Jamaica (2001) | British Virgin Islands (2001) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
29.7% (male 405,189; female 386,555) 15-64 years: 63.52% (male 845,226; female 847,944) 65 years and over: 6.78% (male 80,667; female 100,055) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
22.77% (male 2,399; female 2,339) 15-64 years: 72.31% (male 7,741; female 7,309) 65 years and over: 4.92% (male 555; female 469) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish |
Airports | 35 (2000 est.) | 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total:
2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
24 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
10,990 sq km land: 10,830 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total:
150 sq km land: 150 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the island of Anegada |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Connecticut | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a dropoff in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Subsequent governments have been open market oriented. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. | First settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were soon after (1672) annexed by the English. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. |
Birth rate | 18.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.18 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.23 billion expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues:
$121.5 million expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
Capital | Kingston | Road Town |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds |
Coastline | 1,022 km | 80 km |
Constitution | 6 August 1962 | 1 June 1977 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Jamaica |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
Currency | Jamaican dollar (JMD) | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 5.48 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.7 billion (2000 est.) | $36.1 million (1997) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Stanley Louis MCLELLAND embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 926-6743 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Richard Leighton BERNAL chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $102.7 million (1995) | $2.6 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Key sectors in this island economy are bauxite (alumina and bauxite account for more than half of exports) and tourism. Since assuming office in 1992, Prime Minister PATTERSON has eliminated most price controls, streamlined tax schedules, and privatized government enterprises. Continued tight monetary and fiscal policies have helped slow inflation - although inflationary pressures are mounting - and stabilize the exchange rate, but have resulted in the slowdown of economic growth (moving from 1.5% in 1992 to 0.5% in 1995). In 1996, GDP showed negative growth (-1.4%) and remained negative through 1999. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; the weak financial condition of business in general resulting in receiverships or closures and downsizings of companies; the shift in investment portfolios to non-productive, short-term high yield instruments; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt for government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions in 1999-2000 led to increased civil unrest, including a mounting crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment in the productive sectors, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, stabilizing the labor environment, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies. | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, which generates an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1997. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. An estimated 250,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 1997. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, is expected to make the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the dollar as its currency since 1959. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.073 billion kWh (1999) | 39.1 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 6.53 billion kWh (1999) | 42 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
92.28% hydro: 1.36% nuclear: 0% other: 6.36% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
Environment - current issues | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchment) |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% | black 90%, white, Asian |
Exchange rates | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 45.557 (January 2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044 (1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997), 37.120 (1996) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991) head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA 1993) 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 on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Francis J. SAVAGE (since NA) head of government: Chief Minister Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 15 May 1995) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; chief minister appointed by the governor from among the members of the Legislative Council |
Exports | $1.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $6.2 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand |
Exports - partners | US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.8%, UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999) | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.7 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $311 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
7.4% industry: 35.2% services: 57.4% (1999 est.) |
agriculture:
1.8% industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $16,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.2% (2000 est.) | 6% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 15 N, 77 30 W | 18 30 N, 64 30 W |
Geography - note | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for Panama Canal | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico |
Highways | total:
19,000 km paved: 13,433 km unpaved: 5,567 km (1997) |
total:
132 km paved: 132 km unpaved: 0 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.9% highest 10%: 28.9% (1996) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | $3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $220 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery |
Imports - partners | US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%, Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding UK) 4.7% (1999) | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US |
Independence | 6 August 1962 (from UK) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2% (2000 est.) | 4% (1985) |
Industries | tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center |
Infant mortality rate | 14.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 20.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.8% (2000 est.) | 2% (2000) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | Caricom (associate), CDB, ECLAC (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 21 (2000) | 16 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 350 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction |
Labor force | 1.13 million (1998) | 4,911 (1980) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
14% permanent crops: 6% permanent pastures: 24% forests and woodland: 17% other: 39% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
20% permanent crops: 7% permanent pastures: 33% forests and woodland: 7% other: 33% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English, Creole | English (official) |
Legal system | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | English law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 18 December 1997 (next to be held by March 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PNP 50, JLP 10 |
unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, one member from each of 9 electoral districts, four at-large members; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 17 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - VIP 7, CCM 1, NDP 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
75.42 years male: 73.45 years female: 77.49 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
75.64 years male: 74.74 years female: 76.59 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 85% male: 80.8% female: 89.1% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 3 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,930 GRT/3,065 DWT ships by type: petroleum tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 70,285 GRT/6,946 DWT ships by type: passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Jamaica Defense Force (includes Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $30 million (FY95/96 est.) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
736,627 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
517,077 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
27,729 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) | Territory Day, 1 July |
Nationality | noun:
Jamaican(s) adjective: Jamaican |
noun:
British Virgin Islander(s) adjective: British Virgin Islander |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (especially July to November) | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) |
Natural resources | bauxite, gypsum, limestone | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -7.52 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 10 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) | NA |
Population | 2,665,636 (July 2001 est.) | 20,812 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 34.2% (1992 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.51% (2001 est.) | 2.22% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) | Road Town |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.215 million (1997) | 9,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
370 km standard gauge: 370 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km belong to the Jamaica Railway Corporation in common carrier service, but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite |
0 km |
Religions | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other, including some spiritual cults 34.7% | Protestant 86% (Methodist 45%, Anglican 21%, Church of God 7%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 2%), Roman Catholic 6%, none 2%, other 6% (1981) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.18 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
fully automatic domestic telephone network domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
general assessment:
worldwide telephone service domestic: NA international: submarine cable to Bermuda |
Telephones - main lines in use | 353,000 (1996) | 10,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 54,640 (1996) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (1997) | 1 (plus one cable company) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly |
Total fertility rate | 2.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.72 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16% (2000 est.) | 3% (1995) |
Waterways | none | none |