1987 Edition

Climate

tropical; rainy season (June to November)

Coastline

97 km

Comparative area

about twice the size of Washington, D. C.

Environment

subject to hurricanes (especially June to November)

Extended economic zone

200 nm Territorial sea; 12 nm

Land use

77% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 9% meadows and pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 14% other

Member of

CARICOM, Commonwealth, FAO, G-77, GATT, IADB, IBRD, ICAQ, IDB—Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, 1SO, ITU, IWC—International Wheat Council, NAM, OAS, PAHO, SELA, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO

Special notes

easternmost Caribbean island

Terrain

relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region

Total area

430 km?; land area: 430 km?

Ethnic divisions

80% African, 16% mixed, 4% European

Infant mortality rate

26.8/1,000 (1984)

Labor force

112,800 (1985 est.); 37% services and government; 22% commerce; 22% manufacturing and construction; 9% transportation, storage, communications, and financial institutions; 8% agriculture; and 2% utilities

Language

English

Life expectancy

70.8

Literacy

99%

Nationality

noun—Barbadian(s); adjective—Barbadian

Organized labor

32%

Population

323,839 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 3.04%

Religion

70% Anglican, 9% Methodist, 4% Roman Catholic, 17% other, including Moravian

Administrative divisions

11 parishes and city of Bridgetown

Branches

bicameral legislature (Parliament—21-member appointed Senate and 27-member elected House of Assembly), Cabinet headed by Prime Minister

Capital

Bridgetown

Communists

negligible

Elections

House of Assembly members have terms no longer than five years; last general election held 28 May 1986 Political parties and leaders: Barbados Labor Party (BLP), Henry Forde; Democratic Labor Party (DLP), Errol Barrow

Government leaders

Errol BARROW, Prime Minister (since May 1986), Sir Hugh SPRINGER, Governor General (since 1984)

Legal system

English common law; constitution came into effect upon independence in 1966; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory IC) jurisdiction

National holiday

Independence Day, 30 November

Official name

Barbados

Other political or pressure groups

People’s Progressive Movement, Bobby Clarke; People’s Pressure Movement, Eric Sealy; Workers’ Party of Barbados, Dr. George Bell

Suffrage

universal over age 18

Type

independent sovereign state within the Commonwealth recognizing Elizabeth ll as Chief of State

Voting strength

(1981 election) BLP, 52.4%; DLP, 46.8%; independent, negligible; House of Assembly seats—BLP 24, DLP 8

Agriculture

main products—-sugarcane, subsistence foods

Aid

US, including Ex-Im (FY70-84), $14 million; ODA and OOF commitments from other Western countries (1970-84), $125 million

Budget

(FY84) revenues, $288 million; expenditures, $323 million

Electric power

120,000 kW capacity; 389 million kWh produced, 1,540 kWh per capita (1986)

Exports

$352 million (f.o.b., 1985); sugar and sugarcane byproducts, electrical parts, clothing

Fiscal year

1 April-31 March

GDP

$1,151.7 million (1984), $4,560 per capita; real GDP growth rate 2.5% (1986 est.) inflation rate 7.0% (1985)

Imports

$552 million (f.0.b., 1985); foodstuffs, consumer durables, machinery, fuels

Major industries

tourism, sugar milling, light manufacturing, component assembly for export

Major trade partners

exports—42% US, 22% CARICOM, 7% UK; imports—48% US, 12% CARICOM, 8% UK, 6% Canada (1984)

Monetary conversion rate

2.01 Barbados dollars=US$I (November 1986)

Natural resources

negligible

Airfields

1 total, 1 usable; 1 with permanent-surface runways 2,440-3,659 m

Civil air

2 major transport aircraft

Highways

1,570 km total; 1,475 km paved, 95 km gravel and earth

Ports

1 major (Bridgetown), 2 minor

Railroads

none

Telecommunications

islandwide automatic telephone system with 75,000 telephones (30.0 per 100 popl.); tropospheric scatter link to Trinidad and St. Lucia; 2 AM, 1 FM, and 1 TV stations; 1 Atlantic Ocean satellite station

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force; paramilitary forces—Bangladesh Rifles, Bangladesh Ansars, Armed Police Reserve, Coastal Police North Atlantic

Barbados Defense Force, Royal Barbados Police Force

Military budget

for fiscal year ending 30 June 1987, $218 million; about 18% of central government budget The Crane Caribbean Sea

for fiscal year 1986, $10.1 million; 3% of central government budget

Military manpower

males 15-49, 25,768,000; 15,327,000 fit for military service

males 15-49, 89,000; 63,000 fit for military service, no conscription