Netherlands-Antilles

NETHERLANDS-ANTILLES

Information about travelling to Netherlands-Antilles

Netherlands-Antilles is located in Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - composed of five islands, Curacao and Bonaire located off the coast of Venezuela, and Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius lie east of the US Virgin Islands

Facts about Netherlands-Antilles
Population225,369 (July 2008 est.)
CapitalWillemstad (on Curacao)
Time zoneUTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Location Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - composed of five islands, Curacao and Bonaire located off the coast of Venezuela, and Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius lie east of the US Virgin Islands

General info about Netherlands-Antilles
Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is shared with France; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles; its northern portion, called Saint Martin, is an overseas collectivity of France.
Languages spoken
Papiamento 65.4% (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect), English 15.9% (widely spoken), Dutch 7.3% (official), Spanish 6.1%, Creole 1.6%, other 1.9%, unspecified 1.8% (2001 census)
What about drugs?
transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center
Ethnic division
mixed black 85%, other 15% (includes Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian)
HIV/AIDS prevalence rate
NA
Climate
tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds
Resources
phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only)
Economy
Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP has declined or grown slightly in each of the past eight years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Most of the oil Netherlands Antilles imports for its refineries come from Venezuela. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US, Italy, and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. Budgetary problems hamper reform of the health and pension systems of an aging population. The Netherlands provides financial aid to support the economy.
Environment
NA

Cities in Netherlands-Antilles




Beer in Netherlands-Antilles (0.33l)
Willemstad~ 2.4 EUR

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