Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda is an island nation located in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Antigua () and Barbuda () are located in the middle of the Leeward Islands in the Eastern Caribbean, roughly 17 degrees north of the equator. Antigua and Barbuda are part of the Lesser Antilles archipelago with the archipelago of Guadeloupe to the south, Montserrat to the southwest, Saint Kitts and Nevis to the west and Saint Barthélemy and Saint Martin to the northwest.

History

Main article: History of Antigua and Barbuda

Pre-ceramic Amerindians were the first to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 BC. Later Arawak and Carib Amerindian tribes populated the islands. The island of Antigua was originally named Wadadli by the natives. Christopher Columbus landed on his second voyage in 1493 and gave the island the name Antigua. Early settlements by the Spanish and French were succeeded by the English who formed a colony in 1667 by transporting Irish Catholic slaves to Antigua. Slavery, established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in 1834.

The islands became an independent state within the Commonwealth of Nations on 1 November 1981, and Vere Bird became the first prime minister.

Politics

Politics of Antigua and Barbuda takes place in a framework of a federal parliamentary representative democratic monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of the Parliament. The Bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (17-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms). The last elections held were on 23 March 2004 for the House of Representatives next to be held in 2009). The Antigua Labour Party got 4 seats, while the United Progressive Party got 13.

Government

Since 1949 the party system had been dominated by the personalist Antigua Labour Party. However the Antigua and Barbuda legislative election, 2004, saw the defeat of the longest-serving elected government in the Caribbean. The Prime Minister, Lester Bird, had been in office since 1994, when he succeeded his father, Vere Bird. The elder Bird had been Prime Minister from independence in 1981, and before independence had been Chief Minister of Antigua from 1960, except for the period 1971-76.

Structure

The Head of State is the Queen, who is represemted by the Governor-General. A Council of Ministers is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister. The Judicial Branch is the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction). Antigua is also a member of the Caribbean Court of Justice. The Supreme Court of Appeal was the British Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, up until 2001, when the nations of the Caribbean Community voted to abolish the right of appeal to the Privy Council in favour of a Caribbean Court of Justice. Some debate between member countries had repeatedly delayed the court's date of inauguration. As of March, 2005, only Barbados was set to replace the process of appeals of Her Majesty in Council with the Caribbean Court of Justice which then had come into operation.

Administrative divisions

Main article: Parishes and dependencies of Antigua and Barbuda

The island of Antigua is divided into six parishes:-

The island of Barbuda and the uninhabited island of Redonda each enjoy dependency status.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Antigua and Barbuda

The country consists of a number of islands, of which Antigua is the largest one, and the most populated. Barbuda, just north of Antigua is the other main island. The islands have a warm, tropical climate, with fairly constant temperatures year round. Redonda – annexed in the 1860s when Phosphate reserves were noted, unoccupied since 1930 also belongs to the nation of Antigua and Barbuda.

The islands are mostly low-lying, with the highest point being Boggy Peak, at 402 metres (1,319 ft). The small country's main town is the capital Saint John's on Antigua; Barbuda's largest town is Codrington.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Antigua and Barbuda

Tourism dominates its economy, accounting for more than half of its GDP. Weak tourist arrival numbers since early 2000 have slowed the economy, however, and pressed the government into a tight fiscal corner. The dual-island nation's agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited water supply and a labour shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction work.

Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialised world, especially in the United States, which accounts for about one-third of all tourist arrivals.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Antigua and Barbuda

Most of the population are descendants of the slaves that used to work in the sugar plantations, but there are also groups of Europeans, notably Irish, British and Portuguese. While the official language is English, most of the locals speak patois, a form of Creole English.

Almost all Antiguans are Christians, with the Anglican Church (about 44%) being the largest denomination.

Culture

Sport

Cricket is very popular in Antigua and Barbuda, along with most Commonwealth nations. The 2007 Cricket World Cup will be hosted in the West Indies from 11 March to 28 April 2007. Antigua hopes to host some matches at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, which is still under construction, and will hold 20,000 people at full capacity.

Cuisine

The national dish is fungi(pronounced foon-gee) and pepper pot. Fungi is a dish very similar to the Italian Polenta being made mainly of cornmeal. Other local dishes include: Ducana, Season Rice, Saltfish and Lobster (from barbuda), to name a few. There are also local confectionary which include: Sugarcake, fudge, raspberry and tamarind stew and peanut brittle.

Although these foods are indigenous to Antigua and Barbuda and to some other Caribbean countries the local diet has diversified and now include the local dishes of Jamaica (eg. Jerk Pork), Guyana (eg. Roti) and other caribbean countries. Chinese restaurants have also began to become more main stream. The supermarkets also sell a wide variety of food, from American to Itlaian. Meals also vary depending on social class.

A typical breakfast in Antigua might include cereal or a sandwich and tea/chocolate milk.
Lunch might be anything that can be easily bought from a near by shop. Especially a bakery.
Dinner is definitely the most varied as it differs depending on taste, social class and education on nutrition. But it will typically include a starch, like rice/macaroni/pasta, vegetables/salad, an entre(Fish, Chicken, Pork, Beef etc.) and a side dish like macaroni pie, scalopped potatoes or plantains. Local drinks are morby, seamoss, tamarind juice, raspberry juice, mango juice, lemonade, coconut milk etc. Adults favor beers and rums many of which are made locally.

Sunday is the main Sabbath of the country and is the day when the culture is mostly reflected in the food. For breakfast one might have, saltfish and eggplant. Eggs, bacon, sausages, lettuce. Dinner on Sundays is eaten earlier (like 2:00 pm) because parents are usually off from wqork and can stay home and cook. It may include Pork, Baked Chicken, Stewed Lamb or turkey along side rice (done in a variety of ways), macaroni pie, salads and a local drink. Dessert maybe ice cream and cake or an apple pie (mango pie in mango season) or Jello.

Foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda is a member of the Caribbean Community, United Nations, World Trade Organization, Commonwealth of Nations, Organization of American States, Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, and the Eastern Caribbean's Regional Security System.

Miscellaneous topics

References

External links

The Official Website of the Government of Antigua and Barbuda
Antigua & Barbuda, its Department of Tourism website
Antigua and Barbuda, United States Library of Congress Portals on the World
Governments on the WWW: Antigua and Barbuda
The High Commission of Antigua and Barbuda. Tourism, business, history and culture, politics - an up to date website.
Antigua Carnival - with great photo galleries.

Antigua and Barbuda | Island nations | CARICOM member states | Members of the Commonwealth of Nations | Former British colonies

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