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| Geography |
| 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 |
| Location: | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
| Geographic coordinates: | 13 53 N, 60 58 W |
| Area: | total: 616 sq km land: 606 sq km water: 10 sq km
Size comparison: 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
| Land Boundaries: | 0 km |
| Coastline: | 158 km |
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
| Climate: | tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season January to April, rainy season May to August |
| Terrain: | volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m |
| Natural resources: | forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential |
| Land use: | arable land: 6.45% permanent crops: 22.58% other: 70.97% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: | 30 sq km (2003) |
| Natural hazards: | hurricanes; volcanic activity |
| Current Environment Issues: | deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region |
| International Environment 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 |
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| People |
| Population: | 160,267 (July 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 187 |
| 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) (2009 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 29.8 years male: 28.7 years female: 30.8 years (2009 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 0.416% (2009 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 15.1 births/1,000 population (2009 est.) |
| Death rate: | 6.8 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | -4.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.06 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: 0.96 male(s)/female (2009 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 13.43 deaths/1,000 live births male: 12.47 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 76.45 years male: 73.78 years female: 79.27 years (2009 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 1.84 children born/woman (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | NA |
| Nationality: | noun: Saint Lucian(s) adjective: Saint Lucian |
| Ethnic groups: | black 82.5%, mixed 11.9%, East Indian 2.4%, other or unspecified 3.1% (2001 census) |
| 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) |
| Languages: | English (official), French patois |
| Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 90.1% male: 89.5% female: 90.6% (2001 est.) |
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| Government |
| Country name: | conventional long form: none conventional short form: Saint Lucia |
| Government type: | parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm |
| Capital: | name: Castries geographic coordinates: 14 01 N, 61 00 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Administrative divisions: | 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros-Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux-Fort |
| Independence: | 22 February 1979 (from the UK) |
| National holiday: | Independence Day, 22 February (1979) |
| Constitution: | 22 February 1979 |
| Legal system: | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Dame Pearlette LOUISY (since September 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Stephenson KING (since 9 September 2007); note - Sir John COMPTON died in office 7 September 2007 cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
| 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 are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Assembly - last held 11 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011) 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 |
| 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) |
| 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 |
| International organization participation: | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), 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, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael LOUIS chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6723 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York |
| 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 |
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| Economy |
| 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 70% 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. |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | GDP (purchasing power parity): $1.751 billion (2009 est.) $1.795 billion (2008 est.) $1.783 billion (2007 est.) note: data are in 2009 US dollars |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | GDP (official exchange rate): $991 million (2009 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate: | -2.5% (2009 est.) 0.7% (2008 est.) 1.7% (2007 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | GDP - per capita (PPP): $10,900 (2009 est.) $11,200 (2008 est.) $11,200 (2007 est.) note: data are in 2009 US dollars |
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 5% industry: 15% services: 80% (2005 est.) |
| Labor force: | 79,700 (2007) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: 21.7% industry: 24.7% services: 53.6% (2002 est.) |
| Unemployment rate: | 20% (2003 est.) |
| Population below poverty line: | NA% |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.9% (2007 est.) |
| Budget: | revenues: $141.2 million expenditures: $146.7 million (2000 est.) |
| Agriculture - products: | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa |
| Industries: | clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism; lime processing, coconut processing |
| Industrial production growth rate: | NA |
| Electricity - production: | 325 million kWh (2007 est.) |
| Electricity - consumption: | 302.2 million kWh (2007 est.) |
| Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - imports: | 0 kWh (2008 est.) |
| Oil - production: | 0 bbl/day (2008 est.) |
| Oil - consumption: | 3,000 bbl/day (2008 est.) |
| Oil - exports: | 0 bbl/day (2007 est.) |
| Oil - imports: | 2,747 bbl/day (2007 est.) |
| Oil - proved reserves: | 0 bbl (1 January 2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - production: | 0 cu m (2008 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 - proved reserves: | 0 cu m (1 January 2009 est.) |
| Current account balance: | $-199 million (2007 est.) |
| Exports: | $288 million (2006 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil |
| Exports - partners: | UK 23.6%, US 19.3%, South Korea 16.6%, Antigua and Barbuda 5.9%, Dominica 5.8%, Barbados 5.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.8% (2008) |
| Imports: | $791 million (2006 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels |
| Imports - partners: | Brazil 68%, US 11.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 7.4% (2008) |
| Debt - external: | $257 million (2004 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) |
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| Communications |
| Telephones in use: | 40,900 (2008) country comparison to the world: 168 |
| Cellular Phones in use: | 169,600 (2008) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: adequate system domestic: system is automatically switched 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 |
| Radio broadcast stations: | AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2003) |
| Television broadcast stations: | 2 (1 commercial broadcast station and 1 community antenna television or CATV channel) (2003) |
| Internet country code: | .lc |
| Internet hosts: | 103 (2009) |
| Internet users: | 100,000 (2008) |
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| Transportation |
| Airports: | 2 (2009) country comparison to the world: 201 |
| Airports (paved runways): | total: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2009) |
| Roadways: | total: 1,210 km (2002) |
| Ports and terminals: | Castries, Cul-de-Sac, Vieux-Fort |
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| Military |
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| Military branches: | no regular military forces; Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (includes Special Service Unit and Coast Guard) (2008) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 16-49: 48,358 (2008 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 16-49: 32,094 females age 16-49: 36,110 (2009 est.) |
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