Facts – France

Country Name:

France

Location:

Western Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, between Belgium and Spain, southeast of the UK; bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Italy and Spain

Area:

547,030 sq km

land:

545,630 sq km

water:

1,400 sq km

Land Boundaries:

2,889 km

Border Countries:

Andorra 56.6 km, Belgium 620 km, Germany 451 km, Italy 488 km, Luxembourg 73 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Spain 623 km, Switzerland 573

Coastline:

4,668 km

Climate:

generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild winters and hot summers along the Mediterranean; occasional strong, cold, dry, north-to-northwesterly 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

Geography:

largest West European nation

Population:

60,876,136

Age Structure:

0-14 Years:

18.3% (male 5,704,152/female 5,427,213)

15-64 Years:

65.3% (male 19,886,228/female 19,860,506)

65 Years and Over:

16.4% (male 4,103,883/female 5,894,154) (2006 est.)

Average Age:

Total:

39.1 years

Male:

37.6 years

Female:

40.7 years (2006 est.)

Ethnic Groups:

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

Religions:

Roman Catholic 83%-88%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim 5%-10%, unaffiliated 4%

General

Languages:

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

Government

Type:

Republic

Capital:

Paris

Economy

Currency:

Euro

GDP Growth Rate:

2.3% (2006 est.)

Labour Occupations:

agriculture: 4.1%
industry: 24.4%
services: 71.5% (1999)

Unemployment Rate:

9.1% (2006 est.)

Inflation Rate:

2% (2006 est.)

Agriculture Produce:

wheat, cereals, sugar beets, potatoes, wine grapes; beef, dairy products; fish

Transportation

Railways:

total: 29,085 km
standard gauge: 28,918 km 1.435-m gauge (14,481 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 167 km 1.000-m gauge (2005)

Roads:

total: 956,303 km (including 5,083 km of roads in the overseas departments)
paved: 951,220 km (metropolitan France; including 10,490 km of expressways) (2004)

Airports:

total: 185 (metropolitan France) 9 (overseas departments)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (metropolitan France)
914 to 1,523 m: 73 (metropolitan France) 2 (overseas departments)
under 914 m: 108 (metropolitan France) 7 (overseas departments)

Ports & Harbours:

Basse-Terre ,Bordeaux, Calais, Dunkerque, Le Havre, Le Port (Reunion), Marseille, Nantes, Paris, Rouen, Strasbourg

Communications

Mains Telephones:

35.7 million (2005)

Mobile Telephones:

48.058 million (2005)

Television Stations:

584 (1995)

Internet Users:

29.521 million

Country Internet Code:

.fr