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Background: Lucayan Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US.
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Common Name: Bahamas
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Local Official Name: Bahamas
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Abbreviated Name: Commonwealth of The Bahamas
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Official Name: Bahamas
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Official Script Name: Bahamas
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Local Common Name: Bahamas
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Former Name: Bahamas
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Territory of: NA
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Head of State: Queen ELIZABETH II
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Government Type: constitutional parliamentary democracy
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Independence: 1973 July 10 (from UK)
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Constitution: 1973 July 10
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National Holiday: Independence Day, 10 July
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International Organization Participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOM, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), WToO
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Administrative Divisions: 21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay
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Dependent Areas: NA
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Legal System: based on English common law
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Suffrage: 18 years
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Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches: Executive Branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Arthur D. HANNA (since 1 February 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia PRATT (since 7 May 2002)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
Legislative Branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member body appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader for five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms); the government may dissolve the Parliament and call elections at any time
elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007)
election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%, FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29, FNM 7, independents 4
Judicial Branch:
Privy Council (London); Courts of Appeal; Supreme (lower) Court; magistrates courts
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Party Leaders: Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert INGRAHAM]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE]
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International Disputes: NA
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Illicit Drugs: disagrees with the US on the alignment of the maritime boundary; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian refugees fleeing economic privation and political instability
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Location of Bahamas: Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba
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Continent: North America
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Land Area Total: 13,940 sq km
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Region: Caribbean |
Land Area Land: 10,070 sq km
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Capitol City: Nassau
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Land Area Water: 3,870 sq km
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Current: -5
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Latitude: 024 15 N
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Border Boundary Land: 0 km
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Longitude: 076 00 W
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Border Boundary Coastline: 3,542 km
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Arable Land: 0.58 %
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Pastures: 0.00 %
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Crops: 0.29 %
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Woodlands and Forests: 0.00
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Highest Elevation: 63 m
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Location: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island
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Lowest Elevation: 0 m
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Location: Atlantic Ocean
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Largest City in Bahamas: Nassau
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Nassau Largest City Population: 214,000
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Threatened Species: 36
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Environmental Issues: coral reef decay; solid waste disposal
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Environmental Agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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Irrigated Land: 10
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Bordering Countries: NA
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Natural Resources: salt, aragonite, timber, arable land
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Geographical Terrain: long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills
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Comparative Area of Bahamas: slightly smaller than Connecticut
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Bahamas's Geography: strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited
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Click Here for detailed information about the weather conditions in Bahamas.
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General Climate: tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream
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Natural Hazards: hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage
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Economic Overview: The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism together with tourism-driven construction and manufacturing accounts for approximately 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in 2001-03. The current government has presided over a period of economic recovery and an upturn in large-scale private sector investments in tourism. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors.
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GDP: $6,105,000,000 USD
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Currency: Bahamian dollar
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GDP per Capita: $20,200 USD
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Currency Code: BSD
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GDP Growth Rate: 3.70 %
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One $USD Equals: %fincurrencyequals% BSD
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Currency Exchange Rate History: Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2005), 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001)
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GDP of Agriculture: 3.00 %
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GDP of Industry: 7.00 %
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GDP of Services: 90.00 % |
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Inflation Rate: 1.20 % |
Population in Poverty: 9.30 %
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Unemployment Rate: 10.20 %
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Tourism: 1,577,000.00 visitors each year
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Consumption by lowest 10%: 0.00 %
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Budget Revenue in USD: $1,030,000,000 USD
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Consumption by upper 10%: 27.00 %
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Budget Expenditures in USD: $1,030,000,000 USD
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Electricity Production: 1,810,000,000 kWh
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Electricity Exports: 0 kWh
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Electricity Consumption: 1,683,000,000 kWh
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Electricity Imports: 0 kWh
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Electricity Production by Source:
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Fossil Fuel Electricity Production: 100.00%
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Nuclear Electricity Production: 0.00%
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Hydro Electricity Production: 0.00%
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Other Electricity Production: 0.00%
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Oil Production: 0 barrels per day
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Natural Gas Production: 0 cu m
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Oil Consumption: 230,000 barrels per day
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Natural Gas Consumption: 0 cu m
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Oil Exports: 0 barrels per day
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Natural Gas Exports: 0 cu m
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Oil Imports: 0 barrels per day
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Natural Gas Imports: 0 cu m
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Proven Oil Reserves: 0 barrels
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Proven Natural Gas Reserves: 0 cu m
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External Debt: $342,600,000 USD |
Received in economic aid: $5,000,000 USD
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Donated in economic aid: $0 USD
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Agricultural Products: citrus, vegetables; poultry
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Primary Industries: tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe
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Industrial Growth Rate: 0.00 %
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Import Amount in USD: $1,820,000,000 USD - machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals
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Import Partners: US 22.5%, South Korea 20.2%, Spain 7.8%, Brazil 7.1%, Italy 6.5%, Germany 5.4%
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Export Amount in USD: $469,300,000,000 USD - mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals, fruit and vegetables
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Export Partners: US 31%, Spain 29.7%, Poland 9.3%, Germany 5.6%, Guatemala 4.1%
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GINI Index: 0.00%
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Labor Force Number of People: 176,300
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Labor Force by Occupations: agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40%
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Radio Broadcast Stations: 8 |
Number of People with Radios: 215,000 |
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Television Broadcast Stations: 2 |
Number of People with Televisions: 67,000 |
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Number of People with Mainline Telephones: 139,900 |
Number of People with Mobile Phones: 186,000 |
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Internet Service Providers: 591 |
Internet Users: 93,000 |
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Internet Country Code: .bs |
Newspapers: 125 |
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Two Letter Country Code: BF |
Weights and Measures: |
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Phone Country Code: 1-242 |
Electricity Voltage: 120 Volts |
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Telephone Systems: general assessment: modern facilities
domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed
international: country code - 1-242; tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 2
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Highways: 1,546 km |
Railways: 0 km
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Gas And Oil Pipelines: 0 km |
Waterways: 0 km
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Airports: 29 |
Heliports: 1
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Motor Vehicles: 284 per 1,000 people |
CO2 Emissions: 1,740,000 Metric Tons of CO2 per year |
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Per capita CO2 emissions: 6.00 Metric Tons of CO2 per year |
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Merchant Marines: total: 1,177 ships (1000 GRT or over) 37,743,270 GRT/50,918,747 DWT
by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 253, cargo 250, chemical tanker 64, container 79, liquefied gas 35, livestock carrier 2, passenger 115, passenger/cargo 34, petroleum tanker 175, refrigerated cargo 114, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 5, vehicle carrier 30
foreign-owned: 1,093 (Angola 5, Australia 2, Belgium 13, Canada 18, China 3, Cuba 1, Cyprus 13, Denmark 59, Estonia 1, Finland 8, France 37, Germany 22, Greece 232, Hong Kong 8, Iceland 1, India 1, Indonesia 4, Ireland 2, Israel 1, Italy 5, Japan 51, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Latvia 1, Malaysia 12, Monaco 17, Montenegro 2, Netherlands 24, Nigeria 2, Norway 259, Philippines 1, Poland 15, Reunion 1, Russia 6, Saudi Arabia 12, Singapore 12, Slovenia 1, Spain 12, Sweden 6, Switzerland 2, Thailand 1, Turkey 8, UAE 16, UK 69, Uruguay 2, US 121, Venezuela 1)
registered in other countries: 4 (Barbados 1, Liberia 1, Panama 2)
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Ports and Harbors: Freeport, Nassau, South Riding Point
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Population: 303,770 people type - nationality |
Birth Rate: 17.57 births per 1,000 people |
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Population Density: 23.00 people per sq km |
Death Rate: 9.05 deaths per 1,000 people |
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Population Growth: 0.64% per year |
Fertility Rate per Women: 2.18 babies born per woman |
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Population Male 0-14: 41,799 |
Population Female 0-14: 41,733 |
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Population Male 15-64: 98,847 |
Population Female 15-64: 102,074 |
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Population Male 65+: 7,891 |
Population Female 65+: 11,426 |
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Population 0-14: 27.50% |
Literacy Rate: 95.60% |
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Population 15-64: 66.10% |
Literacy rate of Males: 94.70% |
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Population 65+: 6.40% |
Literacy rate of Females: 96.50% |
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Population that is Male: 48.00
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Population that is Female: 52.00% |
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Life expectancy at birth in years: 65.60 years |
Infant mortality rate - baby deaths per 1000 births: 24.68 Babies die per 1,000 births |
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Life expectancy at birth for Males: 62.24 years |
Life expectancy at birth for Females: 69.03 years |
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Rate of AIDS/HIV infection: 3.00%
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Number of people living with AIDS or HIV: 5,600
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Number of people who died of AIDS: 0 |
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Disease Risk:
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Diseases:
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Net Migration Rate per 1,000 people: -2.17
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Nationality: BAHAMIAN
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Ethnic Groups: black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%
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Primary Language: English
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Other Languages: English, Creole (among Haitian immigrants)
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Primary Religion: Baptist
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Other Religions: Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8%
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Branches: Royal Bahamian Defense Force: Marines, Air Wing
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Manpower Fit to Serve: 18 years
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Manpower Available: 73,121 People
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Manpower Fit to Serve: 44,309 People
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Amount of Manpower Available each Year: 2,804 People per year
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Expenditures: $0 USD per year
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Expenditures as a Percentage of GDP: 0.00
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Note: Phrasebase uses a variety of sources when compiling the facts and information presented above. This information is continually updated throughout the year.
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Bahamas Spa and Resort Directory
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Bahamas Home Exchanges and Home Swaps
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Bahamas Vacation Rentals And Holiday Villas
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Bahamas City Information Game Earn Real Money
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