Resistance by native Caribs prevented colonization on St. Vincent until 1719. Disputed between France and the United Kingdom for most of the 18th century, the island was ceded to the latter in 1783. Between 1960 and 1962, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was a separate administrative unit of the Federation of the West Indies. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979.
Location
Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago
Geographic coordinates
13 15 N, 61 12 W
Map references
Central America and the Caribbean
Area
total
389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km)
land
389 sq km
water
0 sq km
Area - comparative
twice the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries
0 km
Coastline
84 km
Maritime claims
territorial sea
12 nm
contiguous zone
24 nm
exclusive economic zone
200 nm
continental shelf
200 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
La Soufriere 1,234 m
Natural resources
hydropower, cropland
Land use
arable land
17.95%
permanent crops
17.95%
other
64.1% (2005)
Irrigated land
10 sq km (2003)
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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified
none of the selected agreements
Geography - note
the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is comprised of 32 islands and cays
Population
118,149 (July 2007 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
25.9% (male 15,596/female 15,027)
15-64 years
67.6% (male 41,259/female 38,620)
65 years and over
6.5% (male 3,358/female 4,289) (2007 est.)
Median age
total
27.4 years
male
27.3 years
female
27.6 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate
0.248% (2007 est.)
Birth rate
16.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate
5.97 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate
-7.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years
1.038 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1.068 male(s)/female
65 years and over
0.783 male(s)/female
total population
1.039 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate
total
14.01 deaths/1,000 live births
male
15.25 deaths/1,000 live births
female
12.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population
74.09 years
male
72.21 years
female
76.04 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate
1.81 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths
NA
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%, other (includes Hindu, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Protestant) 12%
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
Government type
parliamentary democracy
Capital
name
Kingstown
geographic coordinates
13 09 N, 61 14 W
time difference
UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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 Fredrick Nathaniel BALLANTYNE (since 2 September 2002)
head of government
Prime Minister Ralph E. 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 six appointed senators; representatives are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 7 December 2005 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - ULP 55.3%, NDP 44.7%; 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
New Democratic Party or NDP [Arnhim EUSTACE]; 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)
the US does not have an embassy in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
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
Economic growth in this lower-middle-income country hinges upon seasonal variations in the agricultural and tourism sectors. Tropical storms wiped out substantial portions of crops in 1994, 1995, and 2002, and tourism in the Eastern Caribbean suffered low arrivals in the immediate aftermath of 11 September 2001. The islands had more than 160,000 tourist arrivals in 2005, mostly to the Grenadines. Saint Vincent is home to a small offshore banking sector and has moved to adopt international regulatory standards. Saint Vincent is also a producer of marijuana and is being used as a transshipment point for illegal narcotics from South America.
GDP (purchasing power parity)
$342 million (2002 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)
$428 million (2005)
GDP - real growth rate
4.9% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)
$3,600 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture
10%
industry
26%
services
64% (2001 est.)
Labor force
41,680 (1991 est.)
Labor force - by occupation
agriculture
26%
industry
17%
services
57% (1980 est.)
Unemployment rate
15% (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%
NA%
highest 10%
NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
1% (2005 est.)
Budget
revenues
$94.6 million
expenditures
$85.8 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
Agriculture - products
bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish
bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch; tennis racquets
Exports - partners
France 26.3%, Greece 21.3%, Italy 18.9%, Russia 7.2%, UK 6.9% (2006)
Imports
$225 million (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities
foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels
Imports - partners
Singapore 17.5%, Trinidad and Tobago 12.3%, US 11.2%, Italy 11.1%, Spain 9.6%, Turkey 4.6%, Germany 4.4% (2006)
Debt - external
$223 million (2004)
Economic aid - recipient
$10.5 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (2004)
Currency (code)
East Caribbean dollar (XCD)
Currency code
XCD
Exchange rates
East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002)
Fiscal year
calendar year
Telephones - main lines in use
22,500 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular
70,600 (2005)
Telephone system
general assessment
adequate system
domestic
islandwide, fully automatic telephone system; VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to the other islands of the Grenadines
international
country code - 1-784; 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 6, shortwave 0 (2004)
Radios
77,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations
1 (plus 3 repeaters) (2004)
Televisions
18,000 (1997)
Internet country code
.vc
Internet hosts
94 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
15 (2000)
Internet users
8,000 (2005)
Airports
6 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways
total
5
914 to 1,523 m
4
under 914 m
1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways
total
1
under 914 m
1 (2006)
Roadways
total
829 km
paved
580 km
unpaved
249 km (2003)
Merchant marine
total
589 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,449,699 GRT/8,051,250 DWT
by type
bulk carrier 106, cargo 351, chemical tanker 5, container 20, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 1, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 15, petroleum tanker 18, refrigerated cargo 38, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 3
foreign-owned
529 (Bangladesh 1, Barbados 1, Belgium 3, Bulgaria 17, Canada 6, China 103, Croatia 9, Cyprus 1, Czech Republic 1, Denmark 14, Egypt 3, Estonia 25, France 8, Germany 8, Greece 82, Guyana 3, Hong Kong 6, Iceland 10, India 6, Iran 1, Ireland 1, Israel 2, Italy 18, Kenya 2, Latvia 18, Lebanon 4, Lithuania 3, Monaco 4, Montenegro 2, Netherlands 5, Norway 16, Pakistan 1, Poland 1, Puerto Rico 1, Romania 1, Russia 29, Singapore 5, Slovenia 5, Sweden 1, Switzerland 13, Syria 6, Turkey 25, UAE 11, UK 13, Ukraine 12, US 21, Vietnam 1)
registered in other countries
1 (Comoros 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals
Kingstown
Military branches
no regular military forces; Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, Coast Guard (2007)
Manpower available for military service
males age 18-49: 31,489 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service
males age 18-49: 25,787 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually
males age 18-49: 1,204 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP
NA
Disputes - international
joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea
Illicit drugs
transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; small-scale cannabis cultivation
