Saint Lucia (2004) | Denmark (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros-Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux-Fort | metropolitan Denmark - 14 counties (amter, singular - amt) and 2 boroughs* (amtskommuner, singular - amtskomunes); Arhus, Bornholm, Fredericksberg*, Frederiksborg, Fyn, Kobenhavn, Kobenhavns*, Nordjylland, Ribe, Ringkobing, Roskilde, Sonderjylland, Storstrom, Vejle, Vestsjalland, Viborg
note: see separate entries for the Faroe Islands and Greenland, which are part of the Kingdom of Denmark and are self-governing overseas administrative divisions |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 30.7% (male 25,913; female 24,467)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 51,750; female 53,530) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 3,159; female 5,394) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.7% (male 514,589; female 488,121)
15-64 years: 66.4% (male 1,806,722; female 1,760,149) 65 years and over: 14.9% (male 334,599; female 464,674) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa | barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 2 (2003 est.) | 116 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 28
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 76
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 71 (2002) |
Area | total: 616 sq km
land: 606 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total: 43,094 sq km
land: 42,394 sq km water: 700 sq km note: includes the island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea and the rest of metropolitan Denmark (the Jutland Peninsula, and the major islands of Sjaelland and Fyn), but excludes the Faroe Islands and Greenland |
Area - comparative | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts |
Background | The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979. | Once the seat of Viking raiders and later a major north European power, Denmark has evolved into a modern, prosperous nation that is participating in the general political and economic integration of Europe. However, the country has opted out of European Union's Maastricht Treaty, the European monetary system (EMU), and issues concerning certain internal affairs. |
Birth rate | 20.5 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 11.74 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $141.2 million
expenditures: $146.7 million, including capital expenditures of $25.1 million (2000 est.) |
revenues: $52.9 billion
expenditures: $51.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2001 est.) |
Capital | Castries | Copenhagen |
Climate | tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to April, rainy season from May to August | temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers |
Coastline | 158 km | 7,314 km |
Constitution | 22 February 1979 | 1849 was the original constitution; there was a major overhaul 5 June 1953, allowing for a unicameral legislature and a female chief of state |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Lucia |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Denmark
conventional short form: Denmark local long form: Kongeriget Danmark local short form: Danmark |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Danish krone (DKK) |
Death rate | 5.18 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 10.81 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $214 million (2000) | $21.7 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador to Barbados, Ambassador Mary E. KRAMER, is accredited to Saint Lucia | chief of mission: Ambassador Stuart BERNSTEIN
embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Alle 24, 2100 Copenhagen mailing address: PSC 73, APO AE 09716 telephone: [45] 35 55 31 44 FAX: [45] 35 43 02 23 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Sonia Merlyn JOHNNY
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6723 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Ulrik Andreas FEDERSPIEL
chancery: 3200 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 328-1470 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea | Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area); dispute with Iceland over the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line boundary within 200 NM; disputes with Iceland, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM; Faroese are considering proposals for full independence |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.63 billion (1999) |
Economic aid - recipient | $51.8 million (1995) | - |
Economy - overview | Changes in the EU import preference regime and the increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. The island nation has been able to attract foreign business and investment, especially in its offshore banking and tourism industries. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean area, and the government is trying to revitalize the banana industry. Economic fundamentals remain solid. | This thoroughly modern market economy features high-tech agriculture, up-to-date small-scale and corporate industry, extensive government welfare measures, comfortable living standards, a stable currency, and high dependence on foreign trade. Denmark is a net exporter of food and energy and has a comfortable balance of payments surplus. Government objectives include streamlining the bureaucracy and further privatization of state assets. The government has been successful in meeting, and even exceeding, the economic convergence criteria for participating in the third phase (a common European currency) of the European Monetary Union (EMU), but Denmark has decided not to join the 12 other EU members in the euro; even so, the Danish Krone remains pegged to the euro. Given the sluggish state of the world economy, growth in 2003 likely will be only moderately higher than in 2002. |
