Natural resources: bauxite, gypsum, limestone
Land use:
arable land: 14%
permanent crops: 6%
permanent pastures: 24%
forests and woodland: 17%
other: 39% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 350 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: hurricanes (especially July to November)
Environment—current issues: deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions
Environment—international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography—note: strategic location between Cayman Trench and
Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for Panama Canal
People
Population: 2,652,443 (July 1999 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 31% (male 421,127; female 402,593)
15-64 years: 62% (male 819,956; female 828,176)
65 years and over: 7% (male 79,747; female 100,844) (1999 est.)