Barbados (2005) | Uruguay (2002) | |
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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 | 19 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Artigas, Canelones, Cerro Largo, Colonia, Durazno, Flores, Florida, Lavalleja, Maldonado, Montevideo, Paysandu, Rio Negro, Rivera, Rocha, Salto, San Jose, Soriano, Tacuarembo, Treinta y Tres |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.6% (male 28,813/female 28,634)
15-64 years: 70.6% (male 96,590/female 100,622) 65 years and over: 8.8% (male 9,432/female 15,163) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 24.4% (male 422,826; female 402,324)
15-64 years: 62.6% (male 1,047,740; female 1,072,032) 65 years and over: 13% (male 181,522; female 260,131) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, vegetables, cotton | rice, wheat, corn, barley; livestock; fish |
Airports | 1 (2004 est.) | 64 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 15
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 49
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 31 (2002) |
Area | total: 431 sq km
land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 176,220 sq km
land: 173,620 sq km water: 2,600 sq km |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than the state of Washington |
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. | A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement, the Tupamaros, launched in the late 1960s, led Uruguay's president to agree to military control of his administration in 1973. By the end of the year the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold throughout the government. Civilian rule was not restored until 1985. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the continent. |
Birth rate | 12.83 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 17.28 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $847 million (including grants)
expenditures: $886 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $3.7 billion
expenditures: $4.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2000) (2000) |
Capital | Bridgetown | Montevideo |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (June to October) | warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown |
Coastline | 97 km | 660 km |
Constitution | 30 November 1966 | 27 November 1966, effective February 1967, suspended 27 June 1973, new constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980; two constitutional reforms approved by plebiscite 26 November 1989 and 7 January 1997 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Barbados |
conventional long form: Oriental Republic of Uruguay
conventional short form: Uruguay local long form: Republica Oriental del Uruguay local short form: Uruguay former: Banda Oriental, Cisplatine Province |
Currency | - | Uruguayan peso (UYU) |
Death rate | 9.17 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 9 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $668 million (2003) | $7.7 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mary E. KRAMER
embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown; (courier) ALICO Building-Cheapside, Bridgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; CMR 1014, APO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Martin J. SILVERSTEIN
embassy: Lauro Muller 1776, Montevideo 11200 mailing address: APO AA 34035 telephone: [598] (2) 418-7777 FAX: [598] (2) 418-8611 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING
chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9200 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York consulate(s): Los Angeles |
chief of mission: Ambassador Hugo FERNANDEZ-FAINGOLD
chancery: 1913 I Street NW, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 331-1313 through 1316 FAX: [1] (202) 331-8142 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York |
Disputes - international | in 2005, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago agreed to compulsory international arbitration that will result in a binding award challenging whether the northern limit of Trinidad and Tobago's and Venezuela's maritime boundary extends into Barbadian waters and the southern limit of Barbadian traditional fishing; joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea | uncontested dispute with Brazil over islands in the Rio Quarai (Rio Cuareim) and the Arroio Invernada (Arroyo de la Invernada) |
Economic aid - recipient | $9.1 million (1995) | $NA |
Economy - overview | Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into light industry and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The economy contracted in 2002-03 mainly due to a decline in tourism. Growth probably was positive in 2004, as economic conditions in the US and Europe moderately improved. | Uruguay's economy is characterized by an export-oriented agricultural sector, a well-educated workforce, and high levels of social spending. After averaging growth of 5% annually in 1996-98, in 1999-2001 the economy suffered from lower demand in Argentina and Brazil, which together account for nearly half of Uruguay's exports. Despite the severity of the trade shocks, Uruguay's financial indicators remained more stable than those of its neighbors, a reflection of its solid reputation among investors and its investment-grade sovereign bond rating - one of only two in South America. Challenges for the government of President Jorge BATLLE include reducing the budget deficit, expanding Uruguay's trade ties beyond its Mercosur trade partners, and reducing the costs of public services. GDP fell by 1.3% in 2000 and by 1.5% in 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | 744 million kWh (2002) | 7.35 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 950 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 1.3 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 800 million kWh (2002) | 7.527 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 7%
hydro: 93% nuclear: 0% other: 1% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro Catedral 514 m |
Environment - current issues | pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers | water pollution from meat packing/tannery industry; inadequate solid/hazardous waste disposal |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, 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: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban |
Ethnic groups | black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6% | white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%, Amerindian, practically nonexistent |
Exchange rates | Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2 (2001), 2 (2000) | Uruguayan pesos per US dollar - 14.3325 (January 2002), 13.3191 (2001), 12.0996 (2000), 11.3393 (1999), 10.4719 (1998), 9.4418 (1997) |
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 7 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: President Jorge BATLLE Ibanez (since 1 March 2000) and Vice President Luis HIERRO (since 1 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Jorge BATLLE Ibanez (since 1 March 2000) and Vice President Luis HIERRO (since 1 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president with parliamentary approval elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 31 October 1999, with runoff election on 28 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Jorge BATLLE Ibanez elected president; percent of vote - Jorge BATLLE Ibanez 52% in a runoff against Tabare VAZQUEZ 44% |
Exports | NA | $2.24 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components | meat, rice, leather products, wool, vehicles, dairy products |
Exports - partners | US 20.6%, UK 14.5%, Trinidad and Tobago 13.9%, Saint Lucia 6.9%, Jamaica 6.6%, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 5.1% (2004) | Mercosur partners 40%, EU 20%, US 8% (2001 est.) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
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) | nine equal horizontal stripes of white (top and bottom) alternating with blue; there is a white square in the upper hoist-side corner with a yellow sun bearing a human face known as the Sun of May and 16 rays alternately triangular and wavy |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $31 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 16% services: 78% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 29% services: 65% (2001) (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $16,400 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9,200 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.3% (2004 est.) | -1.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 10 N, 59 32 W | 33 00 S, 56 00 W |
