Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2001) | Jamaica (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland |
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: 28.6% (male 395,074; female 376,870)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 870,486; female 869,431) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 82,022; female 101,984) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk |
Airports | 6 (2000 est.) | 35 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2002) |
Area | total:
389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km) land: 389 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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. | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a dropoff in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Subsequent governments have been open market oriented. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. |
Birth rate | 17.91 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.35 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$85.7 million expenditures: $98.6 million, including capital expenditures of $25.7 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $2.23 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million (FY 99/00 est.) |
Capital | Kingstown | Kingston |
Climate | tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November) | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior |
Coastline | 84 km | 1,022 km |
Constitution | 27 October 1979 | 6 August 1962 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jamaica |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Jamaican dollar (JMD) |
Death rate | 6.16 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.42 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $99.3 million (1998) | $5.3 billion (2002 est.) |
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 Sue McCourt COBB
embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 935-6001 |
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 Seymour MULLINGS
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $47.5 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (1998) | NA |
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 economy, which depends heavily on tourism and bauxite, has been stagnant since 1995. After five years of recession, the economy inched ahead, by 0.8% in 2000, 1.7% in 2001, and 0.8% in 2002; the global economic slowdown, particularly in the United States after the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks, has stunted the economic recovery. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including serious violent crime. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment and tourism, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies. |
Electricity - consumption | 76.3 million kWh (1999) | 5.833 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 82 million kWh (1999) | 6.272 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
73.17% hydro: 26.83% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 96.8%
hydro: 1.8% nuclear: 0% other: 1.5% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Soufriere 1,234 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 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 | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions |
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, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2% | black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 48.42 (2002), 46 (2001), 42.7 (2000), 39.04 (1999), 36.55 (1998) |
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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) 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 on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister |
Exports | $53.7 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch, tennis racquets | alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum |
Exports - partners | Caricom countries 49%, UK 16%, US 10% (1995) | US 28.1%, Canada 12.2%, Norway 10.7%, UK 10.5%, Germany 7%, Netherlands 5.6% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $322 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10.08 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10.6% industry: 17.5% services: 71.9% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 31% services: 63% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,800 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | 1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 15 N, 61 12 W | 18 15 N, 77 30 W |
Geography - note | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal |
Highways | total:
1,040 km paved: 320 km unpaved: 720 km (1996) |
total: 18,700 km
paved: 13,109 km unpaved: 5,591 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.7%
highest 10%: 30.3% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions |
Imports | $185.6 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels | machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers |
Imports - partners | US 36%, Caricom countries 28%, UK 13% (1995) | US 45%, Trinidad and Tobago 11%, Japan 4.7% (2002) |
Independence | 27 October 1979 (from UK) | 6 August 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.9% (1997 est.) | -2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch | tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products |
Infant mortality rate | 16.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 13.26 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1999 est.) | 7% (2002 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, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 15 (2000) | 21 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 250 sq km (1998 est.) |
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 (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 67,000 (1984 est.) | 1.13 million (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 26%, industry 17%, services 57% (1980 est.) | services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
10% permanent crops: 18% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 36% other: 31% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 16.07%
permanent crops: 9.23% other: 74.7% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English, French patois | English, patois English |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on English common 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 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 16 October 2002 (next to be held NA October 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 52%, JLP 47.3%; seats by party - PNP 34, JLP 26 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
72.56 years male: 70.83 years female: 74.34 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.85 years
male: 73.84 years female: 77.97 years (2003 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: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
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: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 50,536 GRT/62,868 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 2, short-sea passenger 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Latvia 2, US 2 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard | Jamaica Defense Force (including Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $30 million (FY95/96 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 755,698 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 528,689 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 27,398 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1979) | Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) |
Nationality | noun:
Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s) adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian |
noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican |
Natural hazards | hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat | hurricanes (especially July to November) |
Natural resources | hydropower, cropland | bauxite, gypsum, limestone |
Net migration rate | -7.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -5.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 10 km |
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) | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) |
Population | 115,942 (July 2001 est.) | 2,695,867 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 34.2% (1992 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.4% (2001 est.) | 0.61% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Kingstown | Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 77,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 272 km
standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km, belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation, were in common carrier service but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite (2002) |
Religions | Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, Seventh-Day Adventist, Hindu, other Protestant | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other, including some spiritual cults 34.7% |
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: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2003 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: fully automatic domestic telephone network
domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,500 (1998) | 353,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 54,640 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997) | 7 (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic, mountainous | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain |
Total fertility rate | 2.06 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.01 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (1997 est.) | 15.4% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |