CIA World Fact Book, 2004/Montserrat


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!| Background:
 * Much of this island was devastated and two-thirds of the population fled abroad because of the eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano that began on 18 July 1995.
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!| Location: !| Geographic coordinates: !| Map references: !| Area: water: 0 sq km land: 102 sq km !| Area - comparative: !| Land boundaries: !| Coastline: !| Maritime claims: exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm !| Climate: !| Terrain: !| Elevation extremes: highest point: Chances Peak (in the Soufriere Hills volcanic complex) 914 m !| Natural resources: !| Land use: permanent crops: 0% other: 80% (2001) !| Irrigated land: !| Natural hazards: !| Environment - current issues: !| Geography - note:
 * Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico
 * 16 45 N, 62 12 W
 * Central America and the Caribbean
 * total: 102 sq km
 * about 0.6 times the size of Washington, DC
 * 0 km
 * 40 km
 * territorial sea: 3 nm
 * tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation
 * volcanic island, mostly mountainous, with small coastal lowland
 * lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
 * negligible
 * arable land: 20%
 * NA sq km
 * severe hurricanes (June to November); volcanic eruptions (Soufriere Hills volcano has erupted continuously since 1995)
 * land erosion occurs on slopes that have been cleared for cultivation
 * the island is entirely volcanic in origin and contains seven active volcanoes
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!| Population: note: an estimated 8,000 refugees left the island following the resumption of volcanic activity in July 1995; some have returned (July 2004 est.) !| Age structure: 15-64 years: 65.5% (male 2,889; female 3,162) 65 years and over: 11.2% (male 543; female 497) (2004 est.) !| Median age: male: 28 years female: 28.4 years (2004 est.) !| Population growth rate: !| Birth rate: !| Death rate: !| Net migration rate: !| Sex ratio: under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.09 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.) !| Infant mortality rate: female: 6.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 8.8 deaths/1,000 live births !| Life expectancy at birth: male: 76.39 years female: 80.78 years (2004 est.) !| Total fertility rate: !| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: !| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: !| HIV/AIDS - deaths: !| Nationality: adjective: Montserratian !| Ethnic groups: !| Religions: !| Languages: !| Literacy: total population: 97% male: 97% female: 97% (1970 est.)
 * 9,245
 * 0-14 years: 23.3% (male 1,092; female 1,062)
 * total: 28.2 years
 * 1.03% (2004 est.)
 * 17.63 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * 7.36 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
 * total: 7.56 deaths/1,000 live births
 * total population: 78.53 years
 * 1.79 children born/woman (2004 est.)
 * NA
 * NA
 * NA
 * noun: Montserratian(s)
 * black, white
 * Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Christian denominations
 * English
 * definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
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!| Country name: conventional short form: Montserrat !| Dependency status: !| Government type: !| Capital: !| Administrative divisions: !| Independence: !| National holiday: !| Constitution: !| Legal system: !| Suffrage: !| Executive branch: elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually becomes chief minister head of government: Chief Minister John OSBORNE (since 5 April 2001) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, the chief minister, three other ministers, the attorney general, and the finance secretary !| Legislative branch: note: expanded in 2001 from 7 to 9 elected members with attorney general and financial secretary sitting as ex-officio members elections: last held April 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) note: in 2001, the Elections Commission instituted a single constituency/voter-at-large system whereby all eligible voters cast ballots for all nine seats of the Legislative Council election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NPLM 7, NPP 2 !| Judicial branch: !| Political parties and leaders: !| Political pressure groups and leaders: !| International organization participation: !| Diplomatic representation in the US: !| Diplomatic representation from the US: !| Flag description:
 * conventional long form: none
 * overseas territory of the UK
 * NA
 * Plymouth (abandoned in 1997 due to volcanic activity; interim government buildings have been built at Brades Estate, in the Carr's Bay/Little Bay vicinity at the northwest end of Montserrat)
 * 3 parishes; Saint Anthony, Saint Georges, Saint Peter
 * none (overseas territory of the UK)
 * Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926)
 * present constitution came into force 19 December 1989
 * English common law and statutory law
 * 18 years of age; universal
 * chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Deborah Barnes JONES (since 10 May 2004)
 * unicameral Legislative Council (11 seats, 9 popularly elected; members serve five-year terms)
 * Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia, one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court)
 * National Progressive Party or NPP [Reuben T. MEADE]; New People's Liberation Movement or NPLM [John A. OSBORNE]
 * NA
 * Caricom, CDB, ICFTU, Interpol (subbureau), OECS, UPU
 * none (overseas territory of the UK)
 * none (overseas territory of the UK)
 * blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Montserratian coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a woman standing beside a yellow harp with her arm around a black cross
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!| Economy - overview: !| GDP: !| GDP - real growth rate: !| GDP - per capita: !| GDP - composition by sector: industry: 13.6% services: 81% (1996 est.) !| Population below poverty line: !| Household income or consumption by percentage share: highest 10%: NA !| Inflation rate (consumer prices): !| Labor force: !| Labor force - by occupation: !| Unemployment rate: !| Budget: expenditures: $31.6 million, including capital expenditures of $8.4 million (1997 est.) !| Agriculture - products: !| Industries: !| Industrial production growth rate: !| Electricity - production: !| Electricity - consumption: !| Electricity - exports: !| Electricity - imports: !| Oil - production: !| Oil - consumption: !| Oil - exports: !| Oil - imports: !| Exports: !| Exports - commodities: !| Exports - partners: !| Imports: !| Imports - commodities: !| Imports - partners: !| Debt - external: !| Economic aid - recipient: !| Currency: !| Currency code: !| Exchange rates: !| Fiscal year:
 * Severe volcanic activity, which began in July 1995, has put a damper on this small, open economy. A catastrophic eruption in June 1997 closed the airports and seaports, causing further economic and social dislocation. Two-thirds of the 12,000 inhabitants fled the island. Some began to return in 1998, but lack of housing limited the number. The agriculture sector continued to be affected by the lack of suitable land for farming and the destruction of crops. Prospects for the economy depend largely on developments in relation to the volcano and on public sector construction activity. The UK has launched a three-year $122.8 million aid program to help reconstruct the economy. Half of the island is expected to remain uninhabitable for another decade.
 * purchasing power parity - $29 million (2002 est.)
 * -1% (2002 est.)
 * purchasing power parity - $3,400 (2002 est.)
 * agriculture: 5.4%
 * NA
 * lowest 10%: NA
 * 2.6% (2002 est.)
 * 4,521 ; note - lowered by flight of people from volcanic activity (2000 est.)
 * agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA
 * 6% (1998 est.)
 * revenues: $31.4 million
 * cabbages, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, peppers, livestock products
 * tourism, rum, textiles, electronic appliances
 * NA
 * 2.5 million kWh (2001)
 * 2.325 million kWh (2001)
 * 0 kWh (2001)
 * 0 kWh (2001)
 * 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
 * 400 bbl/day (2001 est.)
 * NA (2001)
 * NA (2001)
 * $700,000 (2001)
 * electronic components, plastic bags, apparel, hot peppers, live plants, cattle
 * US, Antigua and Barbuda
 * $17 million (2001)
 * machinery and transportation equipment, foodstuffs, manufactured goods, fuels, lubricants, and related materials
 * US, UK, Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, Canada
 * $8.9 million (1997)
 * As of 31 March 2003, UK's DFID had provided about $328 million in economic relief from volcanic activity, and by 31 March 2006, DFID aid is expected to total $411 million.
 * East Caribbean dollar (XCD)
 * XCD
 * East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976)
 * 1 April - 31 March
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!| Telephones - main lines in use: !| Telephones - mobile cellular: !| Telephone system: domestic: NA international: country code - 1-664 !| Radio broadcast stations: !| Radios: !| Television broadcast stations: !| Televisions: !| Internet country code: !| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): !| Internet users:
 * NA
 * 70 (1994)
 * general assessment: NA
 * AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
 * 7,000 (1997)
 * 1 (1997)
 * 3,000 (1997)
 * .ms
 * 17 (2000)
 * NA
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!| Highways: paved: NA km note: volcanic eruptions beginning in 1995 destroyed most of the road system (2003) unpaved: NA km !| Ports and harbors: !| Merchant marine: !| Airports: !| Airports - with paved runways: under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
 * total: 227 km
 * Plymouth (abandoned), Little Bay (anchorages and ferry landing), Carr's Bay
 * none
 * 1 (2003 est.)
 * total: 1
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!| Military branches: !| Military - note:
 * no regular indigenous military forces; Police Force
 * defense is the responsibility of the UK
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