Saint Kitts and Nevis (2001) | Antigua and Barbuda (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 parishes; Christ Church Nichola Town, Saint Anne Sandy Point, Saint George Basseterre, Saint George Gingerland, Saint James Windward, Saint John Capisterre, Saint John Figtree, Saint Mary Cayon, Saint Paul Capisterre, Saint Paul Charlestown, Saint Peter Basseterre, Saint Thomas Lowland, Saint Thomas Middle Island, Trinity Palmetto Point | 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*, Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter, Saint Philip |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
29.84% (male 5,909; female 5,654) 15-64 years: 61.37% (male 11,870; female 11,915) 65 years and over: 8.79% (male 1,406; female 2,002) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 28.1% (male 9,761; female 9,429)
15-64 years: 67.6% (male 23,179; female 23,023) 65 years and over: 4.3% (male 1,151; female 1,777) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, rice, yams, vegetables, bananas; fish | cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 3 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
261 sq km (Saint Kitts 168 sq km; Nevis 93 sq km) land: 261 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 443 sq km (Antigua 280 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km)
land: 443 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Redonda, 1.6 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | First settled by the British in 1623, the islands became an associated state with full internal autonomy in 1967. The island of Anguilla rebelled and was allowed to secede in 1971. Saint Kitts and Nevis achieved independence in 1983. In 1998, a vote in Nevis on a referendum to separate from Saint Kitts fell short of the two-thirds majority needed. | The Siboney were the first to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 B.C., but Arawak and Carib Indians populated the islands when Columbus landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early settlements by the Spanish and French were succeeded by the English who formed a colony in 1667. Slavery, established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in 1834. The islands became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981. |
Birth rate | 18.78 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.7 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$64.1 million expenditures: $73.3 million, including capital expenditures of $10.4 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $123.7 million
expenditures: $145.9 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Basseterre | Saint John's (Antigua) |
Climate | tropical tempered by constant sea breezes; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November) | tropical; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 135 km | 153 km |
Constitution | 19 September 1983 | 1 November 1981 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis conventional short form: Saint Kitts and Nevis former: Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 9.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.55 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $115.1 million (1998) | $231 million (1999) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Saint Kitts and Nevis; the US Ambassador in Barbados is accredited to Saint Kitts and Nevis | the US does not have an embassy in Antigua and Barbuda (embassy closed 30 June 1994); the US Ambassador to Barbados, Ambassador Mary E. KRAMER, is accredited to Antigua and Barbuda |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Dr. Osbert W. LIBURD chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 686-2636 FAX: [1] (202) 686-5740 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Lionel A. HURST
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 362-5122 FAX: [1] (202) 362-5225 consulate(s) general: Miami |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $5.5 million (1995) | $2.3 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | The economy has traditionally depended on the growing and processing of sugarcane; decreasing world prices have hurt the industry in recent years. Tourism, export-oriented manufacturing, and offshore banking activity have assumed larger roles. Most food is imported. The government has undertaken a program designed to revitalize the faltering sugar sector. It is also working to improve revenue collection in order to better fund social programs. In 1997 some leaders in Nevis were urging separation from Saint Kitts on the basis that Nevis was paying far more in taxes than it was receiving in government services, but the vote on cessation failed in August 1998. In late September 1998, Hurricane Georges caused approximately $445 million in damages and limited GDP growth for the year. | Tourism continues to dominate the economy, accounting for more than half of GDP. Weak tourist arrival numbers since early 2000 have slowed the economy, however, and pressed the government into a tight fiscal corner. The dual-island nation's agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited water supply and a labor shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction. Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialized world, especially in the US, which accounts for slightly more than one-third of tourist arrivals. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (1999) | 97.89 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (1999) | 105.3 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Liamuiga 1,156 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | water management - a major concern because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall to run off quickly |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | predominantly black some British, Portuguese, and Lebanese | black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999), 2.7 (1998) (fixed rate since 1976) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Perlette LOUISY (since September 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Denzil DOUGLAS (since 6 July 1995) and Deputy Prime Minister Sam CONDOR (since 6 July 1995) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general in consultation with 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; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General James B. CARLISLE (since 10 June 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Baldwin SPENCER (since 24 March 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general chosen by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; 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 | $53.2 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery, food, electronics, beverages, tobacco | petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, machinery and transport equipment 17%, food and live animals 4%, other 8% |
Exports - partners | US 68.5%, UK 22.3%, Caricom countries 5.5% (1995 est.) | Germany 84.9%, UK 3.8%, US 3.3% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a broad black band bearing two white, five-pointed stars; the black band is edged in yellow; the upper triangle is green, the lower triangle is red | red, with an inverted isosceles triangle based on the top edge of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands of black (top), light blue, and white, with a yellow rising sun in the black band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $274 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $750 million (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
