Bahamas, The (2005) | Montserrat (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay | 3 parishes; Saint Anthony, Saint Georges, Saint Peter |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 27.9% (male 42,142/female 42,096)
15-64 years: 65.9% (male 97,865/female 101,047) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 7,616/female 11,024) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 23.5% (male 1,144/female 1,094)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 2,989/female 3,281) 65 years and over: 10.8% (male 527/female 503) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | citrus, vegetables; poultry | cabbages, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, peppers; livestock products |
Airports | 63 (2004 est.) | 2 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 29
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
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Area | total: 13,940 sq km
land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km |
total: 102 sq km
land: 102 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Connecticut | about 0.6 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Arawak Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US. | English and Irish colonists from St. Kitts first settled on Montserrat in 1632; the first African slaves arrived three decades later. The British and French fought for possession of the island for most of the 18th century, but it finally was confirmed as a British possession in 1783. The island's sugar plantation economy was converted to small farm landholdings in the mid 19th century. Much of this island was devastated and two-thirds of the population fled abroad because of the eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano that began on 18 July 1995. Montserrat has endured volcanic activity since, with the last eruption occurring in July 2003. |
Birth rate | 17.87 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 17.51 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1 billion
expenditures: $1 billion, including capital expenditures of $106.7 million (FY03/04) |
revenues: $31.4 million
expenditures: $31.6 million (1997 est.) |
Capital | Nassau | name: Plymouth
geographic coordinates: 16 42 N, 62 13 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Plymouth was abandoned in 1997 because of volcanic activity; interim government buildings have been built at Brades Estate in the Carr's Bay/Little Bay vicinity at the northwest end of Montserrat |
Climate | tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream | tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 3,542 km | 40 km |
Constitution | 10 July 1973 | effective 19 December 1989 |
Country name | conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas
conventional short form: The Bahamas |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Montserrat |
Death rate | 8.97 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 7.02 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $308.5 million (2002) | $8.9 million (1997) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John D. ROOD
embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours) FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Joshua SEARS
chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | have not been able to agree on the alignment of a maritime boundary with the US; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian refugees fleeing economic privation and political instability | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $9.8 million (1995) | Country Policy Plan (2001) is a three-year program for spending $122.8 million in British budgetary assistance (2002 est.) |
Economy - overview | The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism alone accounts for more than 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in 2001-03. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors. In addition to tourism and banking, the government supports the development of a "third pillar," e-commerce. | Severe volcanic activity, which began in July 1995, has put a damper on this small, open economy. A catastrophic eruption in June 1997 closed the airports and seaports, causing further economic and social dislocation. Two-thirds of the 12,000 inhabitants fled the island. Some began to return in 1998, but lack of housing limited the number. The agriculture sector continued to be affected by the lack of suitable land for farming and the destruction of crops. Prospects for the economy depend largely on developments in relation to the volcanic activity and on public sector construction activity. The UK has launched a three-year $122.8 million aid program to help reconstruct the economy. Half of the island is expected to remain uninhabitable for another decade. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.596 billion kWh (2002) | 18.6 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 1.716 billion kWh (2002) | 20 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: lava dome in English's Crater (in the Soufriere Hills volcanic complex) estimated at over 930 m (2006) |
Environment - current issues | coral reef decay; solid waste disposal | land erosion occurs on slopes that have been cleared for cultivation |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Ethnic groups | black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% | black, white |
Exchange rates | Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001), 1 (2000) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003)
note: fixed rate since 1976 |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Ivy DUMONT (since NA May 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia PRATT (since 7 May 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; 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; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Peter A. WATERWORTH (since 27 July 2007)
head of government: Chief Minister Lowell LEWIS (since 2 June 2006) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, the chief minister, three other ministers, the attorney general, and the finance secretary elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually becomes chief minister |
Exports | transhipments of 29,000 bbl/day (2003) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals; fruit and vegetables | electronic components, plastic bags, apparel; hot peppers, limes, live plants; cattle |
Exports - partners | US 40.2%, Poland 13.3%, Spain 11.6%, Germany 5.9%, France 4.3% (2004) | US, Antigua and Barbuda (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Montserratian coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a woman standing beside a yellow harp with her arm around a black cross |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3%
industry: 7% services: 90% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 1.2%
industry: 23.1% services: 75.7% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,700 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2004 est.) | -1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 24 15 N, 76 00 W | 16 45 N, 62 12 W |
Geography - note | strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited | the island is entirely volcanic in origin and comprised of three major volcanic centers of differing ages |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 2,693 km
paved: 1,546 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1999 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: 27% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | NA | 458 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals | machinery and transportation equipment, foodstuffs, manufactured goods, fuels, lubricants, and related materials |
Imports - partners | US 22.4%, South Korea 18.9%, Brazil 9.2%, Japan 7.9%, Italy 7.8%, Venezuela 6.6% (2004) | US, UK, Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, Canada (2006) |
Independence | 10 July 1973 (from UK) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Industries | tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe | tourism, rum, textiles, electronic appliances |
Infant mortality rate | total: 25.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 7.03 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.15 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.2% (year ending September 2004) | 2.6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOM, IOC, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) | Caricom, CDB, Interpol (subbureau), OECS, UPU |
Irrigated land | NA | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; magistrates courts | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia, one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court) |
Labor force | 156,000 (1999) | 4,521
note: lowered by flight of people from volcanic activity (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (1999 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.8%
permanent crops: 0.4% other: 98.8% (2001) |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 0% other: 80% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants) | English |
Legal system | based on English common law | English common law and statutory law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member body appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader for five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms); the government may dissolve the parliament and call elections at any time
elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%, FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29, FNM 7, independents 4 |
unicameral Legislative Council (11 seats, 9 popularly elected; members serve five-year terms)
note: expanded in 2001 from 7 to 9 elected members with attorney general and financial secretary sitting as ex-officio members elections: last held 31 May 2006 (next to be held by 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - MCAP 36.1%, NPLM 29.4%, MDP 24.4%, independents 10.1%; seats by party - MCAP 4, NPLM 3, MDP 1, independents 1 note: in 2001, the Elections Commission instituted a single constituency/voter-at-large system whereby all eligible voters cast ballots for all nine seats of the Legislative Council |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 65.54 years
male: 62.11 years female: 69.04 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 79 years
male: 76.8 years female: 81.31 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 95.6% male: 94.7% female: 96.5% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 97% (1970 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 1,119
by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 183, cargo 259, chemical tanker 54, combination ore/oil 17, container 74, liquefied gas 28, livestock carrier 2, passenger 116, passenger/cargo 40, petroleum tanker 168, refrigerated cargo 130, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 24 foreign-owned: 968 (Angola 4, Australia 4, Belgium 17, Canada 9, China 3, Croatia 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 13, Denmark 18, Estonia 1, Finland 7, France 28, Germany 15, Greece 194, Hong Kong 11, Indonesia 2, Ireland 1, Israel 1, Italy 7, Japan 49, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Latvia 1, Malaysia 12, Monaco 15, Netherlands 24, New Zealand 1, Nigeria 2, Norway 229, Poland 13, Reunion 1, Russia 2, Saudi Arabia 12, Serbia & Montenegro 2, Singapore 11, Slovenia 1, South Korea 1, Spain 6, Sweden 9, Switzerland 4, Thailand 1, Trinidad & Tobago 2, Turkey 7, UAE 12, United Kingdom 55, United States 154, Uruguay 2) registered in other countries: 35 (2005) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Royal Bahamaian Defense Force (naval forces) (2004) | no regular military forces; Royal Montserrat Police Force (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 10 July (1973) | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun: Bahamian(s)
adjective: Bahamian |
noun: Montserratian(s)
adjective: Montserratian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage | severe hurricanes (June to November); volcanic eruptions (Soufriere Hills volcano has erupted continuously since 1995) |
Natural resources | salt, aragonite, timber, arable land | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Free National Movement or FNM [Tommy TURNQUEST]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE] | Montserrat Democratic Party or MDP [Lowell LEWIS]; Movement for Change and Prosperity or MCAP [Roselyn CASSELL-SEALY]; New People's Liberation Movement or NPLM [John A. OSBORNE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 301,790
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
9,538
note: an estimated 8,000 refugees left the island following the resumption of volcanic activity in July 1995; some have returned (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.67% (2005 est.) | 1.048% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Freeport, Nassau, South Riding Point | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Religions | Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8% (2000 census) | Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Christian denominations |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.046 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.911 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.048 male(s)/female total population: 0.955 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern facilities
domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed international: country code - 1-242; tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (1997) |
general assessment: modern and fully digitalized
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-664; landing point for the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable with links to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad |
Telephones - main lines in use | 131,700 (2003) | NA |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 121,800 (2002) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (2004) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills | volcanic island, mostly mountainous, with small coastal lowland |
Total fertility rate | 2.2 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.77 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.2% (2004 est.) | 6% (1998 est.) |