Wayzata World Factbook 1994/World Factbook - 1994 Edition - Wayzata Technology (1994).iso/pc/text/txtfiles/saint_vi.bkg

Text File | 1994-04-17 | 17KB | 384 lines

#CARD:Saint Vincent and the Grenadines:Background Notes
BACKGROUND NOTES:  ST. VINCENT & THE GRENADINES
PUBLISHED BY THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
J
ê(⌠p
SEPTEMBER 1993
Official Name:  St. Vincent and the Grenadines
J
ê(⌠p
PROFILE
J
ê(⌠p
Geography
Area:  340 sq. km.; slightly less than twice the size of Washington, DC.
The Grenadines include 32 islands, the largest of which are Bequia,
Mustique, Canouan, and Union.  Some of the smaller islands are
privately owned.  Cities:  Capital--Kingstown (pop. 29,600).  Terrain:
Volcanic and mountainous; the mountains are almost impenetrable, with
the highest peak, Soufriere, rising to 1,219 meters.  Climate:  Tropical.
J
ê(⌠p
People
Nationality:  Noun and adjective--Vincentian.  Population:  114,000.
Annual growth rate:  1.4%.  Ethnic groups:  African descent (66%),
mixed (19%), East Indian (6%), Carib Indian (2%).  Religions:
Anglican (47%), Methodist (28%), Roman Catholic (13%), other
Protestant denominations, Seventh-Day Adventist, Hindu.  Language:
English (official); some French patois spoken.   Education:  Literacy--
96%.  Years compulsory--Up to age 15.  Health (1991):  Infant
mortality rate--31/1,000.  Life expectancy--women 72 yrs., men 68 yrs.
Work force:  About 40,000, of which agriculture accounts for about
60%.
J
ê(⌠p
Government
Type:  Parliamentary democracy; independent sovereign state within the
Commonwealth.  Independence:  October 27, 1979.  Constitution:
October 27, 1979.
J
ê(⌠p
Branches:  Executive--governor general (representing Queen Elizabeth
II, head of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet.
Legislative--unicameral legislature with 15-member elected House of
Representatives and 6-member appointed Senate.  Judicial--District
courts, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Supreme Court (High Court and
Court of Appeals), privy council.
J
ê(⌠p
Subdivisions:  6 parishes.
J
ê(⌠p
Political parties:  New Democratic Party (incumbent holds all seats in
parliament), St. Vincent Labor Party, Movement for National Unity.
J
ê(⌠p
Suffrage:  Universal at 18.
J
ê(⌠p
Flag:  Blue, gold, and green vertical bands; the gold band bears three
green diamonds.
J
ê(⌠p
Economy
GDP (1992 est.):  $215 million.  Per capita GDP:  $2,000.
J
ê(⌠p
Natural resources:  Timber, beaches.
J
ê(⌠p
Industry:  Plastic products, detergents.
J
ê(⌠p
Trade:  Exports--(bananas, eddoes and dasheen, arrowroot starch):  $75
million.  Major markets--U.K. 54%, CARICOM 34%, U.S. 10%.
Imports--(foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and
fertilizers):  $128 million.  Major suppliers--U.S. 36%, CARICOM
21%, U.K. 18%, Japan 3%.
J
ê(⌠p
Official exchange rate:  St. Vincent and the Grenadines uses the Eastern
Caribbean (EC) dollar, which is tied to the U.S. dollar at the rate of
$1.00=EC$2.70.   (###)
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
PEOPLE
Most Vincentians are the descendants of African slaves brought to the
island to work on the plantations.  There are also a few white
descendants of English colonialists, as well as some East Indians, Carib
Indians, and a sizable minority of mixed race.  The country's official
language is English, but a French patois may be heard on some of the
Grenadine islands.  About half the church-going population attends the
Anglican church.  The Methodist and Roman Catholic churches also
have a sizable following, 28% and 13%, respectively.  The balance of
the population is Seventh Day Adventist, Baptist, Hindu, or
Rastafarian.  St. Vincent has a relatively high birth rate of 27 per 1,000
population, though this is mitigated somewhat by a high rate of
emigration.  With extremely high unemployment and under-
employment, population growth remains a major problem.
