Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2001) | Guyana (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick | 10 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper Demerara-Berbice, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
29.61% (male 17,466; female 16,865) 15-64 years: 64.04% (male 38,074; female 36,179) 65 years and over: 6.35% (male 3,162; female 4,196) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.1% (male 102,111/female 98,325)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 266,288/female 261,620) 65 years and over: 5.3% (male 17,308/female 23,443) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish | sugarcane, rice, shrimp, fish, vegetable oils; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products |
Airports | 6 (2000 est.) | 93 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 under 914 m: 6 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 84
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 69 (2007) |
Area | total:
389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km) land: 389 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 214,970 sq km
land: 196,850 sq km water: 18,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Idaho |
Background | Disputed between France and Great Britain in the 18th century, Saint Vincent was ceded to the latter in 1783. Autonomy was granted in 1969, and independence in 1979. | Originally a Dutch colony in the 17th century, by 1815 Guyana had become a British possession. The abolition of slavery led to black settlement of urban areas and the importation of indentured servants from India to work the sugar plantations. This ethnocultural divide has persisted and has led to turbulent politics. Guyana achieved independence from the UK in 1966, and since then it has been ruled mostly by socialist-oriented governments. In 1992, Cheddi JAGAN was elected president in what is considered the country's first free and fair election since independence. After his death five years later, his wife, Janet JAGAN, became president but resigned in 1999 due to poor health. Her successor, Bharrat JAGDEO, was reelected in 2001 and again in 2006. |
Birth rate | 17.91 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.09 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$85.7 million expenditures: $98.6 million, including capital expenditures of $25.7 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $419.4 million
expenditures: $527.4 million (2007 est.) |
Capital | Kingstown | name: Georgetown
geographic coordinates: 6 48 N, 58 10 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November) | tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to August, November to January) |
Coastline | 84 km | 459 km |
Constitution | 27 October 1979 | 6 October 1980 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
conventional long form: Cooperative Republic of Guyana
conventional short form: Guyana former: British Guiana |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | - |
Death rate | 6.16 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 8.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $99.3 million (1998) | $1.2 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; the US Ambassador in Barbados is accredited to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | chief of mission: Ambassador David M. ROBINSON
embassy: 100 Young and Duke Streets, Kingston, Georgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 10507, Georgetown; US Embassy, 3170 Georgetown Place, Washington DC 20521-3170 telephone: [592] 225-4900 through 4909 FAX: [592] 225-8497 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ellsworth JOHN chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6730 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6736 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Bayney KARRAN
chancery: 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 232-1297 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | all of the area west of the Essequibo River is claimed by Venezuela preventing any discussion of a maritime boundary; Guyana has expressed its intention to join Barbados in asserting claims before UNCLOS that Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela extends into their waters; Suriname claims a triangle of land between the New and Kutari/Koetari rivers in a historic dispute over the headwaters of the Courantyne; Guyana seeks arbitration under provisions of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to resolve the long-standing dispute with Suriname over the axis of the territorial sea boundary in potentially oil-rich waters |
Economic aid - recipient | $47.5 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (1998) | $136.8 million (1995), Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC) $253 million (1997) (2005) |
Economy - overview | Agriculture, dominated by banana production, is the most important sector of this lower-middle-income economy. The services sector, based mostly on a growing tourist industry, is also important. The government has been relatively unsuccessful at introducing new industries, and a high unemployment rate persists. The continuing dependence on a single crop represents the biggest obstacle to the islands' development; tropical storms wiped out substantial portions of crops in both 1994 and 1995. The tourism sector has considerable potential for development over the next decade. Recent growth has been stimulated by strong activity in the construction sector and an improvement in tourism. There is a small manufacturing sector and a small offshore financial sector whose particularly restrictive secrecy laws have caused some international concern. | The Guyanese economy exhibited moderate economic growth in 2001-07, based on expansion in the agricultural and mining sectors, a more favorable atmosphere for business initiatives, a more realistic exchange rate, fairly low inflation, and the continued support of international organizations. Economic recovery since the 2005 flood-related contraction has been buoyed by increases in remittances and foreign direct investment. Chronic problems include a shortage of skilled labor and a deficient infrastructure. The government is juggling a sizable external debt against the urgent need for expanded public investment. In March 2007, the Inter-American Development Bank, Guyana's principal donor, canceled Guyana's nearly $470 million debt, equivalent to nearly 41% of GDP. The bauxite mining sector should benefit in the near term from restructuring and partial privatization, and the state-owned sugar industry will conduct efficiency increasing modernizations. Export earnings from agriculture and mining have fallen sharply, while the import bill has risen, driven by higher energy prices. Guyana's entrance into the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME) in January 2006 will broaden the country's export market, primarily in the raw materials sector. |
