Saint Vincent and the Grenadines - VC - VCT - VIN - Central America and the Caribbean

embassy: the US does not have an embassy in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

0-14 years: 18.8% (male 9,527/female 9,353)

15-64 years: 68.2% (male 35,401/female 33,288)

65 years and over: 13% (2024 est.) (male 6,321/female 6,757)

13 15 N, 61 12 W

at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.02 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.94 male(s)/female

total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

twice the size of Washington, DC

Resistance from native Caribs prevented colonization on Saint Vincent until 1719. France and England disputed the island for most of the 18th century, but it was ceded to England in 1783. The British prized Saint Vincent because of its fertile soil, which allowed for thriving slave-run plantations of sugar, coffee, indigo, tobacco, cotton, and cocoa. In 1834, the British abolished slavery. Immigration of indentured servants eased the ensuing labor shortage, as did subsequent immigrant waves from Portugal and East India. Conditions remained harsh for both former slaves and immigrant agricultural workers, however, as depressed world sugar prices kept the economy stagnant until the early 1900s. The economy then went into a period of decline, with many landowners abandoning their estates and leaving the land to be cultivated by liberated slaves.

Between 1960 and 1962, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was a separate administrative unit of the Federation of the West Indies. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979. In 2021, the eruption of the La Soufrière volcano in the north of Saint Vincent destroyed much of Saint Vincent’s most productive agricultural lands. Unlike most of its tourism-dependent neighbors, the Vincentian economy is primarily agricultural. 

pollution of coastal waters and shorelines from discharges by pleasure yachts and other effluents; in some areas, pollution is severe enough to make swimming prohibitive; poor land use planning; deforestation; watershed management and squatter settlement control

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

refined petroleum, ships, fish, shellfish, wheat (2022)

note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars

Malaysia 34%, US 10%, Greece 9%, Barbados 8%, Spain 6% (2022)

note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports

6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick

bananas, root vegetables, plantains, vegetables, fruits, coconuts, mangoes/guavas, yams, spices, sweet potatoes (2022)

note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage

no regular military forces; Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (RSVPF; includes the Coast Guard, Special Services Unit, Rapid Response Unit, Drug Squad, and Anti-Trafficking Unit) (2024)

note: the RSVPF is the only security force in the country and is responsible for maintaining internal security; it reports to the Minister of National Security, a portfolio held by the prime minister

revenues: $226.404 million (2017 est.)

expenditures: $208.744 million (2017 est.)

note: central government revenues and expenses (excluding grants/extrabudgetary units/social security funds) converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated

name: Kingstown

geographic coordinates: 13 08 N, 61 13 W

time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: an earlier French settlement was renamed Kingstown by the British in 1763 when they assumed control of the island; the king referred to in the name is GEORGE III (r. 1760-1820)

refined petroleum, poultry, ships, raw sugar, plastic products (2022)

note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars

tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)

84 km

history: previous 1969, 1975; latest drafted 26 July 1979, effective 27 October 1979 (The Saint Vincent Constitution Order 1979)

amendments: proposed by the House of Assembly; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote of the Assembly membership and assent of the governor general; passage of amendments to constitutional sections on fundamental rights and freedoms, citizen protections, various government functions and authorities, and constitutional amendment procedures requires approval by the Assembly membership, approval in a referendum of at least two thirds of the votes cast, and assent of the governor general

East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar -

Exchange rates:
2.7 (2023 est.)
2.7 (2022 est.)
2.7 (2021 est.)
2.7 (2020 est.)
2.7 (2019 est.)

chief of state: King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Governor General Susan DOUGAN (since 1 August 2019)

head of government: Prime Minister Ralph Everard GONSALVES (since 29 March 2001)

cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister

elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister

three vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold (double width), and green; the gold band bears three green diamonds arranged in a V pattern, which stands for Vincent; the diamonds recall the islands as "the Gems of the Antilles" and are set slightly lowered in the gold band to reflect the nation's position in the Antilles; blue conveys the colors of a tropical sky and crystal waters, yellow signifies the golden Grenadine sands, and green represents lush vegetation

27 October 1979 (from the UK)

tourism; food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch

highest court(s): the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is the superior court of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States; the ECSC - headquartered on St. Lucia - consists of the Court of Appeal - headed by the chief justice and 4 judges - and the High Court with 18 judges; the Court of Appeal is itinerant, traveling to member states on a schedule to hear appeals from the High Court and subordinate courts; High Court judges reside in the member states, with 2 assigned to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; note - Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is also a member of the Caribbean Court of Justice

judge selection and term of office: chief justice of Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court appointed by Her Majesty, Queen ELIZABETH II; other justices and judges appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission, an independent body of judicial officials; Court of Appeal justices appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 65; High Court judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 62

subordinate courts: magistrates' courts

total: 0 km

agricultural land: 25.6% (2018 est.)

arable land: 12.8% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 7.7% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 5.1% (2018 est.)

forest: 68.7% (2018 est.)

other: 5.7% (2018 est.)