Electricity - consumption | 111.8 million kWh (2001) | 33.925 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 7.679 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 8.318 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 120.2 million kWh (2001) | 35.792 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 84%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 16% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m |
lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region | air pollution, principally from vehicle and power plant emissions; nitrogen and phosphorus pollution of the North Sea; drinking and surface water becoming polluted from animal wastes and pesticides |
Environment - international 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 |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | black 90%, mixed 6%, East Indian 3%, white 1% | Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, German, Turkish, Iranian, Somali |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999) | Danish kroner per US dollar - 8.418 (January 2002), 8.323 (2001), 8.083 (2000), 6.976 (1999), 6.701 (1998), 6.604 (1997); note - the Danes rejected the euro in a 28 September 2000 referendum |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Pearlette LOUISY (since September 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Kenneth Davis ANTHONY (since 24 May 1997) and Deputy Prime Minister Mario MICHEL (since 24 May 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of 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 the 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 MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972); Heir Apparent Crown Prince FREDERIK, elder son of the monarch (born 26 May 1968)
head of government: Prime Minister Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN (since 27 November 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch |
Exports | NA (2001) | $56.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
Exports - commodities | bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil | machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills |
Exports - partners | UK 48%, US 24%, Antigua and Barbuda 6%, Dominica 6%, Grenada 4% (2003) | EU 64.7% (Germany 19.6%, Sweden 11.8%, UK 9.5%, France 5.1%, Netherlands 4.5%), US 6.9%, Norway 5.5% (2001) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border | red with a white cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side, and that design element of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) was subsequently adopted by the other Nordic countries of Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $866 million (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $155.5 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 7%
industry: 20% services: 73% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 3%
industry: 26% services: 71% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,400 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $29,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.3% (2002 est.) | 1.8% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 53 N, 60 68 W | 56 00 N, 10 00 E |
Geography - note | the twin Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit Piton), striking cone-shaped peaks south of Soufriere, are one of the scenic natural highlights of the Caribbean | controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen |
Highways | total: 1,210 km
paved: 63 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1999 est.) |
total: 71,474 km
paved: 71,474 km (including 880 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 24% (2000 est.) |
Illicit drugs | transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | $47.9 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
Imports - commodities | food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels | machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | US 36.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 19.6%, UK 7.4%, Venezuela 6.8% (2003) | EU 69.9% (Germany 21.9%, Sweden 12.1%, UK 7.5%, Netherlands 7.1%, France 5.7%, Italy 4.5%), US 4.2% (2001) |
Independence | 22 February 1979 (from UK) | first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy |
Industrial production growth rate | -8.9% (1997 est.) | 1.4% (2002 est.) |
Industries | clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism, lime processing, coconut processing | food processing, machinery and equipment, textiles and clothing, chemical products, electronics, construction, furniture, and other wood products, shipbuilding, windmills |
Infant mortality rate | total: 13.95 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
4.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2001 est.) | 2.3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 13 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 4,760 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (jurisdiction extends to Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life) |
Labor force | 43,800 (2001 est.) | 2.856 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 21.7%, industry, commerce, and manufacturing 24.7%, services 53.6% (2002 est.) | services 79%, industry 17%, agriculture 4% (2002 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 68 km
border countries: Germany 68 km |
Land use | arable land: 6.56%
permanent crops: 22.95% other: 70.49% (2001) |
arable land: 55.74%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 44.07% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), French patois | Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language |
Legal system | based on English common law | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (11 seats; six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 3 December 2001 (next to be held in December 2006) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - SLP 55%, UWP 37%, NA 3.5%; seats by party - SLP 14, UWP 3 |
