted in the
deaths of three people when riot police were sent in and on May 30, 1968
Pres. de Gaulle dissolved the National Assembly blaming communists for
the trouble. Since the mid 1960's France has supported the government of
Chad against rebels by supplying military aid and at times troops. In May
1981 Francois Mitterrand was elected President and in 1982 France sent
troops to Lebanon as part of a peacekeeping force. In 1983 a terrorist
bombing killed 54 French troops in Beirut which resulted in France withdrawing
its troops from Lebanon in 1984. In July 1985 the French defense ministry
sent secret service agents to sink the Rainbow Warrior, a Greenpeace ship,
which was preparing to protest French nuclear testing in the Pacific. The
sinkage resulted in the death of one crew member. In May 1988 Pres. Mitterrand
was reelected and in 1989 France celebrated the bicentenary of the French
Revolution. In May 1990 there was an outbreak of anti-Semitic racial crimes
principally against Arabs as well as a marked increase in the publication
of anti-Semitic literature. In 1991 France sent troops and equipment to
Saudi Arabia and played a major part in the US-led coalitions removal of
Iraq from Kuwait. Anti-government sentiment also arose after a police officer
was dismissed for investigating the ruling Socialist Party's secret financing
networks and the removal of a judge who also attempted to investigate the
matter himself. On May 5, 1991 Pres. Mitterrand replaced Prime Minister
Michel Rocard with Edith Cresson. In Aug. and Sept. 1991 there were mass
demonstrations by nurses and farmers, with some 200,000 farmers taking
to the streets of Paris in protest to the government's policy towards agriculture.
The protests and outcry lasted several weeks and resulted in the Prime
Minister issuing a security order on Oct. 21, 1991 restricting government
ministers to Paris and Pres. Mitterrand demanding the government to "reestablish
order in the Republic". After poor regional elections results in Mar.
1992 Prime Minister Cresson was forced to resign and was succeeded by the
Finance Minister Pierre Beregovoy. In July 1992 a drivers licensing reform
based on a points system initiated by the former Prime Minister Cresson
took effect and resulted in the truck drivers' lobby organizing a blockade
of several large cities that caused havoc during the busy vacation season.
Prime Minister Beregovoy responded by sending an unarmed tank to clear
the roadblock along the main north highway. In Aug. 1992 prison guards
went on strike following the murder of several guards by prisoners during
an escape. In Sept. 1992 the French voted in a referendum on the Maastricht
Treaty and ultimately European economic unity which resulted in a slim
51.05% "Yes" vote majority. In the same month severe flash-floods
caused widespread property damage. In Oct. 1992 officials from the National
Blood Transfusion Center were convicted by a Paris tribunal after infecting
and knowingly distributing HIV contaminated blood to 1,300 hemophiliacs
during 1985, later the former Prime Minister Laurent Fabius and two of
his ministers were sent before the High Court of Justice for their part
in the HIV-blood scandal. Also during 1992 alleged corruption scandals
against members of the ruling Socialist Party continued to plague the government
throughout the year. In 1993 corruption scandals continued with Prime Minister
Beregovoy himself implicated in a interest-free million Franc loan in 1986
from Roger-Patrice Pelat, close friend of Mitterrand and one of the persons
implicated in the 1989 insider-trading scandal over the takeover of the
state-owned Pechiney. In Mar. 1993 the Socialist Party lost the general
elections with the conservative parties of the right winning the majority
of seats in the National Assembly. On Mar. 29, 1993 Pres. Mitterrand named
the former finance minister Edouard Balladur of the Gaullist Rally for
the Republic (RPR) as the country's new prime minister. On May 1, 1993
former Prime Minister Beregovoy committed suicide on the bank of a canal
which resulted in a dispute between judges and journalists over responsibility
for his death. In May 1993 Prime Minister Balladur implemented a number
of economic and social reforms aimed at "the rectification of France"
while his popularity as prime minister surpassed 60% for many months. In
Oct. 1992 the government relinquished its austerity plans for Air France
after a 16 day strike by workers who occupied the runways and air access
into Paris. In Nov. 1993 the Senate approved a controversial scheme to
create a 32-hour workweek with cuts in pay. Also in 1993 unemployment reached
3.4 million while the Franc also temporarily fell 3% against the German
DM as a result of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM). Also during
the year there were French fears of a united Europe when it came to GATT
after the US launch attacks, under the so-called Blair House compromise,
against French agriculture.
CURRENCY: The official currency is the Euro divided into 100
cents.
ECONOMY: Gross National Product; USD $1,317,950,000,000 (19924.
Public Debt; F 2,246,000,000,000 (1994). Imports; F 1,279,663,000,000 (1994).
Exports; F 1,311,798,000,000 (1994). Tourism Receipts; USD $23,410,000,000
(1993). Balance of Trade; F 87,800,000,000 (1994). Economically Active
Population; 25,485,500 or 44.0% of total population (1994). Unemployed;
12.4% (1994).
MAIN TRADING PARTNERS: Its main trading partners are the USA,
Japan, the former USSR, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, the UK and the Netherlands.
MAIN PRIMARY PRODUCTS: Barley, Bauxite, Cattle, Coal, Fruit and
Vegetables, Grapes, Iron Ore, Maize, Oats, Oil and Natural Gas, Pigs, Potash,
Potatoes, Poultry, Salt, Sheep, Sugar Beets, Timber, Uranium, Wine, Wheat.
MAJOR INDUSTRIES: Aircraft, Agriculture, Aluminum, Cars, Cement,
Chemicals, Electrical Goods, Electronics, Engineering, Fishing, Food Processing,
Forestry, Iron and Steel, Oil and Gas Refining, Perfume, Textiles.
MAIN EXPORTS: Cars, Cereals, Chemicals, Clothing, Electrical Equipment,
Iron and Steel, Leather Goods, Petroleum Products, Processed Foods, Textiles,
Wine.
TRANSPORT: Railroads; route length 34,421 km (21,388 mi) (1989),
passenger-km 63,588,000,000 (39,512,000,000 passenger-mi) (1990), cargo
ton-km 51,528,000,000 (35,292,000,000 short ton-mi) (1990). Roads; length
804,450 km (499,862 mi) (1989). Vehicles; cars 23,010,000 (1989), trucks
and buses 5,175,000 (1989). Merchant Marine; vessels 900 (1990), deadweight
tonnage 5,573,925 (1990). Air Transport; passenger-km 49,452,000,000 (30,728,000,000
passenger-mi) (1989), cargo ton-km 3,939,000,000 (2,698,000,000 short ton-mi)
(1989).
COMMUNICATIONS: Daily Newspapers; total of 116 with a circulation
for 90 newspapers of 10,096,000 (1993). Radio; receivers 49,000,000 (1993).
Television; receivers 29,300,000 (1993). Telephones; units 31,600,000 (1994).
MILITARY: 409,000 (1995) total active duty personnel with 59.0%
army, 15.7% navy and 21.8% air force while military expenditure accounts
for 3.4% (1993) of the Gross National Product (GNP).
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