Aruba

part of the Dutch realmIndependence none (part of the Dutch realm

Aruba as the 1995 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 75 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalOranjestad

Area193 sq km

LocationCaribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela

Populationas each edition published it

65,974 people July 1995 est. · 62,656 in 1990

Population growth% a year

0.65% 1995 est. · 0.66% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 37.1 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

76.56 years 1995 est. · 76.3 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

1.82 children per woman 1995 est. · 1.8 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

8.3 deaths per 1,000 live births 1995 est. · 8 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$17,000 1993 est. · $14,000 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

5% 1993 est. · 6% in 1993

Geography

Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela

13 fields

Land useshare of 193 sq km

forest and woodland 0%other 100%arable land 0% in all · permanent crops 0% in all · meadows and pastures 0% in all

Area

193sq km

land area: 193 sq kmcomparative area: slightly larger than Washington, DC

Coastline

68.5km

land boundaries: 0 kmterritorial sea: 12 nm

Location

Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela

Climate

tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation

Environment

current issues:: NA
natural hazards:: lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt
international agreements:: NA

People

15 fields

Population

65,974

(July 1995 est.)growth rate: 0.65% (1995 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1995 est.)

Birth

14.6Death

6.17Net migration

-1.91

Age structure

0-14 years:: 23% (female 7,377; male 7,726)
15-64 years:: 69% (female 24,269; male 21,141)
65 years and over:: 8% (female 3,223; male 2,238) (July 1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate

8.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population:: 76.56 years
male:: 72.89 years
female:: 80.42 years (1995 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Aruban(s)
adjective:: Aruban

Religions

Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish

Languages

Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish

Labor force

NA; by occupation: most employment is in the tourist industry (1995)

Government

Part of the Dutch realm; Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Olindo KOOLMAN (since 1 January 1992); Prime Minister Jan (Henny) H. EMAN (since 29 July 1994)

19 fields

Legislature, 21 seatsone dot, one seat

AVP 10MEP 9OLA 2

Names

conventional long form:: none
conventional short form:: Aruba

Digraph

Type

part of the Dutch realm; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles

Capital

Oranjestad

Administrative divisions

none (self-governing part of the Netherlands)

Independence

none (part of the Dutch realm; in 1990, Aruba requested and received from the Netherlands cancellation of the agreement to automatically give independence to the island in 1996)

National holiday

Flag Day, 18 March

Constitution

1 January 1986

Legal system

based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state:: Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Olindo KOOLMAN (since 1 January 1992)
head of government:: Prime Minister Jan (Henny) H. EMAN (since 29 July 1994)
cabinet:: Council of Ministers; appointed with the advice and approval of the legislature

Legislative branch

unicameral

Legislature (Staten)

elections last held 29 July 1994 (next to be held by NA July 1998);
results - percent of vote by party NA;
seats - (21 total) AVP 10, MEP 9, OLA 2

Judicial branch

Joint High Court of Justice

Political parties and leaders

Electoral Movement Party (MEP), Nelson ODUBER;
Aruban People's Party (AVP), Jan (Henny) H. EMAN;
National Democratic Action (ADN), Pedro Charro KELLY;
New Patriotic Party (PPN), Eddy WERLEMEN;
Aruban Patriotic Party (PPA), Benny NISBET;
Aruban Democratic Party (PDA), Leo BERLINSKI;
Democratic Action '86 (AD '86), Arturo ODUBER;
Organization for Aruban Liberty (OLA), Glenbert CROES

note: governing coalition includes the MEP, PPA, and ADN

Member of

ECLAC (associate), INTERPOL, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WTO (associate)

Diplomatic representation in US

none (self-governing part of the Netherlands)

US diplomatic representation

none (self-governing part of the Netherlands)

Flag

blue with two narrow horizontal yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner

Economy

Tourism is the mainstay of the Aruban economy, although | offshore banking and oil refining and storage are also important.

19 fields

GDP per capita, PPP

$17,000

(1993 est.)

Real growth rate

(1993 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate NA%

Inflation, consumer prices

(1994 est.)

Unemployment rate

0.6%

(1992)

Budget

Revenues

$145 millionExpenditures

$185 million (1988)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $42 million

Installed generating capacity, 90,000 kW

Electricity production

330 millionElectricity consumption per capita

4,761 (1993)

Overview

Tourism is the mainstay of the Aruban economy, although offshore banking and oil refining and storage are also important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level.

Additionally, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in 1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and less than 1% unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job vacancies despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years.