Aruba




                                  Header


Affiliation:
     (part of the Dutch realm)


                                 Geography


Location:
     Caribbean, in the southern Caribbean Sea, 28 km north of Venezuela and
     125 km east of Colombia
Map references:
     Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total area:
     193 sq km
land area:
     193 sq km
comparative area:
     slightly larger than Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
     0 km
Coastline:
     68.5 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone:
     12 nm
territorial sea:
     12 nm
International disputes:
     none
Climate:
     tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain:
     flat with a few hills; scant vegetation
Natural resources:
     negligible; white sandy beaches
Land use:
arable land:
     0%
permanent crops:
     0%
meadows and pastures:
     0%
forest and woodland:
     0%
other:
     100%
Irrigated land:
     NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
     NA
natural hazards:
     lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt




international agreements:
     NA


                                  People


Population:
     65,545 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
     0.65% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
     14.95 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
     6.12 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
     -2.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
     8.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
     76.43 years
male:
     72.77 years
female:
     80.27 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
     1.82 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
     Aruban(s)
adjective:
     Aruban
Ethnic divisions:
     mixed European/Caribbean Indian 80%
Religions:
     Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish
Languages:
     Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English
     dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish
Literacy:
total population:
     NA%
male:
     NA%
female:
     NA%
Labor force:
     NA
by occupation:
     most employment is in the tourist industry (1986)


                                Government


Names:
conventional long form:
     none




conventional short form:
Digraph:
     AA
Type:
     part of the Dutch realm; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in
     1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles
Capital:
     Oranjestad
Administrative divisions:
     none (self-governing part of the Netherlands)
Independence:
     none (part of the Dutch realm; in 1990, Aruba requested and received
     from the Netherlands cancellation of the agreement to automatically
     give independence to the island in 1996)
National holiday:
     Flag Day, 18 March
Constitution:
     1 January 1986
Legal system:
     based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law
     influence
Suffrage:
     18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
     Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard (since 30 April 1980), represented by
     Governor General Olindo KOOLMAN (since 1 January 1992)
head of government:
     Prime Minister Nelson ODUBER (since 6 February 1989)
cabinet:
     Council of Ministers; appointed with the advice and approval of the
     legislature
Legislative branch:
     unicameral
Legislature (Staten):
     elections last held 8 January 1993 (next to be held by NA January
     1997); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (21 total) MEP
     9, AVP 8, ADN 1, PPA 1, OLA 1, other 1
Judicial branch:
     Joint High Court of Justice
Political parties and leaders:
     Electoral Movement Party (MEP), Nelson ODUBER; Aruban People's Party
     (AVP), Henny EMAN; National Democratic Action (ADN), Pedro Charro
     KELLY; New Patriotic Party (PPN), Eddy WERLEMEN; Aruban Patriotic
     Party (PPA), Benny NISBET; Aruban Democratic Party (PDA), Leo
     BERLINSKI; Democratic Action '86 (AD '86), Arturo ODUBER; Organization
     for Aruban Liberty (OLA), Glenbert CROES
note:
     governing coalition includes the MEP, PPA, and ADN
Member of:
     ECLAC (associate), INTERPOL, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WTO
     (associate)
Diplomatic representation in US:
     none (self-governing part of the Netherlands)




US diplomatic representation:
     none (self-governing part of the Netherlands)
Flag:
     blue with two narrow horizontal yellow stripes across the lower
     portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper
     hoist-side corner


                                  Economy


Overview:
     Tourism is the mainstay of the economy, although offshore banking and
     oil refining and storage are also important. Hotel capacity expanded
     rapidly between 1985 and 1989 and nearly doubled in 1990 alone.
     Unemployment has steadily declined from about 20% in 1986 to about 3%
     in 1991 and to less than 1% in 1992. The reopening of the local oil
     refinery, once a major source of employment and foreign exchange
     earnings, promises to give the economy an additional boost.
National product:
     GDP - exchange rate conversion - $1.2 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
     5% (1993)
National product per capita:
     $17,400 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
     6.5% (1993)
Unemployment rate:
     0.6% (1992)
Budget:
revenues:
     $145 million
expenditures:
     $185 million, including capital expenditures of $42 million (1988)
Exports:
     $1.3 billion (including oil re-exports) (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
     mostly petroleum products
partners:
     US 64%, EC
Imports:
     $1.6 billion including oil for processing and re-export (f.o.b., 1993
     est.)
commodities:
     food, consumer goods, manufactures, petroleum products
partners:
     US 8%, EC
External debt:
     $81 million (1987)
Industrial production:
     growth rate NA%
Electricity:
capacity:
     90,000 kW
production:
     375 million kWh




consumption per capita:
     6,000 kWh (1990 est.)
Industries:
     tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining
Agriculture:
     poor quality soils and low rainfall limit agricultural activity to the
     cultivation of aloes, some livestock, and fishing
Illicit drugs:
     drug money laundering center and transit point for narcotics bound for
     the US and Europe
Economic aid:
recipient:
     Western (non-US) countries ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
     (1980-89), $220 million
Currency:
     1 Aruban florin (Af.) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
     Aruban florins (Af.) per US$1 - 1.7900 (fixed rate since 1986)
Fiscal year:
     calendar year


                              Communications


Highways:
total:
     NA
paved:
     NA
unpaved:
     NA
Ports:
     Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas
Airports:
total:
     2
usable:
     2
with permanent-surface runways:
     2
with runways over 3,659 m:
     0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
     1
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
     0
note:
     government-owned airport east of Oranjestad accepts transatlantic
     flights
Telecommunications:
     more than adequate; telephone density - 1,100 telephones per 1,000
     persons; extensive interisland microwave radio relay links; 72,168
     telephones; broadcast stations - 4 AM, 4 FM, 1 TV; 1 submarine cable
     to Sint Maarten




                              Defense Forces


Note:
     defense is the responsibility of the Netherlands