Countries > Netherlands > Netherlands Autonomous Countries

Aruba

Map of Aruba
Map of Aruba

Status: Part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

Governor: Fredis Refunjol (2004)

Prime Minister: Nelson O. Oduber (2001)

Current government officials

Total area: 75 sq mi (193 sq km)

Population (2008 est.): 101,541 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 12.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 14.2/1000; life expectancy: 75.0; density per sq mi: 969

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Oranjestad, 20,700

Monetary unit: Aruban guilder/florin

Languages: Dutch (official), Papiamento, English, Spanish

Ethnicity/race: mixed European/Caribbean Indian 80%

Religions: Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish

National Holiday: Flag Day, March 18

Literacy rate: 97% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $2.13 billion; per capita $21,800. Real growth rate: 3.5%. Inflation: 3.8% (2005 est.). Unemployment: 7.3%. Arable land: 11% aloe plantations included (0.01%). Agriculture: aloes; livestock; fish. Labor force: 41,500 (2004 est.); most employment is in wholesale and retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants; oil refining. Industries: tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining. Natural resources: negl.; white sandy beaches. Exports: $80 million f.o.b. (including oil reexports) (2004 est.): live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment, transport equipment. Imports: $875 million f.o.b. (2004 est.): machinery and electrical equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport, chemicals; foodstuffs. Major trading partners: Netherlands, Panama, Venezuela, Netherlands Antilles, Colombia, U.S. (2004).

Major sources and definitions

Aruba, an island slightly larger than Washington, DC, lies 18 mi (28.9 km) off the coast of Venezuela in the southern Caribbean.

The Arawak Indians were the first inhabitants of Aruba. Spain explored the island in 1499, and more than a century later the Netherlands (1636) claimed the island. After a brief rule by the British, the Dutch again took control of the island in 1816, and it officially became part of the Netherlands Antilles in 1845.

On Jan. 1, 1986, Aruba seceded from the federation, but it decided in 1994 to postpone indefinitely the transition to full independence. The Netherlands controls Aruba's defense and foreign affairs, but all internal affairs are handled by an island government directing its own civil service, judiciary, revenue, and currency.

See also Encyclopedia: Aruba
U.S. State Dept. Country Notes: Aruba
Central Bureau of Statistics http://www.aruba.com/extlinks/govs/cbstats.html .


Fact Monster/Information Please® Database, © 2007 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

Netherlands Antilles Netherlands Autonomous Countries

More on Aruba from Fact Monster:

  • Aruba - Aruba Aruba , island, autonomous part of the Netherlands (2005 est. pop. 71,600), 69 sq mi (179 sq ...
  • Aruba - Aruba Profile: People and History, Government, Political Conditions, Economy, Foreign Relations, U.S.-Aruba Relations
  • Aruba - Map of Aruba & articles on flags, geography, history, statistics, disasters current events, and international relations.
  • Current Government Officials: Aruba - World > Heads of State Info Aruba Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments ...
  • Oranjestad - Oranjestad Oranjestad , town and port (1991 pop. 20,045), capital and administrative center of ...