1995 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1995 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 7,781 sq km land area: 7,781 sq km comparative area: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of Delaware note: includes Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen; excludes "Terre Adelie" claim of about 500,000 sq km in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US
Climate
antarctic
Coastline
1,232 km
Environment
current issues: NA natural hazards: Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes international agreements: NA
International disputes
"Terre Adelie" claim in Antarctica is not recognized by the US
Irrigated land
0 sq km
Land boundaries
0 km
Land use
arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 0% other: 100%
Location
Southern Africa, islands in the southern Indian Ocean, about equidistant between Africa, Antarctica, and Australia; note - "French Southern and Antarctic Lands" includes Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet, and Iles Kerguelen in the southern Indian Ocean, along with the French-claimed sector of Antartica, "Terre Adelie"; the United States does not recognize the French claim to "Terre Adelie"
Map references
Antarctic Region
Maritime claims
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm from Iles Kerguelen only territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
fish, crayfish
Note
remote location in the southern Indian Ocean
Terrain
volcanic
People and Society
Population
no indigenous inhabitants; note - there are researchers whose numbers vary from 150 in winter (July) to 200 in summer (January)
Government
Administrative divisions
none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 districts named Ile Crozet, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam; excludes "Terre Adelie" claim in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US
Capital
none; administered from Paris, France
Digraph
FS
Flag
the flag of France is used
Independence
none (overseas territory of France)
Names
conventional long form: Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands conventional short form: French Southern and Antarctic Lands local long form: Territoire des Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises local short form: Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises
Type
overseas territory of France since 1955; governed by High Administrator Bernard de GOUTTES (since May 1990), who is assisted by a 7-member Consultative Council and a 12-member Scientific Council
Economy
Budget
revenues: $17.5 million expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA (1992)
Overview
Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fish catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships are exported to France and Reunion.
Communications
Radio
broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA radios: NA
Telephone system
NA telephones local: NA intercity: NA international: NA
Television
broadcast stations: NA televisions: NA
Transportation
Airports
none
Highways
total: NA paved: NA unpaved: NA
Merchant marine
total: 48 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,290,975 GRT/2,403,050 DWT ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 6, chemical tanker 4, container 1, liquefied gas tanker 3, multifunction large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 15, refrigerated cargo 4, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8, specialized liquefied tanker 1 note: a subset of the French register allowing French-owned ships to operate under more liberal taxation and manning regulations than permissable under the main French register
Ports
none; offshore anchorage only
Military and Security
Note
defense is the responsibility of France ________________________________________________________________________ GABON