Bahamas

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)
Bahamas
    n 1: island country in the Atlantic to the east of Florida and
         Cuba; a popular winter resort [syn: {Bahamas},
         {Commonwealth of the Bahamas}, {Bahama Islands}]
    
from CIA World Factbook 2006
Bahamas

Introduction, The

   Background:  Lucayan Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher
                Columbus first set foot in the New World on San
                Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands
                began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783.
                Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The
                Bahamas have prospered through tourism and
                international banking and investment management.
                Because of its geography, the country is a major
                transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly
                shipments to the US, and its territory is used for
                smuggling illegal migrants into the US.

Geography, The

     Location:  Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic
                Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba

    Geographic  24 15 N, 76 00 W
  coordinates:

           Map  Central America and the Caribbean
   references:

         Area:  total: 13,940 sq km
                land: 10,070 sq km
                water: 3,870 sq km

        Area -  slightly smaller than Connecticut
  comparative:

          Land  0 km
   boundaries:

    Coastline:  3,542 km

      Maritime  territorial sea: 12 nm
       claims:  exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

      Climate:  tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf
                Stream

      Terrain:  long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills

     Elevation  lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
     extremes:  highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m

       Natural  salt, aragonite, timber, arable land
    resources:

     Land use:  arable land: 0.58%
                permanent crops: 0.29%
                other: 99.13% (2005)

     Irrigated  10 sq km (2003)
         land:

       Natural  hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive
      hazards:  flood and wind damage

 Environment -  coral reef decay; solid waste disposal
       current
       issues:

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

   Geography -  strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive
         note:  island chain of which 30 are inhabited

People, The

   Population:  303,770
                note: estimates for this country explicitly take into
                account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS;
                this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant
                mortality and death rates, lower population and growth
                rates, and changes in the distribution of population by
                age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006
                est.)

Age structure:  0-14 years: 27.5% (male 41,799/female 41,733)
                15-64 years: 66.1% (male 98,847/female 102,074)
                65 years and over: 6.4% (male 7,891/female 11,426)
                (2006 est.)

   Median age:  total: 27.8 years
                male: 27.1 years
                female: 28.6 years (2006 est.)

    Population  0.64% (2006 est.)
  growth rate:

   Birth rate:  17.57 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

   Death rate:  9.05 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

 Net migration  -2.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
         rate:

    Sex ratio:  at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
                under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
                15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
                65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female
                total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

        Infant  total: 24.68 deaths/1,000 live births
     mortality  male: 30.29 deaths/1,000 live births
         rate:  female: 18.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

          Life  total population: 65.6 years
 expectancy at  male: 62.24 years
        birth:  female: 69.03 years (2006 est.)

         Total  2.18 children born/woman (2006 est.)
     fertility
         rate:

    HIV/AIDS -  3% (2003 est.)
         adult
    prevalence
         rate:

    HIV/AIDS -  5,600 (2003 est.)
 people living
with HIV/AIDS:

    HIV/AIDS -  less than 200 (2003 est.)
       deaths:

  Nationality:  noun: Bahamian(s)
                adjective: Bahamian

Ethnic groups:  black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%

    Religions:  Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%,
                Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%,
                other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other
                0.8% (2000 census)

    Languages:  English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)

     Literacy:  definition: age 15 and over can read and write
                total population: 95.6%
                male: 94.7%
                female: 96.5% (2003 est.)

Government, The

 Country name:  conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas
                conventional short form: The Bahamas

    Government  constitutional parliamentary democracy
         type:

      Capital:  name: Nassau
                geographic coordinates: 25 05 N, 77 21 W
                time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC
                during Standard Time)
                daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in
                April; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative  21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat
    divisions:  Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's
                Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock,
                Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour,
                Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry
                Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San
                Salvador and Rum Cay

 Independence:  10 July 1973 (from UK)

      National  Independence Day, 10 July (1973)
      holiday:

 Constitution:  10 July 1973

 Legal system:  based on English common law

     Suffrage:  18 years of age; universal

     Executive  chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February
       branch:  1952), represented by Governor General Arthur D. HANNA
                (since 1 February 2006)
                head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE
                (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia
                PRATT (since 7 May 2002)
                cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on
                the prime minister's recommendation
                elections: none; the monarch 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; the prime
                minister recommends the deputy prime minister

