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- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Geography
-
-
- Location:
- Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean,
- northeast of Venezuela
- Map references:
- Central America and the Caribbean
- Area:
- total area:
- 5,130 sq km
- land area:
- 5,130 sq km
- comparative area:
- slightly smaller than Delaware
- Land boundaries:
- 0 km
- Coastline:
- 362 km
- Maritime claims:
- contiguous zone:
- 24 nm
- continental shelf:
- 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental margin
- exclusive economic zone:
- 200 nm
- territorial sea:
- 12 nm
- International disputes:
- none
- Climate:
- tropical; rainy season (June to December)
- Terrain:
- mostly plains with some hills and low mountains
- Natural resources:
- petroleum, natural gas, asphalt
- Land use:
- arable land:
- 14%
- permanent crops:
- 17%
- meadows and pastures:
- 2%
- forest and woodland:
- 44%
- other:
- 23%
- Irrigated land:
- 220 sq km (1989 est.)
- Environment:
- current issues:
- water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and raw
- sewage; oil pollution of beaches; deforestation; soil erosion
- natural hazards:
- outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms
- international agreements:
- party to - Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the
- Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection,
- Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- People
-
-
- Population:
- 1,271,159 (July 1995 est.)
- Age structure:
- 0-14 years:
- 31% (female 191,627; male 198,225)
- 15-64 years:
- 64% (female 399,726; male 407,495)
- 65 years and over:
- 5% (female 40,577; male 33,509) (July 1995 est.)
- Population growth rate:
- 0.12% (1995 est.)
- Birth rate:
- 16.62 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
- Death rate:
- 6.88 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
- Net migration rate:
- -8.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
- Infant mortality rate:
- 18.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
- Life expectancy at birth:
- total population:
- 70.14 years
- male:
- 67.75 years
- female:
- 72.6 years (1995 est.)
- Total fertility rate:
- 2.01 children born/woman (1995 est.)
- Nationality:
- noun:
- Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s)
- adjective:
- Trinidadian, Tobagonian
- Ethnic divisions:
- black 43%, East Indian (a local term - primarily immigrants from northern
- India) 40%, mixed 14%, white 1%, Chinese 1%, other 1%
- Religions:
- Roman Catholic 32.2%, Hindu 24.3%, Anglican 14.4%, other Protestant 14%,
- Muslim 6%, none or unknown 9.1%
- Languages:
- English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish
- Literacy:
- age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
- total population:
- 97%
- male:
- 98%
- female:
- 96%
- Labor force:
- 463,900
- by occupation:
- construction and utilities 18.1%, manufacturing, mining, and quarrying
- 14.8%, agriculture 10.9%, other 56.2% (1985 est.)
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Government
-
-
- Names:
- conventional long form:
- Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
- conventional short form:
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Digraph:
- TD
- Type:
- parliamentary democracy
- Capital:
- Port-of-Spain
- Administrative divisions:
- 8 counties, 3 municipalities*, and 1 ward**; Arima*, Caroni, Mayaro, Nariva,
- Port-of-Spain*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick, San
- Fernando*, Tobago**, Victoria
- Independence:
- 31 August 1962 (from UK)
- National holiday:
- Independence Day, 31 August (1962)
- Constitution:
- 1 August 1976
- Legal system:
- based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the
- Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
- Suffrage:
- 18 years of age; universal
- Executive branch:
- chief of state:
- President Noor Mohammed HASSANALI (since 18 March 1987)
- head of government:
- Prime Minister Patrick Augustus Mervyn MANNING (since 17 December 1991)
- cabinet:
- Cabinet; responsible to parliament
- Legislative branch:
- bicameral Parliament
- Senate:
- consists of a 31-member body appointed by the president
- House of Representatives:
- elections last held 16 December 1991 (next to be held by December 1996);
- results - PNM 32%, UNC 13%, NAR 2%; seats - (36 total) PNM 21, UNC 13, NAR 2
- Judicial branch:
- Court of Appeal, Supreme Court
- Political parties and leaders:
- People's National Movement (PNM), Patrick MANNING; United National Congress
- (UNC), Basdeo PANDAY; National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR), Selby
- WILSON; Movement for Social Transformation (MOTION), David ABDULLAH;
- National Joint Action Committee (NJAC), Makandal DAAGA; Republican Party,
- Nello MITCHELL; National Development Party (NDP), Carson CHARLES; Movement
- for Unity and Progress (MUP), Hulsie BHAGGAN
- Member of:
- ACP, C, CARICOM, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IBRD, ICAO,
- ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC,
- ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WFTU,
- WHO, WIPO, WMO
- Diplomatic representation in US:
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Corinne Averille McKNIGHT
- chancery:
- 1708 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Government
- telephone:
- [1] (202) 467-6490
- FAX:
- [1] (202) 785-3130
- consulate(s) general:
- New York
- US diplomatic representation:
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Brian DONNELLY (since September 1994)
- embassy:
- 15 Queen's Park West, Port-of-Spain
- mailing address:
- P. O. Box 752, Port-of-Spain
- telephone:
- [1] (809) 622-6372 through 6376, 6176
- FAX:
- [1] (809) 628-5462
- Flag:
- red with a white-edged black diagonal band from the upper hoist side
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Economy
-
-
- Overview:
- Trinidad and Tobago's petroleum-based economy still enjoys a high per capita
- income by Latin American standards, even though output and living standards
- are substantially below the boom years of 1973-82. The country suffers from
- widespread unemployment, large foreign-debt payments, and periods of low
- international oil prices. The government has begun to make progress in its
- efforts to diversify exports and to liberalize its trade regime, making 1994
- the first year of substantial growth since the early 1980s.
