Antigua & Barbuda

Antigua & Barbuda
Status	Independent State
Capital	Saint John's
Land Area	440km21
Location	North America, The Americas, Caribbean
Groupings	Small Islands
Population	90 510 (2011)2
Life Expectancy	76.24yrs (2017)3
GNI	$20 907 (2017)4
ISO3166-1 Codes	AG, ATG, 285
Internet Domain	.ag6
Currency	Dollar (XCD)7
Telephone	+8

1. Overview
2. Antigua & Barbuda National and Social Development
3. Population and Demographics
4. Politics and Freedom
5. Gender Equality
6. Peace Versus Instability
7. Religion and Beliefs
8. The Internet
9. Public Health Issues
10. Children's Health
11. More Charts and Comparisons to Other Countries
12. Links

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1. Overview

“The Siboney were the first people to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 B.C., but Arawak Indians populated the islands when COLUMBUS landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early Spanish and French settlements were succeeded by an English colony in 1667. Slavery, established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in 1834. The islands became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981.”

CIA's The World Factbook (2013)₉

“Frolic on the beach, play golf, indulge in a fancy meal or explore Britain´s naval history in Antigua. ... This improbably shaped splotch of land is ringed with beaches of the finest white sand, made all the more dramatic by the azure waters, which are so clear they´ll bring a tear to your eye or a giggle to your holiday-hungry throat. ... Or escape to remote, unspoiled Barbuda, ... one smooth, sandy low-rise amid the reef-filled waters. Birds, especially the huffing and puffing frigates, greatly outnumber people. Meanwhile, back on Antigua, there are lots of people, many famous. Guitar-picker Eric Clapton, rag-trader Giorgio Armani and tastemaker for the masses Oprah all have winter homes here. Some of the Caribbean's most exclusive resorts shelter in the myriad bays and inlets. But don't worry; mere mortals thrive here as well. No matter your budget, you will find a beach with your name on it.”

"The World" by Lonely Planet (2014)₁₀

2. Antigua & Barbuda National and Social Development

#human_development

UN HDI (2016)11
Pos.		Lower is better Rank11
1	Norway	1
2	Australia	2
3	Switzerland	2
	...
59	Malaysia	59
60	Palau	60
61	Panama	60
62	Antigua & Barbuda	62
63	Seychelles	63
64	Mauritius	64
65	Trinidad & Tobago	65
66	Costa Rica	66
	World Avg	94.3
q=188.

Social & Moral Development Index12
Pos.		Higher is better Points12
1	Denmark	83.6
2	Finland	83.1
3	Sweden	82.6
	...
119	Paraguay	51.4
120	Guyana	51.4
121	Senegal	51.2
122	Antigua & Barbuda	51.2
123	Namibia	51.0
124	Samoa	50.9
125	St Kitts & Nevis	50.9
126	Kenya	50.7
	World Avg	55.4
q=198.

The United Nations produces an annual Human Development Report which includes the Human Development Index. The factors taken into account include life expectancy, education and schooling and Gross National Income (GNI) amongst many others..

The Social and Moral Development Index concentrates on moral issues and human rights, violence, public health, equality, tolerance, freedom and effectiveness in climate change mitigation and environmentalism, and on some technological issues. A country scores higher for achieving well in those areas, and for sustaining that achievement in the long term. Those countries towards the top of this index can truly said to be setting good examples and leading humankind onwards into a bright, humane, and free future. See: What is the Best Country in the World? An Index of Morality, Conscience and Good Life.

3. Population and Demographics

#demographics #health #immigration #life_expectancy #longevity #population

Old-Age Dependency Ratio (2016)13
Pos.		Lower is better Per 10013
1	Uganda	04.3
2	Mali	04.5
3	Chad	04.7
	...
113	Tunisia	18.6
114	Azerbaijan	18.7
115	Colombia	18.8
116	Antigua & Barbuda	19.0
117	St Vincent & Grenadines	19.7
118	Seychelles	19.8
119	St Lucia	19.9
120	Brazil	19.9
	World Avg	18.3
q=185.

Emigrants (2010)14
Pos.		%14
1	Dominica	104.8%
2	Palestine	68.4%
3	Samoa	67.3%
4	Grenada	65.5%
5	St Kitts & Nevis	61.1%
6	Guyana	56.9%
7	Monaco	56.3%
8	Antigua & Barbuda	47.6%
9	Tonga	45.4%
10	Albania	45.4%
11	Barbados	41.0%
12	Suriname	39.0%
	World Avg	11.5%
q=192.

Immigrants (2010)14
Pos.		%14
1	Qatar	86.5%
2	Monaco	71.6%
3	UAE	70.0%
	...
17	Palau	28.1%
18	Saudi Arabia	27.8%
19	Australia	25.7%
20	Antigua & Barbuda	23.6%
21	Switzerland	23.2%
22	New Zealand	22.4%
23	Canada	21.3%
24	Ireland	19.6%
	World Avg	9.2%
q=192.

Life Expectancy (2015)15
Pos.		Higher is better Years15
1	Hong Kong	84.16
2	Japan	83.68
3	Italy	83.34
	...
53	Argentina	76.46
54	Slovakia	76.41
55	Montenegro	76.40
56	Antigua & Barbuda	76.24
57	Ecuador	76.12
58	China	75.96
59	Vietnam	75.94
60	Jamaica	75.82
	World Avg	71.27
q=190.

Population (2012)16
Pos.		Population16
1	China	1.4b
2	India	1.3b
3	USA	315.8m
	...
181	Grenada	0.1m
182	Tonga	0.1m
183	Kiribati	0.1m
184	Antigua & Barbuda	90 510
185	Andorra	87 518
186	Seychelles	87 169
187	Dominica	67 665
188	Marshall Islands	55 717
	World Avg	36.0m
q=195.

Antigua & Barbuda's population is predicted to rise to 104 643 by 2030.

• The Population of the Earth
• Abortion, Birth Control and Contraception

4. Politics and Freedom

#human_rights

Nominal Commitment to HR (2009)17
Pos.		Higher is better Treaties17
1	Argentina	24
2	Chile	23
3	Costa Rica	23
	...
131	Afghanistan	13
132	Gambia	13
133	Equatorial Guinea	13
134	Antigua & Barbuda	13
135	Nepal	13
136	Djibouti	13
137	Ethiopia	12
138	Haiti	12
	World Avg	15.1
q=194.

There are many international agreements on human rights, and, many mechanisms by which countries can be brought to account for their actions. Together, these have been the biggest historical movement in the fight against oppression and inhumanity. Or, putting it another way: these are rejected mostly by those who wish to oppress inhumanely. None of them are perfect and many people object to various components and wordings, but, no-one has come up with, and enforced, better methods of controlling the occasional desires that states and peoples have of causing angst for other states and peoples in a violent, unjust or inhumane way. Points are awarded for the number of human rights agreements ratified by the country, plus the acceptance of the petition mechanisms for disputes. The maximum possible score in 2009 was 24.

5. Gender Equality

#christianity #gender_equality #human_rights #politics #women

Year Women Can Vote18
Pos.		Lower is better Year18
1	New Zealand	1893
2	Australia	1902
3	Finland	1906
	...
82	Barbados	1950
83	India	1950
84	Haiti	1950
85	Antigua & Barbuda	1951
86	Grenada	1951
87	Nepal	1951
88	Dominica	1951
89	St Kitts & Nevis	1951
	World Avg	1930
q=189.

Women now have equal rights in the vast majority of countries across the world. Although academic literature oftens talks of when a country "grants women the right to vote", this enforces a backwards way of thinking. Women always had the right to vote, however, they were frequently denied that right. The opposition to women's ability to vote in equality with man was most consistently and powerfully opposed by the Catholic Church, other Christian organisations, Islamic authorities and some other religious and secular traditionalists.

The 1950s saw a late rush of 43 countries, including Antigua & Barbuda and many developing nations, move to cease preventing women from voting.

See:

• "Religion Versus Womankind" by Vexen Crabtree (2007)

6. Peace Versus Instability

Peacekeeping and Security (2017)19
Pos.		Lower is better Rank19
1	Samoa	1
2	S. Africa	2
3	Tunisia	3
	...
100	Luxembourg	100
101	Niger	101
102	Lesotho	102
103	Antigua & Barbuda	103
104	Latvia	104
105	Laos	105
106	Mozambique	106
107	Poland	107
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Refugees and UN Treaties (2017)19
Pos.		Lower is better Rank19
1	Austria	1
2	Germany	2
3	Netherlands	3
	...
128	Yemen	128
129	Pakistan	129
130	Samoa	130
131	Antigua & Barbuda	131
132	Azerbaijan	132
133	Togo	133
134	St Vincent & Grenadines	134
135	Afghanistan	135
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

7. Religion and Beliefs

#buddhism #christianity #hinduism #islam #judaism

Data from the Pew Forum, a professional polling outfit, states that in 2010 the religious makeup of this country was as follows in the table below₂₀:

Christian	93%
Muslim	0.6%
Hindu	0.2%
Buddhist	0.1%
Folk Religion	3.6%
Jew	0.1%
Unaffiliated	1.7%

The CIA World Factbook has slightly different data, and states: Protestant 76.4% (Anglican 25.7%, Seventh-Day Adventist 12.3%, Pentecostal 10.6%, Moravian 10.5%, Methodist 7.9%, Baptist 4.9%, Church of God 4.5%), Roman Catholic 10.4%, other Christian 5.4%, other 2%, none or unspecified 5.8% (2001 census)₂₁.

Links:

• A List of All Religions and Belief Systems

8. The Internet

#internet #the_internet

Internet Users (2016)22
Pos.		Higher is better22
1	Iceland	100%
2	Faroe Islands	99%
3	Norway	98%
	...
66	Dominica	66%
67	Italy	66%
68	Uruguay	65%
69	Antigua & Barbuda	65%
70	Greece	65%
71	Saudi Arabia	65%
72	French Polynesia	64%
73	Albania	63%
	World Avg	48.1%
q=201.

IPv6 Uptake (2017)23
Pos.		Higher is better Ratio23
1	Belgium	55.4
2	Germany	41.8
3	Switzerland	35.1
	...
110	Kuwait	0.0
111	Guernsey	0.0
112	Bahamas	0.0
113	Antigua & Barbuda	0.0
114	Venezuela	0.0
115	Kazakhstan	0.0
116	New Caledonia	0.0
117	Maldives	0.0
	World Avg	3.82
q=176.

Internet access has become an essential research tool. It facilitates an endless list of life improvements, from the ability to network and socialize without constraint, to access to a seemingly infinite repository of technical and procedural information on pretty much any task. The universal availability of data has sped up industrial development and personal learning at the national and personal level. Individuals can read any topic they wish regardless of the locality of expert teachers, and, entire nations can develop their technology and understanding of the world simply because they are now exposed to advanced societies and moral discourses online. Like every communications medium, the Internet has issues and causes a small range of problems, but these are insignificant compared to the advantages of having an online populace.

9. Public Health Issues

#alcohol #genetics #health #obesity #public_health #smoking #sociology #UK

Antigua & Barbuda does relatively well in encouraging good health, compared to many other countries. Antigua & Barbuda comes in the best 20 for its immunizations take-up₂₄ (one of the highest in The Americas). It does better than average for its smoking rate₂₅ (but bad for The Americas) and in the prevalence of overweight adults₂₆ (one of the best in The Americas). Antigua & Barbuda does not succeed in everything, however. It does worse than average for its adolescent birth rate₂₇ (still low for The Americas), its alcohol consumption rate₂₈ and in its food aid and health contributions and WHO compliance₁₉. The prevalence of overweight adults has increased by 14% during the past 40 years.

Alcohol Consumption (2016)28
Pos.		Lower is better Per Capita28
1	Bangladesh	0.0
2	Kuwait	0.0
3	Libya	0.0
	...
102	Belize	6.8
103	Sao Tome & Principe	6.8
104	Dominican Rep.	6.9
105	Antigua & Barbuda	7.0
106	Niue	7.0
107	China	7.2
108	Paraguay	7.2
109	Mongolia	7.4
	World Avg	6.2
q=189.

