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Central Intelligence Agency
The Work of a Nation. The Center of Intelligence
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(part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
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| page last updated on October 4, 2012 |
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(CONTAINS DESCRIPTION)
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Click flag or map to enlarge 
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Click map to enlarge
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Originally settled by Arawak Indians, Curacao was seized by the Dutch in 1634 along with the neighboring island of Bonaire. Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, Curacao was hard hit economically 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 the Isla Refineria to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. In 1954, Curacao and several other Dutch Caribbean possessions were reorganized as the Netherlands Antilles, part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In referenda in 2005 and 2009, the citizens of Curacao voted to become a self-governing country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The change in status became effective in October 2010 with the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles.
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Caribbean, an island in the Caribbean Sea - 55 km off the coast of Venezuela
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12 10 N, 69 00 W
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total: 444 sq km
country comparison to the world: 200
land:
444 sq km
water:
0 sq km
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more than twice the size of Washington, DC
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0 km
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364 km
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territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone:
12 nm
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tropical marine climate, ameliorated by northeast trade winds, results in mild temperatures; semi-arid with average rainfall of 600 mm/year
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generally low, hilly terrain
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lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point:
Mt. Christoffel, 372m
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calcium phosphates, aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit
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arable land: 10%
permanent crops:
0%
other:
90%
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NA
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NA
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NA
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Curacao is south of the Caribbean hurricane belt and is rarely threatened
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NA
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Curacao is a part of the Windward Islands (southern) group
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Papiamentu (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect) 81.2%, Dutch (official) 8%, Spanish 4%, English 2.9%, other 3.9% (2001 census)
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Roman Catholic 80.1%, Protestant 11.2% (Pentecostal 3.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 2.2%, other Protestant 5.5%), none 4.6%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.7%, Jewish 0.8%, other 1.3%, not reported 0.3% (2001 census)
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145,834 (est. January 2010)
country comparison to the world: 188
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0-14 years: 21.1% (male males 15,337/females 14,589)
15-64 years:
66.7% (male males 42,896/females 51,998)
65 years and over:
12.2% (male males 6,972/females 10,388) (2012 est.)
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NA
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NA
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8 deaths/1,000 population (2009)
country comparison to the world: 101
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1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008)
country comparison to the world: 48
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at birth: 1.15 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
0.82 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.67 male(s)/female
total population:
0.85 male(s)/female (2010)
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total: NA
males:
72.4 years
females:
80.1 years (2009)
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2.09 children born/woman (2009)
country comparison to the world: 116
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NA
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NA
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NA
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Dutch long form: Land Curacao
Dutch short form:
Curacao
Papiamentu long form:
Pais Korsou
Papiamentu short form:
Korsou
former:
Netherlands Antilles; Curacao and Dependencies
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constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 2010; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs
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parliamentary
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name: Willemstad
geographic coordinates:
12 06 N, 68 55 W
time difference:
UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
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none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
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Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX), 30 April (1909 and 1980)
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Staatsregeling adopted by island council 5 September 2010; entered into force 10 October 2010; revised Kingdom Charter pending
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based on Dutch civil law system with some English common law influence
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18 years of age; universal
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chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980); represented by Governor General Frits GOEDGEDRAG (since 10 October 2010)
head of government:
Prime Minister Gerrit SCHOTTE (since 10 October 2010)
cabinet:
Executive Council
(For more information visit the World Leaders website )
elections:
the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the parliament; next election is scheduled for 19 October 2012
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unicameral parliament or Staten (21 seats; members elected by popular vote for four year terms)
elections:
last held 27 August 2010 (next to be held in 2014)
election results:
percent of vote by party - PAR 30%, MFK 21%, PS 19%, MAN 9%, FOL 7%, PNP 6%, other 8%; seats by party - PAR 8, MFK 5, PS 4, MAN 2, FOL 1, PNP 1
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Common Court of Justice, Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch)
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Frente Obrero Liberashon (Workers' Liberation Front) or FOL [Anthony GODETT]; Movimentu Antiyas Nobo (New Antilles Movement) or MAN [Charles COOPER]; Movementu Futuro Korsou or MFK [Gerrit SCHOTTE]; Partido Antia Restruktura or PAR [Emily DE JONGH-ELHAGE]; People's National Party or PNP [Ersilia DE LANNOOY]; Pueblo Soberano or PS [Herman WIELS]
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none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
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chief of mission: Consul General Valerie BELON
consulate(s) general:
J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Willemstad, Curacao
mailing address:
P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao
telephone:
[599] (9) 4613066
FAX:
[599] (9) 4616489
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on a blue field a horizontal yellow band somewhat below the center divides the flag into proportions of 5:1:2; two five-pointed white stars - the smaller above and to the left of the larger - appear in the canton; the blue of the upper and lower sections symbolizes the sky and sea respectively; yellow represents the sun; the stars symbolize Curacao and its uninhabited smaller sister island of Klein Curacao; the five star points signify the five continents from which Curacao's people derive
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name: Himmo di Korsou (Anthem of Curacao)
lyrics/music:
Guillermo ROSARIO, Mae HENRIQUEZ, Enrique MULLER, Betty DORAN/Frater Candidus NOWENS, Errol "El Toro" COLINA
note:
adapted 1978; the lyrics, originally written in 1899, were rewritten in 1978 to make them less colonial in nature
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Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP grew slightly during the past decade, the island enjoys a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Curacao has an excellent natural harbor that can accommodate large oil tankers. The Venezuelan state oil company leases the single refinery on the island from the government; most of the oil for the refinery is imported from Venezuela; most of the refined products are exported to the US. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, with the US, Brazil, Italy, and Mexico being the major suppliers. The government is attempting to diversify its industry and trade and has signed an Association Agreement with the EU to expand business there. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. Budgetary problems complicate reform of the health and pension systems for an aging population.
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$2.838 billion (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 179
$2.606 billion (2007 est.)
$2.452 billion (2006 est.)
note:
data are in 2008 US dollars
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$5.08 billion (2008 est.)
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3.5% (2008)
country comparison to the world: 110
2.2% (2007)
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$15,000 (2004 est.)
country comparison to the world: 85
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agriculture: 0.7%
industry:
15.5%
services:
83.8% (2008 est.)
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63,000 (2008 est.) (2008)
country comparison to the world: 187
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agriculture: 1.2%
industry:
16.9%
services:
81.8% (2008 est.)
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10.3% (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 113
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10.8% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 210
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-0.9% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 58
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2.6% (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39
3% (2010 est.)
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aloe, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit
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tourism, petroleum refining, petroleum transshipment facilities, light manufacturing
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NA%
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$1.5 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 148
$1.4 billion (2010 est.)
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petroleum products
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$2.5 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 151
$2.8 billion (2010 est.)
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crude petroleum, food, manufactures
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Netherlands Antillean guilders (ANG) per US dollar -
1.79 (2011 est.)
1.79 (2010 est.)
1.79 (2009)
1.79 (2008)
1.79 (2007)
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1.167 billion kWh (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 145
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968 million kWh (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 151
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0 kWh (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 173
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0 kWh (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 167
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0 bbl (1 January 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 115
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531 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 115
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72,000 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 91
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211,100 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 31
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291,700 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 23
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0 cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 110
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0 cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 127
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0 cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 171
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0 cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 171
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0 cu m (1 January 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 120
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NA
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NA
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general assessment: NA
domestic:
NA
international:
country code - 599
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government-run Telecuracao operates a TV station and a radio station; several privately-owned radio stations
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.cw
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NA
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NA
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1
country comparison to the world: 217
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total: 1
over 3,047 m:
1 (2010)
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total: 550 km
country comparison to the world: 192
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Bullen Baai, Fuik Bay, Willemstad
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no regular military forces; the Dutch government controls foreign and defence policy; Dutch Caribbean Coastguard (DCCG) provides coastline defense; one battalion of Dutch marines provides land forces, (2011)
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no conscription (2010)
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defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
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