Antigua and Barbuda (2002) | Martinique (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*, Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter, Saint Philip | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28% (male 9,618; female 9,293)
15-64 years: 67.3% (male 22,695; female 22,682) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 1,289; female 1,871) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
23.1% (male 49,016; female 47,653) 15-64 years: 66.77% (male 139,106; female 140,291) 65 years and over: 10.13% (male 18,893; female 23,495) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane |
Airports | 3 (2001) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 443 sq km (Antigua 280 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km)
land: 442 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Redonda, 1.6 sq km |
total:
1,100 sq km land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The Siboney were the first to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 B.C., but Arawak and Carib Indians populated the islands when Columbus landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early settlements by the Spanish and French were succeeded by the English who formed a colony in 1667. Slavery, established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in 1834. The islands became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981. | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. |
Birth rate | 18.84 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $123.7 million
expenditures: $145.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
Capital | Saint John's | Fort-de-France |
Climate | tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid |
Coastline | 153 km | 350 km |
Constitution | 1 November 1981 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda |
conventional long form:
Department of Martinique conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 5.75 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $231 million (1999) | $180 million (1994) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Antigua and Barbuda (embassy closed 30 June 1994); the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Antigua and Barbuda | none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Lionel Alexander HURST
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 362-5211 FAX: [1] (202) 362-5225 consulate(s) general: Miami |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $2.3 million (1995) | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France |
Economy - overview | Tourism continues to dominate the economy, accounting for more than half of GDP. Weak tourist arrival numbers since early 2000 have slowed the economy, however, and pressed the government into a tight fiscal corner. The dual-island nation's agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited water supply and a labor shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction work. Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialized world, especially in the US, which accounts for about one-third of all tourist arrivals. | The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry. Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France. The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism has become more important than agricultural exports as a source of foreign exchange. The majority of the work force is employed in the service sector and in administration. |
Electricity - consumption | 93 million kWh (2000) | 1.023 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 100 million kWh (2000) | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
Environment - current issues | water management - a major concern because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall to run off quickly | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997), 5.1155 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General James B. CARLISLE (since NA 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Lester Bryant BIRD (since 8 March 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Robin YEARWOOD cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general chosen by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995); Prefect Jean-Francois CORDET (since NA) head of government: President of the General Council Claude LISE (since 22 March 1992); President of the Regional Council Alfred MARIE-JEANNE (since NA March 1998) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | $40 million (2000 est.) | $250 million (f.o.b., 1997) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, machinery and transport equipment 17%, food and live animals 4%, other 8% | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples |
Exports - partners | OECS 26%, Barbados 15%, Guyana 4%, Trinidad and Tobago 2%, US 0.3% | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | red, with an inverted isosceles triangle based on the top edge of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands of black (top), light blue, and white, with a yellow rising sun in the black band | a light blue background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag of France is used for official occasions |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $674 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4%
industry: 19% services: 77% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
6% industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $10,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 17 03 N, 61 48 W | 14 40 N, 61 00 W |
Geography - note | Antigua has a deeply indented shoreline with many natural harbors and beaches; Barbuda has a very large western harbor | - |
Highways | total: 1,165 km
paved: 384 km unpaved: 781 km note: it is assumed that the main roads are paved; the secondary roads are assumed to be unpaved (1995) |
total:
2,105 km (2000) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; more significant as an offshore financial center | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe |
Imports | $357 million (2000 est.) | $2 billion (c.i.f., 1997) |
Imports - commodities | food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods |
Imports - partners | US 27%, UK 16%, Canada 4%, OECS 3% | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) |
Independence | 1 November 1981 (from UK) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Industries | tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances) | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 21.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.4% (2000 est.) | 3.9% (1990) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM (observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 40 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction) | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 30,000 | 170,000 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | commerce and services 82%, agriculture 11%, industry 7% (1983) (1983) | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 18.18%
permanent crops: 0% other: 81.82% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
8% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 44% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English (official), local dialects | French, Creole patois |
Legal system | based on English common law | French legal system |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (17-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 9 March 1999 (next to be held prior to March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - ALP 53.2%, UPP 45.5%, independent 1.3%; seats by party - ALP 12, UPP 4, independent 1 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Assembly or Conseil Regional (41 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 Assembly - last held on 15 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - the PPM won a plurality; Regional Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR-UDF 14, MIM 13, PPM 7, left parties 4, PMS 3 note: Martinique elects 2 seats to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 1998 (next to be held September 2001); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPM 2; Martinique also elects 4 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 2, PS 1, independent 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.02 years
male: 68.72 years female: 73.45 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
78.41 years male: 79.11 years female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling
total population: 89% male: 90% female: 88% (1960 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 92% female: 93% (1982 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 762 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,541,940 GRT/5,894,553 DWT
ships by type: bulk 20, cargo 469, chemical tanker 9, combination bulk 4, container 202, liquefied gas 7, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 9, roll on/roll off 35 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, Bangladesh 2, Belgium 3, Colombia 1, Cuba 1, Estonia 1, Germany 747, Greece 1, Iceland 8, Latvia 1, Lebanon 2, Lithuania 1, Netherlands 22, New Zealand 2, Portugal 1, Slovenia 6, South Africa 1, Sweden 2, United Kingdom 1, United States 7 (2002 est.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force, Royal Antigua and Barbuda Police Force (including the Coast Guard) | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
National holiday | Independence Day (National Day), 1 November (1981) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s)
adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan |
noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural) adjective: Martiniquais |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) |
Natural resources | NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land |
Net migration rate | -6.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Antigua Labor Party or ALP [Lester Bryant BIRD]; Barbuda People's Movement or BPM [Thomas H. FRANK]; United Progressive Party or UPP [Baldwin SPENCER] (a coalition of three opposition parties - United National Democratic Party or UNDP, Antigua Caribbean Liberation Movement or ACLM, and Progressive Labor Movement or PLM) | Martinique Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE]; Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Camille DARSIERES]; Martinique Socialist Party or PMS [Ernest WAN-AJOUHU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michel CHARLONE]; Union for French Democracy or UDF (replaced by Martinique Forces of Progress) [Jean MAREN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Antigua Trades and Labor Union or ATLU [William ROBINSON]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh MARSHALL] | Association for the Protection of Martinique's Heritage (ecologist) [Garcin MALSA]; Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance or ARC; Central Union for Martinique Workers or CSTM [Marc PULVAR]; Frantz Fanon Circle; League of Workers and Peasants; Proletarian Action Group or GAP; Socialist Revolution Group or GRS [Philippe PIERRE-CHARLES] |
Population | 67,448 (July 2002 est.) | 418,454 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.69% (2002 est.) | 0.93% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Saint John's | Fort-de-France, La Trinite |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 36,000 (1997) | 82,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 77 km
narrow gauge: 64 km 0.760-m gauge; 13 km 0.610-m gauge (used almost exclusively for handling sugarcane) (2001 est.) |
0 km |
Religions | Christian, (predominantly Anglican with other Protestant, and some Roman Catholic) | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: good automatic telephone system international: 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands Antilles) and Guadeloupe |
general assessment:
domestic facilities are adequate domestic: NA international: microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 28,000 (1996) | 170,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,300 (1996) | 15,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano |
Total fertility rate | 2.29 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 7% (2000 est.) | 27.2% (1998) |
Waterways | none | none |