year=1992&name=Saint Lucia - Gheos Worldguide

Statistics Saint Lucia

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Saint Lucia in the World

Saint Lucia - Introduction 1992

Background: The island with its fine natural harbor at Castries was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Self government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979.

Geographic coordinates

Map reference

Area
Total: 620 km²
Land: 610 km²
Comparative: slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: none

Coastline: 158 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Disputes: none

Climate:

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

Terrain: volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys

Elevation

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

Land use: arable land: 8%; permanent crops: 20%; meadows and pastures 5%; forest and woodland 13%; other 54%; includes irrigated 2%

Irrigated land

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards

Geography

Saint Lucia - People 1992

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Population: 151,774 (July 1992), growth rate 1.7% (1992)

Nationality: noun - Saint Lucian(s; adjective - Saint Lucian

Ethnic groups:

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

Languages: English (official), French patois

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

Population growth rate

Birth rate: 26 births/1000 population (1992)

Death rate: 5 deaths/1000 population (1992)

Net migration rate: -4 migrants/1000 population (1992)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: subject to hurricanes and volcanic activity; deforestation; soil erosion
Current issues note: located 700 km southeast of Puerto Rico

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 18 deaths/1000 live births (1992)

Life expectancy at birth: 70 years male, 75 years female (1992)

Total fertility rate: 2.8 children born/woman (1992)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hivaids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

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

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment

Saint Lucia - Government 1992

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Country name
Conventional long form: none

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Capital: Castries

Administrative divisions:

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

Dependent areas

Independence: 22 February 1979 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 22 February (1979)

Constitution: 22 February 1979

Legal system: based on English common law

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: universal at age 18
House of Assembly: last held 6 April 1987 (next to be held by 27 April 1992); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (17 total) UWP 10, SLP 7

Executive branch:

British monarch, governor general, prime minister,
Cabinet

Legislative branch:

bicameral Parliament consists of an upper house or
Senate and a lower house or House of Assembly

Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation:

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

Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Dr. Joseph Edsel EDMUNDS; Chancery at Suite 309, 2,100 M Street NW, Washington, DC 30,037; telephone (202) 463-7,378 or 7,379; there is a Saint Lucian Consulate General in New York
US: no official presence since the Ambassador resides in Bridgetown (Barbados)

Diplomatic representation

Flag description

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

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage

Saint Lucia - Economy 1992

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Economy 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 in data processing. The economy, however, remains vulnerable because the important agricultural sector is dominated by banana production. Saint Lucia is subject to periodic droughts and/or tropical storms, and its protected market agreement with the UK for bananas may end in 1992.

GDP: exchange rate conversion - $295 million, per capita $1,930; real growth rate 4.0% (1990 est.)

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate

Real gdp per capita

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: accounts for 16% of GDP and 43% of labor force; crops - bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus fruit, root crops, cocoa; imports food for the tourist industry

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

Industrial production growth rate:

growth rate 3.5% (1990 est.); accounts for 7% of
GDP

Labor force: 43,800; agriculture 43.4%, services 38.9%, industry and commerce 17.7% (1983 est.)
Organized labor: 20% of labor force

Unemployment rate: 16.0% (1988)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget: revenues $131 million; expenditures $149 million, including capital expenditures of $71 million (FY90 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year

Inflation rate consumer prices

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: $127 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.)
Commodoties: bananas 54%, clothing 17%, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil
Partners: UK 51%, CARICOM 20%, US 19%, other 10%

Imports: $270 million (c.i.f., 1990)
Commodoties: manufactured goods 23%, machinery and transportation equipment 27%, food and live animals 18%, chemicals 10%, fuels 6%
Partners: US 35%, CARICOM 16%, UK 15%, Japan 7%, Canada 4%, other 23%

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

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

Saint Lucia - Energy 1992

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Electricity
Production: 32,500 kW capacity; 112 million kWh produced, 732 kWh per capita (1991)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum