s fertile ecosystem, food
production often does not keep pace with population growth,
requiring food imports. Rwanda continues to receive substantial aid
money and was approved for IMF-World Bank Heavily Indebted Poor
Country (HIPC) initiative debt relief in late 2000. Kigali's high
defense expenditures have caused tension between the government and
international donors and lending agencies. An energy shortage and
instability in neighboring states may slow growth in 2005, while the
lack of adequate transportation linkages to other countries
continues to handicap export growth.

Saint Helena
The economy depends largely on financial assistance
from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost
one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns
income from fishing, raising livestock, and sales of handicrafts.
Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek
employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK.

Saint Kitts and Nevis
Sugar was the traditional mainstay of the
Saint Kitts economy until the 1970s. Although the crop still
dominates the agricultural sector, activities such as tourism,
export-oriented manufacturing, and offshore banking have assumed
larger roles in the economy. Tourism revenues are now the chief
source of the islands' foreign exchange. The opening of a 470-room
resort in February 2003 was expected to bring in much-needed revenue.

Saint Lucia
Changes in the EU import preference regime and the
increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic
diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. The island
nation has been able to attract foreign business and investment,
especially in its offshore banking and tourism industries. The
manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean
area, and the government is trying to revitalize the banana
industry. Economic fundamentals remain solid, even though
unemployment needs to be cut.

Saint Pierre and Miquelon
The inhabitants have traditionally earned
their livelihood by fishing and by servicing fishing fleets
operating off the coast of Newfoundland. The economy has been
declining, however, because of disputes with Canada over fishing
quotas and a steady decline in the number of ships stopping at Saint
Pierre. In 1992, an arbitration panel awarded the islands an
exclusive econom