Saint Kitts and Nevis (2001) | French Polynesia (2003) | |
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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 | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 5 archipelagic divisions named Archipel des Marquises, Archipel des Tuamotu, Archipel des Tubuai, Iles du Vent, and Iles Sous-le-Vent
note: Clipperton Island is administered by France from French Polynesia |
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: 28.3% (male 37,804; female 36,249)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 90,421; female 83,304) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 7,226; female 7,121) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, rice, yams, vegetables, bananas; fish | coconuts, vanilla, vegetables, fruits; poultry, beef, dairy products, coffee |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 45 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 37
over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 22 under 914 m: 8 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Area | total:
261 sq km (Saint Kitts 168 sq km; Nevis 93 sq km) land: 261 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 4,167 sq km (118 islands and atolls)
land: 3,660 sq km water: 507 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut |
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 French annexed various Polynesian island groups during the 19th century. In September 1995, France stirred up widespread protests by resuming nuclear testing on the Mururoa atoll after a three-year moratorium. The tests were suspended in January 1996. |
Birth rate | 18.78 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.74 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$64.1 million expenditures: $73.3 million, including capital expenditures of $10.4 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $1 billion
expenditures: $900 million, including capital expenditures of $185 million (1996) |
Capital | Basseterre | Papeete |
Climate | tropical tempered by constant sea breezes; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November) | tropical, but moderate |
Coastline | 135 km | 2,525 km |
Constitution | 19 September 1983 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
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: Territory of French Polynesia
conventional short form: French Polynesia local long form: Territoire de la Polynesie Francaise local short form: Polynesie Francaise former: French Colony of Oceania |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF); note - may adopt the euro in 2003 |
Death rate | 9.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.53 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $115.1 million (1998) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France since 1946 |
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 | none (overseas territory of France) |
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 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $5.5 million (1995) | $367 million (1997) |
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. | Since 1962, when France stationed military personnel in the region, French Polynesia has changed from a subsistence agricultural economy to one in which a high proportion of the work force is either employed by the military or supports the tourist industry. With the halt of French nuclear testing in 1996, the military contribution to the economy fell sharply. Tourism accounts for about one-fourth of GDP and is a primary source of hard currency earnings. Other sources of income are pearl farming and deep-sea commercial fishing. The small manufacturing sector primarily processes agricultural products. The territory benefits substantially from development agreements with France aimed principally at creating new businesses and strengthening social services. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (1999) | 398.3 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) | 428.3 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 60.7%
hydro: 39.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0%; note - sun, wind, biomass (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Liamuiga 1,156 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Orohena 2,241 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | predominantly black some British, Portuguese, and Lebanese | Polynesian 78%, Chinese 12%, local French 6%, metropolitan French 4% |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 126.41 (2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (1998)
note: pegged at the rate of 119.25 XPF to the euro |
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: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Michel MATHIEU (since 24 October 2001)
head of government: President of the Territorial Government of French Polynesia Gaston FLOSSE (since 4 April 1991); President of the Territorial Assembly Lucette TAERO (since 17 May 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers; president submits a list of members of the Territorial Assembly for approval by them to serve as ministers elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the Territorial Government and the president of the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly |
Exports | $53.2 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery, food, electronics, beverages, tobacco | cultured pearls 50%, coconut products, mother-of-pearl, vanilla, shark meat (1997) |
Exports - partners | US 68.5%, UK 22.3%, Caricom countries 5.5% (1995 est.) | France 37.4%, Japan 35.5%, US 17.5% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | two narrow red horizontal bands encase a wide white band; centered on the white band is a disk with blue and white wave pattern on the lower half and gold and white ray pattern on the upper half; a stylized red, blue and white ship rides on the wave pattern; the French flag is used for official occasions |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $274 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.3 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
5.5% industry: 22.5% services: 72% (1996) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 18% services: 76% (1997) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 4% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 20 N, 62 45 W | 15 00 S, 140 00 W |
Geography - note | - | includes five archipelagoes (4 volcanic, 1 coral); Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru |
Highways | total:
320 km paved: 136 km unpaved: 184 km (2000) |
total: 2,590 km
paved: 1,735 km unpaved: 855 km (1999) |
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 | - |
Imports | $151.5 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, manufactures, food, fuels | fuels, foodstuffs, machinery and equipment |
Imports - partners | US 42.4%, Caricom countries 17.2%, UK 11.3% (1995 est.) | France 58.9%, Australia 12.2%, New Zealand 6.9%, US 6.6% (2002) |
Independence | 19 September 1983 (from UK) | none (overseas territory of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | sugar processing, tourism, cotton, salt, copra, clothing, footwear, beverages | tourism, pearls, agricultural processing, handicrafts, phosphates |
Infant mortality rate | 16.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 8.78 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2000 est.) | 1.5% |
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 | ESCAP (associate), FZ, ICFTU, SPC, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | 2 (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) | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif |
Labor force | 18,172 (June 1995) | 70,000 (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture 13%, industry 19%, services 68% (1997) |
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: 1.64%
permanent crops: 6.01% other: 92.35% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English | French (official), Tahitian (official) |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on French system |
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 |
unicameral Territorial Assembly or Assemblee Territoriale (49 seats - changed from 41 seats for May 2001 election; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 6 May 2001 (next to be held NA May 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - People's Rally for the Republic (Gaullist) 28, Independent Front for the Liberation of Polynesia 13, New Fatherland Party 7, other 1 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on NA September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; two seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, UMP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.01 years male: 68.22 years female: 73.97 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.45 years
male: 73.08 years female: 77.93 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 14 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1977 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, about one-third of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from South America to Australia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
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 |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 12,679 GRT/13,915 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2, passenger/cargo 3, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Royal Saint Kitts and Nevis Police Force, Coast Guard, Royal Saint Kitts and Nevis Defense Force | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 19 September (1983) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Kittitian(s), Nevisian(s) adjective: Kittitian, Nevisian |
noun: French Polynesian(s)
adjective: French Polynesian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (July to October) | occasional cyclonic storms in January |
Natural resources | arable land | timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -10.68 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 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] | Independent Front for the Liberation of Polynesia (Tavini Huiraatira) [Oscar TEMARU]; New Fatherland Party (Ai'a Api) [Emile VERNAUDON]; People's Rally for the Republic of Polynesia or RPR (Tahoeraa Huiraatira) [Gaston FLOSSE]; The New Star (Te Fetia Api) [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 38,756 (July 2001 est.) | 262,125 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.11% (2001 est.) | 1.62% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Basseterre, Charlestown | Mataura, Papeete, Rikitea, Uturoa |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 14, shortwave 2 (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) |
0 km |
Religions | Anglican, other Protestant, Roman Catholic | Protestant 54%, Roman Catholic 30%, other 10%, no religion 6% |
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: 1.09 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2003 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: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 17,000 (1997) | 52,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 205 (1997) | 5,427 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997) | 7 (plus 17 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic with mountainous interiors | mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs |
Total fertility rate | 2.41 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.14 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.5% (1997) | 11.8% (1994) |
Waterways | none | none |