Antigua and Barbuda (2005) | Cocos (Keeling) Islands (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*, Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter, Saint Philip | none (territory of Australia) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 27.9% (male 9,767/female 9,427)
15-64 years: 68% (male 23,466/female 23,250) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 1,085/female 1,727) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
Agriculture - products | cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock | vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts |
Airports | 3 (2004 est.) | 1 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
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Area | total: 442.6 sq km (Antigua 280 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km)
land: 442.6 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Redonda, 1.6 sq km |
total: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | about 24 times the size of The Mall in 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. | There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century. From the 1820s to 1978, members of the CLUNIE-ROSS family controlled the islands and the copra produced from local coconuts. Annexed by the UK in 1857, the Cocos Islands were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island. |
Birth rate | 17.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA |
Budget | revenues: $123.7 million
expenditures: $145.9 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | Saint John's (Antigua) | name: West Island
geographic coordinates: 12 10 S, 96 50 E time difference: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year |
Coastline | 153 km | 26 km |
Constitution | 1 November 1981 | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1955) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda |
conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
Death rate | 5.44 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA |
Debt - external | $231 million (1999) | - |
Dependency status | - | non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services |
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 (territory of Australia) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Lionel A. HURST
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 362-5122 FAX: [1] (202) 362-5225 consulate(s) general: Miami |
none (territory of Australia) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $2.3 million (1995) | $NA |
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. 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 slightly more than one-third of tourist arrivals. | Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small tourist industry. |
Electricity - consumption | 103 million kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - production | 110.8 million kWh (2002) | - |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 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 | fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs |
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, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian | Europeans, Cocos Malays |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000)
note: fixed rate since 1976 |
Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir James B. CARLISLE (since 10 June 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Winston Baldwin SPENCER (since 24 March 2004) 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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator (nonresident) Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
Exports | NA | $NA |
Exports - commodities | petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, machinery and transport equipment 17%, food and live animals 4%, other 8% | copra |
Exports - partners | Poland 47.8%, UK 24.6%, Germany 8.7% (2004) | Australia (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | the flag of Australia is used |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.9%
industry: 19.2% services: 76.8% (2002) |
- |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2002 est.) | - |
Geographic coordinates | 17 03 N, 61 48 W | 12 30 S, 96 50 E |
Geography - note | Antigua has a deeply indented shoreline with many natural harbors and beaches; Barbuda has a very large western harbor | islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation |
Highways | total: 250 km (1999 est.) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | 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 | - |
Imports | NA | $NA |
Imports - commodities | food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil | foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | China 19.5%, US 18.7%, Singapore 14.8%, Poland 8.5%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.7% (2004) | Australia (2006) |
Independence | 1 November 1981 (from UK) | none (territory of Australia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6% (1997 est.) | - |
Industries | tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances) | copra products and tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 19.46 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.4% (2000 est.) | - |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | none |
Irrigated land | NA | NA |
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) | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court |
Labor force | 30,000 | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 7%, industry 11%, services 82% (1983) | note: the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 18.18%
permanent crops: 4.55% other: 77.27% (2001) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), local dialects | Malay (Cocos dialect), English |
Legal system | based on English common law | based upon the laws of Australia and local laws |
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 23 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ALP 4, UPP 13 |
unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held in May 2005 (next to be held in May 2007) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.9 years
male: 69.53 years female: 74.38 years (2005 est.) |
total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling
total population: 89% male: 90% female: 88% (1960 est.) |
NA |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico | Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 980 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,873,626 GRT/7,683,143 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 33, cargo 630, chemical tanker 9, container 272, liquefied gas 9, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 17, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: 923 (Australia 2, Bangladesh 4, Belgium 4, Colombia 2, Denmark 8, Estonia 2, Germany 849, Iceland 5, Latvia 5, Lebanon 2, Lithuania 1, Netherlands 11, Norway 3, Philippines 1, Russia 1, Slovenia 5, Sweden 1, Switzerland 5, Turkey 4, United Kingdom 1, United States 7) (2005) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory has a five-person police force |
Military branches | Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force: Infantry, Coast Guard (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | - |
National holiday | Independence Day (National Day), 1 November (1981) | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) |
Nationality | noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s)
adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan |
noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts | cyclone season is October to April |
Natural resources | NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism | fish |
Net migration rate | -6.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA |
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) | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Antigua Trades and Labor Union or ATLU [William ROBINSON]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh MARSHALL] | none |
Population | 68,722 (July 2005 est.) | 596 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | - |
Population growth rate | 0.57% (2005 est.) | 0% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Saint John's | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Religions | Christian, (predominantly Anglican with other Protestant, and some Roman Catholic) | Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: good automatic telephone system international: country code - 1-268; 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands Antilles) and Guadeloupe |
general assessment: connected within Australia's telecommunication system
domestic: NA international: country code - 61; telephone, telex, and facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite; 1 INTELSAT satellite earth station (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 38,000 (2002) | 287 (1992) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 38,200 (2002) | - |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | NA |
Terrain | mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas | flat, low-lying coral atolls |
Total fertility rate | 2.26 children born/woman (2005 est.) | NA |
Unemployment rate | 11% (2001 est.) | 60% (2000 est.) |