Virgin Islands (2003) | Dominica (2003) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three islands at the second order; Saint Croix, Saint John, Saint Thomas | 10 parishes; Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Luke, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick, Saint Paul, Saint Peter |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 26% (male 16,685; female 15,794)
15-64 years: 64.4% (male 36,241; female 44,157) 65 years and over: 9.5% (male 5,078; female 6,823) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 27.8% (male 9,807; female 9,571)
15-64 years: 64.3% (male 23,024; female 21,768) 65 years and over: 7.9% (male 2,226; female 3,259) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruit, vegetables, sorghum; Senepol cattle | bananas, citrus, mangoes, root crops, coconuts, cocoa; forest and fishery potential not exploited |
Airports | 2 (2002) | 2 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total: 352 sq km
land: 349 sq km water: 3 sq km |
total: 754 sq km
land: 754 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | During the 17th century, the archipelago was divided into two territorial units, one English and the other Danish. Sugarcane, produced by slave labor, drove the islands' economy during the 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1917, the US purchased the Danish portion, which had been in economic decline since the abolition of slavery in 1848. | Dominica was the last of the Caribbean islands to be colonized by Europeans, due chiefly to the fierce resistance of the native Caribs. France ceded possession to Great Britain in 1763, which made the island a colony in 1805. In 1980, two years after independence, Dominica's fortunes improved when a corrupt and tyrannical administration was replaced by that of Mary Eugenia CHARLES, the first female prime minister in the Caribbean, who remained in office for 15 years. Some 3,000 Carib Indians still living on Dominica are the only pre-Columbian population remaining in the eastern Caribbean. |
Birth rate | 15.8 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 16.78 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $364.4 million
expenditures: $364.4 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1990 est.) |
revenues: $73.9 million
expenditures: $84.4 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001) |
Capital | Charlotte Amalie | Roseau |
Climate | subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds, relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season May to November | tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds; heavy rainfall |
Coastline | 188 km | 148 km |
Constitution | Revised Organic Act of 22 July 1954 | 3 November 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form: United States Virgin Islands
conventional short form: Virgin Islands former: Danish West Indies |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Dominica
conventional short form: Dominica |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 5.68 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 6.99 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $161.5 million (2001) |
Dependency status | organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between the Virgin Islands and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of the US) | the US does not have an embassy in Dominica; US interests are served by the embassy in Bridgetown, Barbados |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador Swinburne LESTRADE
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6781 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6791 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $24.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Tourism is the primary economic activity, accounting for more than 70% of GDP and 70% of employment. The islands normally host 2 million visitors a year. The manufacturing sector consists of petroleum refining, textiles, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and watch assembly. The agricultural sector is small, with most food being imported. International business and financial services are a small but growing component of the economy. One of the world's largest petroleum refineries is at Saint Croix. The islands are subject to substantial damage from storms. The government is working to improve fiscal discipline, support construction projects in the private sector, expand tourist facilities, reduce crime, and protect the environment. | The Dominican economy depends on agriculture, primarily bananas, and remains highly vulnerable to climatic conditions and international economic developments. Hurricane Luis devastated the country's banana crop in 1995 after tropical storms wiped out a quarter of the 1994 crop. The economy subsequently has been fueled by increases in construction, soap production, and tourist arrivals. Development of the tourism industry remains difficult however, because of the rugged coastline, lack of beaches, and the absence of an international airport. Economic growth is sluggish, and unemployment is greater than 20%. The government has been attempting to develop an offshore financial sector in order to diversify the island's production base. |
Electricity - consumption | 957.9 million kWh (2001) | 67.35 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.03 billion kWh (2001) | 72.41 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 47.1%
hydro: 52.9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crown Mountain 474 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Morne Diablatins 1,447 m |
Environment - current issues | lack of natural freshwater resources | NA |
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: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 78%, white 10%, other 12%
note: West Indian 81% (49% born in the Virgin Islands and 32% born elsewhere in the West Indies), US mainland 13%, Puerto Rican 4%, other 2% |
black, mixed black and European, European, Syrian, Carib Amerindian |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999), 2.7 (1998) |
Executive branch | 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 Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL (since 5 January 1999) and Lieutenant Governor Vargrave RICHARDS (since NA January 2003) cabinet: NA elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2006) election results: Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL reelected governor; percent of vote - Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL (Democrat) 50.5%, John de JONGH 24.4% |
chief of state: President Nicholas LIVERPOOL (since 10 November 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Pierre CHARLES (since 1 October 2000); note - assumed post after death of Prime Minister Roosevelt DOUGLAS cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister elections: president elected by the House of Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 1 October 2003 (next to be held NA October 2008); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Nicholas LIVERPOOL elected president; percent of legislative vote - NA% |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products | bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables, grapefruit, oranges |
Exports - partners | US, Puerto Rico | UK 36.1%, Jamaica 18%, US 7.5%, Antigua and Barbuda 6.4%, Guyana 5.4%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | white, with a modified US coat of arms in the center between the large blue initials V and I; the coat of arms shows a yellow eagle holding an olive branch in one talon and three arrows in the other with a superimposed shield of vertical red and white stripes below a blue panel | green, with a centered cross of three equal bands - the vertical part is yellow (hoist side), black, and white and the horizontal part is yellow (top), black, and white; superimposed in the center of the cross is a red disk bearing a sisserou parrot encircled by 10 green, five-pointed stars edged in yellow; the 10 stars represent the 10 administrative divisions (parishes) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.4 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $380 million (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 18%
