Introduction
Background
The original Arawak Indian settlers who arrived on the island from South America in about A.D. 1000, were largely enslaved by the Spanish early in the 16th century and forcibly relocated to other colonies where labor was needed. Curacao was seized by the Dutch from the Spanish in 1634. Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, Curacao was hard hit economically by the Dutch abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of the Isla Refineria to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oilfields. In 1954, Curacao and several other Dutch Caribbean colonies were reorganized as the Netherlands Antilles, part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In referenda in 2005 and 2009, the citizens of Curacao voted to become a self-governing country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The change in status became effective in October 2010 with the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles.
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Geography
Location
Caribbean, an island in the Caribbean Sea, 55 km off the coast of Venezuela
Geographic coordinates
12 10 N, 69 00 W
Map references
Central America and the Caribbean
Area - comparative
more than twice the size of Washington, DC
Coastline
364 km
Maritime claims
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate
tropical marine climate, ameliorated by northeast trade winds, results in mild temperatures; semiarid with average rainfall of 60 cm/year
Terrain
generally low, hilly terrain
Elevation
highest point: Mt. Christoffel 372 m
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
Natural resources
calcium phosphates, protected harbors, hot springs
Land use
agricultural land: 10% (2018 est.)
arable land: 10% (2018)
other: 90% (2018 est.)
Population distribution
largest concentration on the island is Willemstad; smaller settlements near the coast can be found throughout the island, particularly in the northwest
Natural hazards
Curacao is south of the Caribbean hurricane belt and is rarely threatened
Geography - note
Curacao is a part of the Windward Islands (southern) group in the Lesser Antilles
People and Society
Nationality
noun: Curacaoan
adjective: Curacaoan; Dutch
Ethnic groups
Curacaoan 75.4%, Dutch 6%, Dominican 3.6%, Colombian 3%, Bonairean, Sint Eustatian, Saban 1.5%, Haitian 1.2%, Surinamese 1.2%, Venezuelan 1.1%, Aruban 1.1%, other 5%, unspecified 0.9% (2011 est.)
Languages
Papiamento (official) (a creole language that is a mixture of Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, English, and, to a lesser extent, French, as well as elements of African languages and the language of the Arawak) 80%, Dutch (official) 8.8%, Spanish 5.6%, English (official) 3.1%, other 2.3%, unspecified 0.3% (2011 est.)
note: data represent most spoken language in household
Religions
Roman Catholic 72.8%, Pentecostal 6.6%, Protestant 3.2%, Adventist 3%, Jehovah's Witness 2%, Evangelical 1.9%, other 3.8%, none 6%, unspecified 0.6% (2011 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years: 19.3% (male 15,107/female 14,390)
15-64 years: 62.7% (male 47,299/female 48,538)
65 years and over: 18% (2023 est.) (male 11,096/female 16,419)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio: 47
youth dependency ratio: 25.6
elderly dependency ratio: 21.4
potential support ratio: 4.7 (2021 est.)
Median age
total: 36.7 years
male: 34.4 years
female: 39.5 years (2020 est.)
Population distribution
largest concentration on the island is Willemstad; smaller settlements near the coast can be found throughout the island, particularly in the northwest
Urbanization
urban population: 89% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 0.57% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas - population
144,000 WILLEMSTAD (capital) (2018)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2023 est.)
Infant mortality rate
total: 7.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.5 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 6.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 79.65 years
male: 77.33 years
female: 82.09 years (2023 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
0.96 (2023 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: total: 100% of population
unimproved: total: 0% of population (2017)
Sanitation facility access
improved: total: 100% of population
unimproved: total: 0% of population (2017)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
49.7% (2023 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
total: 17 years
male: 18 years
female: 18 years (2013)
Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)
total: 42.2%
male: 38.1%
female: 47.1% (2020 est.)