- National product:
- GDP - purchasing power parity - $15 billion (1994 est.)
- National product real growth rate:
- 3% (1994 est.)
- National product per capita:
- $11,280 (1994 est.)
- Inflation rate (consumer prices):
- 10.1% (1994 est.)
- Unemployment rate:
- 18.1% (1994 )
- Budget:
- revenues:
- $1.6 billion
- expenditures:
- $1.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $158 million (1993 est.)
- Exports:
- $1.9 billion (f.o.b., 1994)
- commodities:
- petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, steel products, fertilizer,
- sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus, flowers
- partners:
- US 44%, CARICOM 15%, Latin America 9%, EC 5% (1993)
- Imports:
- $996 million (c.i.f., 1994)
- commodities:
- machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, live animals
- partners:
- US 43%, Venezuela 10%, UK 8%, other EC 8% (1993)
- External debt:
- $2 billion (1994)
- Industrial production:
- growth rate 1% (1994 est.); accounts for 39% of GDP, including petroleum
- Electricity:
- capacity:
- 1,150,000 kW
- production:
- 3.9 billion kWh
- consumption per capita:
- 2,740 kWh (1993)
- Industries:
- petroleum, chemicals, tourism, food processing, cement, beverage, cotton
- textiles
- Agriculture:
- accounts for 3% of GDP; major crops - cocoa, sugarcane; sugarcane acreage is
- being shifted into rice, citrus, coffee, vegetables; poultry sector most
- important source of animal protein; must import large share of food needs
- Illicit drugs:
- transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe
- and producer of cannabis
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Economy
- Economic aid:
- recipient:
- US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $373 million; Western (non-US)
- countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $518 million
- Currency:
- 1 Trinidad and Tobago dollar (TT$) = 100 cents
- Exchange rates:
- Trinidad and Tobago dollars (TT$) per US$1 - 5.8758 (January 1995), 5.9160
- (1994), 5.3511 (1993), 4.2500 (fixed rate 1989-1992); note - effective 13
- April 1993, the exchange rate of the TT dollar is market-determined as
- opposed to the prior fixed relationship to the US dollar
- Fiscal year:
- calendar year
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Transportation
-
-
- Railroads:
- note:
- minimal agricultural railroad system near San Fernando
- Highways:
- total:
- 8,000 km
- paved:
- 4,000 km
- unpaved:
- improved earth 1,000 km; unimproved earth 3,000 km
- Pipelines:
- crude oil 1,032 km; petroleum products 19 km; natural gas 904 km
- Ports:
- Pointe-a-Pierre, Point Fortin, Point Lisas, Port-of-Spain, Scarborough,
- Tembladora
- Merchant marine:
- total:
- 2 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 12,507 GRT/21,923 DWT
- Airports:
- 6
- with paved runways over 3,047 m:
- 1
- with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m:
- 1
- with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m:
- 1
- with paved runways under 914 m:
- 2
- with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m:
- 1
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Communications
-
-
- Telephone system:
- 109,000 telephones; excellent international service via tropospheric scatter
- links to Barbados and Guyana; good local service
- local:
- NA
- intercity:
- NA
- international:
- 1 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean) earth station; linked to Barbados and Guyana by
- tropospheric scatter system
- Radio:
- broadcast stations:
- AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 0
- radios:
- NA
- Television:
- broadcast stations:
- 5
- televisions:
- NA
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Defense Forces
-
-
- Branches:
- Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force (includes Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and
- Air Wing), Trinidad and Tobago Police Service
- Manpower availability:
- males age 15-49 347,841; males fit for military service 249,904 (1995 est.)
- Defense expenditures:
- exchange rate conversion - $83 million, 1.5% of GDP (1994)
-