Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2003) | Burundi (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick | 16 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.2% (male 16,755; female 16,163)
15-64 years: 65.5% (male 39,308; female 37,149) 65 years and over: 6.4% (male 3,215; female 4,222) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 46.4% (male 1,459,251; female 1,430,332)
15-64 years: 50.9% (male 1,566,274; female 1,607,705) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 66,306; female 101,353) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish | coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides |
Airports | 6 (2002) | 8 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km)
land: 389 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 27,830 sq km
land: 25,650 sq km water: 2,180 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Disputed between France and the United Kingdom in the 18th century, Saint Vincent was ceded to the latter in 1783. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979. | Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only one hundred days in office. Since then, some 200,000 Burundians have perished in widespread, often intense ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. Hundreds of thousands have been internally displaced or have become refugees in neighboring countries. Burundi troops, seeking to secure their borders, briefly intervened in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1998. A new transitional government, inaugurated on 1 November 2001, signed a power-sharing agreement with the largest rebel faction in December 2003 and set in place a provisional constitution in October 2004. Implementation of the agreement has been problematic, however, as one remaining rebel group refuses to sign on and elections have been repeatedly delayed, clouding prospects for a sustainable peace. |
Birth rate | 17.16 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 39.68 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $94.6 million
expenditures: $85.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $179.4 million
expenditures: $209 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003) |
Capital | Kingstown | Bujumbura |
Climate | tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November) | equatorial; high plateau with considerable altitude variation (772 m to 2,670 m above sea level); average annual temperature varies with altitude from 23 to 17 degrees centigrade but is generally moderate as the average altitude is about 1,700 m; average annual rainfall is about 150 cm; wet seasons from February to May and September to November, and dry seasons from June to August and December to January |
Coastline | 84 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 27 October 1979 | 13 March 1992; provided for establishment of a plural political system; supplanted on 20 October 2004 by a provisional constitution approved by the parliament, which extended the transition, set ethnic quotas for government positions, and tentatively scheduled elections for February-April 2005 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
conventional long form: Republic of Burundi
conventional short form: Burundi local long form: Republika y'u Burundi local short form: Burundi former: Urundi |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Burundi franc (BIF) |
Death rate | 6.08 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 17.61 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $167.2 million (2000) | $1.133 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 James Howard YELLIN
embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura mailing address: B. P. 1720, Bujumbura telephone: [257] 223454 FAX: [257] 222926 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ellsworth I. A. JOHN
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6730 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6736 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Antoine NTAMOBWA
chancery: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 342-2574 FAX: [1] (202) 342-2578 |
Disputes - international | protests Venezuela's claim to give full effect to Aves Island, which creates a Venezuelan EEZ/continental shelf extending over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea | Tutsi, Hutu, and other conflicting ethnic groups, associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces continue fighting in the Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda to gain control over populated and natural resource areas; government heads pledge to end conflict, but localized violence continues despite UN peacekeeping efforts |
Economic aid - recipient | $47.5 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (1998) | $92.7 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | Bananas and other agricultural products remain the staple of this lower-middle income country's economy. Although tourism and other services have been growing moderately in recent years, the government has been ineffective at introducing new industries. Unemployment remains high, and economic growth hinges upon seasonal variations in the agricultural and tourism sectors. Tropical storms wiped out substantial portions of crops in 1994, 1995, and 2002, and tourism in the Eastern Caribbean has suffered low arrivals following 11 September 2001. Saint Vincent is home to a small offshore banking sector, but its restrictive secrecy laws have come under international review. As of June 2001, it remained on the Financial Action Task Force's list of noncooperative jurisdictions. Saint Vincent is also the largest producer of marijuana in the Eastern Caribbean and is increasingly being used as a transshipment point for illegal narcotics from South America. | Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural with roughly 90% of the population dependent on subsistence agriculture. Economic growth depends on coffee and tea exports, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings. The ability to pay for imports, therefore, rests primarily on weather conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi minority, 14% of the population, dominates the government and the coffee trade at the expense of the Hutu majority, 85% of the population. Since October 1993 an ethnic-based war has resulted in more than 200,000 deaths, forced 800,000 refugees into Tanzania, and displaced 525,000 others internally. Doubts about the prospects for sustainable peace continue to impede development. Only one in two children go to school, and approximately one in ten adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine, and electricity remain in short supply. |
Electricity - consumption | 86 million kWh (2001) | 177.5 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 33 million kWh; note - supplied by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2001) |
Electricity - production | 92.48 million kWh (2001) | 155.4 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 69.3%
hydro: 30.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Soufriere 1,234 m |
lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m
highest point: Mount Heha 2,670 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 | soil erosion as a result of overgrazing and the expansion of agriculture into marginal lands; deforestation (little forested land remains because of uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel); habitat loss threatens wildlife populations |
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, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2%, other 7% | Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000 |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999), 2.7 (1998) | Burundi francs per US dollar - 1,082.62 (2003), 930.75 (2002), 830.35 (2001), 720.67 (2000), 563.56 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Fredrick Nathaniel BALLANTYNE (since 2 September 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Ralph E. 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 Domitien NDAYIZEYE (since 30 April 2003); note - NDAYIZEYE, a Hutu, was sworn in as president for the second half of the three-year transitional government inaugurated on 1 November 2001; Vice President Frederic NGENZEBUHORO (since 11 November 2004)
head of government: President Domitien NDAYIZEYE (since 30 April 2003); note - NDAYIZEYE, a Hutu, was sworn in as president for the second half of the three-year transitional government inaugurated on 1 November 2001; Vice President Frederic NGENZEBUHORO (since 11 November 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by president elections: NA; current president assumed power on 30 April 2003 as part of the transitional government established by the 2000 Arusha Accord |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch, tennis racquets | coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides |
Exports - partners | France 25.2%, Greece 19.1%, Spain 16.4%, UK 9.5%, US 7.1% (2002) | Switzerland 31.6%, UK 15.8%, Netherlands 5.3%, Rwanda 5.3% (2003) |
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 | divided by a white diagonal cross into red panels (top and bottom) and green panels (hoist side and outer side) with a white disk superimposed at the center bearing three red six-pointed stars outlined in green arranged in a triangular design (one star above, two stars below) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $339 million (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3.78 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10%
industry: 26% services: 64% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 47.4%
industry: 19.3% services: 33.3% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,900 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $600 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -0.5% (2002 est.) | -1.3% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 15 N, 61 12 W | 3 30 S, 30 00 E |
Geography - note | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is comprised of 32 islands and cays | landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed; the Kagera, which drains into Lake Victoria, is the most remote headstream of the White Nile |
Highways | total: 1,040 km
paved: 320 km unpaved: 720 km (1999 est.) |
total: 14,480 km
paved: 1,028 km unpaved: 13,452 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1.8%
highest 10%: 32.9% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; small-scale cannabis cultivation | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels | capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | France 32.7%, US 11.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 10.4%, Singapore 10.1%, Spain 7.9%, Greece 4.3% (2002) | Kenya 14.6%, Tanzania 11.5%, Uganda 5.7%, France 5.1%, Zambia 5.1%, China 4.5%, India 4.5%, Japan 4.5% (2003) |
Independence | 27 October 1979 (from UK) | 1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.9% (1997 est.) | 18% (2001) |
Industries | food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch | light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 15.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17.08 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 70.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 77.15 deaths/1,000 live births female: 63.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.4% (2001 est.) | 10.7% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 15 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 740 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 or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court; Courts of Appeal (there are three in separate locations); Tribunals of First Instance (17 at the province level and 123 small local tribunals) |
Labor force | 67,000 (1984 est.) | 2.99 million (2002) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 26%, industry 17%, services 57% (1980 est.) | agriculture 93.6%, industry 2.3%, services 4.1% (2002 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 974 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.26%
permanent crops: 17.95% other: 71.79% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 35.05%
permanent crops: 14.02% other: 50.93% (2001) |
Languages | English, French patois | Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area) |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary 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 March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ULP 12, NDP 3 |
bicameral, consists of a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (expanded from 121 to approximately 140 seats under the transitional government inaugurated 1 November 2001; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and a Senate (54 seats; term length is undefined, the current senators will likely serve out the three-year transition period)
elections: last held 29 June 1993 (next was scheduled to be held in 1998, but was suspended by presidential decree in 1996; elections are planned to follow the completion of the three-year transitional government) election results: percent of vote by party - FRODEBU 71.04%, UPRONA 21.4%, other 7.56%; seats by party - FRODEBU 65, UPRONA 16, civilians 27, other parties 13 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.08 years
male: 71.3 years female: 74.92 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 43.36 years
male: 42.73 years female: 44 years (2004 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: 51.6% male: 58.5% female: 45.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 769 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,365,887 GRT/9,665,937 DWT
ships by type: bulk 133, cargo 376, chemical tanker 21, combination bulk 7, container 58, liquefied gas 8, livestock carrier 4, multi-functional large-load carrier 2, passenger 5, petroleum tanker 43, refrigerated cargo 46, roll on/roll off 45, short-sea passenger 10, specialized tanker 10, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Albania 1, Anguilla 1, Argentina 1, Australia 2, The Bahamas 1, Bangladesh 1, Barbados 2, Belgium 4, Bulgaria 14, Canada 1, Cayman Islands 1, China 135, Colombia 1, Croatia 12, Cyprus 6, Denmark 16, Egypt 7, Estonia 6, France 27, Germany 12, Greece 156, Guyana 7, Hong Kong 23, Iceland 1, India 11, Indonesia 3, Israel 2, Italy 19, Japan 1, Kenya 4, Latvia 5, Lebanon 9, Liberia 5, Lithuania 1, Malta 1, Man, Isle of 1, Marshall Islands 3, Mexico 1, Monaco 6, Netherlands 14, Netherlands Antilles 1, Nigeria 3, Norway 33, Pakistan 5, Panama 2, Poland 2, Portugal 2, Puerto Rico 2, Russia 8, Saint Kitts and Nevis 1, Saudi Arabia 3, Singapore 4, Slovenia 7, South Korea 4, Spain 1, Sweden 6, Switzerland 10, Syria 2, Taiwan 1, Thailand 1, Trinidad and Tobago 1, Tunisia 1, Turkey 15, Ukraine 8, UAE 45, UK 16, US 25, Vietnam 1 (2002 est.) |
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Military branches | Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard | Army (including Naval Detachment and Air Wing), National Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $33.3 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 6% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,419,755 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 747,400 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 81,862 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1979) | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) |
Nationality | noun: Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s)
adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian |
noun: Burundian(s)
adjective: Burundian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat | flooding, landslides, drought |
Natural resources | hydropower, cropland | nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -7.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -0.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 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) | the two national, mainstream, governing parties are: Unity for National Progress or UPRONA [Alphonse KADEGE, president]; Burundi Democratic Front or FRODEBU [Jean MINANI, president]
note: a multiparty system was introduced after 1998, included are: Burundi African Alliance for the Salvation or ABASA [Terrence NSANZE]; Rally for Democracy and Economic and Social Development or RADDES [Joseph NZEYIMANA]; Party for National Redress or PARENA [Jean-Baptiste BAGAZA]; People's Reconciliation Party or PRP [Mathias HITIMANA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | loosely organized Hutu and Tutsi militias, often affiliated with Hutu and Tutsi extremist parties or subordinate to government security forces |
Population | 116,812 (July 2003 est.) | 6,231,221
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 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 68% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.34% (2003 est.) | 2.2% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Kingstown | Bujumbura |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, Hindu Seventh-Day Adventist, other Protestant | Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age; universal adult |
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: primitive system
domestic: sparse system of open-wire, radiotelephone communications, and low-capacity microwave radio relay international: country code - 257; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,500 (1998) | 23,900 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 64,000 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | volcanic, mountainous | hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains |
Total fertility rate | 1.95 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 5.9 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (1997 est.) | NA |
Waterways | none | mainly on Lake Tanganyika (2004) |