President: Maxwell Richards Prime minister: Kamla Persad-Bissessar
President: Jorge Carlos Fonseca
Population
1,226,383
523,568
Life Expectancy
71.670 years
71.000 years
Capital City
Port-of-Spain
Praia
Largest city
Chaguanas (population: 72,159)
Praia (population: 113,364)
Human Development Index
0.833
0.705
GDP per capita
$20,300 US
$4,000 US
Literacy Rate
98.6%
76.6%
Corruption Perception Index
3.6
5.1
Percentage of Women in Parliament
33.3%
18.1%
Wealthiest Citizens
Unemployment Rate
6.400%
21.000%
Death Penalty
Legal
Abolished
Political System
parliamentary democracy
republic
Independence date
31 August 1962 (from UK)
5 July 1975 (from Portugal)
Religions
Roman Catholic 26%, Hindu 22.5%, Anglican 7.8%, Baptist 7.2%, Pentecostal 6.8%, Muslim 5.8%, Seventh Day Adventist 4%, other Christian 5.8%, other 10.8%, unspecified 1.4%, none 1.9% (2000 census)
Roman Catholic (infused with indigenous beliefs), Protestant (mostly Church of the Nazarene)
Languages
English (official), Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), French, Spanish, Chinese
Portuguese, Crioulo (a blend of Portuguese and West African words)
Exports
petroleum and petroleum products, liquefied natural gas (LNG), methanol, ammonia, urea, steel products, beverages, cereal and cereal products, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus fruit, vegetables, flowers
fuel, shoes, garments, fish, hides
External Debt
$4,483,000,000 $
$657,700,000 US
Exchange Rate
Trinidad and Tobago dollars (TTD) per US dollar - 6.3228 (2008 est.), 6.3275 (2007), 6.3107 (2006), 6.2842 (2005), 6.299 (2004)
Cape Verdean escudos (CVE) per US dollar - 73.84 (2008 est.), 81.235 (2007), 87.946 (2006), 88.67 (2005), 88.808 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
0.300%
0.500%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
2
0
Location
Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Western Africa, group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Senegal
Area
5,128 km sq
4,033 km sq
Coastline
362 km
965 km
Climate
tropical; rainy season (June to December)
temperate; warm, dry summer; precipitation meager and very erratic
