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Communications

Internet country code [time series]

.jm

Internet users (Internet hosts) [time series]

1,292 (2008)

Internet users [time series]

1.5 million (2007)

Broadcast media (Radio broadcast stations) [time series]

AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998)

Telecommunication systems (Telephone system) [time series]

general assessment: fully automatic domestic telephone network domestic: the 1999 agreement to open the market for telecommunications services resulted in rapid growth in mobile-cellular telephone usage while the number of fixed-lines in use has declined; combined mobile-cellular teledensity now exceeds 100 per 100 persons international: country code - 1-876; the Fibralink submarine cable network provides enhanced delivery of business and broadband traffic and is linked to the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) submarine cable in the Dominican Republic; the link to ARCOS-1 provides seamless connectivity to US, parts of the Caribbean, Central America, and South America; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2006)

Telephones - fixed lines (Telephones - main lines in use) [time series]

342,000 (2006)

Telephones - mobile cellular [time series]

2.495 million (2006)

Broadcast media (Television broadcast stations) [time series]

7 (1997)

Economy

Agricultural products (Agriculture - products) [time series]

sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, ackees, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk; crustaceans, mollusks

Budget [time series]

revenues: $3.716 billion expenditures: $4.261 billion (2007 est.)

Central bank discount rate [time series]

NA (31 December 2007)

Commercial bank prime lending rate [time series]

17.2% (31 December 2007)

Exchange rates (Currency (code)) [time series]

Jamaican dollar (JMD)

Current account balance [time series]

-$1.83 billion (2007 est.)

Debt - external [time series]

$9.657 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income (Distribution of family income - Gini index) [time series]

45.5 (2004)

Economic overview (Economy - overview) [time series]

The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for more than 60% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. Remittances account for nearly 20% of GDP and are equivalent to tourism revenues. Jamaica's economy, already saddled with a record of sluggish growth, will suffer an economic setback from damages caused by Hurricane Dean in August 2007. The economy faces serious long-term problems: high but declining interest rates, increased foreign competition, exchange rate instability, a sizable merchandise trade deficit, large-scale unemployment and underemployment, and a debt-to-GDP ratio of 135%. Jamaica's onerous debt burden - the fourth highest per capita - is the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy, most notably the financial sector in the mid-to-late 1990s. Inflation also has declined, standing at about 7% at the end of 2007. High unemployment exacerbates the serious crime problem, including gang violence that is fueled by the drug trade. The GOLDING administration faces the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is hampering economic growth.

Electricity - consumption [time series]

6.1 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity - exports [time series]

0 kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - imports [time series]

0 kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - production [time series]

7.04 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Exchange rates [time series]

Jamaican dollars (JMD) per US dollar - 69.034 (2007), 65.768 (2006), 62.51 (2005), 61.197 (2004), 57.741 (2003)

Exports [time series]

$2.331 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities [time series]

alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels

Exports - partners [time series]

US 37.2%, Canada 15%, UK 9.7%, Netherlands 9.1% (2007)

GDP (official exchange rate) [time series]

$11.21 billion (2007 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) (GDP (purchasing power parity)) [time series]

$20.48 billion (2007 est.)

GDP - composition, by sector of origin (GDP - composition by sector) [time series]

agriculture: 5.1% industry: 32.7% services: 62.2% (2007 est.)

Real GDP per capita (GDP - per capita (PPP)) [time series]

$7,400 (2007 est.)

Real GDP growth rate (GDP - real growth rate) [time series]

1.2% (2007 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share [time series]

lowest 10%: 2.1% highest 10%: 35.8% (2004)

Imports [time series]

$5.784 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Imports - commodities [time series]

food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials

Imports - partners [time series]

US 37.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 14.5%, Grenada 9.7%, Venezuela 8.3%, Brazil 4.2% (2007)

Industrial production growth rate [time series]

1.2% (2007 est.)

Industries [time series]

tourism, bauxite/alumina, agro processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications

Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]

9.5% (2007 est.)

Investment (gross fixed) [time series]

34.2% of GDP (2007 est.)

Labor force [time series]

1.255 million (2007 est.)

Labor force - by occupation [time series]

agriculture: 17% industry: 19% services: 64% (2006)

Market value of publicly traded shares [time series]

$12.28 billion (2006)

Natural gas - consumption [time series]

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - exports [time series]

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - imports [time series]

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - production [time series]

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves [time series]

0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Oil - consumption [time series]

73,370 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - exports [time series]

1,535 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - imports [time series]

71,280 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - production [time series]

0 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - proved reserves [time series]

0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

Public debt [time series]

126.5% of GDP (2007 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold [time series]

$1.905 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Stock of domestic credit [time series]

$6.609 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of narrow money (Stock of money) [time series]

$1.369 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of narrow money (Stock of quasi money) [time series]

$4.54 billion (31 December 2007)

Unemployment rate [time series]

9.9% (2007 est.)

Geography

Area [time series]

total: 10,991 sq km land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km

Area - comparative [time series]

slightly smaller than Connecticut

Climate [time series]

tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior

Coastline [time series]

1,022 km

Elevation (Elevation extremes) [time series]

lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m

Environment - current issues [time series]

heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions

International environmental agreements (Environment - international agreements) [time series]

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

Total water withdrawal (Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)) [time series]

total: 0.41 cu km/yr (34%/17%/49%) per capita: 155 cu m/yr (2000)

Geographic coordinates [time series]

18 15 N, 77 30 W

Geography - note [time series]

strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal

Irrigated land [time series]

250 sq km (2002)

Land boundaries [time series]

0 km

Land use [time series]

arable land: 15.83% permanent crops: 10.01% other: 74.16% (2005)

Location [time series]

Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba

Map references [time series]

Central America and the Caribbean

Maritime claims [time series]

measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin

Natural hazards [time series]

hurricanes (especially July to November)

Natural resources [time series]

bauxite, gypsum, limestone

Terrain [time series]

mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain

Total renewable water resources [time series]

9.4 cu km (2000)

Government

Administrative divisions [time series]

14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation

Capital [time series]

name: Kingston geographic coordinates: 18 00 N, 76 48 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Constitution [time series]

6 August 1962

Country name [time series]

conventional long form: none conventional short form: Jamaica

Diplomatic representation from the US [time series]

chief of mission: Ambassador Brenda LaGrange JOHNSON embassy: 142 Old Hope Road, Kingston 6 mailing address: P.O. Box 541, Kingston 5 telephone: [1] (876) 702-6000 FAX: [1] (876) 702-6001

Diplomatic representation in the US [time series]

chief of mission: Ambassador Anthony JOHNSON chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York

Executive branch [time series]

chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Kenneth O. HALL (since 15 February 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Bruce GOLDING (since 11 September 2007) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister

Flag (Flag description) [time series]

diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)

Government type [time series]

constitutional parliamentary democracy

Independence [time series]

6 August 1962 (from UK)

International organization participation [time series]

ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Judicial branch [time series]

Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal

Legal system [time series]

based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch [time series]

bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated 8 seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 3 September 2007 (next to be held no later than October 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - JLP 50.1%, PNP 49.8%; seats by party - JLP 33, PNP 27

National holiday [time series]

Independence Day, 6 August (1962)

Political parties (Political parties and leaders) [time series]

Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Portia SIMPSON-MILLER]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Michael WILLIAMS]

Political parties (Political pressure groups and leaders) [time series]

New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists)

Suffrage [time series]

18 years of age; universal

Introduction

Background [time series]

The island - discovered by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1494 - was settled by the Spanish early in the 16th century. The native Taino Indians, who had inhabited Jamaica for centuries, were gradually exterminated and replaced by African slaves. England seized the island in 1655 and established a plantation economy based on sugar, cocoa, and coffee. The abolition of slavery in 1834 freed a quarter million slaves, many of whom became small farmers. Jamaica gradually obtained increasing independence from Britain, and in 1958 it joined other British Caribbean colonies in forming the Federation of the West Indies. Jamaica gained full independence when it withdrew from the Federation in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence as rival gangs affiliated with the major political parties evolved into powerful organized crime networks involved in international drug smuggling and money laundering. Violent crime, drug trafficking, and poverty pose significant challenges to the government today. Nonetheless, many rural and resort areas remain relatively safe and contribute substantially to the economy.

Military

Manpower available for military service [time series]

males age 16-49: 688,480 females age 16-49: 709,548 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service [time series]

males age 16-49: 566,477 females age 16-49: 583,075 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually [time series]

male: 32,000 female: 31,428 (2008 est.)

Military and security forces (Military branches) [time series]

Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing (2007)

Military expenditures [time series]

0.6% of GDP (2006 est.)

Military service age and obligation [time series]

18 years of age for voluntary military service; younger recruits may be conscripted with parental consent (2001)

People

Age structure [time series]

0-14 years: 32% (male 455,871/female 440,928) 15-64 years: 60.6% (male 837,241/female 861,906) 65 years and over: 7.4% (male 93,415/female 114,971) (2008 est.)

Birth rate [time series]

20.04 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate [time series]

6.37 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Education expenditure (Education expenditures) [time series]

5.3% of GDP (2005)

Ethnic groups [time series]

black 91.2%, mixed 6.2%, other or unknown 2.6% (2001 census)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate [time series]

1.2% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths [time series]

900 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS [time series]

22,000 (2003 est.)

Infant mortality rate [time series]

total: 15.57 deaths/1,000 live births male: 16.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)

Languages [time series]

English, English patois

Life expectancy at birth [time series]

total population: 73.59 years male: 71.88 years female: 75.38 years (2008 est.)

Literacy [time series]

definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (2003 est.)

Median age [time series]

total: 23.4 years male: 22.9 years female: 24 years (2008 est.)

Nationality [time series]

noun: Jamaican(s) adjective: Jamaican

Net migration rate [time series]

-5.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Population [time series]

2,804,332 (July 2008 est.)

Population growth rate [time series]

0.779% (2008 est.)

Religions [time series]

Protestant 62.5% (Seventh-Day Adventist 10.8%, Pentecostal 9.5%, Other Church of God 8.3%, Baptist 7.2%, New Testament Church of God 6.3%, Church of God in Jamaica 4.8%, Church of God of Prophecy 4.3%, Anglican 3.6%, other Christian 7.7%), Roman Catholic 2.6%, other or unspecified 14.2%, none 20.9%, (2001 census)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) [time series]

total: 12 years male: 11 years female: 12 years (2003)

Sex ratio [time series]

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2008 est.)

Total fertility rate [time series]

2.3 children born/woman (2008 est.)

Transnational Issues

Disputes - international [time series]

none

Illicit drugs [time series]

transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation and consumption of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions

Transportation

Airports [time series]

34 (2007)

Airports - with paved runways [time series]

total: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2007)

Airports - with unpaved runways [time series]

total: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 21 (2007)

Merchant marine [time series]

total: 20 by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 6, carrier 1, container 4, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 17 (Denmark 2, Germany 4, Greece 6, Hong Kong 1, Latvia 1, Russia 3) (2008)

Ports (Ports and terminals) [time series]

Kingston, Port Esquivel, Port Kaiser, Port Rhoades, Rocky Point

Roadways [time series]

total: 21,552 km paved: 15,937 km (includes 33 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,615 km (2005)