in Islands

Geographic coordinates: 12 15 N, 68 45 W

Map references: Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total: 960 sq km
land: 960 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint
Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin)

Area-comparative: more than five times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
total: 10.2 km
border countries: Guadeloupe (Saint Martin) 10.2 km

Coastline: 364 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds

Terrain: generally hilly, volcanic interiors

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Scenery 862 m

Natural resources: phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only)

Land use:
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 90% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane
belt, so are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius
are subject to hurricanes from July to October

Environment-current issues: NA

Environment-international agreements:
party to: Whaling (extended from Netherlands)
signed, but not ratified: NA

@Netherlands Antilles:People

Population: 205,693 (July 1998 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 26% (male 27,001; female 26,091)
15-64 years: 67% (male 64,964; female 72,329)
65 years and over: 7% (male 6,393; female 8,915) (July 1998 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.06% (1998 est.)

Birth rate: 17.61 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Death rate: 6.63 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female (1998 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 12.95 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.05 years
male: 71.99 years
female: 76.2 years (1998 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.11 children born/woman (1998 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Netherlands Antillean(s)
adjective: Netherlands Antillean

Ethnic groups: mixed black 85%, Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian

Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Seventh-Day Adventist

Languages: Dutch (official), Papiamento, a
Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dia