First settled by the French in the early 17th century, the islands represent the sole remaining vestige of France's once vast North American possessions.
Northern North America, islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, south of Newfoundland (Canada)
46 50 N, 56 20 W
North America
total: 242 sq km
land: 242 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes eight small islands in the Saint Pierre and the Miquelon groups
one and half times the size of Washington, DC
0 km
120 km
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
cold and wet, with considerable mist and fog; spring and autumn are often windy
mostly barren rock
mean elevation: NA
elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne de la Grande Montagne 240 m
fish, deepwater ports
agricultural land: 8.7%
arable land 8.7%; permanent crops 0%; permanent pasture 0%
forest: 12.5%
other: 78.8% (2011 est.)
0 sq km (2012)
persistent fog throughout the year can be a maritime hazard
recent test drilling for oil in waters around Saint Pierre and Miquelon may bring future development that would impact the environment
vegetation scanty; the islands are actually part of the northern Appalachians along with Newfoundland
5,595 (July 2016 est.)
noun: Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women)
adjective: French
Basques and Bretons (French fishermen)
French (official)
Roman Catholic 99%, other 1%
7.2 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)
0-14 years: 15.57% (male 449/female 422)
15-24 years: 9.06% (male 263/female 244)
25-54 years: 42.29% (male 1,165/female 1,201)
55-64 years: 13.6% (male 399/female 362)
65 years and over: 19.48% (male 456/female 634) (2016 est.)
total: 45.9 years
male: 45.4 years
female: 46.3 years (2016 est.)
-1.09% (2016 est.)
9.8 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)
-8.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)
most of the population is found on Saint Pierre Island; a small settlement is located on the north end of Miquelon Island
urban population: 90.4% of total population (2015)
rate of urbanization: 0.1% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
SAINT-PIERRE (capital) 5,000 (2014)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 1.1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2016 est.)
total: 6.6 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.7 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 5.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.)
total population: 80.5 years
male: 78.2 years
female: 83 years (2016 est.)
1.57 children born/woman (2016 est.)
NA
NA
NA
Fete de la Federation, 14 July (1789)
conventional long form: Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon
conventional short form: Saint Pierre and Miquelon
local long form: Departement de Saint-Pierre et Miquelon
local short form: Saint-Pierre et Miquelon
etymology: Saint-Pierre is named after Saint PETER, the patron saint of fishermen; Miquelon may be a corruption of the Basque name Mikelon
self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France
parliamentary democracy (Territorial Council); overseas collectivity of France
name: Saint-Pierre
geographic coordinates: 46 46 N, 56 11 W
time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November
none (territorial collectivity of France; has been under French control since 1763)
none (territorial overseas collectivity of France); note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 2 communes at the second order - Saint Pierre, Miquelon
4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
French civil law
see France
18 years of age; universal
chief of state: President Francois HOLLANDE (since 15 May 2012); represented by Prefect Jean-Regis BORIUS (since 2016)
head of government: President of Territorial Council Stephane ARTANO (since 21 February 2007)
cabinet: Le Cabinet du Prefet
elections/appointments: French president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 6 May 2012 (next to be held in 2017); prefect appointed by French president on the advice of French Ministry of Interior
description: unicameral Territorial Council or Conseil Territorial (19 seats - 15 from Saint Pierre and 4 from Miquelon; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote to serve 6-year terms)
note: Saint Pierre and Miquelon elect 1 member to the French Senate; elections last held on 28 September 2014 (next to be held not later than September 2017); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - AD 1 (affiliated with UMP); Saint Pierre and Miquelon also elects 1 member to the French National Assembly; elections last held on 17 June 2012 (next to be held by June 2017); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Ensemble pour l'Avenir 1 (affiliated with PRG)
elections: elections last held on 18 March 2012 (next to be held in March 2018)
election results: percent of vote by party - AD 52.5%, Ensemble pour l'Avenir 47.5%; seats by party - AD 14, Ensemble pour l'Avenir 5
highest court(s): Superior Tribunal of Appeals or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel (composition NA)
judge selection and term of office: judge selection and tenure NA
subordinate courts: NA
Archipelago Tomorrow or AD (affiliated with UMP)
Togerther for the Future (Ensemble pour l'Avenir) (affiliated with PRG)
NA
UPU, WFTU (NGOs)
none (territorial overseas collectivity of France)
none (territorial overseas collectivity of France)
16th-century sailing ship
a yellow three-masted sailing ship facing the hoist side rides on a blue background with scattered, white, wavy lines under the ship; a continuous black-over-white wavy line divides the ship from the white wavy lines; on the hoist side, a vertical band is divided into three parts: the top part (called ikkurina) is red with a green diagonal cross extending to the corners overlaid by a white cross dividing the rectangle into four sections; the middle part has a white background with an ermine pattern; the third part has a red background with two stylized yellow lions outlined in black, one above the other; these three heraldic arms represent settlement by colonists from the Basque Country (top), Brittany, and Normandy; the blue on the main portion of the flag symbolizes the Atlantic Ocean and the stylized ship represents the Grande Hermine in which Jacques Cartier "discovered" the islands in 1536
note: the flag of France used for official occasions
note: as a collectivity of France, "La Marseillaise" is official (see France)
The inhabitants have traditionally earned their livelihood by fishing and by servicing fishing fleets operating off the coast of Newfoundland. The economy has been declining, however, because of disputes with Canada over fishing quotas and a steady declin
In 1992, an arbitration panel awarded the islands an exclusive economic zone of 12,348 sq km to settle a longstanding territorial dispute with Canada, although it represents only 25% of what France had sought. France heavily subsidizes the islands to the
The government hopes an expansion of tourism will boost economic prospects. Fish farming, crab fishing, and agriculture are being developed to diversify the local economy. Recent test drilling for oil may pave the way for development of the energy sector.
$215.3 million (2006 est.)
note: supplemented by annual payments from France of about $60 million
$215.3 million (2006 est.)
NA%
$34,900 (2006 est.)
agriculture: 2%
industry: 15%
services: 83% (2006 est.)
vegetables; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish
fish processing and supply base for fishing fleets; tourism
NA%
3,194 (2006)
agriculture: 18%
industry: 41%
services: 41% (1996 est.)
9.9% (2008 est.)
NA%
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
revenues: $70 million
expenditures: $60 million (1996 est.)
32.5% of GDP (1996 est.)
4.6% of GDP (1996 est.)
calendar year
4.5% (2010)
8.1% (2005)
$6.641 million (2010 est.)
$5.5 million (2005 est.)
fish and fish products, soybeans, animal feed, mollusks and crustaceans, fox and mink pelts
$95.35 million (2010 est.)
$68.2 million (2005 est.)
meat, clothing, fuel, electrical equipment, machinery, building materials
$NA
euros (EUR) per US dollar -
0.9214 (2016 est.)
0.885 (2015 est.)
0.885 (2014 est.)
0.7634 (2013 est.)
0.7752 (2012 est.)
45 million kWh (2014 est.)
41.85 million kWh (2014 est.)
0 kWh (2013 est.)
0 kWh (2013 est.)
27,600 kW (2014 est.)
97.7% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
2.3% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
0 bbl (1 January 2016 es)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
630 bbl/day (2014 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
624.9 bbl/day (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (1 January 2014 es)
200,000 Mt (2013 est.)
total subscriptions: 4,800
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 80 (July 2010 est.)
general assessment: adequate
international: country code - 508; radiotelephone communication with most countries in the world; satellite earth station - 1 in French domestic satellite system
2 TV stations with a third repeater station, all part of the French Overseas Network; radio stations on St. Pierre and on Miquelon are part of the French Overseas Network (2007)
.pm
total: 4,500
percent of population: 79.5% (July 2015 est.)
2 (2013)
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2013)
total: 117 km
paved: 80 km
unpaved: 37 km (2009)
major seaport(s): Saint-Pierre
defense is the responsibility of France
none
