Map of Barbados | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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Background: The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Its economy remained heavily dependent on sugar rum and molasses production through most of the 20th century. In the 1990s tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance.


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Location: Caribbean island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean northeast of Venezuela

Geographic coordinates: 13 10 N 59 32 W

Map reference: Central America and the Caribbean

Area
Comparative: 2.5 times the size of Washington DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 97 km

Maritime claims

Climate: tropical; rainy season (June to October)

Terrain: relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region

Elevation

Natural resources: petroleum fish natural gas

Land use

Irrigated land: NA km²

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides

Geography
Note: easternmost Caribbean island


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Population: 274,540 (July 2000 est.)
Growth rate: 0.55% (2000 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality

Ethnic groups: black 80% white 4% other 16%

Languages: English

Religions: Protestant 67% (Anglican 40% Pentecostal 8% Methodist 7% other 12%) Roman Catholic 4% none 17% other 12%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 0.55% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: 14.45 births/1000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate: 8.68 deaths/1000 population (2000 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.32 migrant(s)/1000 population (2000 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 12.37 deaths/1000 live births (2000 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

Total fertility rate: 1.7 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name

Government type: parliamentary democracy; independent sovereign state within the Commonwealth

Capital: Bridgetown

Administrative divisions: 11 parishes; Christ Church Saint Andrew Saint George Saint James Saint John Saint Joseph Saint Lucy Saint Michael Saint Peter Saint Philip Saint Thomas

Dependent areas

Independence: 30 November 1966 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day 30 November (1966)

Constitution: 30 November 1966

Legal system: English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (28 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Service)

Political parties and leaders: Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [David THOMPSON]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Richard HAYNES]

International organization participation: ACP C Caricom CDB ECLAC FAO G-77 IADB IBRD ICAO ICFTU ICRM IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Intelsat Interpol IOC ISO (correspondent) ITU LAES NAM OAS OPANAL UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WTrO

Diplomatic representation

Flag description: three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side) gold and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident)

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Historically the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. The start of the Port Charles Marina project in Speightstown helped the tourism industry continue to expand in 1996-99. Offshore finance and informatics are important foreign exchange earners and there is also a light manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce the unacceptably high unemployment rate encourage direct foreign investment and privatize remaining state-owned enterprises.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 4.4% (1998 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $11,200 (1998 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: sugarcane vegetables cotton

Industries: tourism sugar light manufacturing component assembly for export

Industrial production growth rate: 0.8% (1996)

Labor force: 136,000 (1998 est.)
By occupation services: 75%
By occupation industry: 15%
By occupation agriculture: 10% (1996 est.)

Unemployment rate: 12% (1998 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: NA%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Inflation rate consumer prices: 1.7% (1998)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $211.2 million (1998)
Commodities: sugar and molasses rum other foods and beverages chemicals electrical components clothing
Partners: UK 14.8% US 11.6% Trinidad and Tobago 7.6% Venezuela 6.1% Jamaica 5.8% (1998)

Imports: $1.01 billion (1998)
Commodities: consumer goods machinery foodstuffs construction materials chemicals fuel electrical components
Partners: US 30.7% Trinidad and Tobago 10.2% Japan 8.3% UK 7.7% Canada 2.2% (1998)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $550 million (1998 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Barbadian dollars (Bds$) per US$1 - 2.0000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar)


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Electricity
Production: 672 million kWh (1998)
Consumption: 625 million kWh (1998)
Exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Imports: 0 kWh (1998)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 90,000 (1995)
Mobile cellular: 4,614 (1995)

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet
Service providers isps: 3 (1999)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $N/A
Percent of gdp: NA%

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 1 (1999 est.)

Heliports

Pipelines

Railways: 0 km

Roadways

Waterways

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for the US and Europe