239 lines
19 KiB
Plaintext
239 lines
19 KiB
Plaintext
ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
|
|
GEOGRAPHY
|
|
Total area: 440 km2; land area: 440 km2; includes Redonda
|
|
|
|
Comparative area: slightly less than 2.5 times the size of
|
|
Washington, DC
|
|
|
|
Land boundaries: none
|
|
|
|
Coastline: 153 km
|
|
|
|
Maritime claims:
|
|
|
|
Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
|
|
|
|
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
|
|
|
|
Territorial sea: 12 nm
|
|
|
|
Climate: tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
|
|
|
|
Terrain: mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands with some
|
|
higher volcanic areas
|
|
|
|
Natural resources: negligible; pleasant climate fosters
|
|
tourism
|
|
|
|
Land use: arable land 18%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and
|
|
pastures 7%; forest and woodland 16%; other 59%
|
|
|
|
Environment: subject to hurricanes and tropical storms (July to
|
|
October); insufficient freshwater resources; deeply indented coastline
|
|
provides many natural harbors
|
|
|
|
Note: 420 km east-southeast of Puerto Rico
|
|
|
|
PEOPLE
|
|
Population: 63,917 (July 1991), growth rate 0.4% (1991)
|
|
|
|
Birth rate: 18 births/1,000 population (1991)
|
|
|
|
Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
|
|
|
|
Net migration rate: - 9 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
|
|
|
|
Infant mortality rate: 22 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
|
|
|
|
Life expectancy at birth: 70 years male, 74 years female (1991)
|
|
Total fertility rate: 1.7 children born/woman (1991)
|
|
|
|
Nationality: noun--Antiguan(s); adjective--Antiguan
|
|
|
|
Ethnic divisions: almost entirely of black African origin; some of
|
|
British, Portuguese, Lebanese, and Syrian origin
|
|
|
|
Religion: Anglican (predominant), other Protestant sects, some
|
|
Roman Catholic
|
|
|
|
Language: English (official), local dialects
|
|
|
|
Literacy: 89% (male 90%, female 88%) age 15 and over having
|
|
completed 5 or more years of schooling (1960)
|
|
|
|
Labor force: 30,000; commerce and services 82%, agriculture 11%,
|
|
industry 7% (1983)
|
|
|
|
Organized labor: Antigua and Barbuda Public Service Association
|
|
(ABPSA), membership 500; Antigua Trades and Labor Union (ATLU), 10,000
|
|
members; Antigua Workers Union (AWU), 10,000 members (1986 est.)
|
|
|
|
GOVERNMENT
|
|
Long-form name: none
|
|
|
|
Type: parliamentary democracy
|
|
|
|
Capital: Saint John's
|
|
|
|
Administrative divisions: 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*,
|
|
Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter,
|
|
Saint Philip
|
|
|
|
Independence: 1 November 1981 (from UK)
|
|
|
|
Constitution: 1 November 1981
|
|
|
|
Legal system: based on English common law
|
|
|
|
National holiday: Independence Day, 1 November (1981)
|
|
|
|
Executive branch: British monarch, governor general, prime
|
|
minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet
|
|
|
|
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of an upper house
|
|
or Senate and a lower house or House of Representatives
|
|
|
|
Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court
|
|
|
|
Leaders:
|
|
|
|
Chief of State--Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
|
|
represented by Governor General Sir Wilfred Ebenezer JACOBS (since 1
|
|
November 1981, previously Governor since 1976);
|
|
|
|
Head of Government--Prime Minister Vere Cornwall BIRD, Sr. (since
|
|
NA 1976)
|
|
|
|
Political parties and leaders:
|
|
Antigua Labor Party (ALP), Vere C. BIRD, Sr., Lester BIRD;
|
|
United National Democratic Party (UNDP), Dr. Ivor HEATH
|
|
|
|
Suffrage: universal at age 18
|
|
|
|
Elections:
|
|
|
|
House of Representatives--last held 9 March 1989 (next to be
|
|
held 1994);
|
|
results--percentage of vote by party NA;
|
|
seats--(17 total) ALP 15, UNDP 1, independent 1
|
|
|
|
Communists: negligible
|
|
|
|
Other political or pressure groups: Antigua Caribbean Liberation
|
|
Movement (ACLM), a small leftist nationalist group led by Leonard (Tim)
|
|
HECTOR; Antigua Trades and Labor Union (ATLU), headed by Noel THOMAS
|
|
|
|
Member of: ACP, C, CARICOM, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD,
|
|
ICAO, ICFTU, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, NAM
|
|
(observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WCL, WHO, WMO
|
|
|
|
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Edmund Hawkins LAKE;
|
|
Chancery at Suite 2H, 3400 International Drive NW, Washington DC 20008;
|
|
telephone (202) 362-5211 or 5166, 5122, 5225; there is an Antiguan
|
|
Consulate in Miami;
|
|
|
|
US--the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Antigua and
|
|
Barbuda, and in his absence, the Embassy is headed by Charge d'Affaires
|
|
Bryant SALTER; Embassy at Queen Elizabeth Highway, Saint John's
|
|
(mailing address is FPO Miami 34054); telephone (809) 462-3505 or 3506
|
|
|
|
Flag: red with an inverted isosceles triangle based on the top edge
|
|
of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands of black (top),
|
|
light blue, and white with a yellow rising sun in the black band
|
|
|
|
ECONOMY
|
|
Overview: The economy is primarily service oriented, with tourism
|
|
the most important determinant of economic performance. During the period
|
|
1983-89, real GDP expanded at an annual average rate of about 7%.