English common law

description: unicameral House of Assembly (23 seats; 15 representatives directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, 6 senators appointed by the governor general, and 2 ex officio members - the speaker of the house and the attorney general; members serve 5-year terms)

elections: last held on 5 November 2020 (next to be held in 2025)

election results: percent of vote by party - ULP 49.58%, NDP 50.34%, other 0.8%; seats by party - ULP 9, NDP 6; composition - men 18, women 5, percentage women 21.7%

territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm

ACP, ACS, AOSIS, C, Caricom, CDB, CELAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, Petrocaribe, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WTO

Independence Day, 27 October (1979)

noun: Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s)

adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian

hydropower, arable land

the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is comprised of 32 islands and cays

upper middle-income Caribbean island economy; key agriculture and tourism sectors; environmentally fragile; diversifying economy across services, science and knowledge, and creative industries; CARICOM member and US Caribbean Basin Initiative beneficiary

New Democratic Party or NDP
SVG Green Party or SVGP
Unity Labor Party or ULP (formed in 1994 by the coalition of Saint Vincent Labor Party or SVLP and the Movement for National Unity or MNU)

18 years of age; universal

general assessment: adequate island-wide, fully automatic telephone system; broadband access; expanded FttP (Fiber to the Home) markets; LTE launches; regulatory development; telecom sector contributes greatly to the overall GDP; telecom sector is a growth area (2020)

domestic: fixed-line teledensity is 11 per 100 persons and mobile-cellular teledensity is 110 per 100 persons (2021)

international: country code - 1-784; landing points for the ECFS, CARCIP and Southern Caribbean Fiber submarine cables providing connectivity to US and Caribbean Islands; connectivity also provided by VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to Barbados; SHF radiotelephone to Grenada and Saint Lucia; access to Intelsat earth station in Martinique through Saint Lucia (2019)

volcanic, mountainous

parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm

conventional long form: none

conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

etymology: Saint Vincent was named by explorer Christopher COLUMBUS after Saint VINCENT of Saragossa because the 22 January 1498 day of discovery was the saint's feast day

Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago

Central America and the Caribbean

10 sq km (2012)

chief of mission: Ambassador Lou-Anne Gaylene GILCHRIST (since 18 January 2017)

chancery: 1627 K Street, NW, Suite 704, Washington, DC 20006

telephone: [1] (202) 364-6730

FAX: [1] (202) 364-6736

email address and website:
mail@embsvg.com

http://wa.embassy.gov.vc/washington/

consulate(s) general: New York

.vc

$1.066 billion (2023 est.)

note: data in current dollars at official exchange rate

urban population: 54.3% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization: 0.94% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Broadcasting Corporation operates 1 TV station and 5 repeater stations that provide near total coverage to the multi-island state; multi-channel cable TV service available; a partially government-funded national radio service broadcasts on 1 station and has 2 repeater stations; about a dozen privately owned radio stations and repeater stations

improved: total: 95.1% of population

unimproved: total: 4.9% of population (2017 est.)

name: "St. Vincent! Land So Beautiful!"

lyrics/music: Phyllis Joyce MCCLEAN PUNNETT/Joel Bertram MIGUEL

note: adopted 1967

27,000 KINGSTOWN (capital) (2018)

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

4.3 beds/1,000 population (2016)

Saint Vincent parrot; national colors: blue, gold, green

household consumption: 87.3% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 16.6% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 10.8% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: -0.2% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 37.1% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -51.7% (2017 est.)

total dependency ratio: 49

youth dependency ratio: 32.9

elderly dependency ratio: 16.1

potential support ratio: 6.2 (2021 est.)

citizenship by birth: yes

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years

most of the population is concentrated in and around the capital of Kingstown

electrification - total population: 100% (2022 est.)

number of registered air carriers: 2 (2020)

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 11

J8

improved: urban: NA

rural: NA

total: 90.2% of population

unimproved: urban: NA

rural: NA

total: 9.8% of population (2017 est.)

African descent 71.2%, mixed 23%, Indigenous 3%, East Indian/Indian 1.1%, European 1.5%, other 0.2% (2012 est.)

Protestant 75% (Pentecostal 27.6%, Anglican 13.9%, Seventh Day Adventist 11.6%,  Baptist 8.9%, Methodist 8.7%, Evangelical 3.8%, Salvation Army 0.3%, Presbyterian/Congregational 0.3%), Roman Catholic 6.3%,  Rastafarian 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 0.8%, other 4.7%, none 7.5%, unspecified 4.7% (2012 est.)

