s, and stop illegal cross-border trade,
migration, violence, and transit of terrorists through the porous
border; Bangladesh protests India's attempts to fence off
high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; a joint
Bangladesh-India boundary inspection in 2005 revealed 92 pillars are
missing; dispute with India over New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha
Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation;
Burmese Muslim refugees strain Bangladesh's meager resources

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
IDPs: 61,000 (land conflicts, religious persecution) (2004)

Illicit drugs:
transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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@Barbados

Introduction Barbados

Background:
The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in
1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island
until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily
dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the
20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political
reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the
UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the
sugar industry in economic importance.

Geography Barbados

Location:
Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of
Venezuela

Geographic coordinates:
13 10 N, 59 32 W

Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total: 431 sq km
land: 431 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:
2.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
97 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate:
tropical; rainy season (June to October)

Terrain:
relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m

Natural resources:
petroleum, fish, natural gas

Land use:
arable land: 37.21%
permanent crops: 2.33%
other: 60.46% (2001)

Irrigated land:
10 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides

Environment - current issues:
pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil
erosion; illegal soli