President: Francois Hollande Prime minister: Jean-Marc Ayrault
President: Raul Castro
Population
65,630,692
11,075,244
Life Expectancy
81.460 years
77.870 years
Capital City
Paris
Havana
Largest city
Paris (population: 2,138,550)
Havana (population: 2,163,820)
Human Development Index
0.955
0.855
GDP per capita
$35,600 US
$9,900 US
Literacy Rate
99%
99.8%
Corruption Perception Index
6.9
4.3
Percentage of Women in Parliament
19.6%
43.2%
Wealthiest Citizens
Bernard Arnault ($16.5bn US)
NA
Unemployment Rate
9.300%
1.400%
Death Penalty
Abolished
Legal
Political System
republic
Communist state
Independence date
486 (Frankish tribes unified); 843 (Western Francia established from the division of the Carolingian Empire)
20 May 1902 (from Spain 10 December 1898; administered by the US from 1898 to 1902); not acknowledged by the Cuban Government as a day of independence
Religions
Roman Catholic 83%-88%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim 5%-10%, unaffiliated 4% overseas departments: Roman Catholic, Protestant, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, pagan
nominally 85% Roman Catholic prior to CASTRO assuming power; Protestants, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews, and Santeria are also represented
Languages
French 100%, rapidly declining regional dialects and languages (Provencal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish) overseas departments: French, Creole patois
Spanish
Exports
machinery and transportation equipment, aircraft, plastics, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, iron and steel, beverages
sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee
External Debt
$5,633,000,000,000 $
$21,520,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.6799 (2008 est.), 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004)
Cuban pesos (CUP) per US dollar - 0.9259 (2008 est.), 0.9259 (2007), 0.9231 (2006) note: Cuba has two currencies in circulation: the Cuban peso (CUP) and the convertible peso (CUC); in April 2005 the official exchange rate changed from $1 per CUC to $1.08 per CUC (0.93 CUC per $1), both for individuals and enterprises; individuals can buy 24 Cuban pesos (CUP) for each CUC sold, or sell 25 Cuban pesos for each CUC bought; enterprises, however, must exchange CUP and CUC at a 1:1 ratio.
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
2.600%
3.800%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
40
24
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
Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, 150 km south of Key West, Florida
Area
643,801 km sq
110,860 km sq
Coastline
0 km
3,735 km
Climate
tropical; moderated by trade winds; dry season (November to April); rainy season (May to October)
