1992 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1992 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds
Coastline
364 km
Comparative area
slightly less than 5.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Disputes
none
Environment
Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt, so rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October
Exclusive fishing zone
12 nm
Land area
960 km2; includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin)
Land boundaries
none
Land use
arable land 8%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures 0%; forest and woodland 0%; other 92%
Natural resources
phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only)
Note
consists of two island groups - Curacao and Bonaire are located off the coast of Venezuela, and Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius lie 800 km to the north
Terrain
generally hilly, volcanic interiors
Territorial sea
12 nm
Total area
960 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
18 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate
6 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Ethnic divisions
mixed African 85%; remainder Carib Indian, European, Latin, and Oriental
Infant mortality rate
11 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Labor force
89,000; government 65%, industry and commerce 28% (1983)
Languages
Dutch (official); Papiamento, a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect predominates; English widely spoken; Spanish
Life expectancy at birth
73 years male, 77 years female (1992)
Literacy
94% (male 94%, female 93%) age 15 and over can read and write (1981)
Nationality
noun - Netherlands Antillean(s); adjective - Netherlands Antillean
Net migration rate
-9 migrants/1,000 population (1992)
Organized labor
60-70% of labor force
Population
184,325 (July 1992), growth rate 0.3% (1992)
Religions
predominantly Roman Catholic; Protestant, Jewish, Seventh-Day Adventist
Total fertility rate
2.0 children born/woman (1992)
Government
Administrative divisions
none (part of the Dutch realm)
Bonaire
Patriotic Union of Bonaire (UPB), Rudy ELLIS; Democratic Party of Bonaire (PDB), Franklin CRESTIAN
Capital
Willemstad
Chief of State
Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Jaime SALEH (since October 1989)
Constitution
29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended
Curacao
National People's Party (PNP), Maria LIBERIA-PETERS; New Antilles Movement (MAN), Domenico Felip Don MARTINA; Workers' Liberation Front (FOL), Wilson (Papa) GODETT; Socialist Independent (SI), George HUECK and Nelson MONTE; Democratic Party of Curacao (DP), Augustin DIAZ; Nos Patria, Chin BEHILIA
Digraph
political parties are indigenous to each island ***
Diplomatic representation
as an autonomous part of the Netherlands, Netherlands Antillean interests in the US are represented by the Netherlands US: Consul General Sharon P. WILKINSON; Consulate General at Sint Anna Boulevard 19, Willemstad, Curacao (mailing address P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao); telephone [599] (9) 613066; FAX [599] (9) 616489
Executive branch
Dutch monarch, governor, prime minister, vice prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
Flag
white with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band also centered; five white five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten
Head of Government
Prime Minister Maria LIBERIA-PETERS (since 17 May 1988, previously served from September 1984 to November 1985)
Independence
none (part of the Dutch realm)
Judicial branch
Joint High Court of Justice
Legal system
based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence
Legislative branch
legislature (Staten)
Long-form name
none
Member of
CARICOM (observer), ECLAC (associate), ICFTU, INTERPOL, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCL, WMO, WTO (associate)
National holiday
Queen's Day, 30 April (1938)
Political parties and leaders
political parties are indigenous to each island
Saba
Windward Islands People's Movement (WIPM Saba), Will JOHNSON; Saba Democratic Labor Movement, Vernon HASSELL; Saba Unity Party, Carmen SIMMONDS
Sint Eustatius
Democratic Party of Sint Eustatius (DP-St.E), K. Van PUTTEN; Windward Islands People's Movement (WIPM); St. Eustatius Alliance (SEA), Ralph BERKEL
Sint Maarten
Democratic Party of Sint Maarten (DP-St.M), Claude WATHEY; Patriotic Movement of Sint Maarten (SPA), Vance JAMES
Staten
last held on 16 March 1990 (next to be held March 1994); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (22 total) PNP 7, FOL-SI 3, UPB 3, MAN 2, DP-St. M 2, DP 1, SPM 1, WIPM 1, DP-St. E 1, Nos Patria 1; note - the government of Prime Minister Maria LIBERIA-PETERS is a coalition of several parties
Suffrage
universal at age 18
Type
part of the Dutch realm - full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 1954
Economy
Agriculture
hampered by poor soils and scarcity of water; chief products - aloes, sorghum, peanuts, fresh vegetables, tropical fruit; not self-sufficient in food
Budget
revenues $454 million; expenditures $525 million, including capital expenditures of $42 million (1989 est.)
Currency
Netherlands Antillean guilder, gulden, or florin (plural - guilders, gulden, or florins); 1 Netherlands Antillean guilder, gulden, or florin (NAf.) = 100 cents
Economic aid
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $513 million
Electricity
125,000 kW capacity; 365 million kWh produced, 1,985 kWh per capita (1991)
Exchange rates
Netherlands Antillean guilders, gulden, or florins (NAf.) per US$1 - 1.79 (fixed rate since 1989; 1.80 fixed rate 1971-88)
Exports
$1.1 billion (f.o.b., 1988) commodities: petroleum products 98% partners: US 40%, Italy 6%, The Bahamas 5%
External debt
$701.2 million (December 1987)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
exchange rate conversion - $1.4 billion, per capita $7,600; real growth rate 1.5% (1990 est.)
Imports
$1.4 billion (c.i.f., 1988) commodities: crude petroleum 64%, food, manufactures partners: Venezuela 42%, US 18%, Netherlands 6%
Industrial production
growth rate NA%
Industries
tourism (Curacao and Sint Maarten), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
5% (1990 est.)
Overview
Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of the economy. The islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure as compared with other countries in the region. Unlike many Latin American countries, the Netherlands Antilles has avoided large international debt. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, with the US being the major supplier.
Unemployment rate
21% (1991)
Communications
Airports
7 total, 6 usable; 6 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
8 major transport aircraft
Highways
950 km total; 300 km paved, 650 km gravel and earth
Merchant marine
80 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 607,010 GRT/695,864 DWT; includes 4 passenger, 27 cargo, 13 refrigerated cargo, 7 container, 9 roll-on/roll-off, 11 multifunction large-load carrier, 4 chemical tanker, 3 liquefied gas, 1 bulk, 1 oil tanker; note - all but a few are foreign owned, mostly in the Netherlands
Ports
Willemstad, Philipsburg, Kralendijk
Telecommunications
generally adequate facilities; extensive interisland radio relay links; broadcast stations - 9 AM, 4 FM, 1 TV; 2 submarine cables; 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations
Military and Security
Branches
Royal Netherlands Navy, Marine Corps, Royal Netherlands Air Force, National Guard, Police Force
Manpower availability
males 15-49 49,082; 27,656 fit for military service; 1,673 reach military age (20) annually
Note
defense is responsibility of the Netherlands