Montserrat (2007) | Grenada (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 parishes; Saint Anthony, Saint Georges, Saint Peter | 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 23.5% (male 1,144/female 1,094)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 2,989/female 3,281) 65 years and over: 10.8% (male 527/female 503) (2007 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | cabbages, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, peppers; livestock products | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables |
Airports | 2 (2007) | 3 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 102 sq km
land: 102 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 344 sq km
land: 344 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.6 times the size of Washington, DC | twice the size of Washington, DC |
Background | English and Irish colonists from St. Kitts first settled on Montserrat in 1632; the first African slaves arrived three decades later. The British and French fought for possession of the island for most of the 18th century, but it finally was confirmed as a British possession in 1783. The island's sugar plantation economy was converted to small farm landholdings in the mid 19th century. Much of this island was devastated and two-thirds of the population fled abroad because of the eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano that began on 18 July 1995. Montserrat has endured volcanic activity since, with the last eruption occurring in July 2003. | 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. |
Birth rate | 17.51 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 23.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $31.4 million
expenditures: $31.6 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $85.8 million
expenditures: $102.1 million, including capital expenditures of $28 million (1997) |
Capital | name: Plymouth
geographic coordinates: 16 42 N, 62 13 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Plymouth was abandoned in 1997 because of volcanic activity; interim government buildings have been built at Brades Estate in the Carr's Bay/Little Bay vicinity at the northwest end of Montserrat |
Saint George's |
Climate | tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation | tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 40 km | 121 km |
Constitution | effective 19 December 1989 | 19 December 1973 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Montserrat |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Grenada |
Currency | - | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 7.02 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 7.63 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $8.9 million (1997) | $196 million (2000) (2000) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | Country Policy Plan (2001) is a three-year program for spending $122.8 million in British budgetary assistance (2002 est.) | $8.3 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | Severe volcanic activity, which began in July 1995, has put a damper on this small, open economy. A catastrophic eruption in June 1997 closed the airports and seaports, causing further economic and social dislocation. Two-thirds of the 12,000 inhabitants fled the island. Some began to return in 1998, but lack of housing limited the number. The agriculture sector continued to be affected by the lack of suitable land for farming and the destruction of crops. Prospects for the economy depend largely on developments in relation to the volcanic activity and on public sector construction activity. The UK has launched a three-year $122.8 million aid program to help reconstruct the economy. Half of the island is expected to remain uninhabitable for another decade. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 18.6 million kWh (2005) | 102.3 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 20 million kWh (2005) | 110 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: lava dome in English's Crater (in the Soufriere Hills volcanic complex) estimated at over 930 m (2006) |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 m |
Environment - current issues | land erosion occurs on slopes that have been cleared for cultivation | NA |
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 |
Ethnic groups | black, white | black 82%, mixed black and European 13%, European and East Indian 5% , and trace of Arawak/Carib Amerindian |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002)
note: fixed rate since 1976 |
East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Peter A. WATERWORTH (since 27 July 2007)
head of government: Chief Minister Lowell LEWIS (since 2 June 2006) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, the chief minister, three other ministers, the attorney general, and the finance secretary elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually becomes chief minister |
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 |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $78 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | electronic components, plastic bags, apparel; hot peppers, limes, live plants; cattle | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace |
Exports - partners | US, Antigua and Barbuda (2006) | Caricom 32.3%, UK 20%, US 13%, Netherlands 8.8% (1991) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Montserratian coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a woman standing beside a yellow harp with her arm around a black cross | 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.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.2%
industry: 23.1% services: 75.7% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 24% services: 68% (2000) (2000) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $4,750 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -1% (2002 est.) | 6.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 16 45 N, 62 12 W | 12 07 N, 61 40 W |
Geography - note | the island is entirely volcanic in origin and comprised of three major volcanic centers of differing ages | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada |
Highways | - | total: 1,040 km
paved: 638 km unpaved: 402 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe | small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana and cocaine to US |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $270 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transportation equipment, foodstuffs, manufactured goods, fuels, lubricants, and related materials | food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel (1989) |
Imports - partners | US, UK, Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, Canada (2006) | US 31.2%, Caricom 23.6%, UK 13.8%, Japan 7.1% (1991) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 7 February 1974 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 0.7% (1997 est.) |
Industries | tourism, rum, textiles, electronic appliances | food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.03 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.15 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
14.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.6% (2002 est.) | 2.8% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom, CDB, Interpol (subbureau), OECS, UPU | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 14 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia, one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court) | West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada) |
Labor force | 4,521
note: lowered by flight of people from volcanic activity (2000 est.) |
42,300 (1996) (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | services 62%, agriculture 24%, industry 14% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 0% other: 80% (2005) |
arable land: 5.88%
permanent crops: 26.47% other: 67.65% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English | English (official), French patois |
Legal system | English common law and statutory law | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (11 seats, 9 popularly elected; members serve five-year terms)
note: expanded in 2001 from 7 to 9 elected members with attorney general and financial secretary sitting as ex-officio members elections: last held 31 May 2006 (next to be held by 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - MCAP 36.1%, NPLM 29.4%, MDP 24.4%, independents 10.1%; seats by party - MCAP 4, NPLM 3, MDP 1, independents 1 note: in 2001, the Elections Commission instituted a single constituency/voter-at-large system whereby all eligible voters cast ballots for all nine seats of the Legislative Council |
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: 79 years
male: 76.8 years female: 81.31 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 64.52 years
male: 62.74 years female: 66.31 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 97% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Royal Montserrat Police Force (2005) | Royal Grenada Police Force, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
National holiday | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) | Independence Day, 7 February (1974) |
Nationality | noun: Montserratian(s)
adjective: Montserratian |
noun: Grenadian(s)
adjective: Grenadian |
Natural hazards | severe hurricanes (June to November); volcanic eruptions (Soufriere Hills volcano has erupted continuously since 1995) | lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November |
Natural resources | NEGL | timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -15.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Montserrat Democratic Party or MDP [Lowell LEWIS]; Movement for Change and Prosperity or MCAP [Roselyn CASSELL-SEALY]; New People's Liberation Movement or NPLM [John A. OSBORNE] | 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 | NA |
Population | 9,538
note: an estimated 8,000 refugees left the island following the resumption of volcanic activity in July 1995; some have returned (July 2007 est.) |
89,211 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.048% (2007 est.) | 0.02% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Grenville, Saint George's |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 57,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Christian denominations | Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.046 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.911 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.048 male(s)/female total population: 0.955 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
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.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern and fully digitalized
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-664 |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | NA | 27,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 976 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic island, mostly mountainous, with small coastal lowland | volcanic in origin with central mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.77 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6% (1998 est.) | 11.5% (1999) (1999) |
Waterways | - | none |