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 Travel Tips Trinidad and Tobago
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Find important informations
about Trinidad and Tobago
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When Trinidad was explored by Columbus in 1498, it was inhabited by the Arawaks; Carib Indians inhabited Tobago. Trinidad remained in Spanish possession, despite raids by other European nations, until it was ceded to Britain in 1802. Tobago passed between Britain and France several times, but it was ultimately given to Britain in 1814. Slavery was abolished in 1834. Between 1845 and 1917, thousands of indentured workers were brought from India to work on sugarcane plantations. In 1889 Trinidad and Tobago were made a single colony. Eric Williams, “Father of the Nation” and leader of the People's National Movement (PNM), which is largely supported by blacks, governed from 1956 until his death in 1981. In Dec. 1986 the multiracial National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR), based in Tobago, won a parliamentary majority, promising to sell most state-owned companies, reorganize the civil service, and reduce dependence on oil. In 1990, to protest the NAR government, some 100 radical black Muslims blew up the police station in an attempted coup, in which the prime minister and other officials were held hostage for six days. The NAR was defeated in 1991, and the PNM returned to power. In 1995, the East Indian–based party, the United National Congress (UNC), led by Basdeo Panday, formed a coalition government with the NAR. In 2000, Panday narrowly won another term. In Dec. 2001 elections, the governing UNC Party and the PNM Party gained 18 seats each. The two parties agreed to allow President Robinson to select the prime minister to end the impasse. But when Robinson chose Patrick Manning of the PNM because of his “moral and spiritual values,” the opposition angrily called for new elections. In the Oct. 2002 elections, Manning's party declared victory. Maxwell Richards, a university dean, was selected president by parliament in 2003.
The country is one of the most prosperous in the Caribbean thanks largely to petroleum and natural gas production and processing. Tourism, mostly in Tobago, is targeted for expansion and is growing.
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Trinidad and Tobago lie in the Caribbean Sea off the northeast coast of Venezuela. Trinidad, the larger at 1,864 sq mi (4,828 sq km), is mainly flat and rolling, with mountains in the north that reach a height of 3,085 ft (940 m) at Mount Aripo. Tobago, at just 116 sq mi (300 sq km), is heavily forested with hardwood trees.
Location: |
Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela |
Coordinates: |
11 00 N, 61 00 W |
Area: |
total: 5,128 sq km
land: 5,128 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
Area comparative: |
slightly smaller than Delaware |
Land boundaries: |
0 km |
Coastline: |
362 km |
Maritime claims: |
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the outer edge of the continental margin
contiguous zone: 24 NM |
Climate: |
tropical; rainy season (June to December) |
Terrain: |
mostly plains with some hills and low mountains |
Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: El Cerro del Aripo 940 m |
Natural resources: |
petroleum, natural gas, asphalt |
Natural hazards: |
outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms |
Environment current issues: |
water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and raw sewage; oil pollution of beaches; deforestation; soil erosion |
Geography - note: |
Pitch Lake, on Trinidad's southwestern coast, is the world's largest natural reservoir of asphalt |
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Population: |
1,065,842 (July 2006 est.) |
Age structure: |
0-14 years: 20.1% (male 109,936/female 104,076)
15-64 years: 71.3% (male 398,657/female 361,093)
65 years and over: 8.6% (male 41,162/female 50,918) |
Median age: |
31.2 years |
Growth rate: |
-0.87% |
Infant mortality: |
25.05 deaths/1,000 live births |
Life expectancy at birth: |
total population: 66.76 years
male: 65.71 years
female: 67.86 years |
Fertility rate: |
1.74 children born/woman |
Nationality: |
noun: Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s)
adjective: Trinidadian, Tobagonian |
Ethnic groups: |
East Indian (a local term - primarily immigrants from northern India) 40.3%, black 39.5%, mixed 18.4%, white 0.6%, Chinese and other 1.2% |
Religions: |
Roman Catholic 29.4%, Hindu 23.8%, Anglican 10.9%, Muslim 5.8%, Presbyterian 3.4%, other 26.7% |
Languages: |
English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish, Chinese |
Literacy: |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.6%
male: 99.1%
female: 98% |
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Country name: |
conventional long form: Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
conventional short form: Trinidad and Tobago |
Government type: |
parliamentary democracy |
Capital: |
Port-of-Spain |
Administrative divisions: |
8 counties, 3 municipalities*, and 1 ward**; Arima*, Caroni, Mayaro, Nariva, Port-of-Spain*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick, San Fernando*, Tobago**, Victoria |
Independence: |
31 August 1962 (from UK) |
National holiday: |
Independence Day, 31 August (1962) |
Constitution: |
1 August 1976 |
Legal system: |
based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Suffrage: |
18 years of age; universal |
Executive branch: |
chief of state: President George Maxwell RICHARDS
head of government: Prime Minister Patrick MANNING
cabinet: Cabinet appointed from among the members of Parliament
elections: president elected by an electoral college, which consists of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); the president usually appoints as prime minister the leader of the majority party in the House of Representatives |
Legislative branch: |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (31 seats; 16 members appointed by the ruling party, 9 by the President, 6 by the opposition party for a maximum term of five years) and the House of Representatives (36 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) |
Judicial branch: |
Supreme Court of Judicature (comprised of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeals; the chief justice is appointed by the president after consultation with the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; other justices are appointed by the president on the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission); High Court of Justice; Caribbean Court of Appeals member; Court of Appeals; the highest court of appeal is the Privy Council in London |
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Trinidad and Tobago, the leading Caribbean producer of oil and gas, has earned a reputation as an excellent investment site for international businesses. The government is coping with a rise in violent crime. Tourism is a growing sector, although not proportionately as important as in many other Caribbean islands. The economy benefits from low inflation and a growing trade surplus. Prospects for growth in 2006 are good as prices for oil, petrochemicals, and liquefied natural gas are expected to remain high, and foreign direct investment continues to grow to support expanded capacity in the energy sector.
GDP/PPP (2005 est.): $13.92 billion; per capita $12,900. Real growth rate: 7%. Inflation: 6.8%. Unemployment: 8%. Arable land: 15%. Agriculture: cocoa, rice, citrus, coffee, vegetables; poultry. Labor force: 620,000; construction and utilities 12.4%, manufacturing, mining, and quarrying 14%, agriculture 9.5%, services 64.1% (1997 est.). Industries: petroleum, chemicals, tourism, food processing, cement, beverage, cotton textiles. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, asphalt. Exports: $9.161 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, steel products, fertilizer, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus, flowers. Imports: $6.011 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, live animals. Major trading partners: U.S., Jamaica, France, Venezuela, Germany, Brazil, Spain, Italy (2004).
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