The 2010 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency
by three main industries. A 19th century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening in 1924 of an oil refinery. The last decades of the 20th century saw a boom in the tourism industry. Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 and became a separate, autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990.
Geography ::Aruba
Location:
Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela
Geographic coordinates:
12 30 N, 69 58 W
Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 180 sq km country comparison to the world: 217 land: 180 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
68.5 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate:
tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain:
flat with a few hills; scant vegetation
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Ceru Jamanota 188 m
Natural resources:
NEGL; white sandy beaches
Land use:
arable land: 10.53%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 89.47% (2005)
Irrigated land:
0.01 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
hurricanes; lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt and is rarely threatened
Environment - current issues:
NA
Geography - note:
a flat, riverless island renowned for its white sand beaches; its tropical climate is moderated by constant trade winds from the Atlantic Ocean; the temperature is almost constant at about 27 degrees Celsius (81 degrees Fahrenheit)
People ::Aruba
Population:
104,589 country comparison to the world: 192 note: estimate based on a revision of the base population, fertility, and mortality numbers, as well as a revision of 1985–99 migration estimates from outmigration to inmigration, which is assumed to continue into the future; the new results are consistent with the 2000 census (July 2010 est.)
Age structure:
0–14 years: 19.1% (male 9,921/female 9,758)
15–64 years: 70.3% (male 34,676/female 37,752)
65 years and over: 10.6% (male 4,351/female 6,607) (2010 est.)
Median age:
total: 38 years
male: 36.2 years
female: 39.7 years (2010 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.457% (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 86
Birth rate:
12.77 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 157
Death rate:
7.76 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 113
Net migration rate:
9.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 9
Urbanization:
urban population: 47% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 0.1% annual rate of change (2005–10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.021 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female
total population: 0.9 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 13.34 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 131 male: 17.65 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 8.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 75.51 years country comparison to the world: 82 male: 72.47 years
female: 78.61 years (2010 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.85 children born/woman (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 151
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
Nationality:
noun: Aruban(s)
adjective: Aruban; Dutch
Ethnic groups:
mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80%, other 20%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 80.8%, Evangelist 4.1%, Protestant 2.5%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%, Methodist 1.2%, Jewish 0.2%, other 5.1%, none or unspecified 4.6%
Languages:
Papiamento (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect) 66.3%, Spanish 12.6%, English (widely spoken) 7.7%, Dutch (official) 5.8%, other 2.2%, unspecified or unknown 5.3% (2000 census)
Literacy:
definition: NA
total population: 97.3%
male: 97.5%
female: 97.1% (2000 census)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 13 years
male: 13 years
female: 14 years (2008)
Education expenditures:
4.9% of GDP (2007) country comparison to the world: 74
Government ::Aruba
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Aruba
Dependency status:
constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs
Government