Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2001) | Uruguay (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick | 19 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Artigas, Canelones, Cerro Largo, Colonia, Durazno, Flores, Florida, Lavalleja, Maldonado, Montevideo, Paysandu, Rio Negro, Rivera, Rocha, Salto, San Jose, Soriano, Tacuarembo, Treinta y Tres |
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: 23.2% (male 403,041/female 389,427)
15-64 years: 63.6% (male 1,076,960/female 1,095,833) 65 years and over: 13.2% (male 183,877/female 266,782) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish | rice, wheat, corn, barley; livestock; fish |
Airports | 6 (2000 est.) | 64 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 14
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 50
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 31 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km) land: 389 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 176,220 sq km
land: 173,620 sq km water: 2,600 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than the state of Washington |
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. | Montevideo, founded by the Spanish in 1726 as a military stronghold, soon took advantage of its natural harbor to became an important commercial center. Annexed by Brazil as a separate province in 1821, Uruguay declared its independence four years later and secured its freedom in 1828 after a three-year struggle. The administrations of President BATLLE in the early 20th century established widespread political, social, and economic reforms. A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement, the Tupamaros, launched in the late 1960s, led Uruguay's president to agree to military control of his administration in 1973. By yearend, the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold throughout the government. Civilian rule was not restored until 1985. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the continent. |
Birth rate | 17.91 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 14.09 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$85.7 million expenditures: $98.6 million, including capital expenditures of $25.7 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $3.332 billion
expenditures: $3.787 billion, including capital expenditures of $193 million (2004 est.) |
Capital | Kingstown | Montevideo |
Climate | tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November) | warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown |
Coastline | 84 km | 660 km |
Constitution | 27 October 1979 | 27 November 1966, effective February 1967; suspended 27 June 1973, new constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980; two constitutional reforms approved by plebiscite 26 November 1989 and 7 January 1997 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
conventional long form: Oriental Republic of Uruguay
conventional short form: Uruguay local long form: Republica Oriental del Uruguay local short form: Uruguay former: Banda Oriental, Cisplatine Province |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | - |
Death rate | 6.16 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.06 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $99.3 million (1998) | $12.8 billion (March 2004) |
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 Martin J. SILVERSTEIN
embassy: Lauro Muller 1776, Montevideo 11200 mailing address: APO AA 34035 telephone: [598] (2) 418-7777 FAX: [598] (2) 418-8611 |
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 Carlos GIANELLI Derois
chancery: 1913 I Street NW, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 331-1313 through 1316 FAX: [1] (202) 331-8142 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York consulate(s): San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | none | uncontested dispute with Brazil over certain islands in the Quarai/Cuareim and Invernada streams and the resulting tripoint with Argentina |
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. | Uruguay's well-to-do economy is characterized by an export-oriented agricultural sector, a well-educated workforce, and high levels of social spending. After averaging growth of 5% annually during 1996-98, in 1999-2002 the economy suffered a major downturn, stemming largely from the spillover effects of the economic problems of its large neighbors, Argentina and Brazil. For instance, in 2001-02 massive withdrawals by Argentina of dollars deposited in Uruguayan banks led to a plunge in the Uruguyan peso and a massive rise in unemployment. Total GDP in these four years dropped by nearly 20%, with 2002 the worst year due to the serious banking crisis. Unemployment rose to nearly 20% in 2002, inflation surged, and the burden of external debt doubled. Cooperation with the IMF limited the damage. The debt swap with private creditors carried out in 2003, which extended the maturity dates on nearly half of Uruguay's $11.3 billion in public debt, substantially alleviated the country's amortization burden in the coming years and restored public confidence. The economy grew about 10% in 2004 as a result of high commodity prices for Uruguayan exports, the weakness of the dollar against the euro, growth in the region, low international interest rates, and greater export competitiveness. |
Electricity - consumption | 76.3 million kWh (1999) | 5.878 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 954 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 434.2 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 82 million kWh (1999) | 8.536 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: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro Catedral 514 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 meat packing/tannery industry; inadequate solid/hazardous waste disposal |
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: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2% | white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%, Amerindian (practically nonexistent) |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | Uruguayan pesos per US dollar - 28.704 (2004), 28.209 (2003), 21.257 (2002), 13.319 (2001), 12.1 (2000) |
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 Tabare VAZQUEZ (since 1 March 2005) and Vice President Rodolfo NIN NOVA (since 1 March 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Tabare VAZQUEZ (since 1 March 2005) and Vice President Rodolfo NIN NOVA (since 1 March 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president with parliamentary approval elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 31 October 2004 (next to be held October 2009) election results: Tabare VAZQUEZ elected president; percent of vote - Tabare VAZQUEZ 50.5%, Jorge LARRANAGA 35.1%, Guillermo STIRLING 10.3% |
Exports | $53.7 million (2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch, tennis racquets | meat, rice, leather products, wool, fish, dairy products |
Exports - partners | Caricom countries 49%, UK 16%, US 10% (1995) | US 17.3%, Brazil 16%, Germany 6.3%, Argentina 6.2%, Mexico 4.2% (2004) |
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 | nine equal horizontal stripes of white (top and bottom) alternating with blue; there is a white square in the upper hoist-side corner with a yellow sun bearing a human face known as the Sun of May and 16 rays alternately triangular and wavy |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $322 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10.6% industry: 17.5% services: 71.9% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 7.9%
