Location: Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago

Geographic coordinates: 13 15 N, 61 12 W

Map references: Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total : 340 sq km
land: 340 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative: twice the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 84 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)

Terrain: volcanic, mountainous

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Soufriere 1,234 m

Natural resources: NEGL

Land use:
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 18%
permanent pastures: 5%
forests and woodland: 36%
other: 31% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 10 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat

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

Environment - international agreements:
party to : Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Desertification

Geography - note: the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada

Population: 116,394 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years:28.9% (male 17,093; female 16,497)
15-64 years:64.8% (male 38,718; female 36,689)
65 years and over: 6.3% (male 3,188; female 4,209) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate:0.37% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 17.54 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 6.12 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: -7.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

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 (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 16.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population:72.82 years
male: 71.07 years
female: 74.63 years (2002 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.01 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s)
adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian

Ethnic groups: black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2%, other 7%

Religions:Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, Hindu Seventh-Day Adventist, other Protestant

Languages: English, French patois

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population : 96%
male: 96%
female: 96% (1970 est.)

Country name:
conventional long form : none
conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Data code: VC

Government type: constitutional monarchy

National capital: Kingstown

Administrative divisions: 6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick

Independence: 27 October 1979 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 27 October (1979)

Constitution: 27 October 1979

Legal system: based on English common law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Charles ANTROBUS (since NA)
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

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

Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court resides in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)

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)

International organization participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO

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

Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an embassy in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; the Ambassador to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines resides in Bridgetown (Barbados)

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

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 and 1995, and tourism in the Eastern Caribbean has suffered low arrivals following September 11. St. 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.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $339 million (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: -0.8% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,900 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 10%
industry:26%
services:64% (2001 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: -0.4% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
total: 67,000 (1984 est.)
by occupation: agriculture 26%, industry 17%, services 57% (1980 est.)

Unemployment rate: 22% (1997 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $94.6 million
expenditures: $85.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

Industries: food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch

Industrial production growth rate: -0.9% (1997 est.)

Electricity - capacity: 20,000 kW (1993)

Electricity - production: 82 million kWh (1999)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 76.3 million kWh (1999)

Agriculture - products: bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; small fish catch used locally

Exports:
total value: $53.7 million (2000 est.)
commodities :bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch, tennis racquets
partners: Caricom countries 49%, UK 16%, US 10% (1995)

Imports:
total value : $185.6 million (2000 est.)
commodities: foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels
partners:US 36%, Caricom countries 28%, UK 13% (1995)

Debt - external: $167.2 million (2000)

Economic aid:
recipient:$47.5 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (1998)

Currency: 1 EC dollar (XCD) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars ((XCD) per US$1 - 2.7000 (February 1997; fixed rate since 1976)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones: 20,500 (1998)

Telephone system: 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

Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios: 77,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997)

Televisions: 18,000 (1997)

Railways: 0 km

Highways:
total: 1,040 km
paved : 320 km
unpaved:720 km (1996)

Ports and harbors: Kingstown

Merchant marine:
total:788 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 7,000,660 GRT/10,702,776 DWT
ships by type: barge carrier 1, bulk 142, cargo 382, chemical tanker 24, combination bulk 11, combination ore/oil 3, container 47, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 3, multi-functional large-load carrier 2, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 48, refrigerated cargo 39, roll on/roll off 52, short-sea passenger 13, 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, Bahamas, The 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, United Arab Emirates 45, United Kingdom 16, United States 25, Vietnam 1 (2002 est.)

Airports: 6 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways:
total:5
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m:1 (2001)

Military branches: Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, Coast Guard

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: NA

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males: NA

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%

Disputes - international: none

Illicit drugs: transshipment points for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe