Italy (2001) | Saint Lucia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 20 regions (regioni, singular - regione); Abruzzi, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte, Puglia, Sardegna, Sicilia, Toscana, Trentino-Alto Adige, Umbria, Valle d'Aosta, Veneto | 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux Fort |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
14.17% (male 4,209,102; female 3,964,765) 15-64 years: 67.48% (male 19,375,742; female 19,546,332) 65 years and over: 18.35% (male 4,368,264; female 6,215,620) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
32.13% (male 25,951; female 24,874) 15-64 years: 62.59% (male 48,568; female 50,430) 65 years and over: 5.28% (male 3,120; female 5,235) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; beef, dairy products; fish | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa |
Airports | 135 (2000 est.) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
97 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 32 1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 31 under 914 m: 12 (2000 est.) |
total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
38 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 18 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
301,230 sq km land: 294,020 sq km water: 7,210 sq km note: includes Sardinia and Sicily |
total:
620 sq km land: 610 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Arizona | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Italy became a nation-state belatedly - in 1861 when the city-states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL. An era of parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when Benito MUSSOLINI established a Fascist dictatorship. His disastrous alliance with Nazi Germany led to Italy's defeat in World War II. A democratic republic replaced the monarchy in 1946 and economic revival followed. Italy was a charter member of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC). It has been at the forefront of European economic and political unification, joining the European Monetary Union in 1999. Persistent problems include illegal immigration, the ravages of organized crime, corruption, high unemployment, and the low incomes and technical standards of southern Italy compared with the more prosperous north. | The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979. |
Birth rate | 9.05 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 21.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$488 billion expenditures: $501 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$141.2 million expenditures: $146.7 million, including capital expenditures of $25.1 million (FY97/98 est.) |
Capital | Rome | Castries |
Climate | predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south | tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to April, rainy season from May to August |
Coastline | 7,600 km | 158 km |
Constitution | 1 January 1948 | 22 February 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Italian Republic conventional short form: Italy local long form: Repubblica Italiana local short form: Italia former: Kingdom of Italy |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Lucia |
Currency | Italian lira (ITL); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Italy at a fixed rate of 1,936.27 Italian lire per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 10.07 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.36 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $131.6 million (1998) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant) embassy: Via Veneto 119/A, 00187-Rome mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 09624 telephone: [39] (06) 46741 FAX: [39] (06) 488-2672 consulate(s) general: Florence, Milan, Naples |
the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador in Barbados is accredited to Saint Lucia |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ferdinando SALLEO chancery: 3000 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 612-4400 FAX: [1] (202) 518-2154 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and San Francisco consulate(s): Detroit |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Sonia Merlyn JOHNNY chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6728 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | Croatia and Italy made progress toward resolving a bilateral issue dating from World War II over property and ethnic minority rights | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1.3 billion (1997) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $51.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Italy has a diversified industrial economy with roughly the same total and per capita output as France and the UK. This capitalistic economy remains divided into a developed industrial north, dominated by private companies, and a less developed agricultural south, with more than 20% unemployment. Most raw materials needed by industry and more than 75% of energy requirements are imported. Since 1992, Italy has adopted budgets compliant with the requirements of the European Monetary Union (EMU); wage moderation agreements by representatives of government, labor, and employers have helped to bring Italy's inflation into conformity with EMU requirements. Italy's economic performance, however, has lagged behind that of its EU partners and it must work to stimulate employment, promote labor flexibility, reform its expensive pension system, and tackle the informal economy. | The recent changes in the EU import preference regime and the increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. Improvement in the construction sector and growth of the tourism industry helped expand GDP in 1998-99. The agriculture sector registered its fifth year of decline in 1997 primarily because of a severe decline in banana production. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean, and the government is beginning to develop regulations for the small offshore financial sector. |
Electricity - consumption | 272.35 billion kWh (1999) | 102.3 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 530 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 42.539 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 247.679 billion kWh (1999) | 110 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
