Carib Indians inhabited Grenada when COLUMBUS discovered the island in 1498, but it remained uncolonized for more than a century. The French settled Grenada in the 17th century, established sugar estates, and imported large numbers of African slaves. Britain took the island in 1762 and vigorously expanded sugar production. In the 19th century, cacao eventually surpassed sugar as the main export crop; in the 20th century, nutmeg became the leading export. In 1967, Britain gave Grenada autonomy over its internal affairs. Full independence was attained in 1974 making Grenada one of the smallest independent countries in the Western Hemisphere. Grenada was seized by a Marxist military council on 19 October 1983. Six days later the island was invaded by US forces and those of six other Caribbean nations, which quickly captured the ringleaders and their hundreds of Cuban advisers. Free elections were reinstituted the following year and have continued since that time. Hurricane Ivan struck Grenada in September of 2004 causing severe damage.
total: 22.1 years male: 22.6 years female: 21.6 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.336% (2007 est.)
Birth rate:
21.87 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate:
6.61 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate:
-11.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.016 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.125 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.938 male(s)/female total population: 1.082 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 13.92 deaths/1,000 live births male: 13.57 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 65.21 years male: 63.38 years female: 67.05 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.3 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
Nationality:
noun: Grenadian(s) adjective: Grenadian
Ethnic groups:
black 82%, mixed black and European 13%, European and East Indian 5%, and trace of Arawak/Carib Amerindian
Religions:
Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2%
Languages:
English (official), French patois
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96% male: NA% female: NA% (2003 est.)
conventional long form: none conventional short form: Grenada
Government type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
name: Saint George's geographic coordinates: 12 03 N, 61 45 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick
Independence:
7 February 1974 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 7 February (1974)
Constitution:
19 December 1973
Legal system:
based on English common law
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Daniel WILLIAMS (since 9 August 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Keith MITCHELL (since 22 June 1995) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister 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
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (13 seats, 10 appointed by the government and 3 by the leader of the opposition) and the House of Representatives (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 27 November 2003 (next to be held by November 2008) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NNP 46.6%, NDC 44.1%, other 9.3%; seats by party - NNP 8, NDC 7
Judicial branch:
Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of a court of Appeal and a High Court of Justice (a High Court judge is assigned to and resides in Grenada)
Political parties and leaders:
Grenada United Labor Party or GULP [Gloria Payne BANFIELD]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [Tillman THOMAS]; New National Party or NNP [Keith MITCHELL]
chief of mission: Ambassador Denis G. ANTOINE chancery: 1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2561 FAX: [1] (202) 265-2468 consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada embassy: Lance-aux-Epines Stretch, Saint George's mailing address: P. O. Box 54, Saint George's telephone: [1] (473) 444-1173 through 1176 FAX: [1] (473) 444-4820
Flag description:
a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (top and bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with a red border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointed stars with three centered in the top red border, three centered in the bottom red border, and one on a red disk superimposed at the center of the flag; there is also a symbolic nutmeg pod on the hoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's second-largest producer of nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars represent the seven administrative divisions
general assessment: automatic, islandwide telephone system domestic: interisland VHF and UHF radiotelephone links international: country code - 1-473; new SHF radiotelephone links to Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Vincent; VHF and UHF radio links to Trinidad
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