ARUBA
(part of the Dutch realm)
GEOGRAPHY
Total area: 193 km2; land area: 193 km2
Comparative area: slightly larger than Washington, DC
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 68.5 km
Maritime claims:
Exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: flat with a few hills; scant vegetation
Natural resources: negligible; white sandy beaches
Land use: arable land 0%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and
pastures 0%; forest and woodland 0%; other 100%
Environment: lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt
Note: 28 km north of Venezuela
PEOPLE
Population: 64,052 (July 1991), growth rate 0.6% (1991)
Birth rate: 15 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Net migration rate: - 4 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Infant mortality rate: 8 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Life expectancy at birth: 72 years male, 80 years female (1991)
Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (1991)
Nationality: noun--Aruban(s); adjective--Aruban
Ethnic divisions: mixed European/Caribbean Indian 80%
Religion: Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, also small Hindu,
Muslim, Confucian, and Jewish minority
Language: Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese,
Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish
Literacy: NA% (male NA%, female NA%)
Labor force: NA, but most employment is in the tourist industry
(1986)
Organized labor: Aruban Workers' Federation (FTA)
GOVERNMENT
Long-form name: none
Type: part of the Dutch realm--full autonomy in internal affairs
obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles
Capital: Oranjestad
Administrative divisions: none (self-governing part of the
Netherlands)
Independence: none (part of the Dutch realm); note--in 1990 Aruba
requested and received from the Netherlands cancellation of the
agreement to automatically give independence to the island in 1996
Constitution: 1 January 1986
Legal system: based on Dutch civil law system, with some English
common law influence
National holiday: Flag Day, 18 March
Executive branch: Dutch monarch, governor, prime minister, Council
of Ministers (cabinet)
Chief of State--Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard (since 30 April
1980), represented by Governor General Felipe B. TROMP (since 1 January
1986);
Head of Government--Prime Minister Nelson ODUBER (since NA February
1989)
Political parties and leaders:
Electoral Movement Party (MEP), Nelson ODUBER;
Aruban People's Party (AVP), Henny EMAN;
National Democratic Action (ADN), Pedro Charro KELLY;
New Patriotic Party (PPN), Eddy WERLEMEN;
Aruban Patriotic Party (PPA), Leo CHANCE;
Aruban Democratic Party (PDA), Leo BERLINSKI;
Democratic Action '86 (AD'86), Arturo ODUBER;
governing coalition includes the MEP, PPA, and ADN
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
Legislature--last held 6 January 1989 (next to be held by January
1993);
results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(21 total) MEP 10, AVP 8, ADN 1, PPN 1, PPA 1
Member of: ECLAC (associate), INTERPOL, IOC, UNESCO (associate),
WCL, WTO (associate)
Diplomatic representation: none (self-governing part of the
Netherlands)
Flag: blue with two narrow horizontal yellow stripes across the
lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper
hoist-side corner
ECONOMY
Overview: Tourism is the mainstay of the economy, although
offshore banking and oil refining and storage are also important.
Hotel capacity expanded rapidly between 1985 and 1989 and nearly
doubled in 1990 alone. Unemployment has steadily declined from about
20% in 1986 to about 2% in 1990. The reopening of the local oil
refinery, once a major source of employment and foreign exchange
earnings, promises to give the economy an additional boost.
GDP: $730 million, per capita $11,600; real growth rate 8.8%
(1989 est.)
