French Guiana Economy
Economy - overviewThe economy is tied closely to the larger French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou (which accounts for 25% of GDP), fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90% of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers.
GDP
purchasing power parity - $1.551 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate
NA
GDP - per capita
purchasing power parity - $8,300 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: NA
industry: NA
services: NA (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line
NA
Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA
Inflation rate
1.5% (2002 est.)
Labor force
58,800 (1997)
Labor force - by occupation
agriculture 18.2%, industry 21.2%, services, government, and commerce 60.6% (1980)
Unemployment rate
22% (2001)
Budget
revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996)
Agriculture - products
corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry
Industries
construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining
Industrial production growth rate
NA
Electricity - production
455 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - consumption
423.2 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports
0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption
6,500 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports
NA (2001)
Oil - imports
NA (2001)
Exports
$155 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities
shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing
Exports - partners
France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001)
Imports
$625 million c.i.f. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities
food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals
Imports - partners
France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002 est.)
Debt - external
$1.2 billion (1988)
Currency
euro (EUR)
Currency code
EUR
Exchange rates
Euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999)
