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Compare Barbados (2003) - Jamaica (2008)

Compare Barbados (2003) z Jamaica (2008)

 Barbados (2003)Jamaica (2008)
 BarbadosJamaica
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 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland


note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation
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.)
0-14 years: 32.5% (male 459,968/female 444,963)


15-64 years: 60.1% (male 822,486/female 848,310)


65 years and over: 7.4% (male 91,856/female 112,549) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products sugarcane, vegetables, cotton sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, ackees, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk; crustaceans, mollusks
Airports 1 (2002) 34 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total: 1


over 3,047 m: 1 (2002)
total: 11


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 5 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 23


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 21 (2007)
Area total: 431 sq km


land: 431 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 10,991 sq km


land: 10,831 sq km


water: 160 sq km
Area - comparative 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC slightly smaller than Connecticut
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 island - discovered by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1494 - was settled by the Spanish early in the 16th century. The native Taino Indians, who had inhabited Jamaica for centuries, were gradually exterminated and replaced by African slaves. England seized the island in 1655 and established a plantation economy based on sugar, cocoa, and coffee. The abolition of slavery in 1834 freed a quarter million slaves, many of whom became small farmers. Jamaica gradually obtained increasing independence from Britain, and in 1958 it joined other British Caribbean colonies in forming the Federation of the West Indies. Jamaica gained full independence when it withdrew from the Federation in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence as rival gangs affiliated with the major political parties evolved into powerful organized crime networks involved in international drug smuggling and money laundering. Violent crime, drug trafficking, and poverty pose significant challenges to the government today. Nonetheless, many rural and resort areas remain relatively safe and contribute substantially to the economy.
Birth rate 13.15 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 20.44 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $847 million (including grants)


expenditures: $886 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
revenues: $3.441 billion


expenditures: $3.905 billion (2007 est.)
Capital Bridgetown name: Kingston


geographic coordinates: 18 00 N, 76 48 W


time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate tropical; rainy season (June to October) tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior
Coastline 97 km 1,022 km
Constitution 30 November 1966 6 August 1962
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Barbados
conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Jamaica
Currency Barbadian dollar (BBD) -
Death rate 9.02 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) 6.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $692 million (2002) $7.138 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
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
chief of mission: Ambassador Brenda LaGrange JOHNSON


embassy: 142 Old Hope Road, Kingston 6


mailing address: P.O. Box 541, Kingston 5


telephone: [1] (876) 702-6000


FAX: [1] (876) 702-6348
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
chief of mission: Ambassador Gordon SHIRLEY


chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036


telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660


FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081


consulate(s) general: Miami, New York
Disputes - international none none
Economic aid - recipient $9.1 million (1995) $35.74 million (2005)
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. The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for more than 60% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. Remittances account for nearly 20% of GDP and are equivalent to tourism revenues. Jamaica's economy, already saddled with a record of sluggish growth, will suffer an economic setback from damages caused by Hurricane Dean in August 2007. The economy faces serious long-term problems: high but declining interest rates, increased foreign competition, exchange rate instability, a sizable merchandise trade deficit, large-scale unemployment and underemployment, and a debt-to-GDP ratio of 135%. Jamaica's onerous debt burden - the fourth highest per capita - is the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy, most notably the financial sector in the mid-to-late 1990s. Inflation also has declined, standing at about 7% at the end of 2007. High unemployment exacerbates the serious crime problem, including gang violence that is fueled by the drug trade. The GOLDING administration faces the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is hampering economic growth.
Electricity - consumption 725.4 million kWh (2001) 6.131 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 780 million kWh (2001) 6.985 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m


highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m
Environment - current issues pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions
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
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6% black 91.2%, mixed 6.2%, other or unknown 2.6% (2001 census)
Exchange rates Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2002), 2 (2001), 2 (2000), 2 (1999), 2 (1998) Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 69.034 (2007), 65.768 (2006), 62.51 (2005), 61.197 (2004), 57.741 (2003)
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
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Kenneth O. HALL (since 15 February 2006)


head of government: Prime Minister Bruce GOLDING (since 11 September 2007)


