Saint Lucia

noun:

Saint Lucian(s)

adjective:

Saint Lucian

total:

39.7 years (2024 est.)

male:

38.4 years

female:

40.9 years

at birth:

1.06 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.94 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.83 male(s)/female

total population:

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

total:

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

male:

10.8 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

12.2 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

79.4 years (2024 est.)

male:

76.7 years

female:

82.3 years

total:

9.3 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer:

3.21 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine:

0.4 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits:

5.1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols:

0.6 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

total population:

NA

male:

NA

female:

NA

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, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

urban population:

19.2% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization:

0.98% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

particulate matter emissions:

8.98 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions:

0.41 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions:

0.27 megatons (2020 est.)

municipal:

10 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

industrial:

0 cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural:

30 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

conventional long form:

none

conventional short form:

Saint Lucia

etymology:

• named after Saint LUCY of Syracuse by French sailors who were shipwrecked on the island on 13 December 1502, the saint's feast day;
• Saint Lucia is the only country named specifically after a woman

note: pronounced saynt-looshuh

name:

Castries

geographic coordinates:

14 00 N, 61 00 W

time difference:

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

etymology:

in 1785, the village of Carenage was renamed Castries, after Charles Eugene Gabriel de La Croix de CASTRIES (1727-1801), who was then the French Minister of the Navy and Colonies

history:

previous 1958, 1960 (preindependence); latest presented 20 December 1978, effective 22 February 1979

amendments:

• proposed by Parliament;
• passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote by the House of Assembly membership in the final reading and assent of the governor general;
• passage of amendments to various constitutional sections, such as those on fundamental rights and freedoms, government finances, the judiciary, and procedures for amending the constitution, require at least three-quarters majority vote by the House and assent of the governor general;
• passage of amendments approved by the House but rejected by the Senate require a majority of votes cast in a referendum;
• amended several times, last in 2008

citizenship by birth:

yes

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of Saint Lucia

dual citizenship recognized:

yes

residency requirement for naturalization:

8 years

chief of state:

King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Acting Governor General Errol CHARLES (since 11 November 2021)

head of government:

Prime Minister Philip J. PIERRE (since 28 July 2021)

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 or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by governor general;
• deputy prime minister appointed by governor general

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 4 on Saint Lucia;
• Saint Lucia is 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:

magistrate's court

chief of mission:

Ambassador Elizabeth DARIUS-CLARKE (since 7 June 2022)

chancery:

1629 K Street NW, Suite 1250, Washington, DC 20006

telephone:

[1] (202) 364-6792

FAX:

[1] (202) 364-6723

email address and website:

[email protected]; https://www.embassyofstlucia.org/

consulate(s) general:

Miami, New York

• cerulean blue with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead;
• the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border;
• the blue color represents the sky and sea, gold stands for sunshine and prosperity, and white and black the racial composition of the island (with the latter being dominant);
• the two major triangles invoke the twin Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit Piton), cone-shaped volcanic plugs that are a symbol of the island

name:

"Sons and Daughters of St. Lucia"

lyrics/music:

Charles JESSE/Leton Felix THOMAS

note: adopted 1967

total World Heritage Sites:

1 (natural)

selected World Heritage Site locales:

Pitons Management Area

• upper middle-income, tourism-based Caribbean island economy;
• environmentally fragile;
• energy import-dependent;
• major banana producer;
• well-educated labor force;
• key infrastructure, IT, and communications investments

agriculture:

0.9% (2023 est.)

industry:

8.6% (2023 est.)

services:

74.1% (2023 est.)

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

total:

28.2% (2023 est.)

male:

29.5% (2023 est.)

female:

26.5% (2023 est.)

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

lowest 10%:

2.1% (2015 est.)

highest 10%:

34.1% (2015 est.)

note: % share of income accruing to lowest and highest 10% of population

general assessment:

• an adequate system that is automatically switched;
• good interisland and international connections;
• broadband access;
• expanded FttP (Fiber to the Home) and LTE markets;
• regulatory development;
• telecom sector contributes to the overall GDP;
• telecom sector is a growth area (2020)

domestic:

fixed-line teledensity is 8 per 100 persons and mobile-cellular teledensity is roughly 96 per 100 persons (2021)

international:

• country code - 1-758;
• landing points for the ECFS and Southern Caribbean Fiber submarine cables providing connectivity to numerous Caribbean islands;
• direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines;
• tropospheric scatter to Barbados (2019)

• 3 privately owned TV stations;
• 1 public TV station operating on a cable network;
• multi-channel cable TV service available;
• a mix of state-owned and privately owned broadcasters operate nearly 25 radio stations including repeater transmission stations (2019)

total:

1,210 km

paved:

847 km

unpaved:

363 km (2011)

total ports:

3 (2024)

large:

0

medium:

0

small:

2

very small:

1

ports with oil terminals:

2

key ports:

Castries, Grand Cul de Sac Bay, Vieux Fort

Saint Lucia 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 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) 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)

• a transit point for cocaine and marijuana destined for North America, Europe, and elsewhere in the Caribbean;
• some local demand for cocaine and some use of synthetic drugs