Barbados(Facts on File)
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Official
Name: Barbados
Capital:
Bridgetown
Official:
Language English
Head
of State Queen Elizabeth II
Head
of Government: Prime Minister Owen Arthur
Ruling
Parties: Barbados Labour Party (BLP)
Currency:
Barbados Dollar (Bd$)
Time
Zone EST + 1 ; GMT - 4
Phone
Code Regional Code (246) plus the local number
Geography:
Barbados is located northwest of Venezuela, and is the most easterly of
the Caribbean islands. It covers and area of about 167 square miles. The
island rises gradually from the sea on the west coast to its highest point,
Mt. Hillaby, 1,104 feet above sea level. Barbados is otherwise almost flat
with its foundation being made mostly of coral.
Climate
Barbados
has an average annual temperature of about 25 degrees celcius (77 F). The
island is semitropical with beautiful beaches, and has a rainy season from
July to November.
Total
Population: 265,100
Average
Annual Rate of Growth: 0.4 % Reproductive Rate 14.2 per 1,000
Population
Density: 1,593 per square mile
Adult
Literacy: 99 %
Ethnic
Divisions: The people are comprised mainly of African descendents, with
the remaining 8% , or so, being White, Indian, Asian, and mixed.
Education
The
government of Barbados provides the education free at the elementary and
secondary levels, and has made it compulsory until the age of sixteen.
There are also many private schools to choose from. There are post secondary
facilities available to students such as the University of the West Indies,
community college, teachers college, theological college, and a polytechnic
institute.
History
Barbados
is the most easterly island of the West Indies. It was actually first sighted
by the Portugese and not by Christopher Columbus, who found and renamed
most every island in the region. Barbados was settled by English colonists
since 1627. Until the abolishment of slavery in the British Empire in 1834,
it was common practice to get slaves from Africa to work the sugarcane
plantations. A political rights movement began in 1938, founding the Barbados
Labour Party. Barbados remained a colony of Great Britain until attaining
complete internal autonomy in 1961. The island reverted back to a self-governing
colony after the West Indies Federation dissolved in 1962. Eventually,
in 1966, Barbados received its independence within the Commonwealth.
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