Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2002) | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and one city* (ville); Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Equateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa*, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Orientale, Sud-Kivu | 6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 48.2% (male 13,369,493; female 13,256,174)
15-64 years: 49.3% (male 13,343,303; female 13,860,996) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 581,568; female 813,944) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 25.9% (male 15,596/female 15,027)
15-64 years: 67.6% (male 41,259/female 38,620) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 3,358/female 4,289) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products | bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish |
Airports | 232 (2001) | 6 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 24
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 205
1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 95 under 914 m: 91 (2002) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Area | total: 2,345,410 sq km
land: 2,267,600 sq km water: 77,810 sq km |
total: 389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km)
land: 389 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US | twice the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Since 1997 the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC; formerly called Zaire) has been rent by ethnic strife and civil war, touched off by a massive inflow in 1994 of refugees from the fighting in Rwanda and Burundi. The government of former president MOBUTU Sese Seko was toppled by a rebellion led by Laurent KABILA in May 1997; his regime was subsequently challenged by a Rwanda- and Uganda-backed rebellion in August 1998. Troops from Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Chad, and Sudan intervened to support the Kinshasa regime. A cease-fire was signed on 10 July 1999 by the DROC, Zimbabwe, Angola, Uganda, Namibia, Rwanda, and Congolese armed rebel groups, but sporadic fighting continued. KABILA was assassinated on 16 January 2001 and his son Joseph KABILA was named head of state ten days later. In October 2002, the new president was successful in getting occupying Rwandan forces to withdraw from eastern Congo; two months later, an agreement was signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and set up a government of national unity. | Resistance by native Caribs prevented colonization on St. Vincent until 1719. Disputed between France and the United Kingdom for most of the 18th century, the island was ceded to the latter in 1783. Between 1960 and 1962, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was a separate administrative unit of the Federation of the West Indies. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979. |
Birth rate | 45.55 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 16.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $269 million
expenditures: $244 million, including capital expenditures of $24 million |
revenues: $94.6 million
expenditures: $85.8 million (2000 est.) |
Capital | Kinshasa | name: Kingstown
geographic coordinates: 13 09 N, 61 14 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of Equator - wet season April to October, dry season December to February; south of Equator - wet season November to March, dry season April to October | tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November) |
Coastline | 37 km | 84 km |
Constitution | 24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February 1978, amended April 1990; transitional constitution promulgated in April 1994; in November 1998, a draft constitution was approved by former President Laurent KABILA but it was not ratified by a national referendum; one outcome of the ongoing inter-Congolese dialogue is to be a new constitution | 27 October 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: Democratic Republic of the Congo
conventional short form: none local long form: Republique Democratique du Congo local short form: none former: Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire abbreviation: DROC |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
Currency | Congolese franc (CDF) | - |
Death rate | 14.93 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 5.97 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $12.9 billion (2000 est.) | $223 million (2004) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Aubrey HOOKS
embassy: 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa mailing address: Unit 31550, APO AE 09828 telephone: [243] (88) 43608 FAX: [243] (88) 43467 |
the US does not have an embassy in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Faida MITIFU
chancery: 1800 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-7690, 7691 FAX: [1] (202) 234-2609 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Ellsworth I. A. JOHN
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6730 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6736 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the grip of a civil war that has drawn in military forces from neighboring states, with Uganda and Rwanda supporting the rebel movements that occupy much of the eastern portion of the state; Tutsi, Hutu, and other conflicting ethnic groups, political rebels, and various government forces continue fighting in Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda; most of the Congo River boundary with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area) | 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 eastern Caribbean Sea |
Economic aid - recipient | $195.3 million (1995) (1995) | $4.89 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo - a nation endowed with vast potential wealth - has declined drastically since the mid-1980s. The war, which began in August 1998, has dramatically reduced national output and government revenue and has increased external debt. Foreign businesses have curtailed operations due to uncertainty about the outcome of the conflict, lack of infrastructure, and the difficult operating environment. The war has intensified the impact of such basic problems as an uncertain legal framework, corruption, raging inflation, and lack of openness in government economic policy and financial operations. A number of IMF and World Bank missions have met with the government to help it develop a coherent economic plan, and President KABILA has begun implementing reforms. | Economic growth slowed slightly in 2007 after reaching a 10 year high of nearly 7% in 2006, but is expected to remain robust, hinging upon seasonal variations in the agricultural and tourism sectors and a recent increase in construction activity. This lower-middle-income country is vulnerable to natural disasters - tropical storms wiped out substantial portions of crops in 1994, 1995, and 2002. In 2005, the islands had more than 160,000 tourist arrivals, mostly to the Grenadines. Saint Vincent is home to a small offshore banking sector and has moved to adopt international regulatory standards. The government's ability to invest in social programs and respond to external shocks is constrained by its high debt burden - 25 percent of current revenues are directed towards debt servicing. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.55 billion kWh (1999) | 107 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 404 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 55 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 5.268 billion kWh (1999) | 115 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 2%
hydro: 98% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: La Soufriere 1,234 m |
Environment - current issues | poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation; refugees responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching; mining of minerals (coltan - a mineral used in creating capacitors, diamonds, and gold) causing environmental damage | pollution of coastal waters and shorelines from discharges by pleasure yachts and other effluents; in some areas, pollution is severe enough to make swimming prohibitive |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
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 | over 200 African ethnic groups of which the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population | black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2%, other 7% |
Exchange rates | Congolese francs per US dollar - 305 (January 2002), 21.82 (2000), 4.02 (1999), 1.61 (1998), 1.31 (1997)
note: on 30 June 1998 the Congolese franc was introduced, replacing the new zaire |
East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: National Executive Council, appointed by the president elections: before Laurent Desire KABILA seized power on 16 May 1997, the president was elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 29 July 1984 (next was scheduled to be held in May 1997); formerly, there was also a prime minister who was elected by the High Council of the Republic; note - elections were not held in 1991 as called for by the constitution election results: results of the last election were: MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga reelected president in 1984 without opposition note: Marshal MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga was president from 24 November 1965 until forced into exile on 16 May 1997 when his government was overthrown militarily by Laurent Desire KABILA; KABILA immediately assumed governing authority and pledged to hold elections by April 1999, but, in December 1998, announced that elections would be postponed until all foreign military forces attempting to topple the government had withdrawn from the country; KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and was succeeded by his son Joseph KABILA |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Sir Fredrick Nathaniel BALLANTYNE (since 2 September 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Ralph E. GONSALVES (since 29 March 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister |
Exports | $750 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, copper, coffee, cobalt, crude oil | bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch; tennis racquets |
Exports - partners | Benelux 62%, US 18%, South Africa, Finland, Italy (1999) | France 26.2%, Greece 21.3%, Italy 18.9%, Russia 7.2%, UK 6.8% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | light blue with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center and a columnar arrangement of six small yellow five-pointed stars along the hoist side | three vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold (double width), and green; the gold band bears three green diamonds arranged in a V pattern |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $32 billion (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 54%
industry: 9% services: 37% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 10%
industry: 26% services: 64% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $590 (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | -4% (2001 est.) | 4.4% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 00 N, 25 00 E | 13 15 N, 61 12 W |
Geography - note | straddles Equator; has very narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo River and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is comprised of 32 islands and cays |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 157,000 km (including 30 km of expressways)(1996)
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption; while rampant corruption and inadequate supervision leaves the banking system vulnerable to money laundering, the lack of a well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; small-scale cannabis cultivation |
Imports | $1.024 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | 1,468 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels |
Imports - partners | South Africa 28%, Benelux 14%, Nigeria 9%, Kenya 7%, China (1999) | Singapore 17.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 12.1%, US 11.1%, Italy 11%, Spain 9.5%, Turkey 4.6%, Germany 4.4% (2006) |
Independence | 30 June 1960 (from Belgium) | 27 October 1979 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -0.9% (1997 est.) |
Industries | mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement | food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch |
Infant mortality rate | 98.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 14.01 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 358% (2001 est.) | 1% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW (signatory), PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2001) | - |
Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1998 est.) | 10 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court resides in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) |
Labor force | 14.51 million (1993 est.) | 41,680 (1991 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 65%, industry 16%, services 19% (1991 est.) | agriculture: 26%
industry: 17% services: 57% (1980 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 10,730 km
border countries: Angola 2,511 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of Angola's discontiguous Cabinda Province), Burundi 233 km, Central African Republic 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Tanzania 459 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.96%
permanent crops: 0.52% other: 96.52% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 17.95%
permanent crops: 17.95% other: 64.1% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba | English, French patois |
Legal system | based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | a 300-member Transitional Constituent Assembly established in August 2000
elections: NA; members of the Transitional Constituent Assembly were appointed by former President Laurent Desire KABILA |
unicameral House of Assembly (21 seats, 15 elected representatives and six appointed senators; representatives are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 7 December 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - ULP 55.3%, NDP 44.7%; seats by party - ULP 12, NDP 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.13 years
male: 47.19 years female: 51.13 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 74.09 years
male: 72.21 years female: 76.04 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba
total population: 77.3% male: 86.6% female: 67.7% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 96% male: 96% female: 96% (1970 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, northeast of Angola | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: boundaries with neighbors
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 582 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,598,917 GRT/8,255,014 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 92, cargo 353, carrier 19, chemical tanker 4, container 17, liquefied gas 6, livestock carrier 1, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 11, petroleum tanker 19, refrigerated cargo 31, roll on/roll off 21, specialized tanker 3 foreign-owned: 536 (Austria 2, Bangladesh 1, Barbados 1, Belgium 9, Bulgaria 13, Canada 6, China 106, Croatia 7, Cyprus 3, Czech Republic 1, Denmark 16, Egypt 4, Estonia 20, France 7, Germany 3, Greece 81, Guyana 2, Hong Kong 7, Iceland 15, India 5, Iran 1, Israel 4, Italy 19, Kenya 2, Latvia 20, Lebanon 7, Lithuania 7, Malta 1, Monaco 6, Montenegro 1, Netherlands 5, Norway 19, Pakistan 1, Philippines 1, Poland 1, Portugal 1, Puerto Rico 1, Romania 1, Russia 19, Singapore 6, Slovenia 5, Sweden 2, Switzerland 12, Syria 11, Turkey 20, Ukraine 12, UAE 12, UK 9, US 21) (2007) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Special Security Battalion | no regular military forces; Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, Coast Guard (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $250 million (FY97) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.6% (FY97) | NA |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 11,996,175 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 6,110,595 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 30 June (1960) | Independence Day, 27 October (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo |
noun: Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s)
adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts in south; Congo River floods (seasonal); in the east, in the Great Rift Valley, there are active volcanoes | hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat |
Natural resources | cobalt, copper, cadmium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite, iron ore, coal, hydropower, timber | hydropower, cropland |
Net migration rate | -2.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: one million refugees fled into Zaire (now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo or DROC) in 1994 as a result of the ethnic fighting in Rwanda; fighting in the DROC between rebels and government forces in October 1996 caused 875,000 refugees to return to Rwanda in late 1996 and early 1997 and additional refugees have returned in subsequent years; fighting between the Congolese government and Uganda- and Rwanda-backed Congolese rebels spawned a regional war in DROC in August 1998, which left 1.8 million Congolese displaced in DROC and caused 300,000 Congolese refugees to flee to surrounding countries (2002 est.) |
-7.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 390 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Social Christian Party or PDSC [Andre BO-BOLIKO]; Forces for Renovation for Union and Solidarity or FONUS [Joseph OLENGHANKOY]; National Congolese Lumumbist Movement or MNC [Francois LUMUMBA]; Popular Movement of the Revolution or MPR [three factions: MPR-Fait Prive (Catherine NZUZI wa Mbombo); MPR/Vunduawe (Felix VUNDUAWE); MPR/Mananga (MANANGA Dintoka Mpholo)]; Unified Lumumbast Party or PALU [Antoine GIZENGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Etienne TSHISEKEDI wa Mulumba]; Union of Federalists and Independent Republicans or UFERI [two factions: UFERI (Lokambo OMOKOKO); UFERI/OR (Adolph Kishwe MAYA)] | New Democratic Party or NDP [Arnhim EUSTACE]; Unity Labor Party or ULP [Ralph GONSALVES] (formed by the coalition of Saint Vincent Labor Party or SVLP and the Movement for National Unity or MNU) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 55,225,478
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 2002 est.) |
118,149 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.79% (2002 est.) | 0.248% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 1, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Radios | 18.03 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 5,138 km
narrow gauge: 3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); 125 km 1.000-m gauge; 1,026 km 0.600-m gauge note: severely reduced route-distance in use because of damage to facilities by civil strife (2000 est.) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 10% | Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, other (includes Hindu, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Protestant) 12% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.038 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.068 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.783 male(s)/female total population: 1.039 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: poor
domestic: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: adequate system
domestic: islandwide, fully automatic telephone system; VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to the other islands of the Grenadines; mobile-cellular teledensity about 75 telephones per 100 persons international: country code - 1-784; the East Caribbean Fiber Optic System (ECFS) and Southern Caribbean fiber optic system (SCF) submarine cables carry international calls; connectivity also provided by VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to Barbados; SHF radiotelephone to Grenada and Saint Lucia; access to Intelsat earth station in Martinique through Saint Lucia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,000 (2000) | 22,600 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (2000) | 87,600 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (2001) | 1 (plus 3 repeaters) (2004) |
Terrain | vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east | volcanic, mountainous |
Total fertility rate | 6.77 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.81 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 15% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | 15,000 km (including the Congo and its tributaries, and unconnected lakes) | - |