Saint Kitts and Nevis
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Template:Saint Kitts infobox The Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis (or the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis), located in the Leeward Islands, is a unitary island nation in the Caribbean and the smallest nation in the Western Hemisphere. The capital city and government for the federated state is mainly on the larger island of Saint Kitts (formerly named Saint Christopher). The smaller state of Nevis (formerly named: Nuestra Señora de las Nieves) lies about 3km southeast of Saint Kitts. Historically the British dependency of Anguilla was also a part of this union, which was then known collectively as Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla.
Although Saint Kitts and Nevis are geographically within the Leeward Islands, they are relatively close to a cluster of several other islands. To the north-north west lie the islands of Saint Eustatius, Saba, Saint Barthélemy, and Saint Martin. To the north-east lie Antigua and Barbuda, and to the south-east lies Montserrat.
Both the names Saint Christopher and Saint Kitts are given in the Constitution.
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History
Main article: History of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Former colonies of the United Kingdom, Saint Kitts and Nevis along with Anguilla, became an associated state with full internal autonomy in 1967. Angullians rebelled and their island was allowed to separate from the others in 1971. St. Kitts and Nevis achieved independence in 1983. In August 1998, a vote in Nevis on a referendum to separate from St. Kitts fell short of the two-thirds majority needed. In late September 1998, Hurricane Georges caused approximately $445 million in damages and limited GDP growth for the year.
Alexander Hamilton, the first United States Secretary of the Treasury, was born on Nevis and spent his childhood there and on the island of St. Croix.
Politics
Main article: Politics of Saint Kitts and Nevis
The country is an independent Commonwealth Realm with Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state, represented in St. Kitts and Nevis by a governor general, who acts on the advice of the Prime Minister and the cabinet. The prime minister is the leader of the majority party of the house, and the cabinet conducts affairs of state.
St. Kitts and Nevis has a unicameral legislature, known as the National Assembly. It is comprised of fourteen members - eleven elected representatives - three of whom are from the island of Nevis - and three members who are appointed by the Governor-General. The three appointed members are known as Senators, with two being appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, and one on the advice of the leader of the opposition. Though they are referred to as Senators, they do not form a separate house of parliament, as in some other countries. Both representatives and senators serve five-year terms. The prime minister and the cabinet are responsible to the Parliament.
Saint Kitts and Nevis are a full & participating member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
Image:Saint Kitts-Nevis.geohive.gif
Parishes
Template:Main There are fourteen parishes:
- Christ Church Nichola Town
- Saint Anne Sandy Point
- Saint George Basseterre
- Saint George Gingerland - N
- Saint James Windward - N
- Saint John Capisterre
- Saint John Figtree - N
- Saint Mary Cayon
- Saint Paul Capisterre
- Saint Paul Charlestown - N
- Saint Peter Basseterre
- Saint Thomas Lowland - N
- Saint Thomas Middle Island
- Trinity Palmetto Point
- N - denotes a parish on the island of Nevis.
Geography
Image:Sc-map.png Main article: Geography of Saint Kitts and Nevis
The country has two main islands, Saint Kitts and Nevis. The highest peak is Mount Liamuiga, which tops at 1 156 m.
The islands are of volcanic origin, with large central peaks covered in jungle; the steep slopes leading to these peaks are mostly uninhabited. The vast majority of the population on both islands live close to the sea where the terrain flattens out. There are numerous rivers descending from the mountains of both islands, which provide fresh water to the local population. St. Kitts also has one very small lake. Which is named after Saint Kitts founder, LAKE ALDEN.
Economy
Main article: Economy of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Kitts and Nevis was the last sugar monoculture in the Eastern Caribbean. Faced with a sugar industry that was finding it increasingly difficult to earn a profit, the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis embarked on a program to diversify the agricultural sector and stimulate the development of other sectors of the economy.
In mid-2005, the sugar economy in St. Kitts was finally shut down by the government, after running continuous losses for many years. As of this writing, the primary industry of St. Kitts is tourism.
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of Saint Kitts and Nevis
As of July 2000, there were 38,819 inhabitants; their average life expectancy was 70.73 years. Emigration has historically been very high, and the population is about 25% lower than at its peak of about 51,100 in 1960.
Culture
Main article: Culture of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Miscellaneous topics
- Communications in Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Foreign relations of Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Military of Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Transportation in Saint Kitts and Nevis
Gallery
 Downtown Basseterre |
 Downtown Basseterre |
 Fishing boat, Basseterre harbor |
 Flamingo Tongue shell on a Sea Fan |
 Divers and anemone on the MV River Taw wreck |
 Juvenile French Angelfish near a sunken van |
 Diver and fish, MV River Taw wreck |
 Diver and sponges |
 Royal Gramma or Fairy Basslet |
External links
Government
- St. Kitts & Nevis - Government of Saint Kitts and Nevis official website
- Ministry of Finance - of the Saint Kitts & Nevis Federation
- Nevis Ministry of Finance - for the Nevis Island Administration
Directories
- SKNVibes.com Online
Tourism
- Template:Wikitravel
- Saint Kitts Tourism Authority - Official Site
- The Nevis Tourism Authority - Official Site
Other
- Hosted at the University of the West Indies - Acticles and materials on Nevis secession
- St.Kitts Paper Money
- Map of St. Kitts
- Map of Nevis
- Google Maps satellite photo of Saint Kitts and Nevis
| Countries in the Caribbean |
|---|
| Independent nations: Antigua and Barbuda | Bahamas | Barbados | Cuba | Dominica | Dominican Republic | Grenada | Haiti | Jamaica | Saint Kitts and Nevis | Saint Lucia | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Dependencies: -British: Anguilla | British Virgin Islands | Cayman Islands | Montserrat | Turks and Caicos Islands | -Dutch: Aruba & Netherlands Antilles | -French: Guadeloupe & Martinique | -U.S.: Navassa Island | Puerto Rico | U.S. Virgin Islands |
| | Image:Caricom-Flag.png |
|---|---|
| Antigua and Barbuda | Bahamas¹ | Barbados | Belize | Dominica | Grenada | Guyana | Haiti² | Jamaica | Montserrat | Saint Kitts and Nevis | Saint Lucia | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Suriname | Trinidad and Tobago | |
| Associate members: Anguilla | Bermuda | Cayman Islands | British Virgin Islands | Turks and Caicos Islands | |
| Observer status: Aruba | Colombia | Dominican Republic | Mexico | Netherlands Antilles | Puerto Rico | Venezuela | |
| ¹ member of the community but not the CARICOM (Caribbean) Single Market and Economy. ² membership temporarly suspended. | |
