LOCATION:

Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela

AREA:

Area: 
total: 431 sq km
land: 431 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC

POPULATION:

279,254
(July 2005 est.)

AGE STRUCTURE:

Age structure:
0-14 years: 20.6%
(male 28,813/female 28,634)
15-64 years: 70.6%
(male 96,590/female 100,622)
65 years and over: 8.8%
(male 9,432/female 15,163)
 (2005 est.)

MEDIAN AGE:

Median age: 
total: 34.15 years
male: 32.99 years
female: 35.28 years
(2005 est.)

POPULATION GROWTH:

Population growth rate: 0.33%
Birth rate: 12.83 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 9.17 deaths/1,000 population
(2005 est.)

INFANT MORTALITY RATE:

Infant mortality rate:
total: 25.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.02 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 19.28 deaths/1,000 live births
 (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS-ADULT PREVALENCE RATE:

 HIV/AIDS adult prevalence rate: 3.7%

HIV/AIDS- PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS :

Ages 15-49: 5200
Low estimate: 3100
high estimate: 8400

HIV/AIDS-DEATH

Adults and Children deaths:
low estimate: less than 200
high estimate: less than 400

ETHNIC GROUPS:

Ethnic groups: black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%

RELIGIONS:

Religions: Baptist 32%, Anglican 20%, Roman Catholic 19%, Methodist 6%, Church of God 6%, other Protestant 12%, none or unknown 3%, other 2%

LANGUAGES:

Languages: English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)

LITERACY:

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95.6%
male: 94.7%
female: 96.5%
(2003 est.)

GOVERNMENT TYPE:

Government type: constitutional parliamentary democracy

CAPITAL:

Capital: Nassau

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS:

Administrative divisions   
21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay

INDEPENDENCE:

Independence:   10 July 1973 (from UK)

ECONOMY:

Economy - overview:
The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism alone accounts for more than 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in 2001-03. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors. In addition to tourism and banking, the government supports the development of a "third pillar," e-commerce.

GDP:

GDP: purchasing power parity - $5.295 billion (2004 est.)

POPULATION BELOW POVERT LINE:

Population below poverty line: NA

INFLATION RATE:

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.2% (year ending September 2004)

UNEMPLOYMENT:

Unemployment rate: 10.2% (2004 est.

EXCHANGE RATES:

Exchange rates: Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001),
1 (2000)

ILLICIT DRUGS:

Illicit drugs: transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center