The area consists of 13 island countries, from the Bahamas in the north to Trinidad and Tobago in the south; Belize, which is geographically situated in Central America; and the 2 nations of Guyana and Suriname, situated on the north central coast of South America. Many countries in the area share a common African ethnic and British colonial heritage, while Cuba and the Dominican Republic were Spanish colonies, Haiti was French, and Suriname was Dutch. The dates of self-reliance of these countries vary from Haiti in 1804 to St. Kitts and Nevis in 1983. The largest countries in regards to acreage are Guyana and Suriname, while those with the largest populations are Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti.
Politically, all Caribbean nations, with the exception of communist Cuba, have elected democratic federal governments. Most of the previous British colonies have parliamentary types of federal government, with the exception of Guyana, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Suriname, which are republics headed by presidents. In terms of local combination, 14 of the region's independent countries come from the Caribbean Neighborhood (CARICOM), with the exception of the Dominican Republic (which has observer status) and Cuba. CARICOM was formed in 1973 to stimulate local economic integration. Some critics argue that it has actually been slow to promote combination, compared to other local economic groupings, however development has actually been made in moving toward a single economic market and in developing a Caribbean Court of Justice.
The 6 OECS nations likewise share a common currency, the Eastern Caribbean dollar, with financial policy handled by the Eastern Caribbean Reserve Bank. The Caribbean Advancement Bank (CDB), headquartered in Barbados, promotes financial advancement and regional integration. With the exception of Cuba and Haiti, routine elections have been the norm, and for the many part have been complimentary and fair. In 2005, Dominica and Suriname held elections in May, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines held elections in December. Haiti was expected to hold elections in 2005, but considerable problems and political instability led to those elections being held off numerous times, up until they were eventually hung on February 7, 2006.
Successful elections eventually were hung on August 28, 2006, without the political violence that some observers had prepared for. Looking ahead, parliamentary elections are due in St. Lucia by December 2006, while elections in the Bahamas, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago are due in 2007. (See for a listing of leaders and elections for Learn more head of government.) Although numerous Caribbean nations have preserved long democratic customs, they are not immune from terrorist and other hazards to their political stability. In 1993, stability on St. Kitts was threatened following violent protests after challenged elections; order was restored with the support of security forces from neighboring states.
Earlier in the 1980s, the federal government of Eugenia Charles in Dominica was threatened by a strange coup plot involving foreign mercenaries. And of course, Grenada, under the socialist-oriented federal government of Maurice Bishop, experienced a break from the democratic standard after it assumed power in a nearly bloodless coup in 1979 and installed a people's innovative federal government. After the violent overthrow and murder of Bishop in 1983, the United States intervened to bring back order and end the Cuban existence on the island. Numerous Caribbean nations experienced an economic downturn in 2001-2002 due to downturns in the tourism and agriculture sectors, although a lot of Caribbean economies have actually rebounded considering that 2003.
financial recession and slow healing. The banana and sugar sectors in the Eastern Caribbean were harmed by More helpful hints a tropical storm in 2002 and a drought in 2003. Both sectors deal with unpredictable futures due to the European Union's plan to phase out preferred market access from former Caribbean nests for bananas by 2006 and for sugar by 2009. The Haitian economy experienced decrease start in 2001, with political instability intensifying currently difficult economic conditions in the hemisphere's poorest country. The strongest carrying out economies in current years have actually been those of the Dominican Republic, fueled by the clothing sector, and Trinidad and Tobago, with substantial energy resources.
In 2004 and 2005, the region's strongest financial entertainers averaging growth rates over 5% for those 2 years, were Antigua and Barbuda, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. Those nations not prospering in 2004 since of devastating hurricanes and hurricanes consisted of Haiti, with a 3. 5%% decline in gdp (GDP), and Grenada, with a GDP decline of 3%. For 2005, however, Grenada's economy rebounded with development over 5%, while Haiti's development was 1. 8%. In Guyana, financial growth has actually been stagnant or very little over the past a number of years. In 2005, the economy decreased 3% because of high oil costs and floods, which early in the year severely impacted agriculture and mining activities.
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Nevertheless, some observers have likewise been concerned about the area's high level of public debt, with numerous Caribbean nations having debt levels that surpass 100% of their GDP. U.S. interests in the Caribbean vary, and include financial, political, and security issues. Throughout the Cold War, security issues tended to eclipse other policy interests. In the consequences of the Cold War, other U.S. policy interests emerged from the shadow of the East-West dispute in the Caribbean that focused on issues about the Soviet and Cuban threat. U.S. policy top priorities shifted from one highlighting security concerns to a brand-new concentrate on strengthened financial relations through trade and investment.
interest in the Caribbean. The Administration explains the Caribbean as America's "3rd border," with occasions in the region having a direct effect on the homeland security of the United States. It describes Caribbean nations as "crucial partners on security, trade, health, the environment, education, regional democracy, and other hemispheric issues." The United States has close relations with most Caribbean countries, with the exception of Cuba under Fidel Castro. The U.S.-Caribbean relationship is characterized by comprehensive economic linkages, cooperation on counter-narcotics efforts and security, and a large U.S. foreign assistance program supporting a variety of tasks to reinforce democracy, promote economic growth and development, minimize poverty, and combat the AIDS epidemic in the region. Customs and Border Security of the Department of Homeland Security. The CSI program assists ensure that high-risk containers are determined and inspected at foreign ports prior to they are put on vessels for shipment to the United States. In September 2006, 3 Caribbean ports became functional CSI ports: Caucedo, Dominican Republic; Kingston, Jamaica; and Freeport, Bahamas. Other Latin American ports in the CSI program are the Main American port of Puerto Cortes, Honduras, and the South American ports of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Santos, Brazil. In the 108th Congress, a legal effort called for extra foreign assistance in order to enhance foreign port security worldwide, but no final action was finished before the end of the session.
2279 (Hollings), in September 2004, which would have offered the Administrator of the Maritime Administration, in coordination with the Secretary of State, to recognize foreign support programs that could assist in execution of port security antiterrorism measures in foreclosing on a timeshare foreign countries. The act likewise would have called for a report on the security of ports in the Caribbean Basin, including an assessment of the efficiency of the procedures used to better security at such ports and an evaluation of the resources and program modifications needed to maximize security at Caribbean Basin ports. In the 109th Congress, two bills would offer foreign help programs for Caribbean Basin ports.
744 (Nelson, Costs), presented April 11, 2005, would develop a Caribbean Basin Port Assistance Program. Under the legal effort, the Administrator of MARAD in the Department of Transportation, in coordination with the Secretary of State, would determine foreign help programs that might assist in implementation of port security antiterrorism procedures at Caribbean Basin ports. The Administrator and the Secretary would establish a program for such help in consultation with the Company of American States. In addition, the Secretary of Homeland Security would be needed to send a report to Congress on status of port security in Caribbean Basin countries. S. 1052 (Stevens), the Transportation Security Enhancement Act of 2005, includes a provision (Section 504) that would establish a program to assist in execution of port security antiterrorism measures in foreign countries, with particular emphasis on ports in the Caribbean Basin; this costs was presented May 17, 2005, and reported by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transport on February 27, 2006 (S.Rept.
2791 (Stevens), presented May 11, 2006. Rising crime is a major security challenge throughout the Caribbean. The murder rate in Jamaica continues to soar, with 1,445 people eliminated in 2004 and more than 1,600 people in 2005. With rate of 60 murders per 100,000 occupants in 2005, Jamaica had the greatest murder rate worldwide. In late February 2006, Jamaicans were surprised over the ruthless killings of six relative, including four young kids in the western part of the nation. High levels of violent criminal offense, consisting of murder and kidnaping, also have afflicted Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti. Even smaller Caribbean countries like St.
On April 22, 2006, Guyana's Agriculture minister, together with his two siblings and a security guard, were shot and killed in an evident burglary. Gangs associated with drug trafficking, extortion, and violence are accountable for much of the crime. Some observers believe that criminals deported from the United States have actually added to the area's surge in violent crime over the last few years, although some maintain that there is no established link. Jamaica has promoted the development of a global protocol relating to the deportation of bad guys. A significant issue for Caribbean nationsthe majority of which are net energy importershas been the increasing cost of oil and the prospective impact of such increasing costs on economic growth and social stability.
Of these, just Trinidad and Tobago is a significant oil and gas producer, representing 60% of tested oil reserves and 91% of natural gas reserves in the region. The country is likewise the largest supplier of liquified natural gas (LNG) to the United States, representing 75% of all U.S. LNG imports. Apart from Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba also produces oil, but still imports a bulk of its consumption needs. Barbados likewise produces a percentage of oil, which is refined in Trinidad and Tobago, but it imports 90% of its oil consumption needs. Venezuela is now offering oil to Caribbean countries on preferential terms in a new program understood as Petro, Caribe, and there has been some U.S.
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Since 1980, Caribbean countries have actually benefitted from preferential oil imports from Venezuela (and Mexico) under the San Jose Pact, and because 2001, Venezuela has actually offered extra assistance for Caribbean oil imports under the Caracas Energy Accord. Petro, Caribe, however, would go further with the objective of putting in location a regional supply, refining, and transportation and storage network, and developing an advancement fund for those countries taking part in the program. How to finance an investment property. Under the program, Venezuela revealed that it would provide 190,000 barrels daily of oil to the region, with nations paying market prices for 50% of the oil within 90 days, and the balance paid over 25 years at an annual rate of 2%.
To date, 14 Caribbean countries are signatories of Petro, Caribe. Barbados, which currently gets affordable petroleum rates from Trinidad, has decreased to sign the contract, and Trinidad, which has its own significant energy resources, has declined to sign. (For extra details, see CRS Report RL33693, Latin America: Energy Supply, Political Developments, and U.S. Policy Approaches, by [author name scrubbed], [author name scrubbed], and [author name scrubbed]) The AIDS epidemic in the Caribbean, where infection rates are among the greatest outside of sub-Saharan Africa, has already begun to have unfavorable consequences for economic and social development in the region. In 2005, an estimated 300,000 adults and kids in the Caribbean were reported to be coping with HIV, with the epidemic declaring 24,000 lives during the year, making it the leading cause of death among grownups aged 15-44 years.