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 on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister
Exports NA (2001) 1,531 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels
Exports - partners US 14.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 12%, UK 10.6%, Jamaica 6.2%, Saint Lucia 4.7% (2002) US 30.2%, Canada 15.6%, China 15.2%, UK 10.3%, Netherlands 7%, Norway 4.6% (2006)
Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March 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) diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)
GDP purchasing power parity - $4.153 billion (2002 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 6%


industry: 16%


services: 78% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 5%


industry: 34%


services: 61% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2002 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate -2.8% (2002 est.) 1.5% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 13 10 N, 59 32 W 18 15 N, 77 30 W
Geography - note easternmost Caribbean island strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal
Highways total: 1,793 km


paved: 1,719 km


unpaved: 74 km (1999)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: 2.1%


highest 10%: 35.8% (2004)
Illicit drugs one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation and consumption of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions
Imports NA (2001) 71,420 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials
Imports - partners US 41.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 17%, UK 7.3%, Japan 4.2% (2002) US 39.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 13.6%, Venezuela 9.5% (2006)
Independence 30 November 1966 (from UK) 6 August 1962 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate -3.2% (2000 est.) 2% (2007 est.)
Industries tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export tourism, bauxite/alumina, agro processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications
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.)
total: 15.73 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 16.4 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 15.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) -0.6% (2002 est.) 7.1% (2007 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 ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 19 (2000) -
Irrigated land 10 sq km (1998 est.) 250 sq km (2002)
Judicial branch Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal
Labor force 128,500 (2001 est.) 1.255 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.) agriculture: 17%


industry: 19%


services: 64% (2006)
Land boundaries 0 km 0 km
Land use arable land: 37.21%


permanent crops: 2.33%


other: 60.46% (1998 est.)
arable land: 15.83%


permanent crops: 10.01%


other: 74.16% (2005)
Languages English English, English patois
Legal system English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated 8 seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held 3 September 2007 (next to be held no later than October 2012)


election results: percent of vote by party - JLP 50.1%, PNP 49.8%; seats by party - JLP 33, PNP 27
Life expectancy at birth total population: 71.84 years


male: 69.56 years


female: 74.14 years (2003 est.)
total population: 73.12 years


male: 71.43 years


female: 74.9 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school


total population: 97.4%


male: 98%


female: 96.8% (1995 est.)
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school


total population: 87.9%


male: 84.1%


female: 91.6% (2003 est.)
Location Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba
Map references Central America and the Caribbean Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines


territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
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.)
total: 13 ships (1000 GRT or over) 161,700 GRT/241,663 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 2, carrier 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 3


foreign-owned: 12 (Denmark 1, Germany 1, Greece 8, Latvia 2)


registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2007)
Military branches Royal Barbados Defense Force (including Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $NA -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% 0.6% (2006 est.)
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) Independence Day, 6 August (1962)
Nationality noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)


adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial)
noun: Jamaican(s)


adjective: Jamaican
Natural hazards infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides hurricanes (especially July to November)
Natural resources petroleum, fish, natural gas bauxite, gypsum, limestone
Net migration rate -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) -6.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [Clyde Mascoll] Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Portia SIMPSON-MILLER]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Michael WILLIAMS]
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] New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists)
Population 277,264 (July 2003 est.) 2,780,132 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% 14.8% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate 0.38% (2003 est.) 0.777% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina) -
Radio broadcast stations AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways 0 km -
Religions Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% Protestant 62.5% (Seventh-Day Adventist 10.8%, Pentecostal 9.5%, Other Church of God 8.3%, Baptist 7.2%, New Testament Church of God 6.3%, Church of God in Jamaica 4.8%, Church of God of Prophecy 4.3%, Anglican 3.6%, other Christian 7.7%), Roman Catholic 2.6%, other or unspecified 14.2%, none 20.9%, (2001 census)
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.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.034 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.816 male(s)/female


total population: 0.978 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 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
general assessment: fully automatic domestic telephone network


domestic: the 1999 agreement to open the market for telecommunications services resulted in rapid growth in mobile-cellular telephone usage; mobile-cellular teledensity now exceeds 100 per 100 persons; the number of fixed-lines in use has been declining


international: country code - 1-876; the Fibralink submarine cable network provides enhanced delivery of business and broadband traffic and is linked to the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) submarine cable in the Dominican Republic; the link to ARCOS-1 provides seamless connectivity to US, parts of the Caribbean, Central America, and South America; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 108,000 (1997) 319,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 8,013 (1997) 2.804 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997) 7 (1997)
Terrain relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain
Total fertility rate 1.65 children born/woman (2003 est.) 2.36 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 10% (2001 est.) 10.2% (2007 est.)
Waterways none -
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