Saint Lucia

Airports

total: 3 usable: 3 with permanent-surface runways: 3 with runways over 3,659 m: 0 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 1

Highways

total: 760 km paved: 500 km unpaved: otherwise improved 260 km

Ports

Castries, Vieux Fort

Telecommunications

fully automatic telephone system; 9,500 telephones; direct microwave link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; interisland troposcatter link to Barbados; broadcast stations - 4 AM, 1 FM, 1 TV (cable)

Affiliation

(territorial collectivity of France)

Branches

Royal Saint Lucia Police Force, Coast Guard

Defense expenditures

$NA, NA% of GDP

Agriculture

accounts for 14% of GDP and 43% of labor force; crops - bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus fruit, root crops, cocoa; imports food for the tourist industry

Budget

revenues: $121 million expenditures: $127 million, including capital expenditures of $104 million (1992 est.)

Currency

1 EC dollar (EC$) = 100 cents

Economic aid

recipient: Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $120 million

Electricity

capacity: 32,500 kW production: 112 million kWh consumption per capita: 740 kWh (1992)

Exchange rates

East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1 - 2.70 (fixed rate since 1976)

Exports

$122.8 million (f.o.b., 1992) commodities: bananas 60%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil partners: UK 56%, US 22%, CARICOM 19% (1991)

External debt

$96.4 million (1992 est.)

Illicit drugs

transit country for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe

Imports

$276 million (f.o.b., 1992) commodities: manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 21%, food and live animals, chemicals, fuels partners: US 34%, CARICOM 17%, UK 14%, Japan 7%, Canada 4% (1991)

Industrial production

growth rate 3.5% (1990 est.); accounts for 12% of GDP

Industries

clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism, lime processing, coconut processing

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

5.1% (1992)

National product

GDP - exchange rate conversion - $433 million (1993 est.)

National product per capita

$3,000 (1993 est.)

National product real growth rate

6.6% (1992 est.)

Overview

Since 1983 the economy has shown an impressive average annual growth rate of almost 5% because of strong agricultural and tourist sectors. Saint Lucia also possesses an expanding industrial base supported by foreign investment in manufacturing and other activities, such as data processing. The economy, however, remains vulnerable because the important agricultural sector is dominated by banana production, which is subject to periodic droughts and tropical storms. The economy exhibited relatively strong growth in 1992-93 based on a recovery of the agricultural and manufacturing sectors and continued growth in construction and tourism.

Unemployment rate

NA%

Area

total area: 620 sq km land area: 610 sq km comparative area: slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Climate

tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to April, rainy season from May to August

Coastline

158 km

Environment

current issues: deforestation; soil erosion natural hazards: subject to hurricanes and volcanic activity international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling

International disputes

none

Irrigated land

10 sq km (1989 est.)

Land boundaries

0 km

Land use

arable land: 8% permanent crops: 20% meadows and pastures: 5% forest and woodland: 13% other: 54%

Location

Caribbean, in the eastern Caribbean Sea, about two-thirds 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

Maritime claims

contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm

Natural resources

forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential

Terrain

volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys

Administrative divisions

11 quarters; Anse La Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux Fort

Capital

Castries

Constitution

22 February 1979

Digraph

ST

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Joseph Edsel EDMUNDS chancery: Suite 309, 2100 M Street NW, Washington, DC 30037 telephone: (202) 463-7378 or 7379

Executive branch

chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Stanislaus Anthony JAMES (since 10 October 1988) head of government: Prime Minister John George Melvin COMPTON (since 3 May 1982); Vice President George MALLET (since NA) cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the governor general on advice of the prime minister

FAX

(202) 887-5746 consulate(s) general: New York

Flag

blue with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border

House of Assembly

elections last held 27 April 1992 (next to be held by April 1997); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (17 total) UWP 11, SLP 6

Independence

22 February 1979 (from UK)

Judicial branch

Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court

Legal system

based on English common law

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament

Member of

ACCT (associate), ACP, C, CARICOM, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, LORCS, NAM, OAS, OECS, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO

Names

conventional long form: none conventional short form: Saint Lucia

National holiday

Independence Day, 22 February (1979)

Political parties and leaders

United Workers' Party (UWP), John COMPTON; Saint Lucia Labor Party (SLP), Julian HUNTE; Progressive Labor Party (PLP), George ODLUM

Senate

consists of an 11-member body, 6 appointed on the advice of the prime minister, 3 on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and 2 after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Type

parliamentary democracy

US diplomatic representation

no official presence since the Ambassador resides in Bridgetown (Barbados)

Birth rate

23.12 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Death rate

5.84 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Ethnic divisions

African descent 90.3%, mixed 5.5%, East Indian 3.2%, Caucasian 0.8%

Infant mortality rate

18.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)

Labor force

43,800 by occupation: agriculture 43.4%, services 38.9%, industry and commerce 17.7% (1983 est.)

Languages

English (official), French patois

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 69.36 years male: 67.06 years female: 71.83 years (1994 est.)

Literacy

age 15 and over having ever attended school (1980) total population: 67% male: 65% female: 69%

Nationality

noun: Saint Lucian(s) adjective: Saint Lucian

Net migration rate

-12.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Population

145,090 (July 1994 est.)

Population growth rate

0.52% (1994 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 7%, Anglican 3%

Total fertility rate

2.5 children born/woman (1994 est.)