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Barbados:
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Other pages in this profile of Barbados:
People, Government, Economy, Communications & Transportation, Military & Transnational Issues.
People, Government, Economy, Communications & Transportation, Military & Transnational Issues.
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Background |
The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance. |
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Location |
Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela |
Geographic coordinates |
13 10 N, 59 32 W |
Map references |
Central America and the Caribbean |
Area |
total: 431 sq km land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative |
2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Land boundaries |
0 km |
Coastline |
97 km |
Maritime claims |
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Climate |
tropical; rainy season (June to October) |
Terrain |
relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region |
Elevation extremes |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m |
Natural resources |
petroleum, fish, natural gas |
Land use |
arable land: 37.21% permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (2005) |
Irrigated land |
50 sq km (2003) |
Natural hazards |
infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides |
Environment - current issues |
pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers |
Environment - international agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Geography - note |
easternmost Caribbean island |
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Copyright 2008 World Sites Atlas (sitesatlas.com) |