Resistance from native Caribs prevented colonization on Saint Vincent until 1719. France and England disputed the island for most of the 18th century, but it was ceded to England in 1783. The British prized Saint Vincent because of its fertile soil, which allowed for thriving slave-run plantations of sugar, coffee, indigo, tobacco, cotton, and cocoa. In 1834, the British abolished slavery. Immigration of indentured servants eased the ensuing labor shortage, as did subsequent immigrant waves from Portugal and East India. Conditions remained harsh for both former slaves and immigrant agricultural workers, however, as depressed world sugar prices kept the economy stagnant until the early 1900s. The economy then went into a period of decline, with many landowners abandoning their estates and leaving the land to be cultivated by liberated slaves. Between 1960 and 1962, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was a separate administrative unit of the Federation of the West Indies. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979. In 2021, the eruption of the La Soufrière volcano in the north of Saint Vincent destroyed much of Saint Vincent’s most productive agricultural lands. Unlike most of its tourism-dependent neighbors, the Vincentian economy is primarily agricultural.
Area: 389 km2
Climate: tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)
Natural resources: hydropower, arable land
Groups: African descent 71.2%, mixed 23%, Indigenous 3%, East Indian/Indian 1.1%, European 1.5%, other 0.2% (2012 est.)
Languages: English, Vincentian Creole English, French patois
Religions: Protestant 75% (Pentecostal 27.6%, Anglican 13.9%, Seventh Day Adventist 11.6%, Baptist 8.9%, Methodist 8.7%, Evangelical 3.8%, Salvation Army 0.3%, Presbyterian/Congregational 0.3%), Roman Catholic 6.3%, Rastafarian 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 0.8%, other 4.7%, none 7.5%, unspecified 4.7% (2012 est.)
Capital: Kingstown
Government type: parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm
Chief of state: King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Governor General Susan DOUGAN (since 1 August 2019)
Head of government: Prime Minister Ralph Everard GONSALVES (since 29 March 2001)cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime ministerelections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister
Description: legislature name: House of Assemblylegislative structure: unicameralnumber of seats: 22 (15 directly elected; 6 appointed)electoral system: plurality/majorityscope of elections: full renewalterm in office: 5 yearsmost recent election date: 11/5/2020parties elected and seats per party: United Labour Party (ULP) (9); New Democratic Party (NDP) (6)percentage of women in chamber: 21.7%expected date of next election: November 2025
Information derived by "The World Factbook 2021. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency, 2021. https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/"