Grenada

 

Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs                                          
June 2007                                                                     
                                                                       
  Background Note: Grenada                                               
                                                                        
  Flag of Grenada is a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (top
  and bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with a red     
  border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointed stars with three
  centered in the top red border, three centered in the bottom red border, and
  one on a red disk superimposed at the center of the flag; there is also a   
  symbolic nutmeg pod on the hoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's      
  second-largest producer of nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars        
  represent the seven administrative divisions. 2004.                         
                                                                       
  PROFILE                                                                     
                                                                       
  OFFICIAL NAME:                                                              
  Grenada                                                                     
                                                                       
  Geography                                                                   
  Area: 344 sq. km. (133 sq. mi.); about twice the size of Washington, DC.    
  Cities: Capital--St. George's (est. pop. 33,734).                           
  Terrain: Three volcanic islands (Grenada and the smaller islands of Carriacou
  and Petit Martinique) with mountainous rainforest.                          
  Climate: Tropical.                                                          
                                                                       
  People                                                                      
  Nationality: Noun and adjective--Grenadian(s).                              
  Population (2005 est.): 110,000.                                            
  Annual growth rate (2006): 0.8%.                                            
  Ethnic groups: African descent (82%), some South Asians (East Indians) and  
  Europeans, trace Arawak/Carib Indian.                                       
  Religions: Roman Catholic, various Protestant denominations, Islam,         
  Rastafarianism.                                                             
  Languages: English (official).                                              
  Education: Years compulsory--10 grades or age 16. Literacy--95% of adult    
  population.                                                                 
  Health (2005): Infant mortality rate--17/1,000. Life expectancy--men 63.1   
  years; women 66.7 years.                                                    
  Work force (2006): 48,000.                                                  
  Unemployment (2005): 18%.                                                   
                                                                       
  Government                                                                  
  Type: Parliamentary democracy; independent sovereign state within the       
  Commonwealth.                                                               
  Independence: February 7, 1974.                                             
  Constitution: December 19, 1975.                                            
  Branches: Executive--governor general (representing Queen Elizabeth II, head
  of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet.                    
  Legislative--bicameral parliament. Judicial--magistrates' courts, Eastern   
  Caribbean Supreme Court (high court and court of appeals), final appeal to  
  Privy Council in London.                                                    
  Subdivisions: Six parishes and two dependencies (Carriacou and Petit        
  Martinique).                                                                
  Major political parties: New National Party (NNP), majority; National       
  Democratic Congress (NDC); Grenada United Labor Party (GULP).               
  Suffrage: Universal at 18.                                                  
                                                                       
  Economy                                                                     
  GDP (2006): $408.1 million.                                                 
  GDP growth rate (2006): 2.1%.                                               
  Per capita GDP (2006): $3,854.                                              
  Inflation (2005): 3.0%.                                                     
                                                                       
  Agriculture: Nutmeg, cocoa, bananas, other fruits, vegetables, mace, and    
  fish.                                                                       
                                                                       
  Services: Tourism and education.                                            
                                                                       
  Construction: Housing development and tourism renovations.                  
  Trade (2005): Exports--$39 million (merchandise) and $126 (commercial       
  services). Major markets--European Union (39.4%), United States (23.3%),    
  Saint Lucia (6.3%), Saint Kitts and Nevis (5.2%), and Barbados (4.6%).      
  Imports--$319 million (merchandise) and $93 million (commercial services).  
  Major suppliers--United States (42.6%), Trinidad and Tobago (18.9%), European
  Union (12.2%), Japan (4.9%), and Barbados (3.3%).                           
                                                                       
  Official exchange rate: EC$2.70 = U.S. $1.                                  
                                                                       
  Total debt outstanding and disbursed (2005): $437 million.                  
                                                                       
                                                                       
                                                                       