79.09% hydro: 18.08% nuclear: 0% other: 2.83% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) 4,807 m |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from industrial emissions such as sulfur dioxide; coastal and inland rivers polluted from industrial and agricultural effluents; acid rain damaging lakes; inadequate industrial waste treatment and disposal facilities | deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south) | black 90%, mixed 6%, East Indian 3%, white 1% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Italian lire per US dollar - 1,688.7 (January 1999), 1,736.2 (1998), 1,703.1 (1997), 1,542.9 (1996) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Carlo Azeglio CIAMPI (since 13 May 1999) head of government: Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Silvio BERLUSCONI (since 10 June 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and approved by the president elections: president elected by an electoral college consisting of both houses of Parliament and 58 regional representatives for a seven-year term; election last held 13 May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2006); prime minister appointed by the president and confirmed by parliament election results: Carlo Azeglio CIAMPI elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 70% note: a 12-party government coalition; note - BERLUSCONI's coalition includes Forza Italian, National Alliance, Christian Democratic Center, Christian Northern League |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dr. Perlette LOUISY (since September 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Kenneth ANTHONY (since 24 May 1997) and Deputy Prime Minister Mario MICHEL (since 24 May 1997) 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 or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
Exports | $241.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $68.3 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals and nonferrous metals | bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil |
Exports - partners | EU 56.8% (Germany 16.4%, France 12.9%, Netherlands 7.1%, Spain 6.3%, Netherlands 2.9%), US 9.5% (1999) | UK 50%, US 24%, Caricom countries 16% (1995) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; similar to the flag of Ireland, which is longer and is green (hoist side), white, and orange; also similar to the flag of the Cote d'Ivoire, which has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green
note: inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in 1797 |
blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.273 trillion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $700 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
2.5% industry: 30.4% services: 67.1% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
10.7% industry: 32.3% services: 57% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $22,100 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.7% (2000 est.) | 0.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 42 50 N, 12 50 E | 13 53 N, 60 68 W |
Geography - note | strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe | - |
Heliports | 4 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
654,676 km paved: 654,676 km (including 6460 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1997) |
total:
1,210 km paved: 63 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.5% highest 10%: 21.8% (1995) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | important gateway for and consumer of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market | transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | $231.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $319.4 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | engineering products, chemicals, transport equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles and clothing; food, beverages and tobacco | food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels |
Imports - partners | EU 61% (Germany 19.3%, France 12.6%, Netherlands 6.3%, Spain 4.4%), US 5.0% (1999) | US 36%, Caricom countries 22%, UK 11%, Japan 5%, Canada 4% (1995) |
Independence | 17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870) | 22 February 1979 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1.9% (2000) | -8.9% (1997 est.) |
Industries | tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics | clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism, lime processing, coconut processing |
Infant mortality rate | 5.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 15.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2000) | 2.5% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACCT (associate), ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 93 (Italy and Holy See) (2000) | 15 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 27,100 sq km (1993 est.) | 10 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court or Corte Costituzionale (composed of 15 judges: one-third appointed by the president, one-third elected by Parliament, one-third elected by the ordinary and administrative Supreme Courts) | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (jurisdiction extends to Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) |
Labor force | 23.4 million (2000) | 43,800 |
Labor force - by occupation | services 61.9%, industry 32.6%, agriculture 5.5% (1999) | agriculture 43.4%, services 38.9%, industry and commerce 17.7% (1983 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,932.2 km border countries: Austria 430 km, France 488 km, Holy See (Vatican City) 3.2 km, San Marino 39 km, Slovenia 232 km, Switzerland 740 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
31% permanent crops: 10% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 23% other: 21% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
8% permanent crops: 21% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 13% other: 53% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area) | English (official), French patois |
Legal system | based on civil law system; appeals treated as new trials; judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or Senato della Repubblica (315 seats elected by popular vote of which 232 are directly elected and 83 are elected by regional proportional representation plus, in addition, there are a small number of senators-for-life including former presidents of the republic; members serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; 475 are directly elected, 155 by regional proportional representation; members serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 177 (Forza Italia 82, National Alliance 46, CCD-CDU 29, Northern League 17, others 3), Olive Tree 128 (Democrats of the Left 62, Daisy Alliance 42, Sunflower Alliance 16, Italian Communist Party 3, independents 5), non-affiliated with either coalition 10, senators for life 9; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 367 (Forza Italia 189, National Alliance 96, CCD-CDU 40, Northern League 30, others 12), Olive Tree 248 (Democrats of the Left 138, Daisy Alliance 76, Sunflower Alliance 18, Italian Communist Party 9, independents 7), non-affiliated with either coalition 15 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (11 seats; six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 23 May 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SLP 16, UWP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
