French reasons to be cheerful

GLOOMY economy and employment figures aside, there are reasons to be cheerful in France– and French wines are only one of them.

Journalists from Le Monde have put together a list of the 10 areas where France leads the world:

It is the world’s No1 tourist destination, enticing 84.7million visitors and making it the most visited country in the world. The majority of the visitors are heading for Paris, Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur.
German and British visitors lead the way, closely followed by those from Belgium and Luxembourg.

No1 for wine
Last year France reclaimed its title as No1 wine producer from Italy, which had grabbed top spot in 2012. The Organisation Internationale de la Vigne et du Vin says France produced 46.2million hectolitres [a hectolitre is 100 litres] of wine last year – up 10% on 2013.

No1 for luxury goods
French luxury brands have grabbed a quarter of the total global luxury market, say management consultants Bain and Company – and Economy Ministry figures show that of 270 prestige labels 130 of them are French, leading the way in fashion, leather, jewellery, clockmaking and spectacles.

No1 for seeds
France leads the world in seed production with business worth €1.6billion – ahead of the Netherlands on €1.4bn and the US on €1.35bn – in a global business that the International Seed Federation says is worth €10bn.

No1 for football exports
A study by the CIES Football Observatory at Neuchâtel found that 113 French footballers are playing in the four main football leagues: Italy, England, Spain and Germany. They make up the majority of foreign players in these leagues – followed by Brazilians and Argentinians.

No1 for yachts
Latest figures for yachting exports, from 2013, show that France is the leading exporter, with 32.3% of the market – way ahead of second-placed Germany on 11.6% and the UK on 6.3%. Total business in France that year was €423million, with 75% going for export.

No1 in e-government
The United Nations said France took top spot in the 2014 Online Service Index. Its service-public.fr public information website “directs individuals, businesses and associations to relevant services by event as well as by subject, invites ideas about administrative simplification, connects citizens with current debates and consultations and facilitates interaction with government through single sign-on that gives residents information on services”. The UN study also showed France leads Europe in terms of telecommunications network, the level of digital knowledge of residents and government online services.

No1 for nuclear power
France produces 73% of its power from nuclear reactors giving it energy independence – although the government wants to see this cut to 50% by 2025.

No1 for literature
With Patrick Modiano winning the Nobel Prize for Literature last year, France has now won 15 out of the total 111 awarded since Sully Prudhomme won the first Nobel in 1901. It leads the US, which has 12 literature prize winners and the UK on 10.

No1 for health
The World Health Organisation said France had the best health service on the planet, saying it “gave the best general care, followed by Italy, Spain, Oman, Austria and Japan”. The figures date from 2000 but have never been superseded.
Photo: Notre Dame in Paris - mirubi - Fotolia.com