unicameral Parliament or Folketing (179 seats, including 2 from Greenland and 2 from the Faroe Islands; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party 56, Social Democrats 52, Danish People's Party 22, Conservative Party 16, Socialist People's Party 12, Social Liberal Party 9, Christian People's Party 4, Unity List 4; note - does not include the 2 seats from Greenland and the 2 seats from the Faroe Islands |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.34 years
male: 69.78 years female: 77.16 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 76.91 years
male: 74.3 years female: 79.67 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 67% male: 65% female: 69% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, on a peninsula north of Germany (Jutland); also includes two major islands (Sjaelland and Fyn) |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | 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 |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none | total: 301 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,258,959 GRT/8,143,520 DWT
ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 105, chemical tanker 26, container 72, liquefied gas 20, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 25, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 13, roll on/roll off 16, short-sea passenger 7, specialized tanker 3 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 1, Greenland 1, Indonesia 1, Netherlands 1, Norway 9, United Kingdom 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (including Special Service Unit, Coast Guard) | Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force, Home Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $2.47 billion (FY99/00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 1.4% (FY99/00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,287,168 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,099,900 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 29,212 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 February (1979) | none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June is generally viewed as the National Day |
Nationality | noun: Saint Lucian(s)
adjective: Saint Lucian |
noun: Dane(s)
adjective: Danish |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and volcanic activity | flooding is a threat in some areas of the country (e.g., parts of Jutland, along the southern coast of the island of Lolland) that are protected from the sea by a system of dikes |
Natural resources | forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential | petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, stone, gravel and sand |
Net migration rate | -2.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 2.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 110 km; petroleum products 578 km; natural gas 700 km |
Political parties and leaders | National Alliance or NA [George ODLUM]; Saint Lucia Freedom Party or SFP [Martinus FRANCOIS]; Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Kenneth ANTHONY]; Sou Tout Apwe Fete Fini or STAFF [Christopher HUNTE]; United Workers Party or UWP [Dr. Morella JOSEPH] | Center Democratic Party [Mimi JAKOBSEN]; Christian People's Party [Jann SJURSEN]; Conservative Party (sometimes known as Conservative People's Party) [Bendt BENDTSEN]; Danish People's Party [Pia KJAERSGAARD]; Liberal Party [Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN]; Social Democratic Party [Mogens LYKKETOFT]; Social Liberal Party (sometimes called the Radical Left) [Marianne JELVED, leader; Johannes LEBECH, chairman]; Socialist People's Party [Holger K. NIELSEN]; Red-Green Unity List (bloc includes Left Socialist Party, Communist Party of Denmark, Socialist Workers' Party) [collective leadership] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 164,213 (July 2004 est.) | 5,368,854 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.27% (2004 est.) | 0.29% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Castries, Vieux Fort | Abenra, Alborg, Arhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia, Frederikshavn, Hirtshals, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 6.02 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total: 2,859 km (508 km privately owned and operated)
standard gauge: 2,859 km 1.435-m gauge (600 km electrified; 760 km double-track) (1998 est.) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 90%, Anglican 3%, other Protestant 7% | Evangelical Lutheran 95%, other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, Muslim 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate system
domestic: system is automatically switched international: country code - 1-758; direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados; international calls beyond these countries are carried by Intelsat from Martinique |
general assessment: excellent telephone and telegraph services
domestic: buried and submarine cables and microwave radio relay form trunk network, 4 cellular mobile communications systems international: 18 submarine fiber-optic cables linking Denmark with Norway, Sweden, Russia, Poland, Germany, Netherlands, UK, Faroe Islands, Iceland, and Canada; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 10 Eutelsat, 1 Orion, 1 Inmarsat (Blaavand-Atlantic-East); note - the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) share the Danish earth station and the Eik, Norway, station for worldwide Inmarsat access (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 51,100 (2002) | 4.785 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 14,300 (2002) | 1,444,016 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (of which one is a commercial broadcast station and one is a community antenna television or CATV channel) (2004) | 26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys | low and flat to gently rolling plains |
Total fertility rate | 2.25 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.73 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16.5% (1997 est.) | 5.1% (2002) |
Waterways | - | 417 km |