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Central America and the Caribbean
Page last updated: July 24, 2024
English and Irish colonists from St. Kitts first settled on Montserrat in 1632; the first African slaves arrived three decades later. The British and French fought for possession of the island for most of the 18th century, but it finally was confirmed as a British possession in 1783. The island's sugar plantation economy was converted to small farm landholdings in the mid-19th century. The Soufriere Hills Volcano erupted in 1995, devastating much of the island; two thirds of the population fled abroad. Montserrat has endured volcanic activity since, with the last eruption occurring in 2013.
Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico
16 45 N, 62 12 W
Central America and the Caribbean
Total : 102 km²
Land: 102 km²
Water: 0 km²
About 0.6 times the size of Washington, DC
Total: 0 km
40 km
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation
Volcanic island, mostly mountainous, with small coastal lowland
Highest point: Soufriere Hills volcano pre-eruption height was 915 m; current lava dome is subject to periodic build up and collapse; estimated dome height was 1,050 m in 2015
Lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
NEGL
Agricultural land: 30% (2018 est.)
Arable land: 20% (2018 est.)
Permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)
Permanent pasture: 10% (2018 est.)
Forest: 25% (2018 est.)
Other: 45% (2018 est.)
0 km² (2022)
Only the northern half of the island is populated, the southern portion is uninhabitable due to volcanic activity
Volcanic eruptions; severe hurricanes (June to November)
Volcanism: Soufriere Hills volcano (915 m), has erupted continuously since 1995; a massive eruption in 1997 destroyed most of the capital, Plymouth, and resulted in approximately half of the island becoming uninhabitable; the island of Montserrat is part of the volcanic island arc of the Lesser Antilles that extends from Saba in the north to Grenada in the south
The island is entirely volcanic in origin and composed of three major volcanic centers of differing ages
Total: 5,468
Male: 2,728
Female: 2,740 (2024 est.)
Note: an estimated 8,000 refugees left the island following the resumption of volcanic activity in July 1995; some have returned
Comparison rankings: female 226; male 226; total 226
Noun: Montserratian(s)
Adjective: Montserratian
African/Black 86.2%, mixed 4.8%, Hispanic/Spanish 3%, Caucasian/White 2.7%, East Indian/Indian 1.6%, other 1.8% (2018 est.)
English
Protestant 71.4% (includes Anglican 17.7%, Pentecostal/Full Gospel 16.1%, Seventh Day Adventist 15%, Methodist 13.9%, Church of God 6.7%, other Protestant 2%), Roman Catholic 11.4%, Rastafarian 1.4%, Hindu 1.2%, Jehovah's Witness 1%, Muslim 0.4%, other/not stated 5.1%, none 7.9% (2018 est.)
0-14 years: 15.8% (male 446/female 420)
15-64 years: 76.1% (male 2,062/female 2,101)
65 years and over: 8% (2024 est.) (male 220/female 219)
2023 population pyramid:
Total dependency ratio: 43.9
Youth dependency ratio: 19.2
Elderly dependency ratio: 24.7
Potential support ratio: 4 (2021)
Total: 36.8 years (2024 est.)
Male: 35.4 years
Female: 37.8 years
0.59% (2024 est.)
11.9 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
6 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Only the northern half of the island is populated, the southern portion is uninhabitable due to volcanic activity
Urban population: 9.3% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 0.94% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030
At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1 male(s)/female
Total population: 1 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Total: 9.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
Male: 8 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 11.6 deaths/1,000 live births
Total population: 76.1 years (2024 est.)
Male: 76.9 years
Female: 75.3 years
1.33 children born/woman (2024 est.)
0.63 (2024 est.)
NA
Improved: urban: NA
Rural: NA
Total: 98.1% of population
Unimproved: urban: NA
Rural: NA
Total: 1.9% of population (2020 est.)
NA
NA
Improved: urban: NA
Rural: NA
Total: NA
Unimproved: urban: NA
Rural: NA
Total: NA
NA
35.8% (2023 est.)
5.4% of GDP (2020 est.)
Total population: NA
Male: NA
Female: NA
Total: 14 years
Male: 13 years
Female: 15 years (2019)
Land erosion occurs on slopes that have been cleared for cultivation
Tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation
Agricultural land: 30% (2018 est.)
Arable land: 20% (2018 est.)
Permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)
Permanent pasture: 10% (2018 est.)
Forest: 25% (2018 est.)
Other: 45% (2018 est.)
Urban population: 9.3% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 0.94% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030
Conventional long form: none
Conventional short form: Montserrat
Etymology: island named by explorer Christopher COLUMBUS in 1493 after the Benedictine abbey Santa Maria de Montserrat, near Barcelona, Spain
Parliamentary democracy; self-governing overseas territory of the UK
Overseas territory of the UK
Name: Plymouth; note - Plymouth was abandoned in 1997 because of volcanic activity; interim government buildings have been built at Brades Estate, the de facto capital, in the Carr's Bay/Little Bay vicinity at the northwest end of Montserrat
Geographic coordinates: 16 42 N, 62 13 W
Time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Etymology: now entirely deserted because of volcanic activity, the city was originally named after Plymouth, England; de jure, Plymouth remains the capital city of Montserrat; it is therefore the only ghost town that serves as the capital of a political entity
3 parishes; Saint Anthony, Saint Georges, Saint Peter
None (overseas territory of the UK)
Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, usually celebrated the Monday after the second Saturday in June (1926)
History: previous 1960; latest put into force 20 October 2010 (The Montserrat Constitution Order 2010)
Amendments: amended 2011, 2020
English common law
See United Kingdom
18 years of age; universal
Chief of state: King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Governor Sarah TUCKER (since 6 April 2023)
Head of government: Premier Easton TAYLOR-FARRELL (since 19 November 2019)
Cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, the premier, 3 other ministers, the attorney general, and the finance secretary
Elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually becomes premier
Note: effective with Constitution Order 2010, October 2010, the office of premier replaced the office of chief minister
Description: unicameral Legislative Assembly (12 seats; 9 members directly elected in a single constituency by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds to serve 5-year terms; the speaker, normally elected from the outside by the Assembly for a 5-year term, and 2 ex-officio members - the attorney general and financial secretary)
Elections: last held on 18 November 2019 (next to be held in 2024)
Election results: percent of vote by party - MCAP 42.7%, PDM 29.9%, other 17.1%; seats by party - MCAP 5, PDM 3, independent 1; composition - men 8, women 4, percentage women 33.3%
Highest court(s): the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is the superior court of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States; the ECSC - headquartered on St. Lucia - consists of the Court of Appeal - headed by the chief justice and 4 judges - and the High Court with 18 judges; the Court of Appeal is itinerant, traveling to member states on a schedule to hear appeals from the High Court and subordinate courts; High Court judges reside in the member states, with 1 assigned to Montserrat; Montserrat is also a member of the Caribbean Court of Justice
Judge selection and term of office: chief justice of Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court appointed by the Her Majesty, Queen ELIZABETH II; other justices and judges appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission, and independent body of judicial officials; Court of Appeal justices appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 65; High Court judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 62
Subordinate courts: magistrate's court
Movement for Change and Prosperity or MCAP [Easton Taylor FARRELL]
People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Paul LEWIS]
Caricom, CDB, Interpol (subbureau), OECS, UPU
Blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Montserratian coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the arms feature a woman in green dress, Erin, the female personification of Ireland, standing beside a yellow harp and embracing a large dark cross with her right arm; Erin and the harp are symbols of Ireland reflecting the territory's Irish ancestry; blue represents awareness, trustworthiness, determination, and righteousness
Note: as a territory of the UK, "God Save the King" is official (see United Kingdom)
Formerly high-income economy; volcanic activity destroyed much of original infrastructure and economy; new capital and port is being developed; key geothermal and solar power generation; key music recording operations
$34,000 (2011 est.)
$31,100 (2010 est.)
$32,300 (2009 est.)
1.2% (2017 est.)
-0.2% (2016 est.)
Standard & Poors rating: BBB- (2020)
Note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.
Agriculture: 1.9% (2017 est.)
Industry: 7.8% (2017 est.)
Services: 90.3% (2017 est.)
Comparison rankings: services 9; industry 210; agriculture 177
Household consumption: 90.8% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 50.4% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 17.9% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: -0.1% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 29.5% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -88.6% (2017 est.)
Cabbages, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, peppers; livestock products
Tourism, rum, textiles, electronic appliances
-21% (2017 est.)
4,521 (2012)
5.6% (2017 est.)
6% (1998 est.)
Revenues: $66.67 million (2017 est.)
Expenditures: $47.04 million (2017 est.)
-$15.4 million (2017 est.)
-$12.2 million (2016 est.)
$11.9 million (2021 est.)
$4.4 million (2017 est.)
$5.2 million (2016 est.)
US 23%, France 21%, Antigua and Barbuda 19%, Ireland 15%, UK 7% (2022)
Note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports
Sand, gravel and crushed stone, packaged medicine, lead products, liquid pumps (2022)
Note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars
$15.3 million (2021 est.)
$39.44 million (2017 est.)
$36.1 million (2016 est.)
US 54%, UK 8%, Singapore 4%, Antigua and Barbuda 4%, Trinidad and Tobago 4% (2022)
Note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports
Refined petroleum, machine parts, plastic products, machinery, natural gas (2022)
Note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars
$47.58 million (31 December 2017 est.)
$51.47 million (31 December 2015 est.)
$8.9 million (1997)
East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar -
Exchange rates:
2.7 (2017 est.)
2.7 (2016 est.)
2.7 (2015 est.)
2.7 (2014 est.)
2.7 (2013 est.)
Electrification - total population: 100% (2020)
Installed generating capacity: 6,000 kW (2022 est.)
Consumption: 13.968 million kWh (2022 est.)
Transmission/distribution losses: 370,000 kWh (2022 est.)
Comparison rankings: transmission/distribution losses 1; consumption 209; installed generating capacity 210
Fossil fuels: 100% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)
Imports: (2022 est.) less than 1 metric ton
Refined petroleum consumption: 200 bbl/day (2022 est.)
26,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)
From petroleum and other liquids: 26,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)
(2019)
Total subscriptions: 3,000 (2020 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 67 (2020 est.)
Total subscriptions: 5,000 (2020 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 110 (2020 est.)
General assessment: telecom market one of growth in Caribbean and fully digitalized; high dependency on tourism and offshore financial services; operators expand FttP (Fiber to Home) services; LTE launches and operators invest in mobile networks; effective competition in all sectors (2020)
Domestic: fixed-line is 67 per 100 and mobile-cellular teledensity is 110 per 100 persons (2020)
International: country code - 1-664; landing point for the ECFS optic submarine cable with links to 14 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad (2019)
Radio Montserrat, a public radio broadcaster, transmits on 1 station and has a repeater transmission to a second station; repeater transmissions from the GEM Radio Network of Trinidad and Tobago provide another 2 radio stations; cable and satellite TV available (2007)
.ms
Total: 2,473 (2021 est.)
Percent of population: 56.2% (2021 est.)
Total: 2,700 (2018 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 55 (2018 est.)
Number of registered air carriers: 1 (2020)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 3
VP-M
1 (2024)
Note: volcanic eruptions that began in 1995 destroyed most of the 227 km road system; a new road infrastructure has been built on the north end of the island
No regular military forces; Royal Montserrat Defense Force (ceremonial, civil defense duties), Montserrat Police Force (2024)
Defense is the responsibility of the UK
Transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe