Indian Ocean (2004) | Bahamas, The (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 28.8% (male 42,799; female 42,730)
15-64 years: 65.4% (male 95,718; female 98,875) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 7,092; female 10,263) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | citrus, vegetables; poultry |
Airports | - | 64 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 30
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 22 (2002) |
Area | total: 68.556 million sq km
note: includes Andaman Sea, Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal, Flores Sea, Great Australian Bight, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, Java Sea, Mozambique Channel, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Savu Sea, Strait of Malacca, Timor Sea, and other tributary water bodies |
total: 13,940 sq km
land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 5.5 times the size of the US | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
Background | The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean, but larger than the Southern Ocean and Arctic Ocean). Four critically important access waterways are the Suez Canal (Egypt), Bab el Mandeb (Djibouti-Yemen), Strait of Hormuz (Iran-Oman), and Strait of Malacca (Indonesia-Malaysia). The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Indian Ocean south of 60 degrees south. | Arawak Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US. |
Birth rate | - | 18.57 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $918.5 million
expenditures: $956.5 million, including capital expenditures of $106.7 million (FY 99/00) |
Capital | - | Nassau |
Climate | northeast monsoon (December to April), southwest monsoon (June to October); tropical cyclones occur during May/June and October/November in the northern Indian Ocean and January/February in the southern Indian Ocean | tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream |
Coastline | 66,526 km | 3,542 km |
Constitution | - | 10 July 1973 |
Country name | - | conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas
conventional short form: The Bahamas |
Currency | - | Bahamian dollar (BSD) |
Death rate | - | 8.68 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $371.6 million (2001) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Robert M. WITAJEWSKI
embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours) FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Joshua SEARS
chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | some maritime disputes (see littoral states) | have not been able to agree on a maritime boundary with the US |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $9.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | The Indian Ocean provides major sea routes connecting the Middle East, Africa, and East Asia with Europe and the Americas. It carries a particularly heavy traffic of petroleum and petroleum products from the oilfields of the Persian Gulf and Indonesia. Its fish are of great and growing importance to the bordering countries for domestic consumption and export. Fishing fleets from Russia, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan also exploit the Indian Ocean, mainly for shrimp and tuna. Large reserves of hydrocarbons are being tapped in the offshore areas of Saudi Arabia, Iran, India, and western Australia. An estimated 40% of the world's offshore oil production comes from the Indian Ocean. Beach sands rich in heavy minerals and offshore placer deposits are actively exploited by bordering countries, particularly India, South Africa, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. | The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism alone accounts for more than 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in 2002. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of most of the visitors. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 1.451 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | - | 1.56 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Java Trench -7,258 m
highest point: sea level 0 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m |
Environment - current issues | endangered marine species include the dugong, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in the Arabian Sea, Persian Gulf, and Red Sea | coral reef decay; solid waste disposal |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | - | black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% |
Exchange rates | - | Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2002), 1 (2001), 1 (2000), 1 (1999), 1 (1998) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Ivy DUMONT (since NA May 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia PRATT (since 7 May 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation 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 |
Exports | - | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | - | fish and crawfish; rum, salt, chemicals; fruit and vegetables |
Exports - partners | - | US 39.1%, Germany 15.4%, Spain 10.8%, France 7.4%, Poland 4.6%, Switzerland 4.3% (2002) |
Fiscal year | - | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | - | three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $4.59 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 3%
industry: 7% services: 90% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $15,300 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 0.1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 20 00 S, 80 00 E | 24 15 N, 76 00 W |
Geography - note | major chokepoints include Bab el Mandeb, Strait of Hormuz, Strait of Malacca, southern access to the Suez Canal, and the Lombok Strait | strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 2,693 km
paved: 1,546 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center |
Imports | - | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | - | machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals |
Imports - partners | - | US 20.3%, South Korea 20.1%, Germany 11.5%, Norway 11.5%, Japan 10%, Italy 7.2% (2002) |
Independence | - | 10 July 1973 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
Industries | - | tourism, banking, e-commerce, cement, oil refining and transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: 26.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 32.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 1.8% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | - | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 19 (2000) |
Irrigated land | - | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; magistrates courts |
Labor force | - | 156,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | tourism 50%, other services 40%, industry 5%, agriculture 5% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | - | 0 km |
Land use | - | arable land: 0.6%
permanent crops: 0.4% other: 99% (1998 est.) |
Languages | - | English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants) |
Legal system | - | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | - | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member body appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader for five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%, FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29, FNM 7, independents 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 65.71 years
male: 62.3 years female: 69.18 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 95.6% male: 94.7% female: 96.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | body of water between Africa, the Southern Ocean, Asia, and Australia | Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba |
Map references | Political Map of the World | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | - | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 1,090 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 33,065,778 GRT/46,202,085 DWT
ships by type: bulk 150, cargo 223, chemical tanker 45, combination bulk 12, combination ore/oil 18, container 108, liquefied gas 26, livestock carrier 2, multi-functional large-load carrier 8, passenger 102, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 178, refrigerated cargo 135, roll on/roll off 40, short-sea passenger 17, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 23 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Angola 1, Argentina 1, Australia 4, Belgium 18, Bermuda 1, Canada 5, Chile 1, China 3, Croatia 2, Cuba 3, Cyprus 2, Denmark 27, Ecuador 1, Estonia 2, Finland 9, France 15, Germany 26, Greece 173, Hong Kong 6, India 2, Indonesia 2, Ireland 1, Israel 3, Italy 9, Jamaica 1, Japan 32, Kenya 3, Malaysia 10, Malta 2, Monaco 67, Netherlands 32, New Zealand 2, Norway 237, Panama 2, Philippines 3, Poland 13, Reunion 1, Russia 6, Saudi Arabia 9, Singapore 13, Slovenia 1, South Korea 2, Spain 7, Sweden 12, Switzerland 8, Thailand 1, Trinidad and Tobago 2, Turkey 2, Ukraine 2, United Arab Emirates 10, United Kingdom 107, United States 159, Uruguay 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | - | Royal Bahamas Defense Force (Coast Guard only), Royal Bahamas Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $20 million (FY95/96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.7% (FY99) |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 10 July (1973) |
Nationality | - | noun: Bahamian(s)
adjective: Bahamian |
Natural hazards | occasional icebergs pose navigational hazard in southern reaches | hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage |
Natural resources | oil and gas fields, fish, shrimp, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules | salt, aragonite, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | - | -2.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Free National Movement or FNM [Tommy TURNQUEST]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | - | 297,477
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 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 0.77% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Chennai (Madras; India), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Durban (South Africa), Jakarta (Indonesia), Kolkata (Calcutta; India) Melbourne (Australia), Mumbai (Bombay; India), Richards Bay (South Africa) | Freeport, Matthew Town, Nassau |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | - | Baptist 32%, Anglican 20%, Roman Catholic 19%, Methodist 6%, Church of God 6%, other Protestant 12%, none or unknown 3%, other 2% |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | - | general assessment: modern facilities
domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed international: tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 96,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 6,152 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | surface dominated by counterclockwise gyre (broad, circular system of currents) in the southern Indian Ocean; unique reversal of surface currents in the northern Indian Ocean; low atmospheric pressure over southwest Asia from hot, rising, summer air results in the southwest monsoon and southwest-to-northeast winds and currents, while high pressure over northern Asia from cold, falling, winter air results in the northeast monsoon and northeast-to-southwest winds and currents; ocean floor is dominated by the Mid-Indian Ocean Ridge and subdivided by the Southeast Indian Ocean Ridge, Southwest Indian Ocean Ridge, and Ninetyeast Ridge | long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills |
Total fertility rate | - | 2.25 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | 6.9% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |