France

Government
Name	French Republic
French	République française
Government type	Semi-presidential republic
Capital	Paris (2,190,327 (2016))
Currency	Euro (EUR)
People
Population (2020)	65,273,512 (20th)
Density of population	116 P/km² (89th)
Nationality	French
Official languages
French
Ethnic groups (2018)
French citizens	93.0%
Other	7.0%
Religions (2015)
Christian (overwhelmingly Roman Catholic)	63-66%
Muslim	7-9%
Buddhist	0.5-0.75%
Jewish	0.5-0.75%
Other	0.5-1.0%
None	23-28%
Life expectancy (2020)
Male	79.1 years
Female	85.4 years
Total population	82.2 years (19th)
Homicides
Total (2018)	1.2 per 100,000 people (132nd)
Geography
Land area (metropolitan France)	549,970 km²
Land area (with overseas regions of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Reunion)	640,427 km²
water area (metropolitan France)	1,530 km²
water area (with overseas regions of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Reunion)	3,374 km²
total area (metropolitan France)	551,500 km²
total area (with overseas regions of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Reunion)	643,801 km² (44th)
Mean elevation	375 m
Lowest point
Rhone River delta	-2 m
Highest point
Mont Blanc	4,810 m
Land use (2011)
Agricultural land	52.7%
Arable land	33.4%
Permanent crops	1.8%
Permanent pasture	17.5%
Forest	29.2%
Other	18.1%
Urbanization
Urban population (2020)	81%
Rate of urbanization	0.72% annual rate of change (2015 – 2020)
Economy
Labor force (2017)	30.68 million (20th)
Labor force by occupation (2016)
Agriculture	2.8%
Industry	20%
Services	77.2%
Unemployment rate (2017)	9.4% (136th)
GDP (PPP) (estimate 2019)
Total	$3.061 trillion (10th)
Per capita	$47,223(26th)
GDP (nominal) (estimate 2019)
Total	$2.707 trillion (7th)
Per capita	$41,761 (22nd)
GDP by sector (estimate 2017)
Agriculture	1.7%
Industry	19.5%
Services	78.8%
Exports (2017)	$549.9 billion (7th)
Exports partners (2017)
Germany	14.8%
Spain	7.7%
Italy	7.5%
US	7.2%
Belgium	7%
UK	6.7%
Imports (2017)	$601.7 billion (7th)
Imports partners (2017)
Germany	18.5
Belgium	10.2%
Netherlands	8.3%
Italy	7.9%
Spain	7.1%
UK	5.3%
US	5.2%
China	5.1%

France on the world map

France top 10 largest cities (2016)

Paris (2,190,327)
Marseille (862,211)
Lyon (515,695)
Toulouse (475,438)
Nice (342,637)
Nantes (306,694)
Montpellier (281,613)
Strasbourg (279,284)
Bordeaux (252,040)
Lille (232,440)

Demography

Population pyramid

Age structure data

Estimate for 2020:

0-14 years: 18.36% (male 6,368,767/female 6,085,318)
15-24 years: 11.88% (male 4,122,981/female 3,938,938)
25-54 years: 36.83% (male 12,619,649/female 12,366,120)
55-64 years: 12.47% (male 4,085,564/female 4,376,272)
65 years and over: 20.46% (male 6,029,303/female 7,855,244)

Remark: the age structure of a population affects a nation’s key socioeconomic issues. Countries with young populations (high percentage under age 15) need to invest more in schools, while countries with older populations (high percentage ages 65 and over) need to invest more in the health sector. The age structure can also be used to help predict potential political issues. For example, the rapid growth of a young adult population unable to find employment can lead to unrest.

Population from 1950 to 2020

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Source: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2019). World Population Prospects 2019, Online Edition. Rev. 1.

Evolution of the life expectancy from 1960 to 2018

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Source: World Development Indicators, The World Bank

Major rivers

Loire (1,013 km / 630 mi)
Seine (775 km / 482 mi)
Garonne (575 km / 357 mi)
Rhône (total: 813 km / 504 mi ; in France: 545 km / 338 mi)
Dordogne (483 km / 300 mi)

Economy

Agriculture:

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

Industries:

machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy, aircraft, electronics, textiles, food processing; tourism

Exports – commodities:

machinery and transportation equipment, aircraft, plastics, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, iron and steel, beverages