  PEOPLE                                                                      
  Most of Grenada's population is of African descent. A few East Indians and a
  small community of the descendants of early European settlers reside in     
  Grenada. About 50% of Grenada's population is under the age of 30. English is
  the official language; only a few people still speak French patois. A more  
  significant reminder of Grenada's historical link with France is the strength
  of the Roman Catholic Church, to which about 60% of Grenadians belong.      
                                                                       
  HISTORY                                                                     
  Before the arrival of Europeans, Carib Indians had driven the more peaceful 
  Arawaks from the island. Columbus landed on Grenada in 1498 during his third
  voyage to the new world. He named the island "Concepcion." The origin of the
  name "Grenada" is obscure, but it is likely that Spanish sailors renamed the
  island for the city of Granada. By the beginning of the 18th century, the   
  name "Grenada," or "la Grenade" in French, was in common use.               
                                                                       
  Partly because of the Caribs, Grenada remained un-colonized for more than 100
  years after its discovery; early English efforts to settle the island were  
  unsuccessful. In 1650, a French company founded by Cardinal Richelieu       
  purchased Grenada from the English and established a small settlement. After
  several skirmishes with the Caribs, the French brought in reinforcements from
  Martinique and defeated the Caribs.                                         
                                                                       
  The island remained under French control until its capture by the British in
  1762, during the Seven Years' War. The Treaty of Paris formally ceded Grenada
  to Great Britain in 1763. Although the French regained control in 1779, the 
  Treaty of Versailles restored the island to Britain in 1783. Britain overcame
  a pro-French revolt in 1795, and Grenada remained British for the remainder 
  of the colonial period.                                                     
                                                                       
  During the 18th century, Grenada's economy underwent an important transition.
  Like much of the rest of the West Indies it was originally settled to       
  cultivate sugar, which was grown on estates using slave labor. But natural  
  disasters paved the way for the introduction of other crops. In 1782, Sir   
  Joseph Banks, the botanical adviser to King George III, introduced nutmeg to
  Grenada. The island's soil was ideal for growing the spice, and because     
  Grenada was a closer source of spices for Europe than the Dutch East Indies 
  the island assumed a new importance to European traders.                    
                                                                       
  The collapse of the sugar estates and the introduction of nutmeg and cocoa  
  encouraged the development of smaller landholdings, and the island developed
  a land-owning yeoman farmer class. Slavery was outlawed in 1834. In 1833,   
  Grenada became part of the British Windward Islands Administration. The     
  governor of the Windward Islands administered the island for the rest of the
  colonial period. In 1958, the Windward Islands Administration was dissolved,
  and Grenada joined the Federation of the West Indies. After that federation 
  collapsed in 1962, the British Government tried to form a small federation  
  out of its remaining dependencies in the Eastern Caribbean.                 
                                                                       
  Following the failure of this second effort, the British and the islands    
  developed the concept of associated statehood. Under the Associated Statehood
  Act of 1967, Grenada was granted full autonomy over its internal affairs in 
  March 1967. Full independence was granted on February 7, 1974.              
                                                                       
  After obtaining independence, Grenada adopted a modified Westminster        
  parliamentary system based on the British model, with a governor general    
  appointed by and representing the British monarch (head of state) and a prime
  minister who is both leader of the majority party and the head of government.
  Sir Eric Gairy was Grenada's first Prime Minister.                          
                                                                       
  On March 13, 1979, the New Joint Endeavor for Welfare, Education, and       
  Liberation Movement (New Jewel Movement--NJM), ousted Gairy in a coup and   
  established a People's Revolutionary Government (PRG) headed by Maurice     
  Bishop, who became Prime Minister. His Marxist-Leninist government          
  established close ties with Cuba, the Soviet Union, and other communist bloc
  countries.                                                                  
                                                                       
  In October 1983, a power struggle within the government resulted in the     
  arrest and execution of Bishop and several members of his cabinet and the   
  killing of dozens of his supporters by elements of the People's Revolutionary
  Army (PRA).                                                                 
                                                                       
  A U.S.-Caribbean force landed on Grenada on October 25, 1983, in response to
  an appeal from the Governor General and to a request for assistance from the
  Organization of Eastern Caribbean States. U.S. citizens were evacuated, and 
  order was restored.                                                         
                                                                       
  An advisory council named by the Governor General administered the country  
  until general elections were held in December 1984. The New National Party  
  (NNP) led by Herbert Blaize won 14 out of 15 seats in free and fair elections
  and formed a democratic government. Grenada's constitution had been suspended
  in 1979 by the PRG, but it was restored after the 1984 elections.           
                                                                       
  The NNP continued in power until 1989 but with a reduced majority. Five NNP 
  parliamentary members, including two cabinet ministers, left the party in   
  1986-87 and formed the National Democratic Congress (NDC), which became the 
  official opposition.                                                        
                                                                       
  In August 1989, Prime Minister Blaize broke with the NNP to form another new
  party, The National Party (TNP), from the ranks of the NNP. This split in the
  NNP resulted in the formation of a minority government until constitutionally
  scheduled elections in March 1990. Prime Minister Blaize died in December   
  1989 and was succeeded as Prime Minister by Ben Jones until the elections.  
                                                                       
  The NDC emerged from the 1990 elections as the strongest party, winning seven
  of the 15 available seats. Nicholas Brathwaite added two TNP members and one
  member of the Grenada United Labor Party (GULP) to create a 10-seat majority
  coalition. The Governor General appointed him to be Prime Minister.         
                                                                       
  In parliamentary elections on June 20, 1995, the NNP won eight seats and    
  formed a government headed by Keith Mitchell. The NNP maintained and affirmed
  its hold on power when it took all 15 parliamentary seats in the January 1999
  elections.                                                                  
                                                                       
  General elections were held in November 2003; the NNP won 8 of the 15 seats,
  holding on to power with a much-reduced majority. The National Democratic   
  Congress (NDC) led by Tillman Thomas won 7 seats and is now the official    
  opposition.                                                                 
                                                                       
  GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS                                         
  Grenada is governed under a parliamentary system based on the British model;
  it has a governor general, a prime minister and a cabinet, and a bicameral  
  parliament with an elected House of Representatives and an appointed Senate.
                                                                       
  Citizens enjoy a wide range of civil and political rights guaranteed by the 
  constitution. Grenada's constitution provides citizens with the right to    
  change their government peacefully. Citizens exercise this right through    
  periodic free and fair elections held on the basis of universal suffrage.   
                                                                       
  The political parties in Grenada are the New National Party (NNP), which    
  remains moderate; the National Democratic Congress (NDC), which is now made 
  up of some members of the New Jewel Movement (NJM) and the original NDC; the
  People's Labor Movement (PLM), which is a combination of members of the     
  original NDC and the Maurice Bishop Patriotic Movement (MBPM); and the      
  Grenada United Labor Party (GULP). The National Party (TNP) and MBPM no     
  longer exist.                                                               
                                                                       
  The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), launched in 2001 to          
  investigate the period between the mid-1970s and the late 1980s, sent its   
  report to the government in May 2006. The long-awaited (and two years       
  overdue) report was only released to the public in mid-September 2006, when 
  the government announced it would implement the TRC's recommendations.      
  However, the government was vague on the details of how or when the         
  recommendations would be implemented and called for additional public input.
  There has been no further progress.                                         
                                                                       
  In February 2007, the Privy Council in London handed down its verdict on the
  appeal of the group that was convicted of murdering Prime Minister Bishop and
  members of his cabinet in 1983. The "Group of 14" were originally condemned 
  to death, but the sentence was commuted to life in prison. The three        
  triggermen, sentenced to 30 years in prison as they were following orders,  
  were released in December 2006 after serving two-thirds of their original   
  sentence, as per local law. The remainder of the group argued that the      
  original trial was unjust and appealed to the Privy Council to overturn the 
  verdict and sentence. The Privy Council decision, however, only vacated the 
  sentence, on the grounds that the death sentence was inappropriate. It upheld
  the convictions of multiple homicides, stripping the group of its political 
  prisoner status. The case was returned to the Grenada Supreme Court for     
  resentencing. Although a date has been requested, the case has not yet made 
  it onto the court's calendar.                                               
                                                                       
