Area: St. Kitts 168 sq. km. (65 sq. mi.); Nevis 93 sq. km. (36 sq. mi.).
Cities:
Capital--Basseterre (pop. about 15,000).
Terrain: Generally mountainous; highest elevations are 1,156 m. (3,792 ft.) at Mt. Liamuiga on St. Kitts and 985 m. (3,232 ft.) at Nevis peak on Nevis.
Climate: Tropical
People
Nationality: (Noun and adjective) Kittitian(s), Nevisian(s).
Population (1998 est.): 41,960 (St. Kitts 31,880; Nevis 10,080).
Annual growth rate (1996 est.): 0.85%.
Ethnic groups: predo

minantly of African origin; some of British, Portuguese, and Lebanese descent.
Religions: principally Anglican, with Evangelical Protestant and Roman Catholic minorities.
Languages: English (official).
Education (1995):
Years compulsory--9.
Literacy--97%.
Health (1995 estimate):
Infant mortality rate--19 per 1,000.
Life expectancy--67 years.
Unemployment--12%.

Postage Stamps.
St. Christopher (St. Kitts)
1870. - The first postage stamps issued for the colony of Saint Christopher.
1903 until 1951 - Stamps were issued for Saint Kitts-Nevis. Stamps for Leeward Islands were also used concurrently.
1952 - Stamps were issued for St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla.
1980 - St. Christopher issues it's own stamps and are inscribed with "St. Kitts".

Nevis
1861 - The first postage stamps were issued for Nevis.
1890 to 1956 - Stamps of the Leeward Islands were used.
1903 to 1980 - Stamps of St. Kitts and Nevis were used.
1980 - Nevis issues it's own stamps with and are inscribed with "Nevis".

Government
Type: Constitutional monarchy with Westminster-style parliament.
Constitution: 1983.

Independence: 19th September 1983.
Branches.
Executive: Governor General (Representing Queen Elizabeth II, Head of State), Prime Minister (Head of Government), Cabinet.
Legislative: An 11-member senate appointed by the governor general (mainly on the advice of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition) and an 11-member popularly elected house of representatives.

Judicial: Magistrate's courts, Eastern Caribbean supreme court (high court and court of appeals), final appeal to privy council in London.

Administrative subdivisions: 14 parishes.

Political parties: St. Kitts and Nevis Labour Party (ruling), People's Action Movement (PAM), Concerned Citizens Movement (a Nevis-based party), and Nevis Reformation Party.

Suffrage: Universal at 18.

As head of state, Queen Elizabeth II is represented in St. Kitts and Nevis by a Governor-General, who acts on the advice of the prime minister and the cabinet. The prime minister is the leader of the majority party of the house, and the cabinet conducts affairs of state. St. Kitts and Nevis has a bicameral legislature: An 11-member senate appointed by the governor general (mainly on the advice of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition); and an 11-member popularly elected house of representatives which has eight St. Kitts seats and three Nevis seats. The prime minister and the cabinet are responsible to the parliament.

Constitutional safeguards include freedom of speech, press, worship, movement, and association. Like its neighbours in the English-speaking Caribbean, St. Kitts and Nevis has an excellent human rights record. Its judicial system is modeled on British practice and procedure and its jurisprudence on English common law. The Royal St. Kitts and Nevis police force has about 340 members.

Economy
GDP (1996): $247 million.
GDP growth rate (1996): 5.9%.
Per capita GDP (1996): $5,686.

Natural resources: Negligible.

Agriculture: Products - sugar cane, cotton, peanuts, vegetables.
Industry (1996): sugar processing, tourism, cotton, salt, copra, clothing, footwear, beverages, and tobacco.

Trade (1996):
Merchandise exports: $40.5 million.
Major markets: CARICOM, U.S., U.K.
Merchandise imports: $131.4 million.

Exchange rate: Eastern Caribbean $2.70=U.S.$1.

St. Kitts and Nevis was the last sugar mono-culture in the Eastern Caribbean. Faced with a sugar industry which was finding it increasingly difficult to earn a profit, the government of St. Kitts and Nevis embarked on a program to diversify the agricultural sector and stimulate the development of other sectors of the economy.

The government instituted a program of investment incentives for businesses considering locating in St. Kitts or Nevis, encouraging both domestic and foreign private investment. Government policies provide liberal tax holidays, duty-free import of equipment and materials, and subsidies for training provided to local personnel. Tourism has shown the greatest growth. By 1987 tourism had surpassed sugar as the major foreign exchange earner for St. Kitts and Nevis.

The economy of St. Kitts and Nevis has shown strong growth over the past five years. Growth rates have averaged 3-5%, due to improved performance in the tourism, agriculture (sugar production), and construction industries. Consumer prices have risen marginally over the past few years. The inflation rate has been kept under 3%.

Foreign Relations
St. Kitts and Nevis maintains diplomatic relations with the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, and South Korea, as well as with many Latin American countries and neighbouring Eastern Caribbean states. It is a member of the Commonwealth, the United Nations and several of its specialised and related agencies, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the Organisation of American States, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, the Eastern Caribbean Regional Security System (RSS), and the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM). The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank is headquartered in St. Kitts.