Location: Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, about one-third of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago

Geographic coordinates: 17 20 N, 62 45 W

Map references: Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total: 269 sq km
land: 269 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative: 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 135 km

Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
territorial sea : 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate: subtropical tempered by constant sea breezes; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)

Terrain: volcanic with mountainous interiors

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Liamuiga 1,156 m

Natural resources: NEGL

Land use:
arable land: 22%
permanent crops : 17%
permanent pastures: 3%
forests and woodland: 17%
other: 41% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: hurricanes (July to October)

Environment - current issues: NA

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Population: 38,736 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 29.4% (male 5,827; female 5,571)
15-64 years:61.9% (male 11,980; female 12,005)
65 years and over : 8.7% (male 1,383; female 1,970) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.01% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 18.61 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 9.04 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: -9.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 15.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.29 years
male:68.49 years
female: 74.26 years (2002 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.39 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Kittsian(s), Nevisian(s)
adjective: Kittsian, Nevisian

Ethnic groups: black

Religions: Anglican, other Protestant sects, Roman Catholic

Languages: English

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97%
male : 97%
female: 98% (1980 est.)

Country name:
conventional long form : Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis
conventional short form: Saint Kitts and Nevis
former: Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis

Data code: SC

Government type: constitutional monarchy

National capital: Basseterre

Administrative divisions: 14 parishes; Christ Church Nichola Town, Saint Anne Sandy Point, Saint George Basseterre, Saint George Gingerland, Saint James Windward, Saint John Capisterre, Saint John Figtree, Saint Mary Cayon, Saint Paul Capisterre, Saint Paul Charlestown, Saint Peter Basseterre, Saint Thomas Lowland, Saint Thomas Middle Island, Trinity Palmetto Point

Independence: 19 September 1983 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 19 September (1983)

Constitution: 19 September 1983

Legal system: based on English common law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal adult

Executive branch:
chief of state:Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Cuthbert Montraville SEBASTIAN (since 1 January 1996)
head of government :Prime Minister Dr. Denzil DOUGLAS (since 6 July 1995) and Deputy Prime Minister Sam CONDOR (since 6 July 1995)
cabinet:Cabinet appointed by the governor general in consultation with the prime minister
elections : none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general

Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (14 seats, 3 appointed and 11 popularly elected from single-member constituencies; members serve five-year terms)
elections:last held 6 March 2000 (next to be held by July 2005)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SKNLP 8, CCM 2, NRP 1

Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint Lucia); one judge of the Supreme Court resides in Saint Kitts

Political parties and leaders:Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Vance AMORY]; Nevis Reformation Party or NRP [Joseph PARRY]; People's Action Movement or PAM [Lindsey GRANT]; Saint Kitts and Nevis Labor Party or SKNLP [Dr. Denzil DOUGLAS]

International organization participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, OAS, OECS, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission : Ambassador Dr. Izben Cordinal WILLIAMS
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016
telephone: [1] (202) 686-2636
FAX: [1] (202) 686-5740

Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an embassy in Saint Kitts and Nevis; US interests are monitored by the embassy in Bridgetown, Barbados

Flag description: divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a broad black band bearing two white five-pointed stars; the black band is edged in yellow; the upper triangle is green, the lower triangle is red

Economy - overview:Sugar was the traditional mainstay of the St. Kitts economy until the 1970s. Although the crop still dominates the agricultural sector, activities such as tourism, export-oriented manufacturing, and offshore banking have assumed larger roles in the economy. As tourism revenues are now the chief source of the islands' foreign exchange, a decline in stopover tourist arrivals following the September 11 terrorist attacks has eroded government finances. The government revised estimates of 2001 growth down to 1% and faces dim recovery prospects in 2002, given the depressed state of the tourism industry, low sugar prices, and a growing budget deficit.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $339 million (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 1% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $8,700 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 25.8%
services: 70.7% (2001)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 1.7% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
total : 18,172 (June 1995)
by occupation: services 69%, manufacturing 31%

Unemployment rate: 4.5% (1997)

Budget:
revenues: $85.7 million
expenditures: $95.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)

Industries: sugar processing, tourism, cotton, salt, copra, clothing, footwear, beverages

Industrial production growth rate: NA %

Electricity - capacity: 15,000 kW (1995)

Electricity - production: 95 million kWh (2000)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 88.35 million kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: sugarcane, rice, yams, vegetables, bananas; fishing potential not fully exploited

Exports:
total value: $51.7 million (2000 est.)
commodities: machinery, food, electronics, beverages and tobacco
partners: US 68.5%, UK 22.3%, Caricom countries 5.5% (1995 est.)

Imports:
total value : $141.3 million (2000 est.)
commodities: machinery, manufactures, food, fuels
partners: US 42.4%, Caricom countries 17.2%, UK 11.3% (1995 est.)

Debt - external:$140 million (2000)

Economic aid:
recipient: $5.5 million (1995)

Currency: 1 EC dollar (XCD) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1 - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones: 17,000 (1997)

Telephone system: ggood interisland and international connections
domestic : interisland links to Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles) are handled by VHF/UHF/SHF radiotelephone
international: international calls are carried by radiotelephone to Antigua and Barbuda and switched there to submarine cable or to Intelsat; or carried to Saint Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles) by radiotelephone and switched to Intelsat

Radio broadcast stations:AM 3, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios: 28,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 1 (plus three repeaters) (1997)

Televisions: 10,000 (1997)

Railways:
total: 58 km
narrow gauge:58 km 0.762-m gauge on Saint Kitts to serve sugarcane plantations (2002)

Highways:
total : 320 km
paved: 136 km
unpaved: 184 km (2000)

Ports and harbors: Basseterre, Charlestown

Merchant marine: none

Airports: 2 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2001)

Military branches: Royal Saint Kitts and Nevis Police Force, Coast Guard

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49 : NA

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males: NA

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%

Disputes - international: none

Illicit drugs: transshipment points for South American drugs destined for the US