Saint Barthelemy

• Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean;
• located in the Leeward Islands (northern) group;
• Saint Barthelemy lies east of the US Virgin Islands

total:

47.4 years (2024 est.)

male:

47 years

female:

47.8 years

at birth:

1.06 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.17 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

1.01 male(s)/female

total population:

1.12 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

total:

6.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)

male:

7.6 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

5.3 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

81 years (2024 est.)

male:

78 years

female:

84.2 years

total population:

NA

male:

NA

female:

NA

• land-based pollution;
• urbanization;
• with no natural rivers or streams, fresh water is in short supply, especially in summer, and is provided by the desalination of sea water, the collection of rain water, or imported via water tanker;
• overfishing

conventional long form:

Overseas Collectivity of Saint Barthelemy

conventional short form:

Saint Barthelemy

local long form:

Collectivité d'outre mer de Saint-Barthélemy

local short form:

Saint-Barthélemy

abbreviation:

Saint-Barth (French)/ St. Barts or St. Barths (English)

etymology:

explorer Christopher COLUMBUS named the island in honor of his brother Bartolomeo's namesake saint in 1493

name:

Gustavia

geographic coordinates:

17 53 N, 62 51 W

time difference:

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

etymology:

• named in honor of King Gustav III (1746-1792) of Sweden during whose reign the island was obtained from France in 1784;
• the name was retained when in 1878 the island was sold back to France

history:

4 October 1958 (French Constitution)

amendments:

amendment procedures of France's constitution apply

chief of state:

President Emmanuel MACRON (since 14 May 2017), represented by Prefect Vincent BERTON (since 28 March 2022)

head of government:

President of Territorial Council Xavier LEDEE (since 3 April 2022)

cabinet:

Executive Council elected by the Territorial Council; note - there is also an advisory, economic, social, and cultural council

elections/appointments:

• French president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term);
• prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of French Ministry of Interior;
• president of Territorial Council indirectly elected by its members for a 5-year term;
• election last held on 27 March 2022 (next to be held in 2027)

election results:

2022: Xavier LEDEE (Saint Barth United) elected president; Territorial Council vote - 13 votes for, 6 blank votes; 2017: Bruno MAGRAS (Saint Barth First!) elected president; Territorial Council vote - 14 out of 19 votes

• All for Saint Barth (Tous pour Saint-Barth)
• Saint Barth Action Equilibre
• Saint Barth First! (Saint-Barth d'Abord!) or SBA (affiliated with France's Republican party, Les Republicans)
• Saint Barth United (Unis pour Saint-Barthelemy)

name:

"L'Hymne a St. Barthelemy" (Hymn to St. Barthelemy)

lyrics/music:

Isabelle Massart DERAVIN/Michael VALENTI

note: local anthem in use since 1999; as a collectivity of France, "La Marseillaise" is official (see France)

• high-income French Caribbean territorial economy;
• duty-free luxury commerce and tourism industries;
• import-dependent for food, water, energy, and manufacturing;
• large Brazilian and Portuguese labor supply;
• environmentally fragile

general assessment:

fully integrated access; 4G and LTE services (2019)

domestic:

direct dial capability with both fixed and wireless systems, 3 FM channels, no broadcasting (2018)

international:

country code - 590; landing points for the SSCS and the Southern Caribbean Fiber submarine cables providing voice and data connectivity to numerous Caribbean Islands (2019)