Grenada (2002) | Western Sahara (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick | none (under de facto control of Morocco) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 35.9% (male 16,213; female 15,863)
15-64 years: 60.3% (male 28,460; female 25,307) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 1,546; female 1,822) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
Agriculture - products | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) |
Airports | 3 (2001) | 11 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 344 sq km
land: 344 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | about the size of Colorado |
Background | One of the smallest independent countries in the western hemisphere, Grenada was seized by a Marxist military council on 19 October 1983. Six days later the island was invaded by US forces and those of six other Caribbean nations, which quickly captured the ringleaders and their hundreds of Cuban advisers. Free elections were reinstituted the following year. | Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. |
Birth rate | 23.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $85.8 million
expenditures: $102.1 million, including capital expenditures of $28 million (1997) |
revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
Capital | Saint George's | none |
Climate | tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew |
Coastline | 121 km | 1,110 km |
Constitution | 19 December 1973 | - |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Grenada |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Moroccan dirham (MAD) |
Death rate | 7.63 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $196 million (2000) (2000) | NA |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: the ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada; Charge d'Affairs Nadia TONGOUR
embassy: Point Salines, Saint George's mailing address: P. O. Box 54, Saint George's, Grenada, West Indies telephone: [1] (473) 444-1173 through 1176 FAX: [1] (473) 444-4820 |
none |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Denis G. ANTOINE
chancery: 1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2561 FAX: [1] (202) 265-2468 consulate(s) general: New York |
none |
Disputes - international | none | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991 but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals |
Economic aid - recipient | $8.3 million (1995) (1995) | NA |
Economy - overview | Despite government steadying of annual economic growth in recent years through progress in fiscal reform and prudent macroeconomic management, a downturn in tourist arrivals in 2001 threatens government spending in 2002. Grenada relies on tourism as its main source of foreign exchange, although it also supports a small agriculture sector and a developing offshore financial industry. Short-term concerns include a rising fiscal deficit and the deterioration in the external account balance. | Western Sahara depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, and most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. Incomes and standards of living in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. |
Electricity - consumption | 102.3 million kWh (2000) | 83.7 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 110 million kWh (2000) | 90 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 m |
lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | sparse water and lack of arable land |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 82%, mixed black and European 13%, European and East Indian 5% , and trace of Arawak/Carib Amerindian | Arab, Berber |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 9.574 (2003), 11.584 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.626 (2000), 9.804 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Daniel WILLIAMS (since 9 August 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Keith MITCHELL (since 22 June 1995) 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 |
none |
Exports | $78 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace | phosphates 62% |
Exports - partners | Caricom 32.3%, UK 20%, US 13%, Netherlands 8.8% (1991) | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (top and bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with a red border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointed stars with three centered in the top red border, three centered in the bottom red border, and one on a red disk superimposed at the center of the flag; there is also a symbolic nutmeg pod on the hoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's second-largest producer of nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars represent the seven administrative divisions | - |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $424 million (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - NA |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8%
industry: 24% services: 68% (2000) (2000) |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: 40% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,750 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - NA |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.5% (2001 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 12 07 N, 61 40 W | 24 30 N, 13 00 W |
Geography - note | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas |
Highways | total: 1,040 km
paved: 638 km unpaved: 402 km (1996) |
total: 6,200 km
paved: 1,350 km unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana and cocaine to US | - |
Imports | $270 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel (1989) | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | US 31.2%, Caricom 23.6%, UK 13.8%, Japan 7.1% (1991) | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2000) |
Independence | 7 February 1974 (from UK) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1997 est.) | NA |
Industries | food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction | phosphate mining, handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | 14.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.8% (2001 est.) | NA |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO | none |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 14 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada) | - |
Labor force | 42,300 (1996) (1996) | 12,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | services 62%, agriculture 24%, industry 14% (1999 est.) | animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
Land use | arable land: 5.88%
permanent crops: 26.47% other: 67.65% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), French patois | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic |
Legal system | based on English common law | - |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 13-member body, 10 appointed by the government and three by the leader of the opposition) and the House of Representatives (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 18 January 1999 (next to be held by NA October 2004) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NNP 14, GULP 1 |
- |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 64.52 years
male: 62.74 years female: 66.31 years (2002 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
Military branches | Royal Grenada Police Force, Coast Guard | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 7 February (1974) | - |
Nationality | noun: Grenadian(s)
adjective: Grenadian |
noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi,Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
Natural hazards | lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility |
Natural resources | timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors | phosphates, iron ore |
Net migration rate | -15.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Grenada United Labor Party or GULP [Herbert PREUDHOMME]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [leader vacant]; New National Party or NNP [George McGUIRE] | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 89,211 (July 2002 est.) | 267,405 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 0.02% (2002 est.) | NA |
Ports and harbors | Grenville, Saint George's | Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 57,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2% | Muslim |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.08 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
NA |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed |
Telephone system | general assessment: automatic, islandwide telephone system
domestic: interisland VHF and UHF radiotelephone links international: new SHF radiotelephone links to Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Vincent; VHF and UHF radio links to Trinidad |
general assessment: sparse and limited system
domestic: NA international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco |
Telephones - main lines in use | 27,000 (1997) | about 2,000 (1999 est.) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 976 (1997) | 0 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | NA |
Terrain | volcanic in origin with central mountains | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast |
Total fertility rate | 2.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | 11.5% (1999) (1999) | NA |
Waterways | none | - |