   Legislative  bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member
       branch:  body appointed by the governor general upon the advice
                of the prime minister and the opposition leader for
                five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats;
                members elected by direct popular vote to serve
                five-year terms); the government may dissolve the
                Parliament and call elections at any time
                elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May
                2007)
                election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%,
                FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29,
                FNM 7, independents 4

      Judicial  Privy Council (London); Courts of Appeal; Supreme
       branch:  (lower) Court; magistrates courts

     Political  Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert INGRAHAM];
   parties and  Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE]
      leaders:

     Political  NA
      pressure
    groups and
      leaders:

 International  ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt
  organization  (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
participation:  Interpol, IOM, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW
                (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO,
                WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), WToO

    Diplomatic  chief of mission: vacant
representation  chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC
    in the US:  20008
                telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660
                FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668
                consulate(s) general: Miami, New York

    Diplomatic  chief of mission: Ambassador John D. ROOD
representation  embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau
  from the US:  mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O.
                Box N-8197, Nassau; US Department of State, 3370 Nassau
                Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370
                telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours)
                FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222

          Flag  three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold,
  description:  and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based
                on the hoist side

Economy, The

     Economy -  The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an
     overview:  economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore
                banking. Tourism together with tourism-driven
                construction and manufacturing accounts for
                approximately 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly
                employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady
                growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction
                of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid
                GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US
                economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back
                growth in these sectors in 2001-03. The current
                government has presided over a period of economic
                recovery and an upturn in large-scale private sector
                investments in tourism. Financial services constitute
                the second-most important sector of the Bahamian
                economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. However,
                since December 2000, when the government enacted new
                regulations on the financial sector, many international
                businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and
                agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth
                of GDP and show little growth, despite government
                incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth
                prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes
                of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the
                US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors.

           GDP  $6.105 billion (2005 est.)
   (purchasing
power parity):

 GDP (official  $5.783 billion (2005 est.)
      exchange
        rate):

    GDP - real  3.7% (2005 est.)
  growth rate:

     GDP - per  $20,200 (2005 est.)
 capita (PPP):

         GDP -  agriculture: 3%
composition by  industry: 7%
       sector:  services: 90% (2001 est.)

  Labor force:  176,300 (2004)

 Labor force -  agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other
by occupation:  services 40% (2005 est.)

  Unemployment  10.2% (2005 est.)
         rate:

    Population  9.3% (2004)
 below poverty
         line:

     Household  lowest 10%: NA%
     income or  highest 10%: 27%
consumption by
    percentage
        share:

Inflation rate  1.2% ( 2004)
     (consumer
      prices):

       Budget:  revenues: $1.03 billion
                expenditures: $1.03 billion; including capital
                expenditures of $130 million (FY04/05)

 Agriculture -  citrus, vegetables; poultry
     products:

   Industries:  tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum,
                aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe

    Industrial  NA%
    production
  growth rate:

 Electricity -  1.81 billion kWh (2003)
   production:

 Electricity -  fossil fuel: 100%
 production by  hydro: 0%
       source:  nuclear: 0%
                other: 0% (2001)

 Electricity -  1.683 billion kWh (2003)
  consumption:

 Electricity -  0 kWh (2003)
      exports:

 Electricity -  0 kWh (2003)
      imports:

         Oil -  0 bbl/day (2003)
   production:

         Oil -  23,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)
  consumption:

Oil - exports:  transhipments of 29,000 bbl/day (2003)

Oil - imports:  NA bbl/day

 Natural gas -  0 cu m (2003 est.)
   production:

 Natural gas -  0 cu m (2003 est.)
  consumption:

      Exports:  $469.3 million (2004 est.)

     Exports -  mineral products and salt, animal products, rum,
  commodities:  chemicals, fruit and vegetables

     Exports -  US 31%, Spain 29.7%, Poland 9.3%, Germany 5.6%,
     partners:  Guatemala 4.1% (2005)

      Imports:  $1.82 billion (2004 est.)