industry: 24% services: 58% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $19,000 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2001 est.) | 1.2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 20 N, 64 50 W | 15 25 N, 61 20 W |
Geography - note | important location along the Anegada Passage - a key shipping lane for the Panama Canal; Saint Thomas has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the Caribbean | known as "The Nature Island of the Caribbean" due to its spectacular, lush, and varied flora and fauna, which are protected by an extensive natural park system; the most mountainous of the Lesser Antilles, its volcanic peaks are cones of lava craters and include Boiling Lake, the second-largest, thermally active lake in the world |
Highways | total: 856 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: the only US possession where driving on the left side of the road is practiced (2000) |
total: 780 km
paved: 393 km unpaved: 387 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; minor cannabis producer; anti-money-laundering enforcement is weak, making the country particularly vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | crude oil, foodstuffs, consumer goods, building materials | manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US, Puerto Rico | China 23.9%, US 23.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 11.9%, South Korea 7.6%, UK 7.3%, Japan 4.5% (2002) |
Independence | - | 3 November 1978 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -10% (1997 est.) |
Industries | tourism, petroleum refining, watch assembly, rum distilling, construction, pharmaceuticals, textiles, electronics | soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra, furniture, cement blocks, shoes |
Infant mortality rate | total: 9 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 15.34 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1992) | 1% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ECLAC (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC | ACCT, ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 50 (2000) | 16 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | US District Court of the Virgin Islands (under Third Circuit jurisdiction); Territorial Court (judges appointed by the governor for 10-year terms) | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the Court of Appeal and the High Court (located in Saint Lucia; one of the six judges must reside in Dominica and preside over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction) |
Labor force | 49,000 (2002 est.) | 25,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1%, industry 20%, services 79% (1990 est.) | agriculture 40%, industry and commerce 32%, services 28% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 15%
permanent crops: 6% other: 79% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 4%
permanent crops: 16% other: 80% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Spanish, Creole | English (official), French patois |
Legal system | based on US laws | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Senate (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 6 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Democratic Party 8, ICM NA, no party affiliation NA note: the Virgin Islands elects one non-voting representative to the US House of Representatives; election last held 6 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004); results - Donna M. CHRISTIAN-CHRISTENSON (Democrat) reelected |
unicameral House of Assembly (30 seats, 9 appointed senators, 21 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 31 January 2000 (next to be held by 17 July 2005) note - tradition dictates that the election will be held within five years of the last election, but technically it is five years from the first seating of parliament (17 April 2000) plus a 90 day grace period election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party -DLP 10, UWP 9, DFP 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.59 years
male: 74.73 years female: 82.68 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 74.12 years
male: 71.23 years female: 77.15 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 94% male: 94% female: 94% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, about one-half of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force (including Special Service Unit, Coast Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
National holiday | Transfer Day (from Denmark to the US), 27 March (1917) | Independence Day, 3 November (1978) |
Nationality | noun: Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: Virgin Islander |
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican |
Natural hazards | several hurricanes in recent years; frequent and severe droughts and floods; occasional earthquakes | flash floods are a constant threat; destructive hurricanes can be expected during the late summer months |
Natural resources | sun, sand, sea, surf | timber, hydropower, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -16.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Arturo WATLINGTON]; Independent Citizens' Movement or ICM [Usie RICHARDS]; Republican Party [Gary SPRAUVE] | Dominica Freedom Party or DFP [Charles SAVARIN]; Dominica Labor Party or DLP [Pierre CHARLES]; United Workers Party or UWP [Edison JAMES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Dominica Liberation Movement or DLM (a small leftist party) |
Population | 124,778 (July 2003 est.) | 69,655 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 30% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.02% (2003 est.) | -0.63% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Charlotte Amalie, Christiansted, Cruz Bay, Port Alucroix | Portsmouth, Roseau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 11, shortwave 0 (2002) | AM 3, FM 10, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Baptist 42%, Roman Catholic 34%, Episcopalian 17%, other 7% | Roman Catholic 77%, Protestant 15% (Methodist 5%, Pentecostal 3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3%, Baptist 2%, other 2%), none 2%, other 6% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.82 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.87 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; note - indigenous inhabitants are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: modern, uses fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay international: submarine cable and satellite communications; satellite earth stations - NA |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fully automatic network international: microwave radio relay and SHF radiotelephone links to Martinique and Guadeloupe; VHF and UHF radiotelephone links to Saint Lucia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 65,000 (1997) | 19,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,000 (1992) | 461 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (2002) | 0 (however, there is one cable television company) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land | rugged mountains of volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 2.22 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.99 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.9% (March 1999) | 23% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |