Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a governor Prime minister: Perry Christie
Population
313,847,465
316,182
Life Expectancy
78.490 years
71.440 years
Capital City
Washington, DC
Nassau
Largest city
New York City (population: 8,008,280)
Nassau (population: 227,940)
Human Development Index
0.95
NA
GDP per capita
$49,000 US
$31,400 US
Literacy Rate
99%
95.6%
Corruption Perception Index
7.3
NA
Percentage of Women in Parliament
16.6%
NA
Wealthiest Citizens
William Gates III ($40.0bn US)
NA
Unemployment Rate
9.000%
14.200%
Death Penalty
Legal
NA
Political System
Constitution-based federal republic; strong democratic tradition
constitutional parliamentary democracy
Independence date
4 July 1776 (from Great Britain)
10 July 1973 (from UK)
Religions
Protestant 51.3%, Roman Catholic 23.9%, Mormon 1.7%, other Christian 1.6%, Jewish 1.7%, Buddhist 0.7%, Muslim 0.6%, other or unspecified 2.5%, unaffiliated 12.1%, none 4% (2007 est.)
Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8% (2000 census)
Languages
English 82.1%, Spanish 10.7%, other Indo-European 3.8%, Asian and Pacific island 2.7%, other 0.7% (2000 census) note: Hawaiian is an official language in the state of Hawaii
English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)
mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals, fruit and vegetables
External Debt
$14,710,000,000,000 $
$342,600,000 US
Exchange Rate
Bahamian dollars (BSD) per US dollar - 1 (2008 est.), 1 (2007), 1 (2006), 1 (2005), 1 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
4.060%
0.700%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
110
0
Location
North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico
Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba
Area
9,826,675 km sq
13,880 km sq
Coastline
19,924 km
3,542 km
Climate
mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains
tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream
