Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the
advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal
Political parties and leaders:
Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party
or PNP [Portia SIMPSON-MILLER]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black
religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists)
International organization participation:
ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt
(signatory), ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol,
IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Gordon SHIRLEY
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660
FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081
consulate(s) general: Miami, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Brenda LaGrange JOHNSON
embassy: Mutual Life Building, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859
FAX: [1] (876) 935-6001
Flag description:
diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green
(top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)
Economy Jamaica
Economy - overview:
The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now
account for 60% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its
foreign exchange from remittances, tourism, and bauxite/alumina.
Jamaica's economy, already saddled with a record of relatively low
growth, was hit hard by Hurricane Ivan in late 2004, and is making a
gradual recovery. But the economy faces serious long-term problems:
high interest rates, increased foreign competition, exchange rate
instability, a sizable merchandise trade deficit, large-scale
unemployment and underemployment, and a high debt burden - the
result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy, most
notably the financial sector in the mid-1990s. Following a strategy
begun in 2004, Jamaica has reduced its public debt to 130% of GDP.
Inflation has declined to 9%. Uncertain economic conditions have led
to increased civil unrest, including gang violence fueled by the
drug trade. The government faces the difficult prospect of having to
achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while
simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is
hampering economic growth.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$12.71 billion (2006 est.)