 Definition  Field Listing  Rank
Order
|
Background: |
First settled by the British in 1623, the islands
became an associated state with full internal autonomy in 1967. The
island of Anguilla rebelled and was allowed to secede in 1971. Saint
Kitts and Nevis achieved independence in 1983. In 1998, a vote in
Nevis on a referendum to separate from Saint Kitts fell short of the
two-thirds majority needed. Nevis is once more trying to separate
from the Saint Kitts. Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
|
Location: |
Caribbean,
islands in the Caribbean Sea, about one-third of the way from Puerto
Rico to Trinidad and Tobago |
|
Geographic coordinates: |
17 20 N, 62
45 W |
|
Map references: |
Central
America and the Caribbean |
|
Area: |
total:
261 sq km (Saint Kitts 168 sq km; Nevis 93 sq km)
land:
261 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
|
Area - comparative: |
1.5 times
the size of Washington, DC |
|
Land boundaries: |
0 km |
|
Coastline: |
135 km
|
|
Maritime claims: |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental
shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
|
Climate: |
tropical
tempered by constant sea breezes; little seasonal temperature
variation; rainy season (May to November) |
|
Terrain: |
volcanic
with mountainous interiors |
|
Elevation extremes: |
lowest
point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount
Liamuiga 1,156 m |
|
Natural resources: |
arable land
|
|
Land use: |
arable
land: 19.44%
permanent crops: 2.78%
other:
77.78% (2001) |
|
Irrigated land: |
NA sq km
|
|
Natural hazards: |
hurricanes
(July to October) |
|
Environment - current issues: |
NA |
|
Environment - international agreements: |
party
to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of
the selected agreements |
|
Geography - note: |
with
coastlines in the shape of a baseball bat and ball, the two volcanic
islands are separated by a three-km-wide channel called The Narrows;
on the southern tip of long, baseball bat-shaped Saint Kitts lies
the Great Salt Pond; Nevis Peak sits in the center of its almost
circular namesake island and its ball shape complements that of its
sister island Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
|
Population: |
38,836 (July
2004 est.) |
|
Age structure: |
0-14
years: 28.6% (male 5,675; female 5,422)
15-64 years:
63% (male 12,242; female 12,236)
65 years and over: 8.4%
(male 1,349; female 1,912) (2004 est.) |
|
Median age: |
total: 27.3 years
male: 26.5 years
female: 28.1 years (2004 est.) |
|
Population growth rate: |
0.25% (2004
est.) |
|
Birth rate: |
18.26
births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
|
Death rate: |
8.65
deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
|
Net migration rate: |
-7.11
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
|
Sex ratio: |
at
birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05
male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65
years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female
total population:
0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
|
Infant mortality rate: |
total:
14.94 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.72 deaths/1,000
live births
female: 13.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2004
est.) |
|
Life expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 71.86 years
male: 69.03 years
female: 74.86 years (2004 est.) |
|
Total fertility rate: |
2.35 children
born/woman (2004 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: |
NA |
|
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
|
HIV/AIDS - deaths: |
NA |
|
Nationality: |
noun:
Kittitian(s), Nevisian(s)
adjective: Kittitian, Nevisian
|
|
Ethnic groups: |
predominantly black; some British, Portuguese, and Lebanese
|
|
Religions: |
Anglican,
other Protestant, Roman Catholic |
|
Languages: |
English
|
|
Literacy: |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97%
male: 97%
female: 98% (1980 est.) Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
|
Country name: |
conventional long form: Federation of Saint Kitts and
Nevis
conventional short form: Saint Kitts and Nevis
former: Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis |
|
Government type: |
constitutional monarchy with Westminster-style parliament |
|
Capital: |
Basseterre
|
|
Administrative divisions: |
14 parishes;
Christ Church Nichola Town, Saint Anne Sandy Point, Saint George
Basseterre, Saint George Gingerland, Saint James Windward, Saint
John Capesterre, Saint John Figtree, Saint Mary Cayon, Saint Paul
Capesterre, Saint Paul Charlestown, Saint Peter Basseterre, Saint
Thomas Lowland, Saint Thomas Middle Island, Trinity Palmetto Point
|
|
Independence: |
19 September
1983 (from UK) |
|
National holiday: |
Independence
Day, 19 September (1983) |
|
Constitution: |
19 September
1983 |
|
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 Cuthbert Montraville SEBASTIAN (since 1 January
1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Denzil
DOUGLAS (since 6 July 1995) and Deputy Prime Minister Sam CONDOR
(since 6 July 1995)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the
