Background: Carib Indians occupied the islands of the West Indies for hundreds of years before the British began settlement in 1623. In 1967 the island territory of Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla became an associated state of the UK with full internal autonomy. The island of Anguilla rebelled and was allowed to secede in 1971. The remaining islands achieved independence in 1983 as Saint Kitts and Nevis. In 1998 a referendum on Nevis to separate from Saint Kitts fell short of the two-thirds majority vote needed. Nevis continues in its efforts to separate from Saint Kitts.

Geographic coordinates: 17 20 N 62 45 W

Map reference: Central America and the Caribbean

Area
Total: 261 km²
Land: 261 km²
Water: 0 km²
Rank: 212
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
Mean elevation: NA
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m: highest point: Mount Liamuiga 1156 m

Natural resources: arable land

Land use
Agricultural land: 23.1%
Forest: 42.3%
Other: 34.6%

Irrigated land: 8 km² (2012)

Natural hazards: hurricanes (July to October)

Geography
Note: smallest country in the Americas and Western Hemisphere; with coastlines in the shape of a baseball bat and ball the two volcanic islands are separated by a 3-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

Population
Distribution: population clusters are found in the small towns located on the periphery of both islands: 52,329 (July 2016 est.)
Rank: 210
Growth rate: 0.75% (2016 est.)
Growth rate rank: 144
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Kittitian Nevisian
Adjective: Kittitian Nevisian

Ethnic groups: predominantly black; some British Portuguese and Lebanese

Languages: English (official)

Religions: Anglican other Protestant Roman Catholic

Age structure
0-14 years: 20.61%
15-24 years: 14.82%
25-54 years: 44.85%
55-64 years: 11.38%
65 years and over: 8.34% (2016 est.)

Median age
Total: 34.5 years
Male: 34.7 years
Female: 34.3 years
Rank: 82

Population growth rate: 0.75% (2016 est.)
Rank: 144

Birth rate: 13.3 births/1000 population (2016 est.)
Rank: 147

Death rate: 7.1 deaths/1000 population (2016 est.)
Rank: 127

Net migration rate: 1.2 migrant(s)/1000 population (2016 est.)
Rank: 58

Population distribution: population clusters are found in the small towns located on the periphery of both islands

Urbanization
Urban population: 32% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 1.27% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: BASSETERRE (capital) 14,000 (2014)

Environment
Current issues: NA
International agreements party to: Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Endangered Species Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Marine Dumping Ozone Layer Protection Ship Pollution Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.02 male/female
0-14 years: 1.01 male/female
15-24 years: 0.94 male/female
25-54 years: 1.05 male/female
55-64 years: 1 male/female
65 years and over: 0.83 male/female
Total population: 1 male/female

Infant mortality rate
Total: 8.6 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 6 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 11.2 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 147

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 75.7 years
Male: 73.3 years
Female: 78.2 years
Rank: 97

Total fertility rate: 1.78 children born/woman (2016 est.)
Rank: 156

Drinking water source:

Hospital bed density: 2.3 beds/1000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access:

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: NA
People living with hivaids: NA
Deaths: NA

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 28.4% (2014)
Rank: 11

Education expenditures: 4.2% of GDP (2007)
Rank: 105

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 14 years
Male: 14 years
Female: 15 years

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
Etymology: Saint Kitts was and still is referred to as Saint Christopher and this name was well established by the 17th century ; in the 17th century a common nickname for Christopher was Kit or Kitt so the island began to be referred to as 'Saint Kitt's Island' or just 'Saint Kitts'; Nevis is derived from the original Spanish name 'Nuestra Senora de las Nieves' (Our Lady of the Snows) and refers to the white halo of clouds that generally wreathes Nevis Peak

Government type: federal parliamentary democracy (National Assembly) under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm

Capital
Name: Basseterre
Geographic coordinates: 17 18 N 62 43 W
Time difference: UTC-4

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 the UK)

National holiday: Independence Day 19 September (1983)

Constitution: several previous (preindependence); latest presented 22 June 1983 effective 23 June 1983 (2016)

Legal system: English common law

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: yes
Citizenship by descent: yes
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: 14 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II ; represented by Governor General Samuel W.T. SEATON (since 2 September 2015); note - SEATON was acting Governor General from 20 May to 2 September 2015
Head of government: Prime Minister Timothy HARRIS ; Deputy Prime Minister Shawn RICHARDS (since 22 February 2015)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by governor general in consultation with prime minister
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by governor general

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral National Assembly
Elections: last held on 16 February 2015
Election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PAM 4 SKNLP 3 CCM 2 PLP 1 NRP 1

Judicial branch
Highest court: the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court is the itinerant superior court of record for the 9-member Organization of Eastern Caribbean States which includes Saint Kitts and Nevis; the ECSC - with its headquarters on St. Lucia - is headed by the chief justice and comprised of the Court of Appeal with 3 justices and the High Court with 16 judges; sittings of the Court of Appeal and High Court rotate among the member states; 2 High Court judges reside on Saint Kitts and Nevis; note - the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court in 2003 replaced the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London) as the final court of appeal on Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Kitts and Nevis is also a member of the Caribbean Court of Justice
Judge selection and term of office: chief justice of Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court appointed by the Her Majesty Queen ELIZABETH II; other justices and judges appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission an independent body of judicial officials; Court of Appeal justices appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 65; High Court judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 62
Subordinate courts: magistrates' courts