industry: 27.4% services: 64.8% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,800 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $14,500 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | 10.2% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 15 N, 61 12 W | 33 00 S, 56 00 W |
Geography - note | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada | second-smallest South American country (after Suriname); most of the low-lying landscape (three-quarters of the country) is grassland, ideal for cattle and sheep raising |
Highways | total:
1,040 km paved: 320 km unpaved: 720 km (1996) |
total: 8,983 km
paved: 8,081 km unpaved: 902 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.7%
highest 10%: 25.8% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $185.6 million (2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels | machinery, chemicals, road vehicles, crude petroleum |
Imports - partners | US 36%, Caricom countries 28%, UK 13% (1995) | Argentina 19.5%, Brazil 19%, Paraguay 12.9%, US 9.2%, China 6% (2004) |
Independence | 27 October 1979 (from UK) | 25 August 1825 (from Brazil) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.9% (1997 est.) | 22% (2004 est.) |
Industries | food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch | food processing, electrical machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, textiles, chemicals, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | 16.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 11.95 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1999 est.) | 7.6% (2004 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 | CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, ONUB, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UNMOT, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 15 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 1,800 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 are nominated by the president and elected for 10-year terms by the General Assembly) |
Labor force | 67,000 (1984 est.) | 1.56 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 26%, industry 17%, services 57% (1980 est.) | agriculture 14%, industry 16%, services 70% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,564 km
border countries: Argentina 579 km, Brazil 985 km |
Land use | arable land:
10% permanent crops: 18% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 36% other: 31% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 7.43%
permanent crops: 0.23% other: 92.34% (2001) |
Languages | English, French patois | Spanish, Portunol, or Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian frontier) |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on Spanish civil law system; accepts 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 General Assembly or Asamblea General consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (30 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (99 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 31 October 2004 (next to be held October 2009); Chamber of Representatives - last held 31 October 2004 (next to be held October 2009) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - EP-FA 16, Blanco 11, Colorado Party 3; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - EP-FA 52, Blanco 36, Colorado Party 10, Independent Party 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
72.56 years male: 70.83 years female: 74.34 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 76.13 years
male: 72.92 years female: 79.45 years (2005 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: 98% male: 97.6% female: 98.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Argentina and Brazil |
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
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
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: 11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 10,918 GRT/10,342 DWT
by type: cargo 1, chemical tanker 1, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 4 (Argentina 3, Greece 1) registered in other countries: 8 (2005) |
Military branches | Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard | Army, Navy (includes Naval Air Arm, Marines, Maritime Prefecture in wartime), Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $257.5 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 2% (2004) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1979) | Independence Day, 25 August (1825) |
Nationality | noun:
Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s) adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian |
noun: Uruguayan(s)
adjective: Uruguayan |
Natural hazards | hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat | seasonally high winds (the pampero is a chilly and occasional violent wind which blows north from the Argentine pampas), droughts, floods; because of the absence of mountains, which act as weather barriers, all locations are particularly vulnerable to rapid changes from weather fronts |
Natural resources | hydropower, cropland | arable land, hydropower, minor minerals, fisheries |
Net migration rate | -7.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 192 km (2004) |
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) | Colorado Party [Jorge BATLLE Ibanez]; National Party or Blanco [Luis Alberto LACALLE Herrera]; New Sector/Space Coalition (Nuevo Espacio) [Rafael MICHELINI]; Progressive Encounter/Broad Front Coalition (Encuentro Progresista/Frente Amplio) or EP-FA [Tabare VAZQUEZ]; Independent Party (Partido Independiente) [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Agrupacion UTE (powerful state worker's union), Rural Association of Uruguay (rancher's association), Uruguayan Construction League, Chamber of Uruguayan Industries (manufacturer's association), Chemist and Pharmaceutical Association (professional organization), Architect's Society of Uruguay (professional organization), the Catholic Church, students |
Population | 115,942 (July 2001 est.) | 3,415,920 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 21% of households (2003) |
Population growth rate | 0.4% (2001 est.) | 0.47% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Kingstown | Montevideo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 91, FM 149, shortwave 7 (2001) |
Radios | 77,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 2,073 km
standard gauge: 2,073 km 1.435-m gauge note: 461 km have been taken out of service and 460 km are in partial use (2004) |
Religions | Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, Seventh-Day Adventist, Hindu, other Protestant | Roman Catholic 66% (less than half of the adult population attends church regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, nonprofessing or other 31% |
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: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
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 digitalized
domestic: most modern facilities concentrated in Montevideo; new nationwide microwave radio relay network international: country code - 598; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2002) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,500 (1998) | 946,500 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 652,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997) | 23 (2002) |
Terrain | volcanic, mountainous | mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland |
Total fertility rate | 2.06 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.91 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (1997 est.) | 13% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | 1,600 km (2002) |