2010 Edition

Background

The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Even after the abolition of slavery on its plantations in 1834, Saint Lucia remained an agricultural island, dedicated to producing tropical commodity crops. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979.

Area

land

606 sq km

total

616 sq km

water

10 sq km

Area - comparative

3.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Climate

tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season January to April, rainy season May to August

Coastline

158 km

Elevation extremes

highest point

Mount Gimie 950 m

lowest point

Caribbean Sea 0 m

Environment - current issues

deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region

Environment - international agreements

party to

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)

per capita

81 cu m/yr (1997)

total

0.01

Geographic coordinates

13 53 N, 60 58 W

Geography - note

the twin Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit Piton), striking cone-shaped peaks south of Soufriere, are one of the scenic natural highlights of the Caribbean

Irrigated land

30 sq km (2003)

Land boundaries

0 km

Land use

arable land

6.45%

other

70.97% (2005)

permanent crops

22.58%

Location

Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago

Map references

Central America and the Caribbean

Maritime claims

contiguous zone

24 nm

continental shelf

200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

exclusive economic zone

200 nm

territorial sea

12 nm

Natural hazards

hurricanes; volcanic activity

Natural resources

forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential

Terrain

volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys

Age structure

0-14 years: 24.4% (male 20,035/female 19,021) 15-64 years: 66.4% (male 51,593/female 54,843) 65 years and over: 9.2% (male 6,668/female 8,107) (2010 est.)

Birth rate

14.81 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)

Death rate

6.9 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)

Education expenditures

6.3% of GDP (2008)

Ethnic groups

black 82.5%, mixed 11.9%, East Indian 2.4%, other or unspecified 3.1% (2001 census)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

NA

Infant mortality rate

female

13.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)

male

12.19 deaths/1,000 live births

total

13.07 deaths/1,000 live births

Languages

English (official), French patois

Life expectancy at birth

female

79.48 years (2010 est.)

male

73.97 years

total population

76.65 years

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school

female

90.6% (2001 est.)

male

89.5%

total population

90.1%

Median age

female

31.4 years (2010 est.)

male

29.3 years

total

30.3 years

Nationality

adjective

Saint Lucian

noun

Saint Lucian(s)

Net migration rate

-3.93 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)

Population

160,922 (July 2010 est.)

Population growth rate

0.398% (2010 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 67.5%, Seventh Day Adventist 8.5%, Pentecostal 5.7%, Rastafarian 2.1%, Anglican 2%, Evangelical 2%, other Christian 5.1%, other 1.1%, unspecified 1.5%, none 4.5% (2001 census)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

female

14 years (2008)

male

13 years

total

13 years

Sex ratio

at birth

1.055 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female

total population

0.95 male(s)/female (2010 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.82 children born/woman (2010 est.)

Urbanization

rate of urbanization

1.4% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)

urban population

28% of total population (2008)

Administrative divisions

11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros-Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux-Fort

Capital

geographic coordinates

14 01 N, 61 00 W

name

Castries

time difference

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Constitution

22 February 1979

Country name

conventional long form

none

conventional short form

Saint Lucia

Diplomatic representation from the US

the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Saint Lucia

Diplomatic representation in the US

chancery

3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016

chief of mission

Ambassador Michael LOUIS

consulate(s) general

Miami, New York

FAX

[1] (202) 364-6723

telephone

[1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795

Executive branch

cabinet

Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister (For more information visit the World Leaders website )

chief of state

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Dame Pearlette LOUISY (since September 1997)

elections

the monarchy is hereditary; the governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general

head of government

Prime Minister Stephenson KING (since 9 September 2007); note - Sir John COMPTON died in office 7 September 2007

Flag description

blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border; the blue color represents the sky and sea, gold stands for sunshine and prosperity, and white and black the racial composition of the island (with the latter being dominant); the two major triangles invoke the twin Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit Piton), cone-shaped volcanic plugs that are a symbol of the island

Government type

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Independence

22 February 1979 (from the UK)

International organization participation

ACP, AOSIS, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OIF, OPANAL, OPCW, PetroCaribe, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Judicial branch

Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (consists of a High Court and a Court of Appeals; based on Saint Lucia; three judges of the Supreme Court reside in Saint Lucia); member of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)

Legal system

based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (11 seats; six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

election results

House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - UWP 50%, SLP 46.9%, other 3.1%; seats by party - UWP 11, SLP 6

elections

House of Assembly - last held on 11 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011)

National anthem

lyrics/music

Charles JESSE/Leton Felix THOMAS note: adopted 1967

name

"Sons and Daughters of St. Lucia"

National holiday

Independence Day, 22 February (1979)

Political parties and leaders

National Alliance or NA [George ODLUM]; Saint Lucia Freedom Party or SFP [Martinus FRANCOIS]; Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Kenneth ANTHONY]; Sou Tout Apwe Fete Fini or STAFF [Christopher HUNTE]; United Workers Party or UWP [Stephenson KING]

Political pressure groups and leaders

NA

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Agriculture - products

bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa

Central bank discount rate

6.5% (31 December 2009) 6.5% (31 December 2008)

Commercial bank prime lending rate

10.58% (31 December 2009 est.) 10.08% (31 December 2008 est.)

Current account balance

-$199 million (2007 est.)

Debt - external

$257 million (2004)

Economy - overview

The island nation has been able to attract foreign business and investment, especially in its offshore banking and tourism industries, with a surge in foreign direct investment in 2006, attributed to the construction of several tourism projects. Although crops such as bananas, mangos, and avocados continue to be grown for export, tourism provides Saint Lucia's main source of income and the industry is the island's biggest employer. Tourism is the main source of foreign exchange, although tourism sector revenues declined with the global economic downturn as US and European travel dropped in 2009. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean area, and the government is trying to revitalize the banana industry, although recent hurricanes have caused exports to contract. Saint Lucia is vulnerable to a variety of external shocks including volatile tourism receipts, natural disasters, and dependence on foreign oil. The public debt-to-GDP ratio is about 77% and high debt servicing obligations constrain the KING administration's ability to respond to adverse external shocks. Economic fundamentals remain solid, even though unemployment needs to be reduced.

Electricity - consumption

302.2 million kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2008 est.)

Electricity - imports

0 kWh (2008 est.)

Electricity - production

325 million kWh (2007 est.)

Exchange rates

East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar - 2.7 (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003)

Exports

$288 million (2006)

Exports - commodities

bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil

Exports - partners

Spain 29.41%, UK 15.28%, South Korea 10.54%, US 9.75%, India 9.52% (2009)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture

5%

industry

15%

services

80% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$11,100 (2010 est.) $11,000 (2009 est.) $11,700 (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars

GDP - real growth rate

1.1% (2010 est.) -5.2% (2009 est.) 0.7% (2008 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate)

$1 billion (2010 est.)

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$1.789 billion (2010 est.) $1.769 billion (2009 est.) $1.866 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%

Imports

$791 million (2006)

Imports - commodities

food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels

Imports - partners

Brazil 83.44%, US 4.67%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.56% (2009)

Industrial production growth rate

NA%

Industries

clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism; lime processing, coconut processing

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

1.9% (2007 est.)

Labor force

79,700 (2007)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture

21.7%

industry

24.7%

services

53.6% (2002 est.)

Natural gas - consumption

0 cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - imports

0 cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - production

0 cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

0 cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

Oil - consumption

3,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

Oil - exports

0 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - imports

2,747 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - production

0 bbl/day (2009 est.)

Oil - proved reserves

0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Stock of broad money

$1.094 billion (31 December 2009) $1.061 billion (31 December 2008)

Stock of domestic credit

$1.378 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $1.217 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Stock of narrow money

$244.3 million (31 December 2009) $245 million (31 December 2008)

Unemployment rate

20% (2003 est.)

Broadcast media

3 privately-owned television stations; 1 public television station operating on a cable network; multi-channel cable TV service is obtainable; a mix of state-owned and privately-owned broadcasters operate nearly 25 radio stations including repeater transmission stations (2007)

Internet country code

.lc

Internet hosts

106 (2010)

Internet users

142,900 (2009)

Telephone system

domestic

system is automatically switched

general assessment

adequate system

international

country code - 1-758; the East Caribbean Fiber Optic System (ECFS) and Southern Caribbean fiber optic system (SCF) submarine cables, along with Intelsat from Martinique, carry calls internationally; direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados

Telephones - main lines in use

41,000 (2009)

Telephones - mobile cellular

176,000 (2009)

Airports

2 (2010)

Airports - with paved runways

total

2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2010)

Ports and terminals

Castries, Cul-de-Sac, Vieux-Fort

Roadways

total

1,210 km (2002)

Manpower available for military service

males age 16-49: 41,177 (2010 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

males age 16-49: 32,406 females age 16-49: 36,216 (2010 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually

female

1,521 (2010 est.)

male

1,627

Military branches

no regular military forces; Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (includes Special Service Unit and Coast Guard) (2010)

Military expenditures

NA

Disputes - international

joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea

Illicit drugs

transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe page last updated on January 19, 2011 ======================================================================