Grenada, West Indies

Geography

Geographic coordinates: 12 07 N, 61 40 W

Map references: Central America and the Caribbean

Area:

total: 340 sq km

land: 340 sq km

water: 0 sq km

Area—comparative: twice the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 121 km

Maritime claims:

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds

Terrain: volcanic in origin with central mountains

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m

highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 m

Natural resources: timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors

Land use:

arable land: 15%

permanent crops: 18%

permanent pastures: 3%

forests and woodland: 9%

other: 55% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November

Environment—current issues: NA

Environment—international agreements:

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography—note: the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada

People

Population: 97,008 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 43% (male 21,055; female 20,365)

15-64 years: 53% (male 27,524; female 23,766)

65 years and over: 4% (male 2,034; female 2,264) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.87% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 27.62 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 5.15 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: -13.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female

total population: 1.09 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 11.13 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 71.6 years

male: 68.97 years

female: 74.29 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.57 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:

noun: Grenadian(s)

adjective: Grenadian

Ethnic groups: black

Religions: Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant sects 33.2%

Languages: English (official), French patois

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 98%

male: 98%

female: 98% (1970 est.)

Government

Country name:

conventional long form: none

conventional short form: Grenada

Data code: GJ

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Capital: Saint George's

Administrative divisions: 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick

Independence: 7 February 1974 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 7 February (1974)

Constitution: 19 December 1973

Legal system: based on English common law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Daniel WILLIAMS (since 9 August 1996)

head of government: Prime Minister Keith MITCHELL (since 22 June 1995)

cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister

elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; prime minister appointed by the governor general from among the members of the House of Assembly

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 13-member body, 10 appointed by the government and three by the leader of the opposition) and the House of Representatives (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections: last held on 18 January 1999 (next to be held by NA October 2004)

election results: House of Representatives—percent of vote by party—NA; seats by party—NNP 15

Judicial branch: West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada)

Political parties and leaders: National Democratic Congress or NDC [George BRIZAN]; Grenada United Labor Party or GULP [Herbert PREUDHOMME]; The National Party or TNP [Ben JONES]; New National Party or NNP [Keith MITCHELL]; Maurice Bishop Patriotic Movement or MBPM [Terrence MARRYSHOW]; The Democratic Labor Party or DLP [Francis ALEXIS]

International organization participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Denis G. ANTOINE

chancery: 1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009

telephone: [1] (202) 265-2561

consulate(s): New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:

chief of mission: the ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada

embassy: Point Salines, Saint George's

mailing address: P. O. Box 54, Saint George's, Grenada, West Indies

telephone: [1] (473) 444-1173 through 1176

FAX: [1] (473) 444-4820

Flag description: a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (top and bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with a red border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointed stars with three centered in the top red border, three centered in the bottom red border, and one on a red disk superimposed at the center of the flag; there is also a symbolic nutmeg pod on the hoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's second-largest producer of nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars represent the seven administrative divisions

Economy

Economy—overview: In this island economy progress in fiscal reforms and prudent macroeconomic management have boosted annual growth to nearly 5% in 1997-98. The increase in economic activity has been led by construction and trade. Tourist facilities are being expanded; tourism is the leading foreign exchange earner. Major short-term concerns are the rising fiscal deficit and the deterioration in the external account balance. Grenada shares a common central bank and a common currency with seven other members of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

GDP: purchasing power parity—$340 million (1998 est.)

GDP—real growth rate: 5% (1998 est.)

GDP—per capita: purchasing power parity—$3,500 (1998 est.)

GDP—composition by sector:

agriculture: 9.7%

industry: 15%

services: 75.3% (1996 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%: NA%

highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.4% (1998)

Labor force: 36,000

Labor force—by occupation: services 31%, agriculture 24%, construction 8%, manufacturing 5%, other 32% (1985)

Unemployment rate: 20% (1 October 1996)

Budget:

revenues: $85.8 million

expenditures: $102.1 million, including capital expenditures of $28 million (1997)

Industries: food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction

Industrial production growth rate: 0.7% (1997 est.)

Electricity—production: 70 million kWh (1996)

Electricity—production by source:

fossil fuel: 100%

hydro: 0%

nuclear: 0%

other: 0% (1996)

Electricity—consumption: 70 million kWh (1996)

Electricity—exports: 0 kWh (1996)

Electricity—imports: 0 kWh (1996)

Agriculture—products: bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables

Exports: $22 million (1997)

Exports—commodities: bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace

Exports—partners: Caricom 32.3%, UK 20%, US 13%, Netherlands 8.8% (1991)

Imports: $166.5 million (1997)

Imports—commodities: food 25%, manufactured goods 22%, machinery 20%, chemicals 10%, fuel 6% (1989)

Imports—partners: US 31.2%, Caricom 23.6%, UK 13.8%, Japan 7.1% (1991)

Debt—external: $74 million (1997 est.)

Economic aid—recipient: $8.3 million (1995)

Currency: 1 East Caribbean dollar (EC$) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1—2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications

Telephones: 5,650 (1988 est.)

Telephone system: automatic, islandwide telephone system

domestic: interisland VHF and UHF radiotelephone links

international: new SHF radiotelephone links to Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Vincent; VHF and UHF radio links to Trinidad

Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0

Radios: 80,000 (1993 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997)

Televisions: 30,000 (1993 est.)

Transportation

Railways: 0 km

Highways:

total: 1,040 km

paved: 638 km

unpaved: 402 km (1996 est.)

Ports and harbors: Grenville, Saint George's

Merchant marine: none

Airports: 3 (1998 est.)

Airports—with paved runways:

total: 2

2,438 to 3,047 m: 1

914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1998 est.)

Airports—with unpaved runways:

total: 1

under 914 m: 1 (1998 est.)

Military

Military branches: Royal Grenada Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard

Military expenditures—dollar figure: $NA

Military expenditures—percent of GDP: NA%

Transnational Issues

Disputes—international: none

Illicit drugs: small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana and cocaine to US

*Information obtained from the Central Intelligence Agency’s World Fact Book.