Electricity - consumption | 76.3 million kWh (1999) | 750.7 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 82 million kWh (1999) | 807.3 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
73.17% hydro: 26.83% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Soufriere 1,234 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 m |
Environment - current issues | pollution of coastal waters and shorelines from discharges by pleasure yachts and other effluents; in some areas, pollution is severe enough to make swimming prohibitive | water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial chemicals; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2% | East Indian 50%, black 36%, Amerindian 7%, white, Chinese, and mixed 7% |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | Guyanese dollars per US dollar - 201.89 (2007), 200.28 (2006), 200.79 (2005), 198.31 (2004), 193.88 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General David JACK (since 29 September 1989) head of government: Prime Minister Ralph GONSALVES (since 29 March 2001) 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 is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister |
chief of state: President Bharrat JAGDEO (since 11 August 1999); note - assumed presidency after resignation of President Janet JAGAN and reelected in 2001, and again in 2006
head of government: Prime Minister Samuel HINDS (since October 1992, except for a period as chief of state after the death of President Cheddi JAGAN on 6 March 1997) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president, responsible to the legislature elections: president elected by popular vote as leader of a party list in parliamentary elections, which must be held at least every five years (no term limits); elections last held 28 August 2006 (next to be held by August 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Bharrat JAGDEO reelected; percent of vote 54.6% |
Exports | $53.7 million (2000 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch, tennis racquets | sugar, gold, bauxite, alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses, rum, timber |
Exports - partners | Caricom countries 49%, UK 16%, US 10% (1995) | US 18.8%, Canada 18.4%, UK 8.7%, Portugal 6.5%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.9%, Netherlands 4.3%, Belgium 4.3%, Jamaica 4.1% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold (double width), and green; the gold band bears three green diamonds arranged in a V pattern | green, with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed on a long, yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow, black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow, white border between the yellow and the green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $322 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10.6% industry: 17.5% services: 71.9% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 35.2%
industry: 19% services: 45.8% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,800 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | 4.5% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 15 N, 61 12 W | 5 00 N, 59 00 W |
Geography - note | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada | the third-smallest country in South America after Suriname and Uruguay; substantial portions of its western and eastern territories are claimed by Venezuela and Suriname respectively |
Highways | total:
1,040 km paved: 320 km unpaved: 720 km (1996) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1.3%
highest 10%: 33.8% (1999) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe | transshipment point for narcotics from South America - primarily Venezuela - to Europe and the US; producer of cannabis; rising money laundering related to drug trafficking and human smuggling |
Imports | $185.6 million (2000 est.) | 10,070 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels | manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food |
Imports - partners | US 36%, Caricom countries 28%, UK 13% (1995) | Trinidad and Tobago 23%, US 21.3%, China 9.7%, Cuba 6.3%, UK 4.5% (2006) |
Independence | 27 October 1979 (from UK) | 26 May 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.9% (1997 est.) | 2% (2007 est.) |
Industries | food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch | bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, textiles, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | 16.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 31.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 34.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 27.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1999 est.) | 10.4% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 15 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 1,500 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court resides in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) | Supreme Court of Judicature, consisting of the High Court and the Judicial Court of Appeal, with right of final appeal to the Caribbean Court of Justice |
Labor force | 67,000 (1984 est.) | 418,000 (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 26%, industry 17%, services 57% (1980 est.) | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,949 km
border countries: Brazil 1,606 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km |
Land use | arable land:
10% permanent crops: 18% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 36% other: 31% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 2.23%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 97.63% (2005) |
Languages | English, French patois | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), Urdu |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on English common law with certain admixtures of Roman-Dutch law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly (21 seats, 15 elected representatives and 6 appointed senators; representatives are elected by popular vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 28 March 2001 (next to be held by NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ULP 12, NDP 3 |
unicameral National Assembly (65 seats; members elected by popular vote, also not more than 4 non-elected non-voting ministers and 2 non-elected non-voting parliamentary secretaries appointed by the president; to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 28 August 2006 (next to be held by August 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - PPP/C 54.6%, PNC/R 34%, AFC 8.1%, other 3.3%; seats by party - PPP/C 36, PNC/R 22, AFC 5, other 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
72.56 years male: 70.83 years female: 74.34 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 66.17 years
male: 63.52 years female: 68.95 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 96% male: 96% female: 96% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98.8% male: 99.1% female: 98.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Suriname and Venezuela |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total:
800 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,705,336 GRT/10,134,002 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 1, bulk 131, cargo 395, chemical tanker 29, combination bulk 12, combination ore/oil 1, container 46, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 3, multi-functional large-load carrier 4, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 56, refrigerated cargo 42, roll on/roll off 49, short-sea passenger 11, specialized tanker 10, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: China 4, Ireland 1, France 1, Greece 3, Hong Kong 1, Croatia 10, India 1, Japan 2, Monaco 1, Netherlands 1, Norway 2, Netherlands Antilles 1, Pakistan 1, Russia 1, Slovenia 5, UAE 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 12,516 GRT/14,193 DWT
by type: cargo 5, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1 registered in other countries: 2 (St Vincent and The Grenadines 2, unknown 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard | Guyana Defense Force: Army (includes Coast Guard, Air Corps) (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 1.8% (2006) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1979) | Republic Day, 23 February (1970) |
Nationality | noun:
Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s) adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian |
noun: Guyanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Guyanese |
Natural hazards | hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat | flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons |
Natural resources | hydropower, cropland | bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish |
Net migration rate | -7.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -7.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | National Reform Party or NRP [Joel MIGUEL]; New Democratic Party or NDP [Arnhim EUSTACE]; People's Progressive Movement or PPM [Ken BOYEA]; Progressive Labor Party or PLP [leader NA]; United People's Movement or UPM [Adrian SAUNDERS]; Unity Labor Party or ULP [Ralph GONSALVES] (formed by the coalition of Saint Vincent Labor Party or SVLP and the Movement for National Unity or MNU) | Alliance for Change or AFC [Raphael TROTMAN and Khemraj RAMJATTAN]; Guyana Action Party or GAP [Paul HARDY]; Justice for All Party [C.N. SHARMA]; People's National Congress/Reform or PNC/R [Robert Herman Orlando CORBIN]; People's Progressive Party/Civic or PPP/C [Bharrat JAGDEO]; Rise, Organize, and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; The United Force or TUF [Manzoor NADIR]; The Unity Party [Joey JAGAN]; Vision Guyana [Peter RAMSAROOP]; Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPNARAINE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Amerindian People's Association; Guyana Citizens Initiative; Guyana Bar Association; Guyana Human Rights Association; Guyana Public Service Union or GPSU; Private Sector Commission; Trades Union Congress |
Population | 115,942 (July 2001 est.) | 769,095
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.4% (2001 est.) | 0.234% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Kingstown | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 77,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, Seventh-Day Adventist, Hindu, other Protestant | Christian 50%, Hindu 35%, Muslim 10%, other 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.039 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.018 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.738 male(s)/female total population: 1.006 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
adequate system domestic: islandwide, fully automatic telephone system; VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to the other islands of the Grenadines international: VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to Barbados; new SHF radiotelephone to Grenada and to Saint Lucia; access to Intelsat earth station in Martinique through Saint Lucia |
general assessment: fair system for long-distance service
domestic: microwave radio relay network for trunk lines; fixed-line teledensity is about 15 per 100 persons; many areas still lack fixed-line telephone services; mobile-cellular teledensity reached 37 per 100 persons in 2005 international: country code - 592; tropospheric scatter to Trinidad; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,500 (1998) | 110,100 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 281,400 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997) | 3 (1 public station; 2 private stations which relay US satellite services) (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic, mountainous | mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south |
Total fertility rate | 2.06 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.04 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (1997 est.) | 9.1% (understated) (2000) |
Waterways | none | Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km respectively (2006) |