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234 lines
19 KiB
Plaintext
234 lines
19 KiB
Plaintext
THE BAHAMAS
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 13,940 km2; land area: 10,070 km2
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Comparative area: slightly larger than Connecticut
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Land boundaries: none
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Coastline: 3,542 km
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Maritime claims:
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Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation;
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Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;
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Territorial sea: 3 nm
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Climate: tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream
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Terrain: long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills
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Natural resources: salt, aragonite, timber
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Land use: arable land 1%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and
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pastures NEGL%; forest and woodland 32%; other 67%
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Environment: subject to hurricanes and other tropical storms
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that cause extensive flood damage
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Note: strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island
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chain
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PEOPLE
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Population: 252,110 (July 1991), growth rate 1.4% (1991)
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Birth rate: 19 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 5 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 18 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 69 years male, 76 years female(1991)
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Total fertility rate: 2.2 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Bahamian(s); adjective--Bahamian
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Ethnic divisions: black 85%, white 15%
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Religion: Baptist 32%, Anglican 20%, Roman Catholic 19%,
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Methodist 6%, Church of God 6%, other Protestant 12%, none or unknown
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3%, other 2% (1980)
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Language: English; some Creole among Haitian immigrants
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Literacy: 90% (male 90%, female 89%) age 15 and over but
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definition of literacy not available (1963 est.)
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Labor force: 132,600; government 30%, hotels and restaurants 25%,
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business services 10%, agriculture 5% (1986)
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Organized labor: 25% of labor force
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: The Commonwealth of The Bahamas
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Type: commonwealth
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Capital: Nassau
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Administrative divisions: 21 districts; Abaco, Acklins Island,
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Andros Island, Berry Islands, Biminis, Cat Island, Cay Lobos, Crooked
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Island, Eleuthera, Exuma, Grand Bahama, Harbour Island, Inagua, Long Cay,
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Long Island, Mayaguana, New Providence, Ragged Island, Rum Cay, San
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Salvador, Spanish Wells
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Independence: 10 July 1973 (from UK)
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Constitution: 10 July 1973
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Legal system: based on English common law
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National holiday: Independence Day, 10 July (1973)
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Executive branch: British monarch, governor general, prime
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minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet
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Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of an upper house
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or Senate and a lower house or House of Assembly
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Judicial branch: Supreme Court
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Leaders:
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Chief of State--Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
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represented by Acting Governor General Sir Henry TAYLOR (since 26 June
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1988);
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Head of Government--Prime Minister Sir Lynden Oscar PINDLING (since
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16 January 1967)
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Political parties and leaders:
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Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), Sir Lynden O. PINDLING;
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Free National Movement (FNM), Hubert Alexander INGRAHAM
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Suffrage: universal at age 18
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Elections:
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House of Assembly--last held 19 June 1987 (next to be held
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by June 1992);
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results--percent of vote by party NA;
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seats--(49 total) PLP 32, FNM 17
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Communists: none known
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Other political or pressure groups: Vanguard Nationalist and
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Socialist Party (VNSP), a small leftist party headed by Lionel CAREY;
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Trade Union Congress (TUC), headed by Arlington MILLER
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Member of: ACP, C, CCC, CARICOM, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB,
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IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU,
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LORCS, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO,
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WMO
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Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Margaret E. McDONALD;
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Chancery at Suite 865, 600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington DC 20037;
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telephone (202) 944-3390; there are Bahamian Consulates General in Miami
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and New York;
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US--Ambassador Chic HECHT; Embassy at Mosmar Building,
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Queen Street, Nassau (mailing address is P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau);
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telephone (809) 322-1181 or 328-2206
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Flag: three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and
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aquamarine with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side
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ECONOMY
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Overview: The Bahamas is a stable, middle-income developing nation
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whose economy is based primarily on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism
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alone provides about 50% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs about
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50,000 people or 40% of the local work force. The economy has slackened
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in recent years, as the annual increase in the number of tourists slowed.
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Nonetheless, the per capita GDP of $9,800 is one of the highest in the
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region.
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GDP: $2.4 billion, per capita $9,800; real growth rate 2.0%
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(1989 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 7.1% (1990 est.)
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Unemployment: 11.7% (1989)
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Budget: revenues $1.03 billion; expenditures $1.1 billion,
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including capital expenditures of $275 million (1990)
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Exports: $300 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.);
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commodities--pharmaceuticals, cement, rum, crawfish;
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partners--US 41%, Norway 30%, Denmark 4%
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Imports: $1.23 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.);
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commodities--foodstuffs, manufactured goods, mineral fuels;
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partners--US 35%, Nigeria 21%, Japan 13%, Angola 11%
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External debt: $1.2 billion (December 1990)
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Industrial production: growth rate NA%; accounts for 15% of GDP
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Electricity: 368,000 kW capacity; 857 million kWh produced,
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3,480 kWh per capita (1990)
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Industries: tourism, banking, cement, oil refining and
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transshipment, salt production, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral
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weld, steel pipe
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Agriculture: accounts for less than 5% of GDP; dominated by
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small-scale producers; principal products--citrus fruit, vegetables,
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poultry; large net importer of food
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Illicit drugs: transshipment point for cocaine
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Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY85-88), $1.0
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million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
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(1970-88), $345 million
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Currency: Bahamian dollar (plural--dollars); 1 Bahamian dollar
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(B$) = 100 cents
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Exchange rates: Bahamian dollar (B$) per US$1--1.00 (fixed rate)
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Fiscal year: calendar year
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Highways: 2,400 km total; 1,350 km paved, 1,050 km gravel
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Ports: Freeport, Nassau
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Merchant marine: 636 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 14,266,066
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GRT/23,585,465 DWT; includes 42 passenger, 16 short-sea passenger, 190
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cargo, 41 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 23 container, 5 car carrier,
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1 railroad carrier, 141 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 8
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liquefied gas, 15 combination ore/oil, 33 chemical tanker, 1 specialized
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tanker, 112 bulk, 8 combination bulk; note--a flag of convenience
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registry
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Civil air: 9 major transport aircraft
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Airports: 59 total, 57 usable; 31 with permanent-surface runways;
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none with runways over 3,659 m; 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 25 with
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runways 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: highly developed; 99,000 telephones in totally
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automatic system; tropospheric scatter and submarine cable links to
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Florida; stations--3 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV; 3 coaxial submarine cables; 1
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Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: Royal Bahamas Defense Force (a coast guard element only),
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Royal Bahamas Police Force
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Manpower availability: males 15-49, 68,020; NA fit for military
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service
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Defense expenditures: $65 million, 2.7% of GDP (1990)
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