5.5% industry: 22.5% services: 72% (1996) |
agriculture: 3.9%
industry: 19.2% services: 76.8% (2002) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 20 N, 62 45 W | 17 03 N, 61 48 W |
Geography - note | - | Antigua has a deeply indented shoreline with many natural harbors and beaches; Barbuda has a very large western harbor |
Highways | total:
320 km paved: 136 km unpaved: 184 km (2000) |
total: 250 km (1999 est.) |
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 drugs destined for the US and Europe | considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; more significant as an offshore financial center |
Imports | $151.5 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, manufactures, food, fuels | food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil |
Imports - partners | US 42.4%, Caricom countries 17.2%, UK 11.3% (1995 est.) | US 26.5%, Singapore 10%, Poland 7%, Germany 6.1%, UK 6.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.4% (2003) |
Independence | 19 September 1983 (from UK) | 1 November 1981 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 6% (1997 est.) |
Industries | sugar processing, tourism, cotton, salt, copra, clothing, footwear, beverages | tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances) |
Infant mortality rate | 16.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 20.18 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2000 est.) | 0.4% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WTrO | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court resides in Saint Kitts and Nevis) | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction) |
Labor force | 18,172 (June 1995) | 30,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture 7%, industry 11%, services 82% (1983) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
22% permanent crops: 17% permanent pastures: 3% forests and woodland: 17% other: 41% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 18.18%
permanent crops: 4.55% other: 77.27% (2001) |
Languages | English | English (official), local dialects |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (14 seats, 3 appointed and 11 popularly elected from single-member constituencies; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 6 March 2000 (next to be held by July 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SKNLP 8, CCM 2, NRP 1 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (17-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 23 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ALP 4, UPP 12, contested 1; note - new election will decide the contested seat |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.01 years male: 68.22 years female: 73.97 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 71.6 years
male: 69.26 years female: 74.07 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling
total population: 89% male: 90% female: 88% (1960 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, about one-third of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin territorial sea: 12 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 867 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,873,626 GRT/7,683,143 DWT
by type: bulk 25, cargo 477, chemical tanker 13, container 284, liquefied gas 10, multi-functional large load carrier 15, refrigerated cargo 10, roll on/roll off 32, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: Australia 1, Bahamas 1, Bangladesh 2, Belgium 3, Colombia 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 1, Estonia 3, France 1, Germany 818, Greece 2, Iceland 5, Latvia 1, Lebanon 1, Lithuania 2, Malaysia 1, Netherlands 19, New Zealand 1, Norway 2, Portugal 1, Slovenia 5, Sweden 2, Switzerland 5, Turkey 3, United States 10 registered in other countries: 2 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Saint Kitts and Nevis Police Force, Coast Guard, Royal Saint Kitts and Nevis Defense Force | Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force (including Coast Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 19 September (1983) | Independence Day (National Day), 1 November (1981) |
Nationality | noun:
Kittitian(s), Nevisian(s) adjective: Kittitian, Nevisian |
noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s)
adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (July to October) | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts |
Natural resources | arable land | NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism |
Net migration rate | -10.68 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -6.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Vance AMORY]; Nevis Reformation Party or NRP [Joseph PARRY]; People's Action Movement or PAM [Lindsey GRANT]; Saint Kitts and Nevis Labor Party or SKNLP [Dr. Denzil DOUGLAS] | Antigua Labor Party or ALP [Lester Bryant BIRD]; Barbuda People's Movement or BPM [Thomas H. FRANK]; United Progressive Party or UPP [Baldwin SPENCER] (a coalition of three opposition parties - United National Democratic Party or UNDP, Antigua Caribbean Liberation Movement or ACLM, and Progressive Labor Movement or PLM) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Antigua Trades and Labor Union or ATLU [William ROBINSON]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh MARSHALL] |
Population | 38,756 (July 2001 est.) | 68,320 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | -0.11% (2001 est.) | 0.6% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Basseterre, Charlestown | Saint John's |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 28,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
58 km narrow gauge: 58 km 0.762-m gauge on Saint Kitts to serve sugarcane plantations (1995) |
- |
Religions | Anglican, other Protestant, Roman Catholic | Christian, (predominantly Anglican with other Protestant, and some Roman Catholic) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
good interisland and international connections domestic: interisland links to Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles) are handled by VHF/UHF/SHF radiotelephone international: international calls are carried by radiotelephone to Antigua and Barbuda and switched there to submarine cable or to Intelsat; or carried to Saint Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles) by radiotelephone and switched to Intelsat |
general assessment: NA
domestic: good automatic telephone system international: country code - 1-268; 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands Antilles) and Guadeloupe |
Telephones - main lines in use | 17,000 (1997) | 38,000 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 205 (1997) | 38,200 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic with mountainous interiors | mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas |
Total fertility rate | 2.41 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.27 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.5% (1997) | 11% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |