JAMAICA

Official name: JAMAICA

Date of membership: 4 April 1976

Capital: Kingston

Government

Administrative divisions: 14 parishes: Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation

Independence: 6 August 1962 (from UK)

Constitution: 6 August 1962

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: Chief of State: Queen Elizabeth II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Dr. Patrick L. Allen (since 26 February 2009).

Head of government: Prime Minister Hon. Andrew Holness

Legislative branch: Bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms).

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal.

Internet country code: .jm

Official Portal Web: http://www.jis.gov.jm

Geography

Location: Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba

Area: 10,991 sq km

Coastline: 1,022 km

Natural resources: Bauxite, gypsum, limestone

Environment - international agreements: Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection.

Economic indicators 

Source: Jamaica: Economic National Profile. CEPALSTAT. Databases and Statistical Publications. ECLAC. On line. Inquiry: July 07, 2019.

Socio-demographic indicators