79.14 years male: 75.97 years female: 82.52 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
72.57 years male: 69 years female: 76.39 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% (1998) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 67% male: 65% female: 69% (1980 est.) |
Location | Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
445 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 8,005,136 GRT/10,556,244 DWT ships by type: bulk 44, cargo 41, chemical tanker 77, combination ore/oil 4, container 24, liquefied gas 38, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 11, petroleum tanker 85, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 64, short-sea passenger 26, specialized tanker 14, vehicle carrier 15 (2000 est.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Carabinieri | Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $20.7 billion (FY00/01) | $5 million (FY91/92) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (FY00/01) | 2% (FY91/92) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
14,248,674 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
12,244,166 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
304,369 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Republic Day, 2 June (1946) | Independence Day, 22 February (1979) |
Nationality | noun:
Italian(s) adjective: Italian |
noun:
Saint Lucian(s) adjective: Saint Lucian |
Natural hazards | regional risks include landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence in Venice | hurricanes and volcanic activity |
Natural resources | mercury, potash, marble, sulfur, natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, coal, arable land | forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential |
Net migration rate | 1.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -4.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 1,703 km; petroleum products 2,148 km; natural gas 19,400 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Center-Left Olive Tree Coalition [Francesco RUTELLI] - Democrats of the Left, Daisy Alliance (including Italian Popular Party, Italian Renewal, Union of Democrats for Europe, The Democrats), Sunflower Alliance (including Green Federation, Italian Democratic Socialists), Italian Communist Party; Christian Democratic Center or CDC [Pier Ferdinando CASINI]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Rocco BUTTIGLIONE]; Communist Renewal or RC [Fausto BERTINOTTI]; Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; Green Federation [Grazia FRANCESCATO]; House of Liberties (formerly Freedom Alliance, a center-right coalition) [leader Silvio BERLUSCONI] - Forza Italian, National Alliance, Christian Democratic Center, Christian Democratic Union, Northern League; Italian Communist Party or PdCI [Oliviero DILIBERTO]; Italian Democratic Socialists [Enrico BOSELLI]; Italian Popular Party [Pierluigi CASTAGNETTI]; Italian Renewal [Lamberto DINI]; Italian Social Movement-Tricolored Flame or MSI-FI [Pino RAUTI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Northern League or NL [Umberto BOSSI]; Radical Party (formerly Panella Reformers and Autonomous List) [Marco PANNELLA]; Southern Tyrols People's Party or SVP (German speakers) [Siegfried BRUGGER]; Union of Democrats for Europe [Clemente MASTELLA]; The Democrats [Arturo PARISI] | National Freedom Party or NFP [Martinus FRANCOIS]; Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Kenneth ANTHONY]; United Workers Party or UWP [Dr. Morella JOSEPH] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Italian manufacturers and merchants associations (Confindustria, Confcommercio); organized farm groups (Confcoltivatori, Confagricoltura); Roman Catholic Church; three major trade union confederations (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro or CGIL [Sergio COFFERATI] which is left wing, Confederazione Italiana dei Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL [Sergio D'ANTONI] which is Catholic centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL [Pietro LARIZZA] which is lay centrist) | NA |
Population | 57,679,825 (July 2001 est.) | 158,178 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.07% (2001 est.) | 1.23% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Augusta (Sicily), Bagnoli, Bari, Brindisi, Gela, Genoa, La Spezia, Livorno, Milazzo, Naples, Porto Foxi, Porto Torres (Sardinia), Salerno, Savona, Taranto, Trieste, Venice (2001) | Castries, Vieux Fort |
Radio broadcast stations | AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9 (1998) | AM 2, FM 7 (plus 3 repeaters), shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 50.5 million (1997) | 111,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
19,394 km standard gauge: 18,071 km 1.435-m gauge; Italian Railways (FS) operates 16,014 km of the total standard gauge routes (11,322 km electrified) narrow gauge: 112 km 1.000-m gauge (112 km electrified); 1,211 km 0.950-m gauge (153 km electrified) (1998) |
0 km |
Religions | predominately Roman Catholic with mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community | Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 7%, Anglican 3% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25) | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
modern, well developed, fast; fully automated telephone, telex, and data services domestic: high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (with a total of 5 antennas - 3 for Atlantic Ocean and 2 for Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and NA Eutelsat; 21 submarine cables |
general assessment:
adequate system domestic: system is automatically switched international: direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados; international calls beyond these countries are carried by Intelsat from Martinique |
Telephones - main lines in use | 25 million (1999) | 37,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 20.5 million (1999) | 1,600 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995) | 3 (of which two are commercial stations and one is a community antenna television or CATV channel) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands | volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys |
Total fertility rate | 1.18 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.38 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.4% (2000 est.) | 15% (1996 est.) |
Waterways | 2,400 km
note: for various types of commercial traffic, although of limited overall value |
none |