About Saint Kitts & Nevis

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

Tropical, tempered by constant sea breezes; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)

Volcanic with mountainous interiors

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

With coastlines in the shape of a baseball bat and ball, the two volcanic islands are separated by a 3-km-wide channel called The Narrows; on the southern tip of long, baseball bat-shaped Saint Kitts lies the Great Salt Pond; Nevis Peak sits in the center of its almost circular namesake island and its ball shape complements that of its sister island

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

name: Basseterre
geographic coordinates: 17 18 N, 62 43 W
time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

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

Hurricanes (July to October)

NA

total population: 74.37 years
male: 72.03 years
female: 76.75 years (2010 est.)

at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2010 est.)

Based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; some money-laundering activity

general assessment: good interisland and international connections
domestic: interisland links via Eastern Caribbean Fiber Optic cable; construction of enhanced wireless infrastructure launched in November 2004
international: country code - 1-869; connected internationally by the East Caribbean Fiber Optic System (ECFS) and Southern Caribbean fiber optic system (SCF) submarine cables

The government operates a national television network that broadcasts on 2 channels; cable subscription services provide access to local and international channels; the government operates a national radio network; a mix of government-owned and privately-owned broadcasters operate roughly 15 radio stations (2007)

total: 261 sq km (Saint Kitts 168 sq km; Nevis 93 sq km)
land: 261 sq km
water: 0 sq km

49,898 (July 2010 est.)

noun: Kittitian(s), Nevisian(s)
adjective: Kittitian, Nevisian

predominantly black; some British, Portuguese, and Lebanese

English (official)

Anglican, other Protestant, Roman Catholic

NA

19 September 1983 (from the UK)

Independence Day, 19 September (1983)

Parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

18 years of age; universal

16,000 (2008)

51 (2010)

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Carib Indians occupied the islands for hundreds of years before the British began settlement in 1623. The islands became an associated state of the UK with full internal autonomy in 1967. The island of Anguilla rebelled and was allowed to secede in 1971. Saint Kitts and Nevis achieved independence in 1983. In 1998, a vote in Nevis on a referendum to separate from Saint Kitts fell short of the two-thirds majority needed. Nevis continues in its efforts to separate from Saint Kitts.

The economy of Saint Kitts and Nevis is heavily dependent upon tourism revenues, which has replaced sugar, the traditional mainstay of the economy until the 1970s. Following the 2005 harvest, the government closed the sugar industry after decades of losses of 3-4% of GDP annually. To compensate for employment losses, the government has embarked on a program to diversify the agricultural sector and to stimulate other sectors of the economy, such as tourism, export-oriented manufacturing, and offshore banking. Economic growth was above average for Latin America from 2004 to 2006, but has since slowed. Tourism is projected to give the economy a boost in 2010, as large cruise ships add St. Kitts and Nevis to their itineraries. More than 200,000 tourists visited the islands in 2009. Like other tourist destinations in the Caribbean, St. Kitts and Nevis is vulnerable to damage from natural disasters and shifts in tourism demand. The current government is constrained by a high public debt burden equivalent to roughly 185% of GDP, largely attributable to public enterprise losses.

name: "Oh Land of Beauty!"
lyrics/music: Kenrick Anderson GEORGES
note: adopted 1983