Geography - note | easternmost Caribbean island | second-smallest South American country (after Suriname); most of the low-lying landscape (three-quarters of the country) is grassland, ideal for cattle and sheep raising |
Highways | total: 1,600 km
paved: 1,578 km unpaved: 22 km (2002) |
total: 8,764 km
paved: 7,800 km unpaved: 964 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 26% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center | - |
Imports | NA | $2.9 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components | machinery, chemicals, road vehicles, crude petroleum |
Imports - partners | US 35.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 20%, UK 5.6%, Japan 4.3% (2004) | Mercosur partners 44%, EU 18%, US 9% (2001 est.) |
Independence | 30 November 1966 (from UK) | 25 August 1825 (from Brazil) |
Industrial production growth rate | -3.2% (2000 est.) | -2.4% (2001 est.) |
Industries | tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export | food processing, electrical machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, textiles, chemicals, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.5 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.14 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
14.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.5% (2003 est.) | 3.6% (2001) (2001) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 14 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,800 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) | Supreme Court (judges are nominated by the president and elected for 10-year terms by the General Assembly) |
Labor force | 128,500 (2001 est.) | 1.2 million (2001) (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 15%, services 75% (1996 est.) | agriculture 14%, industry 16%, services 70% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,564 km
border countries: Argentina 579 km, Brazil 985 km |
Land use | arable land: 37.21%
permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (2001) |
arable land: 7.21%
permanent crops: 0.27% other: 92.52% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English | Spanish, Portunol, or Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian frontier) |
Legal system | English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts | based on Spanish civil law system; accepts 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 General Assembly or Asamblea General consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (30 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (99 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 31 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); Chamber of Representatives - last held 31 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Encuentro Progresista 12, Colorado Party 10, Blanco 7, New Sector/Space Coalition 1; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Encuentro Progresista 40, Colorado Party 33, Blanco 22, New Sector/Space Coalition 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.59 years
male: 70.6 years female: 74.6 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 75.66 years
male: 72.32 years female: 79.17 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 99.7% male: 99.7% female: 99.7% (2002 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.3% male: 96.9% female: 97.7% (1995 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Argentina and Brazil |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 58 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 427,465 GRT/668,195 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 14, cargo 31, chemical tanker 6, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 2, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 53 (Bahamas 1, Bangladesh 1, Canada 12, Greece 11, Lebanon 2, Netherlands 1, Norway 17, UAE 1, United Kingdom 7) registered in other countries: 1 (2005) |
total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 7,752 GRT/5,228 DWT
ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Argentina 4, Greece 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | the Royal Barbados Defense Force includes a land-based Troop Command and a small Coast Guard; the primary role of the land element is to defend the island against external aggression; the Command consists of a single, part-time battalion with a small regular cadre that is deployed throughout the island; it increasingly supports the police in patrolling the coastline to prevent smuggling and other illicit activities (2005) | - |
Military branches | Royal Barbados Defense Force: Troops Command and Coast Guard (2005) | Army, Navy (including Naval Air Arm, Coast Guard, Marines), Air Force, Police (Coracero Guard, Grenadier Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $250 million (1999) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 1.1% (2000) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 824,395 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 666,880 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 30 November (1966) | Independence Day, 25 August (1825) |
Nationality | noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)
adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial) |
noun: Uruguayan(s)
adjective: Uruguayan |
Natural hazards | infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides | seasonally high winds (the pampero is a chilly and occasional violent wind which blows north from the Argentine pampas), droughts, floods; because of the absence of mountains, which act as weather barriers, all locations are particularly vulnerable to rapid changes from weather fronts |
Natural resources | petroleum, fish, natural gas | arable land, hydropower, minor minerals, fisheries |
Net migration rate | -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [Clyde Mascoll] | Colorado Party [Jorge BATLLE Ibanez]; National Party or Blanco [Luis Alberto LACALLE Herrera]; New Sector/Space Coalition or Nuevo Espacio [Rafael MICHELINI]; Progressive Encounter/Broad Front Coalition or Encuentro Progresista/Frente Amplio [Tabare VAZQUEZ] |
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] | NA |
Population | 279,254 (July 2005 est.) | 3,386,575 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 6% (1997) |
Population growth rate | 0.33% (2005 est.) | 0.79% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bridgetown | Colonia, Fray Bentos, Juan La Caze, La Paloma, Montevideo, Nueva Palmira, Paysandu, Punta del Este, Piriapolis |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 91, FM 149, shortwave 7 (2001) |
Radios | - | 1.97 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total: 2,993 km
standard gauge: 2,993 km 1.435-m gauge note: of the total route length, 461 km have been taken out of service and 460 km are in only partial use; moreover, not all lines offer passenger service (2001) |
Religions | Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% | Roman Catholic 66% (less than half of the adult population attends church regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, nonprofessing or other 31% |
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 (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: country code - 1-246; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia |
general assessment: fully digitalized
domestic: most modern facilities concentrated in Montevideo; new nationwide microwave radio relay network international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2002) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 134,000 (2003) | 929,141 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 140,000 (2003) | 350,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus two cable channels) (2004) | 20 (2001) |
Terrain | relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region | mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland |
Total fertility rate | 1.65 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.35 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.7% (2003 est.) | 15.2% (2001) (2001) |
Waterways | - | 1,600 km (used by coastal and shallow-draft river craft) |