     Imports -  machinery and transport equipment, manufactures,
  commodities:  chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals

     Imports -  US 22.5%, South Korea 20.2%, Spain 7.8%, Brazil 7.1%,
     partners:  Italy 6.5%, Germany 5.4% (2005)

        Debt -  $342.6 million (2004 est.)
     external:

Economic aid -  $5 million (2004)
    recipient:

      Currency  Bahamian dollar (BSD)
       (code):

Currency code:  BSD

      Exchange  Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2005), 1 (2004), 1
        rates:  (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001)

  Fiscal year:  1 July - 30 June

Communications, The

  Telephones -  139,900 (2004)
 main lines in
          use:

  Telephones -  186,000 (2004)
        mobile
     cellular:

     Telephone  general assessment: modern facilities
       system:  domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed
                international: country code - 1-242; tropospheric
                scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial
                submarine cables; satellite earth station - 2 (2005)

         Radio  AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2006)
     broadcast
     stations:

       Radios:  215,000 (1997)

    Television  2 (2006)
     broadcast
     stations:

  Televisions:  67,000 (1997)

      Internet  .bs
 country code:

      Internet  591 (2006)
        hosts:

      Internet  19 (2000)
       Service
     Providers
       (ISPs):

      Internet  93,000 (2005)
        users:

Transportation, The

     Airports:  64 (2006)

    Airports -  total: 29
    with paved  over 3,047 m: 2
      runways:  2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
                1,524 to 2,437 m: 14
                914 to 1,523 m: 9
                under 914 m: 1 (2006)

    Airports -  total: 35
  with unpaved  1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
      runways:  914 to 1,523 m: 10
                under 914 m: 22 (2006)

    Heliports:  1 (2006)

     Roadways:  total: 2,693 km
                paved: 1,546 km
                unpaved: 1,147 km (1999)

      Merchant  total: 1,177 ships (1000 GRT or over) 37,743,270 GRT/
       marine:  50,918,747 DWT
                by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 253, cargo 250,
                chemical tanker 64, container 79, liquefied gas 35,
                livestock carrier 2, passenger 115, passenger/cargo 34,
                petroleum tanker 175, refrigerated cargo 114, roll on/
                roll off 20, specialized tanker 5, vehicle carrier 30
                foreign-owned: 1,093 (Angola 5, Australia 2, Belgium
                13, Canada 18, China 3, Cuba 1, Cyprus 13, Denmark 59,
                Estonia 1, Finland 8, France 37, Germany 22, Greece
                232, Hong Kong 8, Iceland 1, India 1, Indonesia 4,
                Ireland 2, Israel 1, Italy 5, Japan 51, Jordan 2, Kenya
                1, Latvia 1, Malaysia 12, Monaco 17, Montenegro 2,
                Netherlands 24, Nigeria 2, Norway 259, Philippines 1,
                Poland 15, Reunion 1, Russia 6, Saudi Arabia 12,
                Singapore 12, Slovenia 1, Spain 12, Sweden 6,
                Switzerland 2, Thailand 1, Turkey 8, UAE 16, UK 69,
                Uruguay 2, US 121, Venezuela 1)
                registered in other countries: 4 (Barbados 1, Liberia
                1, Panama 2) (2006)

     Ports and  Freeport, Nassau, South Riding Point
    terminals:

Military, The

      Military  Royal Bahamian Defense Force: Marines, Air Wing (2006)
     branches:

      Military  18 years of age (est.); no conscription (2001)
   service age
           and
   obligation:

      Manpower  males age 18-49: 73,121 (2005 est.)
 available for
      military
      service:

  Manpower fit  males age 18-49: 44,309 (2005 est.)
  for military
      service:

      Manpower  males age 18-49: 2,804 (2005 est.)
      reaching
      military
   service age
     annually:

      Military  NA
expenditures -
dollar figure:

      Military  NA
expenditures -
    percent of
          GDP:

Transnational, The
Issues

    Disputes -  disagrees with the US on the alignment of the maritime
international:  boundary; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian
                refugees fleeing economic privation and political
                instability

Illicit drugs:  transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for
                US and Europe; offshore financial center





                                        
    

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