:: Barbados 
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Background | Geography | People
:: Barbados The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance.
::Geography Location: | Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela | Geographic coordinates: | 13 10 N, 59 32 W | Map references: | Central America and the Caribbean | Area: | total: 431 sq km
land: 431 sq km
water: 0 sq km | Area - comparative: | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | Land boundaries: | 0 km | Coastline: | 97 km | Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm | Climate: | tropical; rainy season (June to October) | Terrain: | relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region | Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m | Natural resources: | petroleum, fish, natural gas | Land use: | arable land: 37.21%
permanent crops: 2.33%
other: 60.46% (2005) | Irrigated land: | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | Natural hazards: | infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides | Environment - current issues: | pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers | Environment - international agreements: | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements | Geography - note: | easternmost Caribbean island |
::People Population: | 279,912 (July 2006 est.) | Age structure: | 0-14 years: 20.1% (male 28,160/female 28,039)
15-64 years: 71.1% (male 97,755/female 101,223)
65 years and over: 8.8% (male 9,508/female 15,227) (2006 est.) | Median age: | total: 34.6 years
male: 33.4 years
female: 35.6 years (2006 est.) | Population growth rate: | 0.37% (2006 est.) | Birth rate: | 12.71 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | Death rate: | 8.67 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | Net migration rate: | -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.) | Infant mortality rate: | total: 11.77 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.38 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 10.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) | Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 72.79 years
male: 70.79 years
female: 74.82 years (2006 est.) | Total fertility rate: | 1.65 children born/woman (2006 est.) | HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 1.5% (2003 est.) | HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 2,500 (2003 est.) | HIV/AIDS - deaths: | less than 200 (2003 est.) | Nationality: | noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)
adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial) | Ethnic groups: | black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6% | Religions: | Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% | Languages: | English | Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 99.7%
male: 99.7%
female: 99.7% (2002 est.) |
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