Environment
Environment - current issues
problems in waste management that threaten environmental sustainability on the island include pollution of marine areas from domestic sewage, inadequate sewage treatment facilities, industrial effluents and agricultural runoff, the mismanagement of toxic substances, and ineffective regulations; the refinery in Sint Anna Bay, at the eastern edge of Willemstad’s large natural harbor, processes heavy crude oil from Venezuela; it has caused significant environmental damage to the surrounding area because of neglect and a lack of strict environmental controls; the release of noxious fumes and potentially hazardous particles causes schools downwind to regularly close
Climate
tropical marine climate, ameliorated by northeast trade winds, results in mild temperatures; semiarid with average rainfall of 60 cm/year
Land use
agricultural land: 10% (2018 est.)
arable land: 10% (2018)
other: 90% (2018 est.)
Urbanization
urban population: 89% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 0.57% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Air pollutants
carbon dioxide emissions: 5.39 megatons (2016 est.)
Waste and recycling
municipal solid waste generated annually: 24,704 tons (2013 est.)
municipal solid waste recycled annually: 494 tons (2013 est.)
percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 2% (2013 est.)
Government
Country name
conventional long form: Country of Curacao
conventional short form: Curacao
local long form: Land Curacao (Dutch)/ Pais Korsou (Papiamento)
local short form: Curacao (Dutch)/ Korsou (Papiamento)
former: Netherlands Antilles; Curacao and Dependencies
etymology: the most plausible name derivation is that the island was designated Isla de la Curacion (Spanish meaning "Island of the Cure" or "Island of Healing") or Ilha da Curacao (Portuguese meaning the same) to reflect the locale's function as a recovery stop for sick crewmen
Government type
parliamentary democracy
Dependency status
constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 2010; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs
Capital
name: Willemstad
geographic coordinates: 12 06 N, 68 55 W
time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
etymology: named after Prince WILLIAM II of Orange (1626-1650), who served as stadtholder (Dutch head of state) from 1647 to 1650, shortly after the the Dutch captured Curacao from the Spanish in 1634
Administrative divisions
none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
note: Curacao is one of four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; the other three are the Netherlands, Aruba, and Sint Maarten
Independence
none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
National holiday
King's Day (birthday of King WILLEM-ALEXANDER), 27 April (1967); note - King's or Queen's Day are observed on the ruling monarch's birthday; celebrated on 26 April if 27 April is a Sunday
Constitution
history: previous 1947, 1955; latest adopted 5 September 2010, entered into force 10 October 2010 (regulates governance of Curacao but is subordinate to the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands); note - in October 2010, with the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles, Curacao became a semi-autonomous entity within the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Legal system
based on Dutch civil law
Citizenship
see the Netherlands
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch
chief of state: King WILLEM-ALEXANDER of the Netherlands (since 30 April 2013); represented by Governor Lucille A. GEORGE-WOUT (since 4 November 2013)
head of government: Prime Minister Gilmar PISAS (since 14 June 2021)
cabinet: Cabinet sworn-in by the governor
elections/appointments: the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually elected prime minister by the Parliament of Curacao; last election 19 March 2021 (next to be held in 2025)
Legislative branch
description: unicameral Parliament of Curacao (21 seats; members directly elected by party-list proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held on 19 March 2021 (next to be held in 2025)
election results: percent of vote by party - MFK 28.1%, PAR 14.1%, PNP 12.6%, MAN 6.5%, KEM 5.4%, TPK 5.3%; seats by party - MFK 9, PAR 4, PNP 4, MAN 2, KEM 1, TPK 1; composition - NA
Judicial branch
