Pacific Ocean (2004) | Grenada (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 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: 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 | - | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables |
Airports | - | 3 (2001) |
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) |
Area | total: 155.557 million sq km
note: includes Bali Sea, Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Gulf of Tonkin, Philippine Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, South China Sea, Tasman Sea, and other tributary water bodies |
total: 344 sq km
land: 344 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 15 times the size of the US; covers about 28% of the global surface; larger than the total land area of the world | twice the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the world's five oceans (followed by the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean). Strategically important access waterways include the La Perouse, Tsugaru, Tsushima, Taiwan, Singapore, and Torres Straits. 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 Pacific Ocean south of 60 degrees south. | 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 | - | 23.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $85.8 million
expenditures: $102.1 million, including capital expenditures of $28 million (1997) |
Capital | - | Saint George's |
Climate | planetary air pressure systems and resultant wind patterns exhibit remarkable uniformity in the south and east; trade winds and westerly winds are well-developed patterns, modified by seasonal fluctuations; tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico from June to October and affect Mexico and Central America; continental influences cause climatic uniformity to be much less pronounced in the eastern and western regions at the same latitude in the North Pacific Ocean; the western Pacific is monsoonal - a rainy season occurs during the summer months, when moisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a dry season during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asian landmass back to the ocean; tropical cyclones (typhoons) may strike southeast and east Asia from May to December | tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 135,663 km | 121 km |
Constitution | - | 19 December 1973 |
Country name | - | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Grenada |
Currency | - | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | - | 7.63 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $196 million (2000) (2000) |
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 |
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 |
Disputes - international | some maritime disputes (see littoral states) | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $8.3 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | The Pacific Ocean is a major contributor to the world economy and particularly to those nations its waters directly touch. It provides low-cost sea transportation between East and West, extensive fishing grounds, offshore oil and gas fields, minerals, and sand and gravel for the construction industry. In 1996, over 60% of the world's fish catch came from the Pacific Ocean. Exploitation of offshore oil and gas reserves is playing an ever-increasing role in the energy supplies of the US, Australia, NZ, China, and Peru. The high cost of recovering offshore oil and gas, combined with the wide swings in world prices for oil since 1985, has led to fluctuations in new drillings. | 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 | - | 102.3 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | - | 110 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench -10,924 m
highest point: sea level 0 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 m |
Environment - current issues | endangered marine species include the dugong, sea lion, sea otter, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in Philippine Sea and South China Sea | 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 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 - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) |
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 |
Exports | - | $78 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | - | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace |
Exports - partners | - | Caricom 32.3%, UK 20%, US 13%, Netherlands 8.8% (1991) |
Fiscal 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.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 8%
industry: 24% services: 68% (2000) (2000) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $4,750 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 6.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 00 N, 160 00 W | 12 07 N, 61 40 W |
Geography - note | the major chokepoints are the Bering Strait, Panama Canal, Luzon Strait, and the Singapore Strait; the Equator divides the Pacific Ocean into the North Pacific Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean; dotted with low coral islands and rugged volcanic islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean | 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% |
Illicit drugs | - | small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana and cocaine to US |
Imports | - | $270 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | - | food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel (1989) |
Imports - partners | - | US 31.2%, Caricom 23.6%, UK 13.8%, Japan 7.1% (1991) |
Independence | - | 7 February 1974 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 0.7% (1997 est.) |
Industries | - | food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction |
Infant mortality rate | - | 14.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 2.8% (2001 est.) |
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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 14 (2000) |
Irrigated land | - | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada) |
Labor force | - | 42,300 (1996) (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | services 62%, agriculture 24%, industry 14% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | - | 0 km |
Land use | - | arable land: 5.88%
permanent crops: 26.47% other: 67.65% (1998 est.) |
Languages | - | English (official), French patois |
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.) |
Literacy | - | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
Location | body of water between the Southern Ocean, Asia, Australia, and the Western Hemisphere | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
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 | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | - | Royal Grenada Police Force, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 7 February (1974) |
Nationality | - | noun: Grenadian(s)
adjective: Grenadian |
Natural hazards | surrounded by a zone of violent volcanic and earthquake activity sometimes referred to as the "Pacific Ring of Fire"; subject to tropical cyclones (typhoons) in southeast and east Asia from May to December (most frequent from July to October); tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico and strike Central America and Mexico from June to October (most common in August and September); cyclical El Nino/La Nina phenomenon occurs in the equatorial Pacific, influencing weather in the Western Hemisphere and the western Pacific; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme north from October to May; persistent fog in the northern Pacific can be a maritime hazard from June to December | lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November |
Natural resources | oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, fish | timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors |
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 |
Population | - | 89,211 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 0.02% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bangkok (Thailand), Hong Kong, Kao-hsiung (Taiwan), Los Angeles (US), Manila (Philippines), Pusan (South Korea), San Francisco (US), Seattle (US), Shanghai (China), Singapore, Sydney (Australia), Vladivostok (Russia), Wellington (NZ), Yokohama (Japan) | Grenville, Saint George's |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 2, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 57,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | - | Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2% |
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.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 27,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 976 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | surface currents in the northern Pacific are dominated by a clockwise, warm-water gyre (broad circular system of currents) and in the southern Pacific by a counterclockwise, cool-water gyre; in the northern Pacific, sea ice forms in the Bering Sea and Sea of Okhotsk in winter; in the southern Pacific, sea ice from Antarctica reaches its northernmost extent in October; the ocean floor in the eastern Pacific is dominated by the East Pacific Rise, while the western Pacific is dissected by deep trenches, including the Mariana Trench, which is the world's deepest | volcanic in origin with central mountains |
Total fertility rate | - | 2.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Transportation - note | Inside Passage offers protected waters from southeast Alaska to Puget Sound (Washington state) | - |
Unemployment rate | - | 11.5% (1999) (1999) |
Waterways | - | none |