|
|
Tourism's contribution to GDP, as measured by value added tax in hotels
|
|
and restaurants, rose from about 14% in 1983 to 16% in 1989, and
|
|
stimulated growth in other sectors--particularly in construction,
|
|
communications, and public utilities. Antigua and Barbuda is one of the
|
|
few areas in the Caribbean experiencing a labor shortage in some sectors
|
|
of the economy.
|
|
|
|
GDP: $350 million, per capita $5,470 (1989); real growth rate 3.0%
|
|
(1991 est.)
|
|
|
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 7% (1990 est.)
|
|
|
|
Unemployment rate: 5.0% (1988 est.)
|
|
|
|
Budget: revenues $92.8 million; expenditures $101 million,
|
|
including capital expenditures of $NA (1990 est.)
|
|
|
|
Exports: $33.2 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.);
|
|
|
|
commodities--petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, food and
|
|
live animals 4%, machinery and transport equipment 17%;
|
|
|
|
partners--OECS 26%, Barbados 15%, Guyana 4%, Trinidad and Tobago
|
|
2%, US 0.3%
|
|
|
|
Imports: $358.2 million (c.i.f., 1990 est.);
|
|
|
|
commodities--food and live animals, machinery and transport
|
|
equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil;
|
|
|
|
partners--US 27%, UK 16%, Canada 4%, OECS 3%, other 50%
|
|
|
|
External debt: $250 million (1990 est.)
|
|
|
|
Industrial production: growth rate 3% (1989 est.); accounts
|
|
for 9% of GDP
|
|
|
|
Electricity: 52,000 kW capacity; 95 million kWh produced, 1,490 kWh
|
|
per capita (1990)
|
|
|
|
Industries: tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing,
|
|
alcohol, household appliances)
|
|
|
|
Agriculture: accounts for 4% of GDP; expanding output of cotton,
|
|
fruits, vegetables, and livestock sector; other crops--bananas, coconuts,
|
|
cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; not self-sufficient in food
|
|
|
|
Economic aid: US commitments, $10 million (1985-88); Western
|
|
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $45
|
|
million
|
|
|
|
Currency: East Caribbean dollar (plural--dollars); 1 EC dollar
|
|
(EC$) = 100 cents
|
|
|
|
Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1--2.70 (fixed
|
|
rate since 1976)
|
|
|
|
Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
|
|
|
|
COMMUNICATIONS
|
|
Railroads: 64 km 0.760-meter narrow gauge and 13 km 0.610-meter
|
|
gauge used almost exclusively for handling sugarcane
|
|
|
|
Highways: 240 km
|
|
|
|
Ports: Saint John's
|
|
|
|
Merchant marine: 86 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 319,477
|
|
GRT/497,194 DWT; includes 61 cargo, 5 refrigerated cargo, 6 container,
|
|
4 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 1 multifunction large load carrier, 3
|
|
petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 6 chemical tanker; note--a
|
|
flag of convenience registry
|
|
|
|
Civil air: 10 major transport aircraft
|
|
|
|
Airports: 3 total, 3 usable; 2 with permanent-surface runways;
|
|
1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 2 with runways less than 1,220 m
|
|
|
|
Telecommunications: good automatic telephone system; 6,700
|
|
telephones; tropospheric scatter links with Saba and Guadeloupe;
|
|
stations--4 AM, 2 FM, 2 TV, 2 shortwave; 1 coaxial submarine cable;
|
|
1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
|
|
|
|
DEFENSE FORCES
|
|
Branches: Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force, Royal Antigua
|
|
and Barbuda Police Force (includes the Coast Guard)
|
|
|
|
Manpower availability: NA
|
|
|
|
Defense expenditures: $1.4 million, less than 1% of GDP (FY91)
|
|
|
|
|