governor general in consultation with 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 or leader of a majority
coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor
general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general
|
|
Legislative branch: |
unicameral
National Assembly (14 seats, 3 appointed and 11 popularly elected
from single-member constituencies; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 6 March 2000 (next to be held by
July 2005)
election results: percent of vote by party -
NA; seats by party - SKNLP 8, CCM 2, NRP 1 |
|
Judicial branch: |
Eastern
Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint Lucia; one judge of the
Supreme Court resides in Saint Kitts and Nevis) |
|
Political parties and leaders: |
Concerned
Citizens Movement or CCM [Vance AMORY]; Nevis Reformation Party or
NRP [Joseph PARRY]; People's Action Movement or PAM [Lindsey GRANT];
Saint Kitts and Nevis Labor Party or SKNLP [Dr. Denzil DOUGLAS]
|
|
Political pressure groups and leaders: |
NA |
|
International organization participation: |
ACP, C,
Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW
(signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO |
|
Diplomatic representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Dr. Izben Cordinal WILLIAMS
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016
telephone: [1] (202) 686-2636
FAX: [1] (202)
686-5740
consulate(s) general: New York |
|
Diplomatic representation from the US: |
the US does
not have an embassy in Saint Kitts and Nevis; the US Ambassador to
Barbados, Ambassador Mary E. KRAMER, is accredited to Saint Kitts
and Nevis |
|
Flag description: |
divided
diagonally from the lower hoist side by a broad black band bearing
two white, five-pointed stars; the black band is edged in yellow;
the upper triangle is green, the lower triangle is red
Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
|
Economy - overview: |
Sugar was
the traditional mainstay of the Saint Kitts economy until the 1970s.
Although the crop still dominates the agricultural sector,
activities such as tourism, export-oriented manufacturing, and
offshore banking have assumed larger roles in the economy. As
tourism revenues are now the chief source of the islands' foreign
exchange, a decline in stopover tourist arrivals following the 11
September 2001 terrorist attacks has eroded government finances. The
opening of a 1,000+ bed Marriott hotel in February 2003 was expected
to bring in much-needed revenue. |
|
GDP: |
purchasing
power parity - $339 million (2002 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate: |
-1.9% (2002
est.) |
|
GDP - per capita: |
purchasing
power parity - $8,800 (2002 est.) |
|
GDP - composition by sector: |
agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 25.8%
services: 70.7% (2001) |
|
Population below poverty line: |
NA |
|
Household income or consumption by percentage
share: |
lowest
10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices): |
1.7% (2001
est.) |
|
Labor force: |
18,170 (June
1995) |
|
Labor force - by occupation: |
NA |
|
Unemployment rate: |
4.5% (1997)
|
|
Budget: |
revenues: $89.7 million
expenditures: $128.2
million, including capital expenditures of $19.5 million (2003 est.)
|
|
Agriculture - products: |
sugarcane,
rice, yams, vegetables, bananas; fish |
|
Industries: |
sugar
processing, tourism, cotton, salt, copra, clothing, footwear,
beverages |
|
Industrial production growth rate: |
NA |
|
Electricity - production: |
100.3 million
kWh (2001) |
|
Electricity - consumption: |
93.26 million
kWh (2001) |
|
Electricity - exports: |
0 kWh (2001)
|
|
Electricity - imports: |
0 kWh (2001)
|
|
Oil - production: |
0 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
|
Oil - consumption: |
710 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
|
Oil - exports: |
NA (2001)
|
|
Oil - imports: |
NA (2001)
|
|
Exports: |
$70 million
(2002 est.) |
|
Exports - commodities: |
machinery,
food, electronics, beverages, tobacco |
|
Exports - partners: |
US 58.1%, UK
14.9%, Canada 8.1%, Germany 4.1% (2003 est.) |
|
Imports: |
$195 million
(2002 est.) |
|
Imports - commodities: |
machinery,
manufactures, food, fuels |
|
Imports - partners: |
US 35.9%,
Italy 16.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 14.5%, UK 6.5%, Denmark 5.6%,
Canada 4.4% (2003 est.) |
|
Debt - external: |
$171 million
(2001) |
|
Economic aid - recipient: |
$8 million
(2001) |
|
Currency: |
East
Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
|
Currency code: |
XCD |
|
Exchange rates: |
East
Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7
(2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999) |
|
Fiscal year: |
calendar
year Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
Large portions of this information is from the US government open source publication "The World Factbook", other content copyright © Stratus-Pikpuk, Inc. You may use this information without permission for educational or other non-profit purposes if you refer to us as the source, contact us if you want to use this commercially.
|
