Saint Lucia
Capital: Castries
History
The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Even after the abolition of slavery on its plantations in 1834, Saint Lucia remained an agricultural island, dedicated to producing tropical commodity crops. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979.
Geography
Metric Units
Economy
Budget & Debt
Trade
| Exports |
$209.6 million |
| Export Items |
bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, avacados, mangoes, coconut oil |
| Export Partners |
Colombia 21%, US 14.9%, Peru 8.5%, Antigua and Barbuda 8.1%, Dominica 7.9%, Barbados 7.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 6.6%, UK 5.6%, Grenada 5.4% (2011) |
| Imports |
$526.2 million |
| Import Items |
food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels |
| Import Partners |
Brazil 78.8%, US 8.4%, Trinidad and Tobago 5.1% (2011) |
People
| Population |
162,781 |
| Population Growth |
0.36% |
| Ethnic Groups |
black 82.5%, mixed 11.9%, East Indian 2.4%, other or unspecified 3.1% (2001 census) |
| Religion |
Roman Catholic 67.5%, Protestant 18.2% (Seventh-Day Adventist 8.5%, Pentecostal 5.7%, Anglican 2%, Evangelical 2%), other Christian 5.1%, Rastafarian 2.1%, other 1.1%, unspecified 1.5%, none 4.5% (2001 census) |
| Life Expectancy |
77.22 years |
| Infant Mortality |
0.95 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Maternal Mortality |
1.6 deaths/100,000 live births |
Energy
