| Country name | conventional long form: none conventional short form: Saint Lucia etymology: named after Saint LUCY of Syracuse by French sailors who were shipwrecked on the island on 13 December 1502, the saint's feast day; Saint Lucia is the only country named specifically after a woman note: pronounced saynt-looshya |
| Government type | parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm |
| Capital | name: Castries geographic coordinates: 14 00 N, 61 00 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: in 1785, the village of Carenage was renamed Castries, after Charles Eugene Gabriel de La Croix de Castries (1727-1801), who was then the French Minister of the Navy and Colonies |
| Administrative divisions | 10 districts; Anse-la-Raye, Canaries, Castries, Choiseul, Dennery, Gros-Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Soufriere, Vieux-Fort |
| Independence | 22 February 1979 (from the UK) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 22 February (1979) |
| Constitution | history: previous 1958, 1960 (preindependence); latest presented 20 December 1978, effective 22 February 1979 amendments: proposed by Parliament; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote by the House of Assembly membership in the final reading and assent of the governor general; passage of amendments to various constitutional sections, such as those on fundamental rights and freedoms, government finances, the judiciary, and procedures for amending the constitution, require at least three-quarters majority vote by the House and assent of the governor general; passage of amendments approved by the House but rejected by the Senate require a majority of votes cast in a referendum; amended several times, last in 2008 |
| Legal system | English common law |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: yes citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Saint Lucia dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 8 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Neville CENAC (since 12 January 2018) head of government: Prime Minister Philip J. PIERRE (since 28 July 2021) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by governor general |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral Parliament consists of: Senate (11 seats; 6 members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, 3 on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and 2 upon consultation with religious, economic, and social groups; members serve 5-year terms) House of Assembly (17 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 5-year terms) elections: Senate - last appointments on 12 July 2016 (next in 2021) House of Assembly - last held on 26 July 2021 (next to be held in 2026) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; composition - men 8, women 3, percent of women 27.3% House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - SLP 50.1%, UWP 42.9%, independent 6.6%; seats by party - SLP 13, UWP 2, independent 2; composition - NA, percent of women NA; note - total Parliament percent of women NA |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is the superior court of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States; the ECSC - headquartered on St. Lucia - consists of the Court of Appeal - headed by the chief justice and 4 judges - and the High Court with 18 judges; the Court of Appeal is itinerant, traveling to member states on a schedule to hear appeals from the High Court and subordinate courts; High Court judges reside in the member states with 4 on Saint Lucia; Saint Lucia is a member of the Caribbean Court of Justice judge selection and term of office: chief justice of Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court appointed by Her Majesty, Queen ELIZABETH II; other justices and judges appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission, an independent body of judicial officials; Court of Appeal justices appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 65; High Court judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 62 subordinate courts: magistrate's court |
| Political parties and leaders | Lucian People's Movement or LPM [Therold PRUDENT] Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Philip J. PIERRE] United Workers Party or UWP [Allen CHASTANET] |
| International organization participation | ACP, AOSIS, C, Caricom, CD, CDB, CELAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OIF, OPANAL, OPCW, Petrocaribe, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Anton Edsel EDMUNDS (since 8 September 2017) chancery: 1629 K Street NW, Suite 1250, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6723 email address and website: embassydc@gosl.gov.lc https://www.embassyofstlucia.org/ consulate(s) general: New York |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | embassy: the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Saint Lucia |
| Flag description | cerulean blue with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border; the blue color represents the sky and sea, gold stands for sunshine and prosperity, and white and black the racial composition of the island (with the latter being dominant); the two major triangles invoke the twin Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit Piton), cone-shaped volcanic plugs that are a symbol of the island |
| National anthem | name: Sons and Daughters of St. Lucia lyrics/music: Charles JESSE/Leton Felix THOMAS note: adopted 1967 |
| National symbol(s) | twin pitons (volcanic peaks), Saint Lucia parrot; national colors: cerulean blue, gold, black, white |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