  The 800 members of the Royal Grenada Police Force (RGPF), which includes an 
  80-member paramilitary special services unit (SSU) and a 30-member coast    
  guard, maintain security in Grenada. The U.S. Army and the U.S. Coast Guard 
  provide periodic training and material support for the SSU and the coast    
  guard. The Departments of State and Treasury provide support to the Financial
  Investigative Unit (FIU).                                                   
                                                                       
  Principal Government Officials                                              
  Head of State--Queen Elizabeth II                                           
  Governor General--Sir Daniel C. Williams, G.C.M.G., Q.C.                    
  Prime Minister--Dr. Keith C. Mitchell                                       
  Minister of Foreign Affairs--Elvin Nimrod                                   
  Ambassador to the United States and OAS--Denis G. Antoine                   
  Ambassador to the United Nations--Angus Friday                              
                                                                       
  Grenada maintains an embassy in the United States at 1701 New Hampshire     
  Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20009 (tel: 202-265-2561).                       
                                                                       
  ECONOMY                                                                     
  The economy of Grenada, based primarily upon services (tourism and education)
  and agricultural production (nutmeg and cocoa), was brought to a near       
  standstill by Hurricane Ivan on September 7, 2004. Thirty-seven people were 
  killed by the hurricane, and approximately 8,000-10,000 left homeless.      
  Hurricane Ivan damaged or destroyed 90% of the buildings on the island,     
  including some tourist facilities. Overall damage totaled as much as 2.5    
  times annual GDP. Reconstruction has proceeded quickly, but much work       
  remains. The United States has been the leading donor since the hurricane,  
  with an emergency program of about $45 million aimed at repairing and       
  rebuilding schools, health clinics, community centers, and housing; training
  several thousand Grenadians in construction and other fields; providing     
  grants to private businesses to speed their recovery; and providing a variety
  of aid to help Grenada diversify its agriculture and tourism sectors.       
                                                                       
  Despite initial high unemployment in the tourist and other sectors, urban   
  Grenadians have benefited post-hurricane from job opportunities in the      
  surging construction sector. Agricultural workers have not fared as well.   
  Hurricane Ivan destroyed or significantly damaged a large percentage of     
  Grenada's tree crops, and Hurricane Emily further damaged the sector.       
  Complete recovery will take years. However, many hotels, restaurants, and   
  other businesses have reopened. In anticipation of Cricket World Cup matches
  held on the island in the spring of 2007, many Grenadians renewed their focus
  on the rebuilding process. Predictions are for an increase in tourism,      
  although Grenada lags behind its neighbors in marketing the island overseas.
  St. George's University, a large American medical and veterinary school with
  over 2,000 students, is in full operation.                                  
                                                                       
  Grenada is a member of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU). The     
  Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) issues a common currency for all      
  members of the ECCU. The ECCB also manages monetary policy, and regulates and
  supervises commercial banking activities in its member countries.           
                                                                       
  Grenada is also a member of the Caribbean Community and Common Market       
  (CARICOM). Most goods can be imported into Grenada under open general       
  license, but some goods require specific licenses. Goods that are produced in
  the Eastern Caribbean receive additional protection; in May 1991, the CARICOM
  common external tariff (CET) was implemented. The CET aims to facilitate    
  economic growth through intra-regional trade by offering duty-free trade    
  among CARICOM members and duties on goods imported from outside CARICOM.    
                                                                       
  FOREIGN RELATIONS                                                           
  The United States, China, Cuba, and Venezuela have embassies in Grenada. In 
  2006, the United Kingdom's High Commissioner's office in Barbados took over 
  responsibility for Grenada, maintaining only a staff in Grenada. Grenada has
  been recognized by most members of the United Nations and maintains         
  diplomatic missions in the United States, Canada, China, Cuba, Belgium,     
  United Kingdom and Venezuela.                                               
                                                                       
  Grenada is a member of the Caribbean Development Bank, CARICOM, the         
  Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), the Commonwealth of Nations,
  and the World Trade Organization (WTO). It joined the United Nations in 1974,
  and then the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and Organization of   
  American States (OAS) in 1975. Grenada also is a member of the Eastern      
  Caribbean's Regional Security System (RSS).                                 
                                                                       
  U.S.-GRENADIAN RELATIONS                                                    
  The U.S. Government established an Embassy in Grenada in November 1983. The 
  U.S. Ambassador to Grenada is resident in Bridgetown, Barbados. The Embassy 
  in Grenada is staffed by a Chargé d'Affaires who reports to the Ambassador in
  Bridgetown.                                                                 
                                                                       
  The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) played a major role in
  Grenada's development. In addition to the $45 million emergency aid for     
  reconstruction from Hurricane Ivan, USAID provided more than $120 million in
  economic assistance from 1984 to 1993. About 25 Peace Corps volunteers in   
  Grenada teach special education, remedial reading, and vocational training  
  and assist with HIV/AIDS work. Grenada receives counter-narcotics assistance
  from the United States and benefits from U.S. military exercise-related     
  construction and humanitarian civic action projects.                        
                                                                       
  Grenada and the United States cooperate closely in fighting narcotics       
  smuggling and other forms of transnational crime. In 1995, the United States
  and Grenada signed a maritime law enforcement treaty. In 1996, they signed a
  mutual legal assistance treaty and an extradition treaty as well as an      
  over-flight/order-to-land amendment to the maritime law enforcement treaty. 
  The United States continues to provide training, equipment, and materiel,   
  including three vehicles in 2006, to Grenadian security and defense forces. 
  Some U.S. military training is provided as well.                            
                                                                       
  Grenada continues to be a popular destination for Americans. Of the 98,548  
  stayover visitors in 2005, 25,181 were U.S. citizens. It is estimated that  
  some 2,600 Americans reside in the country, plus the 2,000 U.S. medical     
  students who study at the St. George's University School of Medicine. (Those
  students are not counted as residents for statistical purposes.)            
                                                                       
  Principal U.S. Embassy Officials (all officials except the Charge are located
  at the U.S. Embassy in Bridgetown, Barbados)                                
  Ambassador--Mary M. Ourisman                                                
  Deputy Chief of Mission--Mary Ellen T. Gilroy                               
  Charge d'Affaires--Karen Jo McIsaac                                         
  Political/Economic Counselor--Martina A. Strong (Acting)                    
  Consul General--Clyde Howard Jr.                                            
  Defense Attaché--Lee Bauer (resident in Caracas)                            
  Regional Labor Attaché--Martina Strong                                      
  Economic-Commercial Affairs--Anthony Eterno                                 
  Public Affairs Officer--Julie O'Reagan                                      
  Peace Corps Director--Kate Rafferty (resident in St. Lucia)                 
                                                                       
  The U.S. Embassy in Grenada is located on the Lance-aux-Epines Main Road, St.
  George's, Grenada; tel: 1-(473)-444-1173/4/5/6/7; fax: 1-(473)-444-4820,    
  e-mail: usemb_gd@caribsurf.com                                              
                                                                       
  The mailing address is P.O. Box 54, St. George's, Grenada, West Indies.     
                                                                       
  Other Contact Information                                                   
  U.S. Department of Commerce                                                 
  International Trade Administration                                          
  Trade Information Center                                                    
  14th and Constitution, NW                                                   
  Washington, DC 20230                                                        
  Tel: 1-800-USA-TRADE                                                        
                                                                       
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