There is nothing wrong with drinking modest and sensible amounts of alcohol but fitness, physical health, mental health and long-term health all suffer as a result of medium- or heavy- drinking₂₉ and the health risks to the baby when pregnant mothers drink₃₀ are well-known. Aside from the effects on the individual, alcohol misuse impacts on entire economies₃₁ via increased health service costs, policing costs and lost days' work. Worldwide, alcohol misuse is "among the top five risk factors for disease, disability and death" and is a "cause of more than 200 disease and injury conditions in individuals, most notably alcohol dependence, liver cirrhosis, cancers and injuries"₃₂. "In 2012... 5.9% of all global deaths, were attributable to alcohol consumption"₃₃. Deaths from chronic alcohol misuse have been rising for decades, and so has violence, abuse, vandalism and crime all associated with alcohol over-use. The aggression and crime associated with alcohol in some Western countries infringes on the human rights of those who want nothing to do with such behaviour. Many of the social effects of alcohol are psychological and cultural; i.e., people don't have to behave criminally or destructively whilst drunk - it is a culturally learned behaviour. Experiments have shown that behaviour can be controlled: Those who do not wish to behave badly whilst drunk, will not do so.

Food Aid, Health Contributions & WHO Compliance (2017)19
Pos.		Lower is better Rank19
1	Sweden	1
2	Ireland	2
3	Denmark	3
	...
121	Guinea-Bissau	121
122	Argentina	122
123	Laos	123
124	Antigua & Barbuda	124
125	Burkina Faso	125
126	Mauritius	126
127	Congo, DR	127
128	Gabon	128
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Overweight Adults (2016)26
Pos.		Lower is better %26
1	Vietnam	18.3
2	India	19.7
3	Bangladesh	20.0
	...
70	Botswana	43.4
71	Tajikistan	45.3
72	Trinidad & Tobago	46.0
73	Antigua & Barbuda	48.0
74	St Lucia	48.1
75	Uzbekistan	48.2
76	Kyrgyzstan	48.3
77	Yemen	48.8
	World Avg	49.0
q=191.

About one third of the global population is overweight or obese₃₄. Most Western countries are facing an obesity epidemic. Our cultures are having to change to compensate for widespread ill-health. It is costing our health systems a massive amount of money, and is having negative effects on national economies. The situation has persisted for a suitable length of time for our very perceptions to change; opinions on "normal weights" for people and "average sizes" for clothes has shot up₃₅. Over 2 in 3 adults in the UK are overweight₃₅ and this costs the NHS £5.1 billion per year₃₆ and "costs Britain's economy £47bn a year; more than war, terrorism or armed violence"₃₇. We are forgetting how to be healthy.

The causes are not genetic. Most people who say obesity "runs in their family" are wrong. The rate of increase in obesity is many, many times too fast to be accounted for by a change in inherited genes₃₈. Our culture and lifestyle choices are to blame. The causes of the modern obesity epidemic are processed foods, low levels of physical exercise, over-indulgence, poor choices in food products, poor knowledge of nutrition. Most of this is made much worse by well-funded advertising campaigns by food manufacturers selling cheaper mass-produced food. Even some so-called "health foods" contain well over recommended limits of fat, salt and sugar₃₉.

Smoking Rates (2014)25
Pos.		Lower is better25
1	Guinea	15
2	Solomon Islands	26
3	Kiribati	28
	...
65	St Vincent & Grenadines	338
66	Hong Kong	345
67	Colombia	359
68	Antigua & Barbuda	362
69	Yemen	388
70	S. Sudan	398
71	Belize	400
72	Swaziland	427
	World Avg	819
q=182.

10. Children's Health

#health #parenting #population #vaccines

Adolescent Birth Rate (2015)27
Pos.		Lower is better Per 100027
1	N. Korea	0.5
2	S. Korea	1.6
3	Switzerland	2.9
	...
97	Barbados	40.7
98	Vanuatu	43.1
99	Thailand	44.6
100	Antigua & Barbuda	44.8
101	Fiji	44.8
102	S. Africa	45.5
103	Cuba	45.6
104	Suriname	46.1
	World Avg	47.9
q=185.

Infant Immunizations 2011-2015 (2015)24
Pos.		Higher is better Avg %24
1	Hungary	99.0
2	China	99.0
3	Uzbekistan	98.9
	...
14	Saudi Arabia	98.0
15	Luxembourg	98.0
16	Oman	98.0
17	Antigua & Barbuda	98.0
18	Cuba	97.9
19	Belgium	97.8
20	Thailand	97.8
21	Mauritius	97.6
	World Avg	88.3
q=194.

11. More Charts and Comparisons to Other Countries