English, Vincentian Creole English, French patois

US 40%, Trinidad and Tobago 10%, China 6%, UK 6%, Turkey 5% (2022)

note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports

total: 14 years

male: 14 years

female: 15 years (2015)

highest point: La Soufriere 1,234 m

lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m

0.66 physicians/1,000 population (2012)

NA

4.8% of GDP (2020)

the country has been a member of the Caribbean Regional Security System (RSS) since its creation in 1982; RSS signatories (Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia) agreed to prepare contingency plans and assist one another, on request, in national emergencies, prevention of smuggling, search and rescue, immigration control, fishery protection, customs and excise control, maritime policing duties, protection of off-shore installations, pollution control, national and other disasters, and threats to national security (2024)

total population: NA

male: NA

female: NA

Moody's rating: B3 (2014)

note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

municipal: 10 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

industrial: 2,000 cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural: 0 cubic meters (2017 est.)

100 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

municipal solid waste generated annually: 31,561 tons (2015 est.)

particulate matter emissions: 9.41 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 0.22 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions: 0.09 megatons (2020 est.)

exports: 16.8 metric tons (2022 est.)

imports: 16 metric tons (2022 est.)

fossil fuels: 75.2% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)

solar: 1.7% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)

hydroelectricity: 23.1% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)

refined petroleum consumption: 2,000 bbl/day (2022 est.)

0.85 (2024 est.)

53.3% (2023 est.)

6.7% of GDP (2023 est.)
9.17% of GDP (2022 est.)
8.03% of GDP (2021 est.)

note: personal transfers and compensation between resident and non-resident individuals/households/entities

total ports: 1 (2024)

large: 0

medium: 0

small: 1

very small: 0

ports with oil terminals: 1

key ports: Kingstown

53,000 (2023 est.)

note: number of people ages 15 or older who are employed or seeking work

total: 42.3% (2023 est.)

male: 42.5% (2023 est.)

female: 42% (2023 est.)

note: % of labor force ages 15-24 seeking employment

-5.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)

total: 37.6 years (2024 est.)

male: 37.7 years

female: 37.4 years

$414.492 million (2022 est.)

note: present value of external debt in current US dollars

62 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

$280.564 million (2023 est.)
$320.193 million (2022 est.)
$311.903 million (2021 est.)

note: holdings of gold (year-end prices)/foreign exchange/special drawing rights in current dollars

73.8% of GDP (2017 est.)

1.74 children born/woman (2024 est.)

18.67% (2023 est.)
19.51% (2022 est.)
20.28% (2021 est.)

note: % of labor force seeking employment

total: 100,647

male: 51,249

female: 49,398 (2024 est.)

total: 85,000 (2021 est.)

percent of population: 85% (2021 est.)

246,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)

from petroleum and other liquids: 246,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)

total : 389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km)

land: 389 sq km

water: 0 sq km

23.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

note: central government tax revenue as a % of GDP

$1.858 billion (2023 est.)
$1.752 billion (2022 est.)
$1.635 billion (2021 est.)

note: data in 2021 dollars

5 (2024)

total: 12.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)

male: 13.9 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 10.7 deaths/1,000 live births

total subscriptions: 104,000 (2022 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 100 (2022 est.)

4.56% (2023 est.)
5.66% (2022 est.)
1.57% (2021 est.)

note: annual % change based on consumer prices

-$142.763 million (2023 est.)
-$186.777 million (2022 est.)
-$197.13 million (2021 est.)

note: balance of payments - net trade and primary/secondary income in current dollars

$17,900 (2023 est.)
$16,900 (2022 est.)
$15,700 (2021 est.)

note: data in 2021 dollars

total: 24,733 (2020 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 22 (2020 est.)

23.7% (2016)

35.826 million Btu/person (2022 est.)

7.7 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)

11.9 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)

installed generating capacity: 54,000 kW (2022 est.)

consumption: 162.316 million kWh (2022 est.)

transmission/distribution losses: 10.868 million kWh (2022 est.)

total: 830 (2023)

by type: bulk carrier 30, container ship 18, general cargo 137, oil tanker 16, other 629

NA

$566.477 million (2023 est.)
$537.929 million (2022 est.)
$425.694 million (2021 est.)

note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

$347.827 million (2023 est.)
$278.292 million (2022 est.)
$140.607 million (2021 est.)

note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

total subscriptions: 11,000 (2022 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 11 (2022 est.)

total: 7.48 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer: 2.52 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine: 0.24 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits: 4.48 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols: 0.23 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

total population: 77.2 years (2024 est.)

male: 75.2 years

female: 79.3 years

6.02% (2023 est.)
7.16% (2022 est.)
0.75% (2021 est.)

note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

3.91% (2023 est.)

note: annual % change in industrial value added based on constant local currency

agriculture: 4.2% (2023 est.)

industry: 14.2% (2023 est.)

services: 64.2% (2023 est.)

note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data

0.02% of GDP (2018 est.)

0% of GDP (2018 est.)

5.7% of GDP (2018 est.)

-0.15% (2024 est.)