Saint Lucia

For the Catholic saint, see Saint Lucy. For the Brisbane suburb, see St Lucia, Queensland. For the village in Malta, see Santa Luċija.

Saint Lucia is an island nation in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north of the islands of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and south of Martinique. It is also known as the "Helen of the West".

Saint Lucia

( In Detail) ( In Detail)
National motto: The Land, The People, The Light
Official language	English
Capital	Castries
Head of State	Queen Elizabeth II
Governor-General	Dame Pearlette Louisy
Prime Minister	Dr. Kenny Anthony
Area - Total - % water	Ranked 176th 620 km² 1,6%
Population - Total ( 2002) - Density	Ranked 175th 160,145 260/km²
HDI ( 2003)	0.772 ( 76th) – medium
Independence - Date	From the UK February 22, 1979
Currency	East Caribbean dollar
Time zone	UTC -4
National anthem	Sons and Daughters of Saint Lucia
Internet TLD	.lc
Calling Code	1-758

History

Saint Lucia is an independent island state and one of the Windward Islands. Named for the Roman Catholic Saint Lucy of Syracuse. It was first visited by Europeans in about the year 1500 and first colonized successfully by France who signed a treaty with the native Carib peoples in 1660. Great Britain then took control of the island from 1663- 1667 before going to war with France over it fourteen times. The British finally took complete control of the island in 1814. Representative government came about in 1924 and from 1958 to 1962 the island was a member of The Federation of the West Indies. Lastly, on February 22, 1979 Saint Lucia became an independent state of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Politics

As a Commonwealth Realm, Saint Lucia recognizes Queen Elizabeth II as the Head of State of Saint Lucia, represented on the island by a Governor-General. Executive power, however, is in the hands of the prime minister and his cabinet. The prime minister is normally the head of the party winning the elections for the House of Assembly, which has 17 seats. The other chamber of parliament, the Senate, has 11 appointed members.

Saint Lucia is a full & participating member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

Quarters

The island of Saint Lucia is divided into 11 quarters:

• Anse-la-Raye
• Castries
• Choiseul
• Dauphin
• Dennery
• Gros Islet
• Laborie
• Micoud
• Praslin
• Soufrière
• Vieux Fort

Geography

The volcanic island of Saint Lucia is more mountainous than many other Caribbean islands, with the highest point being Mount Gimie, at 950 m above sea level. Two other mountains, the Pitons, form the island's most famous landmark. They are located near Soufrière, on the western side of the island. Saint Lucia is also one of the few islands in the world that flaunts a drive-in volcano.

The capital city of Saint Lucia is Castries, where about one third of the population lives. Major towns include Gros Islet, Soufrière and Vieux Fort. The local climate is tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds, with a dry season from January to April and a rainy season from May to November.

Economy

The recent changes in the European Union import preference regime and the increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. The island nation has been able to attract foreign business and investment, especially in its offshore banking and tourism industries, which is the island's main source of revenue. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean area, and the government is trying to revitalise the banana industry. Despite negative growth in 2001, economic fundamentals remain solid, and GDP growth should recover in the future.

Demographics

The small population of Saint Lucia is mostly black or of mixed descent; just 1.1% are of European origin, with an Indo-Caribbean minority of some 3%. The official language of the country is English, but a patois based mainly on French is also spoken. The majority of the population are Roman Catholics (ca. 90%); the rest are Anglicans (3%) or other Protestants (7%).

St. Lucia boasts the highest ratio in the world for number of Nobel laureates produced with respect to the total population of the nation. Two winners have come from St. Lucia - Sir Arthur Lewis won the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel ("Nobel Prize in Economics") in 1979, and Derek Walcott received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1992.

Tourism in St Lucia

Second only to bananas, tourism is vital to St Lucia's economy - and it's hard to imagine that tourism will not become even more important in the future. Provided you visit during the dry season (Jan-Apr), St Lucia has all the ingredients necessary for a great holiday in the sun: High temperatures, gorgeous beaches, crystal-clear water and of course very friendly natives.

But St Lucia also has character: there is more to see than just the beaches. The "World's only drive-in Volcano" is a great day out (if a bit smelly of course!) as is the wonderful Botanical Gardens. The fact that the island is not over-developed is also a plus-point: there are lovely beaches without hotels, sweeping mountains and impenetrable rain forests.

The local helicopter company sells brief sojurns over the island - to get a good idea of what it actually looks like, this is a great way of spending half an hour. For a longer trip, consider visiting one of the neighbouring islands by plane - it only took 45 minutes in a tiny plane to go to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Not only is the flight gorgeous, it also means you get to visit a second country during your holiday :-)