Statistical information Netherlands Antilles 1997

Netherlands Antilles in the World
top of pageBackground: Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Sint Maarten is shared with France (whose northern portion is named Saint Martin and is part of Guadeloupe).
top of pageLocation: Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - one includes Curacao and Bonaire north of Venezuela and the other is east of the Virgin Islands
Geographic coordinates: 12 15 N, 68 45 W
Map reference:
Central America and the CaribbeanAreaTotal: total:960 km²; land:960 km²; water:0 km²; note:includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin)
Comparative: more than five times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: total:10.2 km; border countries:Guadeloupe (Saint Martin) 10.2 km
Coastline: 364 km
Maritime claims: exclusive fishing zone:12 nm; territorial sea:12 nm
Climate: tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds
Terrain: generally hilly, volcanic interiors
ElevationExtremes: lowest point:Caribbean Sea 0 m; highest point:Mount Scenery 862 m
Natural resources: phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only)
Land use: arable land:10%; permanent crops:0%; permanent pastures:0%; forests and woodland:0%; other:90% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: NA km²
Major riversMajor watersheds area km²Total water withdrawalTotal renewable water resourcesNatural hazards: Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt, so are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October
Geographytop of pagePopulation: 211,093 (July 1997 est.)
Growth rate: 0.99% (1997 est.)
Nationality: noun:Netherlands Antillean(s); adjective:Netherlands Antillean
Ethnic groups: mixed black 85%, Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian
Languages: Dutch (official), Papiamento, a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect predominates, English widely spoken, Spanish
Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Seventh-Day Adventist
Demographic profileAge structure: 0-14 years:24% (male 26,496; female 25,267); 15-64 years:68% (male 70,087; female 73,300); 65 years and over:8% (male 6,694; female 9,249) (July 1997 est.)
Dependency ratiosMedian agePopulation growth rate: 0.99% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 15.61 births/1000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 5.33 deaths/1000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.36 migrant(s)/1000 population (1997 est.)
Population distributionUrbanizationMajor urban areasEnvironmentCurrent issues: NA
Air pollutantsSex ratio: at birth:1.05 male(s)/female; under 15 years:1.05 male(s)/female; 15-64 years:0.96 male(s)/female; 65 years and over:0.72 male(s)/female; total population:0.96 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Mothers mean age at first birthMaternal mortality ratioInfant mortality rate: 8.8 deaths/1000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population:77.18 years; male:74.89 years; female:79.59 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.86 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rateDrinking water sourceCurrent health expenditurePhysicians densityHospital bed densitySanitation facility accessHiv/AidsMajor infectious diseasesObesity adult prevalence rateAlcohol consumptionTobacco useChildren under the age of 5 years underweightEducation expendituresLiteracy: definition:age 15 and over can read and write; total population:98%; male:98%; female:99% (1981 est.)
School life expectancy primary to tertiary educationYouth unemploymenttop of pageCountry name: conventional long form: none; conventional short form: Netherlands Antilles; local long form: none; local short form: Nederlandse Antillen
Government type: NA
Capital: Willemstad
Administrative divisions: none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands); note:each island has its own government
Dependent areasIndependence: none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
National holiday: Queen's Day, 30 April (1938)
Constitution: 29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended
Legal system: based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence
International law organization participationCitizenshipSuffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state:Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Jaime SALEH (since NA October 1989); head of government:Prime Minister Miguel POURIER (since 25 February 1994); cabinet:Council of Ministers elected by the Staten; elections:the queen is a constitutional monarch; governor general appointed by the queen for a six-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the Staten; election last held 31 March 1994 (next to be held NA 1998); election results:Miguel POURIER elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA
Legislative branch: unicameral States or Staten (23 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); elections:last held 25 February 1994 (next to be held NA March 1998); election results:percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PAR 8, PNP 3, SPA 2, PDB 2, UPB 1, MAN 2, DP 1, WIPM 1, DP-St.E 1, DP-St.M 1, Nos Patria 1; note:the government of Prime Minister Miguel POURIER is a coalition of several parties
Judicial branch: Joint High Court of Justice
Political parties and leadersInternational organization participation: Caricom (observer), ECLAC (associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WMO, WToO (associate)
Diplomatic representationIn the us: none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
From the us: chief of mission:Consul General James L. WILLIAMS; consulate(s) general:J.B. Gorsiraweg #1, Curacao; mailing address:P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao; telephone:[599] (9) 461-3,066; FAX:[599] (9) 461-6,489
Flag description
: white with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band also centered; five white five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten
National symbolsNational anthemNational heritagetop of pageEconomy overview: Tourism, petroleum transshipment, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. The islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure as compared with other countries in the region. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, with Venezuela and the US being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture.
Real gdp purchasing power parityReal gdp growth rate: 0% (1996 est.)
Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $9,800 (1996 est.)
Gross national savingGdp composition by sector of origin
Gdp composition by end useGdp composition by sector of originAgriculture products: aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit
Industries: tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao)
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Labor force: total:89,000; by occupation:government 65%, industry and commerce 28% (1983)
Unemployment rate: 13.4% (1993 est.)
Youth unemploymentPopulation below poverty lineGini indexHousehold income or consumption by percentage shareDistribution of family income gini indexBudget: revenues:$209 million; expenditures:$232 million, including capital expenditures of $8 million (1992 est.)
Taxes and other revenuesPublic debtRevenueFiscal year: calendar year
Inflation rate consumer pricesCentral bank discount rateCommercial bank prime lending rateStock of narrow moneyStock of broad moneyStock of domestic creditMarket value of publicly traded sharesCurrent account balanceExports: total value:$1.3 billion (f.o.b., 1993); commodities:petroleum products 98%; partners:US 39%, Brazil 9%, Colombia 6%
Imports: total value:$1.8 billion (f.o.b., 1993); commodities:crude petroleum 64%, food, manufactures; partners:Venezuela 26%, US 18%, Colombia 6%, Netherlands 6%, Japan 5%
Reserves of foreign exchange and goldDebt external: $1.95 billion (December 1995)
Stock of direct foreign investment at homeStock of direct foreign investment abroadExchange rates: Netherlands Antillean guilders, gulden, or florins (NAf.) per US$1 - 1.790 (fixed rate since 1989)
top of pageElectricityCapacity: 307,000 kW (1995)
Production: 970 million kWh (1994)
Consumption per capita: 4,580 kWh (1994 est.)
CoalPetroleumCrude oilRefined petroleumNatural gasCarbon dioxide emissionsEnergy consumption per capitatop of pageTelephones: NA
Telephone system: generally adequate facilities; domestic:extensive interisland microwave radio relay links; international:2 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Broadcast mediaInternetBroadband fixed subscriptionstop of pageMilitary expendituresMilitary and security forcesMilitary service age and obligationSpace programTerrorist groupstop of pageNational air transport systemCivil aircraft registration country code prefixAirports: 4 (1996 est.)
With paved runways: total:4; over 3,047 m:1; 1,524 to 2,437 m:2; 914 to 1,523 m:1 (1996 est.)
HeliportsPipelinesRailways: 0 km
RoadwaysWaterwaysMerchant marine: total:106 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 971,002 GRT/1,318,064 DWT; ships by type:bulk 3, cargo 33, container 4, liquefied gas tanker 4, multifunction large-load carrier 20, oil tanker 7, passenger 1, refrigerated cargo 26, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8 (1996 est.)
Ports and terminalstop of pageDisputes international: none
Refugees and internally displaced personsIllicit drugs: money-laundering center; transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe