Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2001) | Puerto Rico (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick | none (territory of the US with commonwealth status); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 78 municipalities (municipios, singular - municipio) at the second order; Adjuntas, Aguada, Aguadilla, Aguas Buenas, Aibonito, Anasco, Arecibo, Arroyo, Barceloneta, Barranquitas, Bayamon, Cabo Rojo, Caguas, Camuy, Canovanas, Carolina, Catano, Cayey, Ceiba, Ciales, Cidra, Coamo, Comerio, Corozal, Culebra, Dorado, Fajardo, Florida, Guanica, Guayama, Guayanilla, Guaynabo, Gurabo, Hatillo, Hormigueros, Humacao, Isabela, Jayuya, Juana Diaz, Juncos, Lajas, Lares, Las Marias, Las Piedras, Loiza, Luquillo, Manati, Maricao, Maunabo, Mayaguez, Moca, Morovis, Naguabo, Naranjito, Orocovis, Patillas, Penuelas, Ponce, Quebradillas, Rincon, Rio Grande, Sabana Grande, Salinas, San German, San Juan, San Lorenzo, San Sebastian, Santa Isabel, Toa Alta, Toa Baja, Trujillo Alto, Utuado, Vega Alta, Vega Baja, Vieques, Villalba, Yabucoa, Yauco |
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: 21.3% (male 428,610/female 409,484)
15-64 years: 65.8% (male 1,239,255/female 1,345,519) 65 years and over: 12.8% (male 218,045/female 286,275) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish | sugarcane, coffee, pineapples, plantains, bananas; livestock products, chickens |
Airports | 6 (2000 est.) | 30 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 17
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 5 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 13
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 10 (2006) |
Area | total:
389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km) land: 389 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 13,790 sq km
land: 8,870 sq km water: 4,921 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than three times the size of Rhode Island |
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. | Populated for centuries by aboriginal peoples, the island was claimed by the Spanish Crown in 1493 following COLUMBUS' second voyage to the Americas. In 1898, after 400 years of colonial rule that saw the indigenous population nearly exterminated and African slave labor introduced, Puerto Rico was ceded to the US as a result of the Spanish-American War. Puerto Ricans were granted US citizenship in 1917. Popularly-elected governors have served since 1948. In 1952, a constitution was enacted providing for internal self government. In plebiscites held in 1967, 1993, and 1998, voters chose not to alter the existing political status. |
Birth rate | 17.91 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.77 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$85.7 million expenditures: $98.6 million, including capital expenditures of $25.7 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $6.7 billion
expenditures: $9.6 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00) |
Capital | Kingstown | name: San Juan
geographic coordinates: 18 28 N, 66 07 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 marine, mild; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 84 km | 501 km |
Constitution | 27 October 1979 | ratified 3 March 1952, approved by US Congress 3 July 1952, effective 25 July 1952 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
conventional short form: Puerto Rico |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | - |
Death rate | 6.16 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.65 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $99.3 million (1998) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | unincorporated, organized territory of the US with commonwealth status; policy relations between Puerto Rico and the US conducted under the jurisdiction of the Office of the President |
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 | none (territory of the US with commonwealth status) |
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 |
none (territory of the US with commonwealth status) |
Disputes - international | none | increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage to Puerto Rico each year looking for work |
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. | Puerto Rico has one of the most dynamic economies in the Caribbean region. A diverse industrial sector has far surpassed agriculture as the primary locus of economic activity and income. Encouraged by duty-free access to the US and by tax incentives, US firms have invested heavily in Puerto Rico since the 1950s. US minimum wage laws apply. Sugar production has lost out to dairy production and other livestock products as the main source of income in the agricultural sector. Tourism has traditionally been an important source of income, with estimated arrivals of nearly 5 million tourists in 2004. Growth fell off in 2001-03, largely due to the slowdown in the US economy, and has recovered in 2004-2005. |
Electricity - consumption | 76.3 million kWh (1999) | 21.42 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 82 million kWh (1999) | 23.03 billion kWh (2003) |
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: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro de Punta 1,339 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 | erosion; occasional drought causing water shortages |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2% | white (mostly Spanish origin) 80.5%, black 8%, Amerindian 0.4%, Asian 0.2%, mixed and other 10.9% |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | the US dollar is used |
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 George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (since 2 January 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor with the consent of the legislature elections: under the US Consitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as Puerto Rico, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; governor elected by popular vote for a four-year term (no term limits); election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (PPD) elected governor; percent of vote - 48.4% |
Exports | $53.7 million (2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch, tennis racquets | chemicals, electronics, apparel, canned tuna, rum, beverage concentrates, medical equipment |
Exports - partners | Caricom countries 49%, UK 16%, US 10% (1995) | US 90.3%, UK 1.6%, Netherlands 1.4%, Dominican Republic 1.4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | five equal horizontal bands of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bears a large, white, five-pointed star in the center; design initially influenced by the US flag, but similar to the Cuban flag, with the colors of the bands and triangle reversed |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $322 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10.6% industry: 17.5% services: 71.9% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 45% services: 54% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,800 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | 2.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 15 N, 61 12 W | 18 15 N, 66 30 W |
Geography - note | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada | important location along the Mona Passage - a key shipping lane to the Panama Canal; San Juan is one of the biggest and best natural harbors in the Caribbean; many small rivers and high central mountains ensure land is well watered; south coast relatively dry; fertile coastal plain belt in north |
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%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $185.6 million (2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels | chemicals, machinery and equipment, clothing, food, fish, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 36%, Caricom countries 28%, UK 13% (1995) | US 55.0%, Ireland 23.7%, Japan 5.4% (2004) |
Independence | 27 October 1979 (from UK) | none (territory of the US with commonwealth status) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.9% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Industries | food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch | pharmaceuticals, electronics, apparel, food products, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 16.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 9.14 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1999 est.) | 6.5% (2003 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 | Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WToO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 15 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 400 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; Appellate Court; Court of First Instance composed of two sections: a Superior Court and a Municipal Court (justices for all these courts appointed by the governor with the consent of the Senate) |
Labor force | 67,000 (1984 est.) | 1.3 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 26%, industry 17%, services 57% (1980 est.) | agriculture: 3%
industry: 20% services: 77% (2000 est.) |
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: 3.69%
permanent crops: 5.59% other: 90.72% (2005) |
Languages | English, French patois | Spanish, English |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on Spanish civil code and within the US Federal system of justice |
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 Legislative Assembly consists of the Senate (at least 27 seats - currently 29; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives (51 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); House of Representatives - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PNP 43.4%, PPD 40.3%, PIP 9.4%; seats by party - PNP 17, PPD 9, PIP 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PNP 46.3%, PPD 43.1%, PIP 9.7%; seats by party - PNP 32, PPD 18, PIP 1 note: Puerto Rico elects, by popular vote, a resident commissioner to serve a four-year term as a nonvoting representative in the US House of Representatives; aside from not voting on the House floor, he enjoys all the rights of a member of Congress; elections last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); Luis FORTUNO elected resident commissioner; results - percent of vote by party - PNP 48.6%; seats by party - PNP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
72.56 years male: 70.83 years female: 74.34 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.4 years
male: 74.46 years female: 82.54 years (2006 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 can read and write
total population: 94.1% male: 93.9% female: 94.4% (2002 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic |
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 |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 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: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 77,177 GRT/50,138 DWT
by type: roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 3 (US 3) registered in other countries: 1 (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the US |
Military branches | Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard | no regular indigenous military forces; paramilitary National Guard, Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1979) | US Independence Day, 4 July (1776); Puerto Rico Constitution Day, 25 July (1952) |
Nationality | noun:
Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s) adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian |
noun: Puerto Rican(s) (US citizens)
adjective: Puerto Rican |
Natural hazards | hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat | periodic droughts; hurricanes |
Natural resources | hydropower, cropland | some copper and nickel; potential for onshore and offshore oil |
Net migration rate | -7.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -1.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 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) | National Democratic Party [Roberto PRATS]; National Republican Party of Puerto Rico [Dr. Tiody FERRE]; New Progressive Party or PNP (pro-US statehood) [Pedro ROSSELLO]; Popular Democratic Party or PPD (pro-commonwealth) [Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA]; Puerto Rican Independence Party or PIP (pro-independence) [Ruben BERRIOS Martinez] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Boricua Popular Army or EPB (a revolutionary group also known as Los Macheteros); note - the following radical groups are considered dormant by Federal law enforcement: Armed Forces for National Liberation or FALN, Armed Forces of Popular Resistance, Volunteers of the Puerto Rican Revolution |
Population | 115,942 (July 2001 est.) | 3,927,188 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.4% (2001 est.) | 0.4% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Kingstown | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 74, FM 53, shortwave 0 (2006) |
Radios | 77,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 96 km
narrow gauge: 96 km 1.000-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, Seventh-Day Adventist, Hindu, other Protestant | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant and other 15% |
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: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal; island residents are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections |
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: modern system integrated with that of the US by high-capacity submarine cable and Intelsat with high-speed data capability
domestic: digital telephone system; cellular telephone service international: country code - 1-787, 939; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat; submarine cable to US |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,500 (1998) | 1,111,900 (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 2.682 million (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997) | 32 (2006) |
Terrain | volcanic, mountainous | mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north; mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas |
Total fertility rate | 2.06 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.75 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (1997 est.) | 12% (2002) |
Waterways | none | - |