Access to THE WORLD FACTBOOK 1993 provided courtesy of The Libraries of the University of Missouri-St. Louis Match 207 DB Rec# - 55,955 Dataset-WOFACT Source :CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY Source key :CI Program :WORLD FACTBOOK Program key :CI WOFACT Update sched. :Annually ID number :CI WOFACT 207 Title :SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES Data type :TEXT End year :1994 Date of record:02/16/1994 Keywords 3 : | SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES Text : SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES GEOGRAPHY Location: in the eastern Caribbean Sea about three-fourths of the way between Puerto Rico and Trinidad and Tobago Map references: Central America and the Caribbean, South America, Standard Time Zones of the World Area: total area: 340 km2 land area: 340 km2 comparative area: slightly less than twice the size of Washington, DC Land boundaries: 0 km contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: none Climate: tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November) Terrain: volcanic, mountainous; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent Natural resources: negligible Land use: arable land: 38% permanent crops: 12% meadows and pastures: 6% forest and woodland: 41% other: 3% Irrigated land: 10 km2 (1989 est.) Environment: subject to hurricanes; Soufriere volcano is a constant threat Note: some islands of the Grenadines group are administered by Grenada PEOPLE Population: 114,562 (July 1993 est.) Population growth rate: 0.76% (1993 est.) Birth rate: 20.86 births/1,000 population (1993 est.) Death rate: 5.39 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.) Net migration rate: -7.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.) Infant mortality rate: 18.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.72 years male: 70.21 years female: 73.28 years (1993 est.) Total fertility rate: 2.16 children born/woman (1993 est.) noun: Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s) adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian Ethnic divisions: black African descent, white, East Indian, Carib Indian Religions: Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Seventh-Day Adventist Languages: English, French patois Literacy: age 15 and over having ever attended school (1970) total population: 96% male: 96% female: 96% Labor force: 67,000 (1984 est.) by occupation: NA GOVERNMENT Names: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Digraph: VC Type: constitutional monarchy Capital: Kingstown Administrative divisions: 6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick Independence: 27 October 1979 (from UK) Constitution: 27 October 1979 Legal system: based on English common law National holiday: Independence Day, 27 October (1979) Political parties and leaders: New Democratic Party (NDP), James (Son) MITCHELL; Saint Vincent Labor Party (SVLP), Stanley JOHN; United People's Movement (UPM), Adrian SAUNDERS; Movement for National Unity (MNU), Ralph GONSALVES; National Reform Party (NRP), Joel MIGUEL Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal Elections: House of Assembly: last held 16 May 1989 (next to be held NA July 1994); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (21 total; 15 elected representatives and 6 appointed senators) NDP 15 Cabinet Legislative branch: unicameral House of Assembly Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court Leaders: 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 James F. MITCHELL (since 30 July 1984) Member of: ACP, C, CARICOM, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, OAS, OECS, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO Diplomatic representation in US: chief of mission: Ambassador Kingsley LAYNE chancery: 1717 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Suite 102, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: NA US diplomatic representation: no official presence since the Ambassador resides in Bridgetown (Barbados) Flag: three vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold (double width), and green; the gold band bears three green diamonds arranged in a V pattern ECONOMY Overview: Agriculture, dominated by banana production, is the most important sector of the economy. The services sector, based mostly on a growing tourist industry, is also important. The economy continues to have a high unemployment rate of 35%-40% because of an overdependence on the weather-plagued banana crop as a major export earner. Government progress toward diversifying into new industries has been relatively unsuccessful. National product: GDP - exchange rate conversion - $171 million (1992 est.) National product real growth rate: 3% (1992 est.) National product per capita: $1,500 (1992 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.3% (1991 est.) Unemployment rate: 35%-40% (1992 est.) Budget: revenues $62 million; expenditures $67 million, including capital expenditures of $21 million (FY90 est.) Exports: $65.7 million (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: bananas, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch, tennis racquets partners: UK 43%, CARICOM 37%, US 15% commodities: foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels partners: US 42%, CARICOM 19%, UK 15% External debt: $50.9 million (1989) Industrial production: growth rate 0% (1989); accounts for 14% of GDP Electricity: 16,600 kW capacity; 64 million kWh produced, 555 kWh per capita (1992) Industries: food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch Agriculture: accounts for 15% of GDP and 60% of labor force; provides bulk of exports; products - bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, hogs, goats; small fish catch used locally Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-87), $11 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $81 million Currency: 1 EC dollar (EC$) = 100 cents Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1 - 2.70 (fixed rate since 1976) Fiscal year: calendar year COMMUNICATIONS Highways: 1,000 km total; 300 km paved; 400 km improved; 300 km unimproved (est.) Ports: Kingstown Merchant marine: 407 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,388,427 GRT/5,511,325 DWT; includes 3 passenger, 2 passenger-cargo, 222 cargo, 22 container, 19 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 14 refrigerated cargo, 24 oil tanker, 7 chemical tanker, 4 liquefied gas, 73 bulk, 13 combination bulk, 2 vehicle carrier, 1 livestock carrier, 1 specialized tanker; note - China owns 3 ships; a flag of convenience registry Airports: total: 6 usable: 6 with permanent-surface runways: 5 with runways over 3,659 m: 0 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 0 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 1 Telecommunications: islandwide fully automatic telephone system; 6,500 AM, no FM, 1 TV (cable) Defense forces Branches: Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, Coast Guard Manpower availability: NA Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GDP -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This section of THE WORLD FACTBOOK 1993 produced by the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was derived from the US Dept. of Commerce Economics and Statistics Division's NATIONAL TRADE DATA BANK CD-ROM, July, 1994, SuDoc No. C 1.88:994/7/v.1-2 / R. Muns, UM-St. Louis Libraries Local Filename: WF940198.TXT