- people living with HIV/AIDS: 130,000 (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 2,000 (1999 est.)
Nationality: noun: Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women)
adjective: French
Ethnic groups: Celtic and Latin with Teutonic, Slavic, North
African, Indochinese, Basque minorities
Religions: Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim
(North African workers) 3%, unaffiliated 4%
Languages: French 100%, rapidly declining regional dialects and languages (Provencal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish)
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (1980 est.)
France Government
Country name: conventional long form: French Republic
conventional short form: France
local long form: Republique Francaise
local short form: France
Government type: republic
Capital: Paris
Administrative divisions: 22 regions (regions, singular - region);
Alsace, Aquitaine, Auvergne, Basse-Normandie, Bourgogne, Bretagne,
Centre, Champagne-Ardenne, Corse, Franche-Comte, Haute-Normandie,
Ile-de-France, Languedoc-Roussillon, Limousin, Lorraine,
Midi-Pyrenees, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Pays de la Loire, Picardie,
Poitou-Charentes, Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur, Rhone-Alpes
note: metropolitan France is divided into 22 regions (including the "territorial collectivity" of Corse or Corsica) and is subdivided into 96 departments; see separate entries for the overseas departments (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion) and the overseas territorial collectivities (Mayotte, Saint Pierre and Miquelon)
Dependent areas: Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island,
French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Glorioso
Islands, Juan de Nova Island, New Caledonia, Tromelin Island, Wallis
and Futuna
note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica
Independence: 486 (unified by Clovis)
National holiday: Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Constitution: 28 September 1958, amended concerning election of president in 1962, amended to comply with provisions of EC Maastricht Treaty in 1992; amended to tighten immigration laws 1993
Legal system: civil law system with indigenous concepts; review of administrative but not legislative acts
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995)
head of government: Prime Minister Lionel JOSPIN (since 3 June 1997)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the suggestion of the prime minister
elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 23 April and 7 May 1995 (next to be held by May 2002); prime minister nominated by the National Assembly majority and appointed by the president
election results: Jacques CHIRAC elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Jacques CHIRAC (RPR) 52.64%, Lionel JOSPIN (PS) 47.36%
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of the Senate or Senat (321 seats - 296 for metropolitan France, 13 for overseas departments and territories, and 12 for French nationals abroad; members are indirectly elected by an electoral college to serve nine-year terms; elected by thirds every three years) and the National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (577 seats; members are elected by popular vote under a single-member majoritarian system to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 27 September 1998 (next to be held September 2001); National Assembly - last held 25 May-1 June 1997 (next to be held NA May 2002)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 99, UDC 52, DL 47, PS 78, PCF 16, other 29; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PS 245, RPR 140, UDF 109, PCF 37, PRS 13, MEI 8, MDC 7, LDI-MPF 1, FN 1, various left 9, various right 7
Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Appeals or Cour de Cassation (judges are appointed by the president from nominations of the High Council of the Judiciary); Constitutional Council or Conseil Constitutionnel (three members appointed by the president, three appointed by the president of the National Assembly, and three appointed by the president of the Senate); Council of State or Conseil d'Etat
Political parties and leaders: Citizens Movement or MdC [Jean Pierre
CHEVENEMENT]; French Communist Party or PCF [Robert HUE];
Independent Ecological Movement or MEI [Antoine WAECHTER]; Left
Radical Party or PRG (previously Radical Socialist Party or PRS and
the Left Radical Movement or MRG) [Jean-Michel BAYLET]; Liberal
Democracy or DL (originally Republican Party or PR) [Alain MADELIN];
Movement for France or MPF [Philippe DEVILLIERS]; National Front or
FN [Jean-Marie LE PEN]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michelle
ALLIOT-MARIE]; Socialist Party or PS [Francois HOLLANDE]; Union for
French Democracy or UDF (coalition of UDC, FD, RRRS, PPDF) [Francois
BAYROU]; Union of the Center or UDC [leader NA]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Communist-controlled labor union (Confederation Generale du Travail) or CGT, nearly 2.4 million members (claimed); independent labor union or Force Ouvriere, 1 million members (est.); independent white-collar union or Confederation Generale des Cadres, 340,000 members (claimed); National Council of French Employers (Conseil National du Patronat Francais) or CNPF or Patronat; Socialist-leaning labor union (Confederation Francaise Democratique du Travail) or CFDT, about 800,000 members (est.)
International organization participation: ACCT, AfDB, AsDB,
Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CERN,
EAPC, EBRD, ECA (associate), ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, ESCAP, EU,
