SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS
GEOGRAPHY
Total area: 269 km2; land area: 269 km2
Comparative area: slightly more than 1.5 times the size of
Washington, DC
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 135 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: subtropical tempered by constant sea breezes; little
seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)
Terrain: volcanic with mountainous interiors
Natural resources: negligible
Land use: arable land 22%; permanent crops 17%; meadows and
pastures 3%; forest and woodland 17%; other 41%
Environment: subject to hurricanes (July to October)
Note: located 320 km east-southeast of Puerto Rico
PEOPLE
Population: 40,293 (July 1991), growth rate 0.4% (1991)
Birth rate: 24 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate: 10 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Net migration rate: - 10 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Infant mortality rate: 39 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Life expectancy at birth: 64 years male, 71 years female (1991)
Total fertility rate: 2.6 children born/woman (1991)
Ethnic divisions: mainly of black African descent
Nationality: noun--Kittsian(s), Nevisian(s); adjective--Kittsian,
Nevisian
Religion: Anglican, other Protestant sects, Roman Catholic
Language: English
Literacy: 98% (male 98%, female 98%) age 15 and over having ever
attended school (1970)
Labor force: 20,000 (1981)
Organized labor: 6,700
GOVERNMENT
Long-form name: Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Type: constitutional monarchy
Capital: Basseterre
Administrative divisions: 14 parishs; Christ Church Nichola Town,
Saint Anne Sandy Point, Saint George Basseterre, Saint George Gingerland,
Saint James Windward, Saint John Capisterre, Saint John Figtree, Saint
Mary Cayon, Saint Paul Capisterre, Saint Paul Charlestown, Saint Peter
Basseterre, Saint Thomas Lowland, Saint Thomas Middle Island, Trinity
Palmetto Point
Independence: 19 September 1983 (from UK)
Constitution: 19 September 1983
Legal system: based on English common law
National holiday: Independence Day, 19 September (1983)
Executive branch: British monarch, governor general, prime
minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly
Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court
Leaders:
Chief of State--Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor General Sir Clement Athelston ARRINDELL (since
19 September 1983, previously Governor General of the Associated State
since NA November 1981);
Head of Government--Prime Minister Dr. Kennedy Alphonse SIMMONDS
(since 19 September 1983, previously Premier of the Associated State
since NA February 1980); Deputy Prime Minister Michael Oliver POWELL
(since NA)
Political parties and leaders:
People's Action Movement (PAM), Kennedy SIMMONDS;
Saint Kitts and Nevis Labor Party (SKNLP), Lee MOORE;
Nevis Reformation Party (NRP), Simeon DANIEL;
Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM), Vance AMORY
Suffrage: universal adult at age NA
Elections:
House of Assembly--last held 21 March 1989
(next to be held by 21 March 1994);
seats--(14 total, 11 elected) PAM 6, SKNLP 2, NRP 2, CCM 1
Communists: none known
Member of: ACP, C, CARICOM, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, IBRD, ICFTU, IDA,
IFAD, IMF, INTERPOL, OAS, OECS, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO
Diplomatic representation: Minister-Counselor (Deputy Chief of
Mission), Charge d'Affaires ad interim Erstein M. EDWARDS;
Chancery at Suite 540, 2501 M Street NW, Washington DC 20037;
telephone (202) 833-3550;
US--none
Flag: 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
ECONOMY
Overview: The economy has historically depended on the growing and
processing of sugarcane and on remittances from overseas workers. In
recent years, tourism and export-oriented manufacturing have assumed
larger roles.
GDP: $146.6 million, per capita $3,195; real growth rate 2.1%
(1990 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.0 (1991 est.)
Unemployment rate: 15% (1989)
Budget: revenues $46.6 million; expenditures $49.1 million,
including capital expenditures of $7.1 million (1990)
Exports: $24.6 million (f.o.b., 1990);
commodities--sugar, clothing, electronics, postage stamps;
partners--US 53%, UK 22%, Trinidad and Tobago 5%, OECS 5% (1988)
Imports: $117.2 million (f.o.b., 1990);
commodities--foodstuffs, intermediate manufactures, machinery,
fuels;
partners--US 36%, UK 17%, Trinidad and Tobago 6%, Canada 3%,
Japan 3%, OECS 4% (1988)
External debt: $26.4 million (1988)
Industrial production: growth rate 11.8% (1988 est.); accounts
for 17% of GDP
Electricity: 15,800 kW capacity; 45 million kWh produced,
1,120 kWh per capita (1990)
Industries: sugar processing, tourism, cotton, salt, copra,
clothing, footwear, beverages
Agriculture: accounts for 10% of GDP; cash crop--sugarcane;
subsistence crops--rice, yams, vegetables, bananas; fishing potential not
fully exploited; most food imported
Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY85-88), $10.7
million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-88), $57 million
Currency: East Caribbean dollar (plural--dollars);
1 EC dollar (EC$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1--2.70 (fixed
rate since 1976)
Fiscal year: calendar year
COMMUNICATIONS
Railroads: 58 km 0.760-meter narrow gauge on Saint Kitts for
sugarcane
Highways: 300 km total; 125 km paved, 125 km otherwise improved,
50 km unimproved earth
Ports: Basseterre (Saint Kitts), Charlestown (Nevis)
Civil air: no major transport aircraft
Airports: 2 total, 2 usable; 2 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
none with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: good interisland VHF/UHF/SHF radio connections
and international link via Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Martin;
2,400 telephones; stations--2 AM, no FM, 4 TV
DEFENSE FORCES
Branches: Royal Saint Kitts and Nevis Police Force, Coast Guard
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 38,090; NA fit for military
service
Defense expenditures: $NA, NA% of GDP