J
ê(⌠p
HISTORY
Caribe Indians aggressively prevented European settlement on St.
Vincent until the 18th century.  They apparently were more welcoming
to Africans.  Escaped slaves from St. Lucia and Grenada sought refuge
in St. Vincent and intermarried with the Caribs, eventually becoming
known as "black Caribs."  In 1675, a Dutch ship laden with settlers and
slaves was shipwrecked off of St. Vincent; only the slaves survived.
They settled and mixed with the Caribs, and their descendants still live
in the area of Sandy Bay.  Tension developed between the Caribs and
the black Caribs, however, and led to a civil war in 1700.
J
ê(⌠p
The French eventually settled on the island in 1719 and managed to live
peaceably with the Caribs, growing coffee, tobacco, indigo, cotton, and
sugar.  Shortly afterward, the British attempted to seize control of the
island, and possession was hotly disputed until 1763, when the island
was ceded to Britain.  It was lost to the French again in 1779 but
regained by the British under the Treaty of Versailles in 1783.  Battles--
called the Carib Wars--continued between the British and the black
Caribs until the British subdued them in 1796.  In that year, General
Abercrombie crushed a revolt fomented by the French radical Victor
Hugues.  Over 5,000 black Caribs were eventually deported to Roatan,
an island off the coast of Honduras.
J
ê(⌠p
Slavery was abolished in 1834, and the resulting labor shortages on the
plantations attracted Portuguese immigrants in the 1840s and East
Indians in the 1860s.  Conditions remained harsh for the former slaves
and for the immigrant agricultural workers, as depressed world sugar
prices kept the economy stagnant until the turn of the century.
J
ê(⌠p
From 1763 until independence, St. Vincent passed through various
stages of colonial status under the British.  A representative assembly
was authorized in 1776, crown colony government installed in 1877, a
legislative council created in  1925, and universal adult suffrage granted
in 1951.  During this period, the British made several unsuccessful
attempts to affiliate St. Vincent with other Windward Islands in order to
govern the region through a unified administration.  The most notable
was the West Indies Federation, which collapsed in 1962.  St. Vincent
was granted associate statehood status in 1969, giving it complete
control over its internal affairs.  Following a referendum in 1979, St.
Vincent and the Grenadines became the last of the Windward Islands to
gain independence.  Natural disasters have plagued the country
throughout the 20th century.  In 1902, La Soufriere volcano erupted,
killing 2,000 people, just 2 days before the Mt. Pelee eruption killed
30,000 on Martinique.  Much farmland was damaged and the economy
deteriorated.  In April 1979, La Soufriere erupted again.  Though no
one was killed, thousands had to be evacuated, and there was extensive
agricultural damage.  In 1980, a hurricane devastated the banana and
coconut plantations.  In 1987, Hurricane Emily destroyed as much as
70% of the banana crop.
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
GOVERNMENT
St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a parliamentary democracy within the
British Commonwealth.  Queen Elizabeth II is Head of State and is
represented on the island by a governor general, an office with mostly
ceremonial functions.  Control of the government rests with the prime
minister and the cabinet.  The parliament is a unicameral body with a 15-
member elected House of Assembly and a 6-member appointed Senate.
The governor general appoints senators, four on the advice of the prime
minister and two on the advice of the leader of the opposition.  The term
of office of members of parliament is 5 years, although the prime
minister may call elections at any time.
J
ê(⌠p
As in other English-speaking Caribbean countries, the judiciary in St.
Vincent is rooted in British common law.  There are 11 courts in 3
magisterial districts.  The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court,
comprising a high court and a court of appeals, is known as the St.
Vincent and the Grenadines Supreme Court in St. Vincent.  The court of
last resort is the Judicial Committee of Her Majesty's Privy Council.
There is no local government in St. Vincent, and all 6 parishes are
administered by the central government.
J
ê(⌠p
Principal Government Officials
Head of State--Queen Elizabeth II
Governor General--Sir David Jack
Prime Minister--James F. Mitchell
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tourism--Herbert G. Young
Ambassador to the U.S.--Kingsley C.A. Layne
J
ê(⌠p
St. Vincent and the Grenadines maintains an embassy located at 1717
Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Suite 102, Washington, DC 20036 (tel.
202-462-7806).
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
POLITICAL CONDITIONS
The People's Political Party (PPP), founded in 1952 by Ebenezer
Joshua, was the first major political party in St. Vincent.  The PPP had
its roots in the labor movement, and was in the forefront of national
policy prior to independence, winning elections from 1957 through
1966.  With the development of a more conservative black middle class,
however, the party began to steadily lose support, until it collapsed after
a total rout in the 1979 elections.  The following year, Joshua resigned
from the leadership, and the party dissolved itself in 1984.
J
ê(⌠p
Founded in 1955, the St. Vincent Labor Party (SVLP), under R. Milton
Cato, gained the support of the middle-class.  With a conservative law-
and-order message and a pro-Western foreign policy, it had gained
enough strength by the mid-1960s to become the most powerful political
force for the next 20 years.  Following victories in the 1967 and 1974
elections, the SVLP led the island to independence, winning the first
post-independence election in  1979.  Expecting an easy victory for the
SVLP in 1984, Cato called early elections.  The results were surprising:
with a record 89% voter turnout, James F. Mitchell's New Democratic
Party (NDP) won 9 of 13 seats for the House of Assembly.
J
ê(⌠p
Since the 1984 election, politics in St. Vincent has been dominated by
the NDP.    With a reputation for sound fiscal management, and
bolstered by a resurgent economy in the mid-1980s, Mitchell led his
party to an unprecedented sweep of all 15 House of Assembly seats in
the 1989 elections.  The opposition emerged from the election weakened
and fragmented.
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
ECONOMY
The St. Vincent economy is heavily dependent on agriculture, with
bananas alone accounting for 60% of the work force and 20% of GDP.
Such reliance on a single crop makes the economy vulnerable to external
factors.   Since 1984, an agricultural diversification program and modest
land reforms have helped strengthen the agricultural sector.  St. Vincent
now exports a number of agricultural commodities including
arrowroots, coconuts, sweet potatoes, tannias, and eddoes, primarily to
CARICOM countries.  St. Vincent was, at one time, the world's largest
producer and exporter of arrowroot, a crop used in the manufacture of
baby food and computer paper.  Increased competition has now reduced
production by more than 80% from its peak in 1984.
J
ê(⌠p
The tourism sector remains small, but is robust and is assuming greater
importance.  For example, there were 157,532 visitors in 1990, an
increase of 23% over the previous year, with cruise ship visitors up
58%, and stayover visitors up 8%.  The tourist appeal of the country
lies in the privacy and the unspoiled and diverse beauty of the Grenadine
islands.  Some of the finest sailing waters in the world amid these
islands attract affluent visitors.  Efforts are underway to broaden this
appeal, though development of tourism is limited by airports, which
only handle small aircraft.
J
ê(⌠p
The economy expanded at a healthy pace in late 1980s, with growth
averaging about 7%, principally due to strong performances by the
manufacturing and construction sectors and favorable banana prices.
The country has been able to maintain access to foreign capital, both
mutilateral and bilateral aid and credit.
J
ê(⌠p
The government wants economic diversification and  infrastructure
improvement.  It has sought to attract investment with liberal tax and
currency exchange regulations, revision of the tax code to promote
savings, and reduction of the fiscal deficit through government
expenditure control.  The government has funded the wide-ranging
Development Corporation to locate foreign investors for joint ventures
in manufacturing and agriculture.  St. Vincent's maritime laws have
resulted in a lucrative ship registry business.  Despite its good
performance of late, the economy remains vulnerable because of its
dependence on bananas.  Since over 60% of foreign exchange earnings
are from banana exports, possible loss of this protected market with the
establishment of a single European market in 1992 poses a serious
challenge to the Vincentian economy.
J
ê(⌠p
St. Vincent and the Grenadines are beneficiaries of the U.S. Caribbean
Basin Initiative.  They are also members of the 12-nation Caribbean
Economic Community and Common Market, which has signed a
framework agreement with the United States to promote trade and
investment under the Enterprise for the Americas Initiative.
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
FOREIGN RELATIONS
St. Vincent's foreign relations were administered by Great Britain until
independence in 1979.  It maintains close ties to the U.S., Canada, and
Britain, and cooperates with regional political and economic
organizations such as OECS, CARICOM, and the Windward Islands
Regional Constituent Assembly (RCA).
J
ê(⌠p
St. Vincent is a participant in the RCA, an advisory body established in
1991 to make recommendations on the proposed economic and political
union of the four Windward Islands states (Dominica, Grenada, St.
Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines).
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
U.S.-ST. VINCENT RELATIONS
The United States and St. Vincent have good bilateral relations.  The
United States supports the government's economic policies.  The United
States Agency for International Development (USAID) contributes to the
island in such areas as agricultural diversification, small business
development and infrastructure improvement.  The U.S. also actively
supports the efforts of the St. Vincent Government to control drug
cultivation and trans-shipment on the island.
J
ê(⌠p
The U.S. Ambassador and embassy staff are resident in Bridgetown,
Barbados, and travel frequently to St. Vincent.  The U.S. embassy is
located in the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad
Street, Bridgetown, Barbados, (tel. [phone]).  The Peace Corps
has about 20 volunteers in St. Vincent working primarily in education
and health.  St. Vincent's ambassador to the U.S. is also accredited to
the UN.  St. Vincent also has a consul resident in New York.
J
ê(⌠p
Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--G. Philip Hughes
Deputy Chief of Mission--Tain P. Tompkins
Political/Economic Counselor--John Savage
Consul General--Thomas E. Cairns
Regional Labor Attache--Mary Ann Singlaub
Public Affairs Officer, United States Information Agency--Gerald
Waters
Director, USAID--Mosina Jordan
Director, Peace Corps--Richard Pyle (resident in St. Lucia)   (###)
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
TRAVEL NOTES
Visas:  Passports and visas are not required for U.S. citizens, but some
proof of citizenship (usually an original birth certificate and photo ID)
must be presented.  In addition, travellers must be in possession of an
onward or return ticket.
J
ê(⌠p
Currency:  The monetary unit is the Eastern Caribbean (EC) dollar,
which is pegged to the U.S. dollar at the rate of U.S.$1.00=EC$2.70.
J
ê(⌠p
Health:  Basic medical and sanitation facilities are adequate.  Travelers
should check latest information.
J
ê(⌠p
Transportation:  Public transportation is poor, though some taxis are
available in Kingston.  There is scheduled boat and plane service to the
Grenadines. (###)
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
Department of State Publication 10132
Published by the United States Department of State Bureau of Public
Affairs -- Office of Public Communication -- Washington, DC
September 1993 -- Managing Editor:  Peter Knecht -- Editor:  Josephine
C. Brooks
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p
Contents of this publication are not copyrighted unless indicated.  If not
copyrighted, the material may be reproduced without consent; citation of
the publication as the source is appreciated.  Permission to reproduce
any copyrighted material (including photos and graphics) must be
obtained from the original source.
J
ê(⌠p
For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government
Printing Office, Washington, DC  20402.  (###)
J
ê(⌠p
J
ê(⌠p

#ENDCARD