highest court(s): Joint Court of Justice of Aruba, Curacao, Sint Maarten, and of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba or "Joint Court of Justice" (sits as a 3-judge panel); final appeals heard by the Supreme Court, in The Hague, Netherlands
judge selection and term of office: Joint Court judges appointed by the monarch for life
subordinate courts: first instance courts, appeals court; specialized courts
Political parties and leaders
Korsou di Nos Tur or KdnT [Amparo dos SANTOS]
Korsou Esun Miho or KEM [Michelangelo MARTINES]
Movementu Futuro Korsou or MFK [Gilmar PISAS]
Movementu Progresivo or MP [Marylin MOSES]
Movishon Antia Nobo or MAN [Hensley KOEIMAN]
Partido Antia Restruktura or PAR [Eugene RHUGGENAATH]
Partido Inovashon Nashonal or PIN [Suzanne CAMELIA-ROMER]
Partido Nashonal di Pueblo or PNP [Ruthmilda LARMONIE-CECILIA]
Pueblo Soberano or PS [Ben WHITEMAN]
Trabou pa Kòrsou or TPK [Rennox CALMES]
Un Korsou Hustu [Omayra LEEFLANG]
International organization participation
Caricom (observer), FATF, ILO, ITU, UNESCO (associate), UPU
Diplomatic representation in the US
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission: Consul General Margy BOND (since January 2022); note - also accredited to Aruba and Sint Maarten
embassy: P.O. Box 158, J.B. Gorsiraweg 1
mailing address: 3160 Curacao Place, Washington DC 20521-3160
telephone: [599] (9) 461-3066
FAX: [599] (9) 461-6489
email address and website:
ACSCuracao@state.gov
https://cw.usconsulate.gov/
Flag description
on a blue field a horizontal yellow band somewhat below the center divides the flag into proportions of 5:1:2; two five-pointed white stars - the smaller above and to the left of the larger - appear in the canton; the blue of the upper and lower sections symbolizes the sky and sea respectively; yellow represents the sun; the stars symbolize Curacao and its uninhabited smaller sister island of Klein Curacao; the five star points signify the five continents from which Curacao's people derive
National symbol(s)
laraha (citrus tree); national colors: blue, yellow, white
National anthem
name: "Himmo di Korsou" (Anthem of Curacao)
lyrics/music: Guillermo ROSARIO, Mae HENRIQUEZ, Enrique MULLER, Betty DORAN/Frater Candidus NOWENS, Errol "El Toro" COLINA
note: adapted 1978; the lyrics, originally written in 1899, were rewritten in 1978 to make them less colonial in nature
National heritage
total World Heritage Sites: 1 (cultural); note - excerpted from the Netherlands entry
selected World Heritage Site locales: Historic Willemstad
Economy
Economic overview
high-income island economy; developed infrastructure; tourism and financial services-based economy; investing in information technology incentives; oil refineries service Venezuela and China; unique COVID-19 stimulus support applied to government debts rather than household support
Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
$3.167 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in 2017 dollars
$3.038 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in 2017 dollars
$3.725 billion (2019 est.)
Real GDP growth rate
4.23% (2021 est.)
-18.44% (2020 est.)
-3.37% (2019 est.)
Real GDP per capita
$20,800 (2021 est.) note: data are in 2017 dollars
$19,600 (2020 est.) note: data are in 2017 dollars
$23,700 (2019 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)
$5.6 billion (2012 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
2.62% (2019 est.)
2.58% (2018 est.)
1.59% (2017 est.)
GDP - composition, by sector of origin
agriculture: 0.7% (2012 est.)
industry: 15.5% (2012 est.)
services: 83.8% (2012 est.)
GDP - composition, by end use
household consumption: 66.9% (2016 est.)
government consumption: 33.6% (2016 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 19.4% (2016 est.)
investment in inventories: 0% (2016 est.)
exports of goods and services: 17.5% (2016 est.)
imports of goods and services: -37.5% (2016 est.)
Agricultural products
aloe, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit
Industries
tourism, petroleum refining, petroleum transshipment, light manufacturing, financial and business services
Labor force - by occupation
agriculture: 1.2%
industry: 16.9%
services: 81.8% (2008 est.)
Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)
total: 42.2%
male: 38.1%
female: 47.1% (2020 est.)
Current account balance
-$596.437 million (2021 est.)
-$688.805 million (2020 est.)
-$540.731 million (2019 est.)
Exports
$1.28 billion (2021 est.)
$1.014 billion (2020 est.)
$1.775 billion (2019 est.)
note: Data are in current year dollars and do not include illicit exports or re-exports.
Exports - partners
Switzerland 27%, United States 17%, Spain 14%, Ecuador 7%, India 7%, Antigua and Barbuda 5% (2019)
Exports - commodities
refined petroleum, crude petroleum, petroleum coke, frozen fish, fishing ships (2021)
Imports
$1.915 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$1.709 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$2.331 billion (2019 est.)
Imports - partners
United States 35%, Netherlands 24%, China 5% (2019)
Imports - commodities
refined petroleum, cars, crude petroleum, packaged medicines, perfumes (2019)
Exchange rates
Netherlands Antillean guilders (ANG) per US dollar -
1.79 (2021 est.)
1.79 (2020 est.)
1.79 (2019 est.)
1.79 (2018 est.)
1.79 (2017 est.)
Energy
Electricity access
electrification - total population: 100% (2020)
Refined petroleum products - production
189,800 bbl/day (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 53Communications
Telephones - fixed lines
total subscriptions: 53,000 (2021 est.)
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 28 (2021 est.)
Telephones - mobile cellular
total subscriptions: 170,000 (2021 est.)
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 88 (2021 est.)
Telecommunication systems
general assessment: fully automatic modern telecommunications system; telecom sector across the Caribbean region continues to be one of the growth areas; given the lack of economic diversity in the region, with a high dependence on tourism and activities such as fisheries and offshore financial services the telecom sector contributes greatly to the GDP (2020)
domestic: roughly 28 per 100 users for fixed-line and 88 per 100 users for cellular-mobile (2021)
international: country code - +599, PCCS submarine cable system to US, Caribbean and Central and South America (2019)
Broadcast media
government-run TeleCuracao operates a TV station and a radio station; 2 other privately owned TV stations and several privately owned radio stations (2019)
Internet users
total: 111,956 (2021 est.)
percent of population: 68.1% (2021 est.)
Broadband - fixed subscriptions
total: 55,000 (2020 est.)
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 34 (2020 est.)
Transportation
National air transport system
number of registered air carriers: 2 (2020)
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 11
Airports - with paved runways
1
note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)
Merchant marine
total: 59
by type: general cargo 5, oil tanker 1, other 53 (2022)
Ports and terminals
major seaport(s): Willemstad
oil terminal(s): Bullen Baai (Curacao Terminal)
cruise port(s): Willemstad
bulk cargo port(s): Fuik Bay (phosphate rock)
Military and Security
Military and security forces
no regular military forces; Curaçao Militia (CURMIL) (2022)
Military - note
defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; the Dutch Government controls foreign and defense policy; the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard (DCCG) provides maritime security (2022)
Transnational Issues
Refugees and internally displaced persons
refugees (country of origin): 14,200 (Venezuela) (2021)
Trafficking in persons
tier rating: Tier 3 — Curacao does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore Curacao was downgraded to Tier 3; the government took some steps to address trafficking, including providing pre-trial support to three victims participating in legal proceedings against traffickers, awarding restitution to two victims, and extending the national action plan that expired in December 2021; however, authorities did not convict any traffickers or identify any victims, and continued to condition assistance to foreign victims on their cooperation with law enforcement in cases against traffickers; officials conflated trafficking with migrant smuggling, and the lack of funding remained a primary obstacle to anti-trafficking efforts; limited judiciary familiarity with trafficking contributed to frequent acquittals in trafficking cases (2022)
trafficking profile: human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Curacao; undocumented migrants, especially the substantial population of Venezuelans, are vulnerable to sex and labor trafficking; traffickers exploit women and girls, particularly from Curacao, Dominican Republic, and Venezuela, in sex trafficking; migrants from other Caribbean countries, South America, China, and India are subject to forced labor in construction, domestic servitude, landscaping, minimarkets, retail, and restaurants (2022)
Illicit drugs
northbound transshipment points for cocaine from Colombia and Venezuela; cocaine is transported to the United States, other Caribbean islands, Africa, and Europe