Grenada Population: 108,419

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 Background
Carib Indians inhabited Grenada when COLUMBUS discovered the island in 1498, but it remained uncolonized for more than a century. The French settled Grenada in the 17th century, established sugar estates, and imported large numbers of African slaves. Britain took the island in 1762 and vigorously expanded sugar production. In the 19th century, cacao eventually surpassed sugar as the main export crop; in the 20th century, nutmeg became the leading export. In 1967, Britain gave Grenada autonomy over its internal affairs. Full independence was attained in 1974 making Grenada one of the smallest independent countries in the Western Hemisphere. Grenada was seized by a Marxist military council on 19 October 1983. Six days later the island was invaded by US forces and those of six other Caribbean nations, which quickly captured the ringleaders and their hundreds of Cuban advisers. Free elections were reinstituted the following year and have continued since that time. Hurricane Ivan struck Grenada in September of 2004 causing severe damage.

 Geography
The administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada
Location: Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago
Geographic coordinates: 12 07 N, 61 40 W
Area: total: 344 sq km land: 344 sq km water: 0 sq km

Size comparison: twice the size of Washington, DC
Land Boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 121 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 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: 5.88% permanent crops: 29.41% other: 64.71% (2005)
Irrigated land: 15 sq km (2008)
Natural hazards: lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November
Current Environment Issues: NA
International Environment Agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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 People
Population: 108,419 (July 2011 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 25.4% (male 14,152/female 13,390) 15-64 years: 65.7% (male 36,245/female 34,960) 65 years and over: 8.9% (male 4,372/female 5,300) (2011 est.)
Median age: total: 28.6 years male: 28.6 years female: 28.6 years (2011 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.551% (2011 est.)
Birth rate: 17.01 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)
Death rate: 7.94 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)
Net migration rate: -3.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.098 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2011 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 11.43 deaths/1,000 live births male: 10.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 73.04 years male: 70.51 years female: 75.82 years (2011 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.18 children born/woman (2011 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: Grenadian(s) adjective: Grenadian
Ethnic groups: black 82%, mixed black and European 13%, European and East Indian 5%, and trace of Arawak/Carib Amerindian
Religions: Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2%
Languages: English (official), French patois
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96% male: NA female: NA (2003 est.)
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 Government
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Grenada
Government type: parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm
Capital: name: Saint George's geographic coordinates: 12 03 N, 61 45 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions: 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petite Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick
Independence: 7 February 1974 (from the UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 7 February (1974)
Constitution: 19 December 1973
Legal system: common law based on English model
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Carlyle Arnold GLEAN (since 27 November 2008) head of government: Prime Minister Tillman THOMAS (since 9 July 2008) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister (For more information visit the World Leaders website ) elections: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (13 seats, 10 members appointed by the government and 3 by the leader of the opposition) and the House of Representatives (15 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 8 July 2008 (next to be held in 2013) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NDC 11, NNP 4
Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of a court of Appeal and a High Court of Justice (two High Court judges are assigned to and reside in Grenada); Itinerant Court of Appeal three judges; member of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)
Political parties and leaders: Grenada United Labor Party or GULP [Gloria Payne BANFIELD]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [Tillman THOMAS]; New National Party or NNP [Keith MITCHELL]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Committee for Human Rights in Grenada or CHRG; New Jewel Movement Support Group; The British Grenada Friendship Society; The New Jewel 19 Committee
International organization participation: ACP, AOSIS, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, PetroCaribe, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Gillian M.S. BRISTOL chancery: 1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2561 FAX: [1] (202) 265-2468 consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada embassy: Lance-aux-Epines Stretch, Saint George's mailing address: P. O. Box 54, Saint George's telephone: [1] (473) 444-1173 through 1177 FAX: [1] (473) 444-4820
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 Economy
Grenada relies on tourism as its main source of foreign exchange especially since the construction of an international airport in 1985. Hurricanes Ivan (2004) and Emily (2005) severely damaged the agricultural sector - particularly nutmeg and cocoa cultivation - which had been a key driver of economic growth. Grenada has rebounded from the devastating effects of the hurricanes but is now saddled with the debt burden from the rebuilding process. Public debt-to-GDP is nearly 110%, leaving the THOMAS administration limited room to engage in public investments and social spending. Strong performances in construction and manufacturing, together with the development of tourism and an offshore financial industry, have also contributed to growth in national output; however, economic growth was stagnant in 2010 after a sizeable contraction in 2009, because of the global economic slowdown's effects on tourism and remittances.
GDP (purchasing power parity): GDP (purchasing power parity): $1.098 billion (2010 est.) $1.114 billion (2009 est.) $1.204 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate): GDP (official exchange rate): $674 million (2010 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: -1.4% (2010 est.) -7.6% (2009 est.) 2.2% (2008 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): GDP - per capita (PPP): $10,200 (2010 est.) $10,400 (2009 est.) $11,300 (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 10.2% industry: 28.8% services: 61% (2010 est.)
Labor force: 42,300 (1996)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 24% industry: 14% services: 62% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 12.5% (2000)
Population below poverty line: 32% (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5% (2010 est.)
Budget: revenues: $175.3 million expenditures: $215.9 million (2009 est.)
Agriculture - products: bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables
Industries: food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction
Industrial production growth rate:
Electricity - production: 195.4 million kWh (2009 est.)
Electricity - consumption: 177.4 million kWh (2009 est.)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2009 est.)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2009 est.)
Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Oil - consumption: 3,000 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Oil - exports: 0 bbl/day (2009 est.)
Oil - imports: 1,913 bbl/day (2009 est.)
Oil - proved reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2011 est.)
Natural gas - production: 0 cu m (2009 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 0 cu m (2009 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2009 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2009 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 0 cu m (1 January 2011 est.)
Current account balance: -$174.8 million (2009 est.) -$138 million (2007 est.)
Exports: $38 million (2006) $38.69 million (2009 est.)
Exports - commodities: bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace
Exports - partners: St. Lucia 16.6%, Egypt 15.9%, Antigua and Barbuda 11.3%, US 11%, St. Kitts and Nevis 10.1%, Dominica 10.1% (2010)
Imports: $252.8 million (2009 est.) $343 million (2006)
Imports - commodities: food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel
Imports - partners: Trinidad and Tobago 43.7%, US 18.8% (2010)
Debt - external: $347 million (2004)
Market value of publicly traded shares: $NA
Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar - 2.7 (2010) 2.7 (2009) 2.7 (2005) 2.7 (2004) 2.7 (2003)
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 Communications
Telephones in use: 28,600 (2009) country comparison to the world: 181
Cellular Phones in use: 64,000 (2009)
Telephone system: general assessment: automatic, island-wide telephone system domestic: interisland VHF and UHF radiotelephone links international: country code - 1-473; landing point for the East Caribbean Fiber Optic System (ECFS) submarine cable with links to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad; SHF radiotelephone links to Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Vincent; VHF and UHF radio links to Trinidad
Radio broadcast stations:
Television broadcast stations:
Internet country code: .gd
Internet hosts: 52 (2010)
Internet users: 25,000 (2009)
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 Transportation
Airports: 3 (2010) country comparison to the world: 195
Airports (paved runways): total: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2010)
Roadways: total: 1,127 km paved: 687 km unpaved: 440 km (2001)
Ports and terminals: Saint George's
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 Military
Military branches: no regular military forces; Royal Grenada Police Force (includes Coast Guard) (2010)
Manpower available for military service: males age 16-49: 27,468 (2010 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 16-49: 22,596 females age 16-49: 22,588 (2010 est.)
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Source: CIA - The World Factbook

 

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