branch: unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19
seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
and a unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) elections:
General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006);
Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004)
election results: various left-wing parties 5, independents 7, other 2;
Regional Council - percent of vote by party - PS 28.28%, various left
parties 22.56%, RPR 15.91%, independents 8.6%, Walwari Committee 6%;
seats by party - PS 11, various left parties 9, RPR 6, independents 3,
Walwari Committee 2 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on
27 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent
of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; 2 seats were elected to the
French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007);
results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA

Judicial branch: Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court
based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe,
and French Guiana)

Political parties and leaders: Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre
LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Guyana
Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Popular National Guyanese Party
or PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Roland HO-WEN-SZE];
Socialist Party or PS [Pierre RIBARDIERE]; Walwari Committee [Christine
TAUBIRA-DELANON]

Political pressure groups and leaders: NA

International organization participation: FZ, WCL, WFTU

Diplomatic representation in the US: none (overseas department of France)

Diplomatic representation from the US: none (overseas department
of France)

Flag description: the flag of France is used

Economy French Guiana

Economy - overview: The economy is tied closely to the French economy
through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou,
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 i