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: ACP AOSIS C Caricom CDB CELAC FAO G-77 IBRD ICAO ICCt ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC ITU MIGA OAS OECS OPANAL OPCW Petrocaribe UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WHO WIPO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Thelma Patricia PHILLIP-BROWNE
In the us chancery: 3,216 New Mexico Avenue NW Washington DC 20,016
In the us telephone: [1] 686-2,636
In the us FAX: [1] 686-5,740
In the us consulate general: Los Angeles New York
From the us: the US does not have an embassy in Saint Kitts and Nevis; the US Ambassador to Barbados 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; green signifies the island's fertility red symbolizes the struggles of the people from slavery yellow denotes year-round sunshine and black represents the African heritage of the people; the white stars stand for the islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis but can also express hope and liberty or independence and optimism

National symbols: brown pelican Royal Poinciana (Flamboyant) tree; national colors: green yellow red black white

National anthem
Name: 'Oh Land of Beauty!'
Lyrics and music: Kenrick Anderson GEORGES
Note: adopted 1983

Economy overview:

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2015 US dollars
Rank: 200

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 43

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2015 US dollars
Rank: 78

Gross national saving:
Rank: 136

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 59.4%
Government consumption: 20.4%
Investment in fixed capital: 29.4%
Investment in inventories: 0.1%
Exports of goods and services: 34.8%
Imports of goods and services: -44.1%

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 1.4%
Industry: 26.5%
Services: 72.1%

Agriculture products: sugarcane rice yams vegetables bananas; fish

Industries: tourism cotton salt copra clothing footwear beverages

Industrial production growth rate: 10% (2015 est.)
Rank: 10

Labor force: 18,170 (June 1995 est.)
Rank: 212

Unemployment rate: 4.5% (1997)
Rank: 44

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Budget
Revenues: $370.4 million
Expenditures: $296.3 million
Surplus or deficit: 8.3% of GDP (2015 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 6

Taxes and other revenues: 41.3% of GDP (2015 est.)
Rank: 40

Public debt:
Rank: 28

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 3

Central bank discount rate:
Rank: 55

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
Rank: 88

Stock of narrow money:
Rank: 180

Stock of broad money:
Rank: 170

Stock of domestic credit:
Rank: 167

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 111

Current account balance:
Rank: 69

Exports:
Rank: 199
Commodities: machinery food electronics beverages tobacco
Partners: US 44.4% Poland 14.6% Bangladesh 10.1% Azerbaijan 4.3% (2015)

Imports:
Rank: 204
Commodities: machinery manufactures food fuels
Partners: US 37.7% Trinidad and Tobago 22.7% Barbados 4.4% (2015)

Debt external:
Rank: 190

Exchange rates:

Electricity
Access population without electricity: 5,232
Access electrification total population: 91%
Access electrification urban areas: 100%
Access electrification rural areas: 80%
Production: 200 million kWh (2014 est.)
Production rank: 195
Consumption: 200 million kWh (2014 est.)
Consumption rank: 195
Exports: 0 kWh (2013 est.)
Exports rank: 191
Imports: 0 kWh (2013 est.)
Imports rank: 197
Installed generating capacity: 64,200 kW (2014 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 189
Generation sources fossil fuels: 95.2% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 69
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 176
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 198
Generation sources other renewable sources: 4.8% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 59

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 186
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 183
Crude oil imports: 0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 121
Crude oil proven reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2016 es)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 185

Refined petroleum
Products production: 0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products production rank: 127
Products consumption: 1900 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Products consumption rank: 190
Products exports: 0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products exports rank: 129
Products imports: 1907 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products imports rank: 186

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Production rank: 124
Consumption: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Consumption rank: 190
Exports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Exports rank: 174
Imports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Imports rank: 129
Proven reserves: 0 m³ (1 January 2014 es)
Proven reserves rank: 189

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 300,000 Mt (2013 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 196

Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 19,748
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 38
Fixed lines rank: 185
Mobile cellular total: 73,000
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 141
Mobile cellular rank: 196

Telephone system
General assessment: good interisland and international connections
Domestic: interisland links via ECFS; construction of enhanced wireless infrastructure launched in November 2004; fixed-line teledensity about 40 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular teledensity is roughly 140 per 100 persons
International: country code - 1-869; connected internationally by the East ECFS and Southern Caribbean Fiber submarine cables

Broadcast media: the government operates a national TV network that broadcasts on 2 channels; cable subscription services provide access to local and international channels; the government operates a national radio network; a mix of government-owned and privately owned broadcasters operate roughly 15 radio stations (2007)

Internet
Country code: .kn
Users total: 39,000
Users percent of population: 75.7%
Users rank: 203

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2012)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: V4 (2016)

Airports: 2 (2013)
Rank: 209
With paved runways total: 2
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1

Railways
Total: 50 km
Narrow gauge: 50 km 0.762-m gauge on Saint Kitts for tourists
Rank: 132

Roadways
Total: 383 km
Paved: 163 km
Unpaved: 220 km
Rank: 201

Merchant marine
Total: 152
By type: bulk carrier 16 cargo 81 chemical tanker 4 combination ore/oil 1 container 2 liquefied gas 3 passenger 2 passenger/cargo 7 petroleum tanker 27 refrigerated cargo 4 roll on/roll off 4 specialized tanker 1
Foreign owned: 73 (2010)
Rank: 38

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Basseterre Charlestown

Disputes international: joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation a criterion under UN Convention on the Law of the Sea 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; some money-laundering activity