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
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 (2018)

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
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]

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 Allen CHASTANET (since 7 June 2016)
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 6 June 2016 (next to be held in 2021)
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 - UWP 54.8%, SLP 44.1%, other 1.1%; seats by party - UWP 11, SLP 6; composition - men 14, women 3, percent of women 17.6%; note - total Parliament percent of women 21.4%

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:
Ambassador Anton Edsel EDMUNDS (since 8 September 2017)
chancery: 1628 K Street NW, Suite 1250, Washington, DC 20006
telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795
FAX: [1] (202) 364-6723
consulate(s) general: New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
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 symbol(s):
twin pitons (volcanic peaks), Saint Lucia parrot; national colors: cerulean blue, gold, black, white

National anthem:
name: Sons and Daughters of St. Lucia
lyrics/music: Charles JESSE/Leton Felix THOMAS
note: adopted 1967