1982 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1982 (Wikisource)
Geography
Area
389 km2 (including northern Grenadines); 50% arable, 3% pasture, 44% forest, 3% wasteland and built on WATER
Coastline
84 km
Limits of territorial waters (claimed)
3 nm (fishing 12 nm)
People and Society
Ethnic divisions
mainly of African Negro descent; remainder mixed with some white and East Indian and Carib Indian
Labor force
61,000 (1979 est.); about 20% unemployed (1978)
Language
English, some French patois
Literacy
about 80%
Nationality
noun—St. Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s); adjectives—St. Vincentian or Vincentian
Organized labor
10% of labor force
Population
121,000 (July 1982), average annual growth rate 2.9%
Religion
Church of England, Methodist, Roman Catholic
Government
Capital
Kingstown
Elections
every five years; most recent 5 December 1979 Political parties and leaders: People's Political Party (PPP), Ebenezer Joshua; St. Vincent Labor Party (LP), R. Milton Cato; People's Democratic Party, Parnell Campbell and Kenneth John; United People's Movement (UPM), Ralph Gonsalves and Renwick Rose; Progressive Democratic Party (PDP), Randolph Russell; New Democratic Party (NDP), James "Son" Mitchell Voting strength (1979 election): LP 11 seats, NDP 2 seats in the legislature
Government leaders
Prime Minister R. Milton CATO; Governor General (UK) Sir Sydney GUNN-MUNRO
Legal system
based on English common law; constitution of 1960; highest judicial body is Court of Appeal of Leeward and Windward Islands
Member of
CARICOM
Official name
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Suffrage
universal adult suffrage (18 years old and over)
Type
independent state within Commonwealth as of 27 October 1979
Economy
Agriculture
main crop—bananas
Aid
economic—bilateral economic commitments, ODA and OOF (1970-79), from Western (non-US) countries, $23.0 million; no military aid
Budget
(1980/81 est.) revenues, $18 million; expenditures, $29 million
Electric power
6,500 kW capacity (1981); 20 million kWh produced (1981), 168 kWh per capita
Exports
$17 million (f.o.b., 1980 est.); bananas, arrowroot, copra
GNP
$47 million (1980 est.), $440 per capita; 1% real economic growth in 1980
Imports
$57 million (c.i.f., 1980 est.); foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels
Major industries
food processing
Major trade partners
exports—61% UK, 30% CARICOM, 9% US; imports—29% CARICOM, 28% UK, 9% Canada, 9% US (1972)
Monetary conversion rate
2.70 East Caribbean dollars=US$1
Communications
Airfields
5 total, 5 usable; 3 with permanent-surface runways, 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
no major transport aircraft
Highways
600 km total; 300 km paved; 150 km otherwise improved; 150 km unimproved earth
Ports
1 major (Kingstown), 1 minor
Railroads
none
Telecommunications
islandwide fully automatic telephone system with 5,300 sets (5.3 per 100 popl.); VHF/UHF interisland links to Barbados and the Grenadines; 2 AM stations