evidence: French Guiana: The part of South America facing a total shutdown - Published [...] Despite being in South America, French Guiana remains part of France and has been paralysed by protests against a lack of investment from the mainland. [...] While Guyana and Suriname gained independence from their colonisers (the UK and the Netherlands respectively), French Guiana never has. It is classed as an overseas territory; its currency is the euro and its official language is French, although many also speak Creole.