*Saint Lucia, People
Population:
144,337 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.52% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
23.97 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
5.91 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
-12.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
18.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
69.26 years
male:
66.98 years
female:
71.69 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.62 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Saint Lucian(s)
adjective:
Saint Lucian
Ethnic divisions:
African descent 90.3%, mixed 5.5%, East Indian 3.2%, Caucasian 0.8%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 7%, Anglican 3%
Languages:
English (official), French patois
Literacy:
age 15 and over having ever attended school (1980)
total population:
67%
male:
65%
female:
69%
Labor force:
43,800
by occupation:
agriculture 43.4%, services 38.9%, industry and commerce 17.7% (1983 est.)
*Saint Lucia, Government
Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Saint Lucia
Digraph:
ST
Type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
Castries
Administrative divisions:
11 quarters; Anse La Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros Islet,
Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux Fort
Independence:
22 February 1979 (from UK)
Constitution:
22 February 1979
Legal system:
based on English common law
National holiday:
Independence Day, 22 February (1979)
Political parties and leaders:
United Workers' Party (UWP), John COMPTON; Saint Lucia Labor Party (SLP),
Julian HUNTE; Progressive Labor Party (PLP), George ODLUM
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Elections:
House of Assembly:
last held 27 April 1992 (next to be held by April 1997); results - percent
of vote by party NA; seats - (17 total) UWP 11, SLP 6
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
Leaders:
Chief of State:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Acting Governor
General Sir Stanislaus Anthony JAMES (since 10 October 1988)
Head of Government:
Prime Minister John George Melvin COMPTON (since 3 May 1982)
Member of:
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 in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Dr. Joseph Edsel EDMUNDS
chancery:
Suite 309, 2100 M Street NW, Washington, DC 30037
telephone:
(202) 463-7378 or 7379
consulate general:
New York
US diplomatic representation:
no official presence since the Ambassador resides in Bridgetown (Barbados)
*Saint Lucia, Government
Flag:
blue with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges
of the arrowhead have a white border
*Saint Lucia, 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, which is subject to periodic
droughts and/or tropical storms.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $250 million (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate:
2.5% (1991 est.)
National product per capita:
$1,650 (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
6.1% (1991)
Unemployment rate:
16% (1988)
Budget:
revenues $131 million; expenditures $149 million, including capital
expenditures of $71 million (FY90 est.)
Exports:
$105 million (f.o.b., 1991)
commodities:
bananas 58%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil
partners:
UK 56%, US 22%,CARICOM 19%
Imports:
$267 million (f.o.b., 1991)
commodities:
manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 21%, food and
live animals, chemicals, fuels
partners:
US 34%, CARICOM 17%, UK 14%, Japan 7%, Canada 4%
External debt:
$65.7 million (1991 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate 3.5% (1990 est.); accounts for 12% of GDP
Electricity:
32,500 kW capacity; 112 million kWh produced, 740 kWh per capita (1992)
Industries:
clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated boxes,
tourism, lime processing, coconut processing
Agriculture:
accounts for 12% of GDP and 43% of labor force; crops - bananas, coconuts,
vegetables, citrus fruit, root crops, cocoa; imports food for the tourist
industry
Economic aid:
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89),
$120 million
Currency: 1 EC dollar (EC$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1 - 2.70 (fixed rate since 1976)
*Saint Lucia, Communications
Highways:
760 km total; 500 km paved; 260 km otherwise improved
Ports:
Castries, Vieux Fort
Airports:
total:
2
usable:
2
with permanent-surface runways:
2
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
1
with runways 1,220-2,439:
1
Telecommunications:
fully automatic telephone system; 9,500 telephones; direct microwave link
with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; interisland
troposcatter link to Barbados; broadcast stations - 4 AM, 1 FM, 1 TV (cable)