Barbados (2003) | Baker Island (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 11 parishes; Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; note - the city of Bridgetown may be given parish status | - |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.2% (male 29,621; female 29,207)
15-64 years: 70% (male 94,840; female 99,230) 65 years and over: 8.8% (male 9,355; female 15,011) (2003 est.) |
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Agriculture - products | sugarcane, vegetables, cotton | - |
Airports | 1 (2002) | one abandoned World War II runway of 1,665 m covered with vegetation and unusable (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
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Area | total: 431 sq km
land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1.4 sq km
land: 1.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | about 2.5 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance. | The US took possession of the island in 1857, and its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization was begun on this island - as well as on nearby Howland Island - but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. Presently the island is a National Wildlife Refuge run by the US Department of the Interior; a day beacon is situated near the middle of the west coast. |
Birth rate | 13.15 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
Budget | revenues: $847 million (including grants)
expenditures: $886 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
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Capital | Bridgetown | - |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (June to October) | equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun |
Coastline | 97 km | 4.8 km |
Constitution | 30 November 1966 | - |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Barbados |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Baker Island |
Currency | Barbadian dollar (BBD) | - |
Death rate | 9.02 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
Debt - external | $692 million (2002) | - |
Dependency status | - | unincorporated territory of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge system |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Earl N. PHILLIPS, Jr.
embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown; (courier) ALICO Building-Cheapside, Bridgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; FPO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379 |
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Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING
chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 339-9201 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York consulate(s): Los Angeles |
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Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $9.1 million (1995) | - |
Economy - overview | Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light-manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The economy contracted in 2002 mainly due to a 3% decline in tourism. Growth should be positive in 2003, the precise level largely dependent on economic conditions in the US and Europe. | no economic activity |
Electricity - consumption | 725.4 million kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - production | 780 million kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 8 m |
Environment - current issues | pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers | no natural fresh water resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity |
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Ethnic groups | black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6% | - |
Exchange rates | Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2002), 2 (2001), 2 (2000), 2 (1999), 2 (1998) | - |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 6 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Mia MOTTLEY (since 26 May 2003) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister 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 |
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Exports | NA (2001) | - |
Exports - commodities | sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components | - |
Exports - partners | US 14.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 12%, UK 10.6%, Jamaica 6.2%, Saint Lucia 4.7% (2002) | - |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | - |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident) | the flag of the US is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.153 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 16% services: 78% (2000 est.) |
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GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | -2.8% (2002 est.) | - |
Geographic coordinates | 13 10 N, 59 32 W | 0 13 N, 176 28 W |
Geography - note | easternmost Caribbean island | treeless, sparse, and scattered vegetation consisting of grasses, prostrate vines, and low growing shrubs; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife |
Highways | total: 1,793 km
paved: 1,719 km unpaved: 74 km (1999) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Illicit drugs | one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | - |
Imports - commodities | consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components | - |
Imports - partners | US 41.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 17%, UK 7.3%, Japan 4.2% (2002) | - |
Independence | 30 November 1966 (from UK) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | -3.2% (2000 est.) | - |
Industries | tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export | - |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.39 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.6% (2002 est.) | - |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | - |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 19 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 0 sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) | - |
Labor force | 128,500 (2001 est.) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 37.21%
permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | English | - |
Legal system | English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts | the laws of the US, where applicable, apply |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (30 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 21 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2008) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BLP 23, DLP 7 |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.84 years
male: 69.56 years female: 74.14 years (2003 est.) |
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Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97.4% male: 98% female: 96.8% (1995 est.) |
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Location | Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela | Oceania, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and Australia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 34 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 284,222 GRT/439,810 DWT
ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 22, combination bulk 1, container 1, petroleum tanker 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, The Bahamas 1, Canada 4, Germany 1, Greece 2, Hong Kong 7, Norway 7, UK 18 (2002 est.) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the US; visited annually by the US Coast Guard |
Military branches | Royal Barbados Defense Force (including Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 77,862 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 53,282 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 30 November (1966) | - |
Nationality | noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)
adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial) |
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Natural hazards | infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides | the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard |
Natural resources | petroleum, fish, natural gas | guano (deposits worked until 1891), terrestrial and aquatic wildlife |
Net migration rate | -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [Clyde Mascoll] | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Barbados Workers Union [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMMISSIONG]; People's Progressive Movement [Eric SEALY]; Worker's Party of Barbados [Dr. George BELLE] | - |
Population | 277,264 (July 2003 est.) | uninhabited
note: American civilians evacuated in 1942 after Japanese air and naval attacks during World War II; occupied by US military during World War II, but abandoned after the war; public entry is by special-use permit from US Fish and Wildlife Service only and generally restricted to scientists and educators; a cemetery and remnants of structures from early settlement are located near the middle of the west coast; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service |
Population below poverty line | NA% | - |
Population growth rate | 0.38% (2003 est.) | - |
Ports and harbors | Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina) | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% | - |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | - |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia |
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Telephones - main lines in use | 108,000 (1997) | - |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,013 (1997) | - |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997) | - |
Terrain | relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region | low, nearly level coral island surrounded by a narrow fringing reef |
Total fertility rate | 1.65 children born/woman (2003 est.) | - |
Transportation - note | - | there is a day beacon near the middle of the west coast |
Unemployment rate | 10% (2001 est.) | - |
Waterways | none | - |