Aruba

Broadband - fixed subscriptions

total: 19,000 (2020 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 18 (2020 est.)

Broadcast media

2 commercial TV stations; cable TV subscription service provides access to foreign channels; about 19 commercial radio stations broadcast (2017)

Internet country code

.aw

Internet users

total: 106,800 (2021 est.) percent of population: 97% (2021 est.)

Telecommunication systems

general assessment: the telecom sector has seen a decline in subscriber numbers (particularly for prepaid mobile services the mainstay of short term visitors) and revenue; fixed and mobile broadband services are two areas that have benefited from the crisis as employees and students have resorted to working from home; one area of the telecom market that is not prepared for growth is 5G mobile; governments, regulators, and even the mobile network operators have shown that they have not been investing in 5G opportunities at the present time; network expansion and enhancements remain concentrated around improving LTE coverage (2021) domestic: 33 per 100 fixed-line telephone subscriptions and 130 per 100 mobile-cellular (2021) international: country code - 297; landing points for the PAN-AM, PCCS, Deep Blue Cable, and Alonso de Ojeda submarine telecommunications cable system that extends from Trinidad and Tobago, Florida, Puerto Ricco, Jamaica, Guyana, Sint Eustatius Saba, Suriname, Dominican Republic, BVI, USVI, Haiti, Cayman Islands, the Netherlands Antilles, through Aruba to Panama, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chile; extensive interisland microwave radio relay links (2019)

Telephones - fixed lines

total subscriptions: 35,000 (2021 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 33 (2021 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

total subscriptions: 141,000 (2021 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 132 (2021 est.)

Agricultural products

aloes; livestock; fish

Budget

revenues: $793 million (2019 est.) expenditures: $782 million (2019 est.)

Credit ratings

Fitch rating: BB (2020) Standard & Poors rating: BBB+ (2013) note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

Current account balance

$230.556 million (2022 est.) $79.257 million (2021 est.) -$316.455 million (2020 est.) note: balance of payments - net trade and primary/secondary income in current dollars

Economic overview

small, tourism-dependent, territorial-island economy; very high public debt; COVID-19 crippled economic activity; partial recovery underway via tourism, benefitting from its high amount of timeshare residences; considering reopening oil refinery

Exchange rates

Aruban guilders/florins per US dollar - 1.79 (2023 est.) 1.79 (2022 est.) 1.79 (2021 est.) 1.79 (2020 est.) 1.79 (2019 est.)

Exports

$2.853 billion (2022 est.) $2.201 billion (2021 est.) $1.444 billion (2020 est.) note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

Exports - commodities

tobacco, liquor, refined petroleum, scrap iron, orthopedic appliances (2022) note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars

Exports - partners

Colombia 40%, US 12%, Jordan 11%, Guyana 8%, Netherlands 6% (2022) note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports

GDP (official exchange rate)

$3.545 billion (2022 est.) note: data in current dollars at official exchange rate

GDP - composition, by end use

household consumption: 53.8% (2022 est.) government consumption: 19.9% (2022 est.) investment in fixed capital: 20.6% (2022 est.) exports of goods and services: 83.1% (2022 est.) imports of goods and services: -77.3% (2022 est.) note: figures may not total 100% due to rounding or gaps in data collection

GDP - composition, by sector of origin

agriculture: 0% (2019 est.) industry: 11.4% (2019 est.) services: 78.3% (2019 est.) note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data

Imports

$2.429 billion (2022 est.) $1.947 billion (2021 est.) $1.644 billion (2020 est.) note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

Imports - commodities

refined petroleum, crude petroleum, tobacco, jewelry, other foods (2022) note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars

Imports - partners

US 39%, Netherlands 11%, Guyana 9%, Colombia 8%, China 5% (2022) note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports

Industries

tourism, petroleum transshipment facilities, banking

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

4.26% (2019 est.) 3.63% (2018 est.) -1.03% (2017 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices

Public debt

86% of GDP (2017 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

$4.498 billion (2022 est.) $4.072 billion (2021 est.) $3.191 billion (2020 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

Real GDP growth rate

10.46% (2022 est.) 27.64% (2021 est.) -23.98% (2020 est.) note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

Real GDP per capita

$42,300 (2022 est.) $38,200 (2021 est.) $29,900 (2020 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

Remittances

1.08% of GDP (2022 est.) 1.16% of GDP (2021 est.) 1.37% of GDP (2020 est.) note: personal transfers and compensation between resident and non-resident individuals/households/entities

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$1.544 billion (2022 est.) $1.513 billion (2021 est.) $1.213 billion (2020 est.) note: holdings of gold (year-end prices)/foreign exchange/special drawing rights in current dollars

Taxes and other revenues

25.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Unemployment rate

7.7% (2016 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions

1.214 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.) from petroleum and other liquids: 1.214 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)

Electricity

installed generating capacity: 304,000 kW (2022 est.) consumption: 809.548 million kWh (2022 est.) transmission/distribution losses: 166.766 million kWh (2022 est.)

Electricity access

electrification - total population: 99.9% (2022 est.) electrification - urban areas: 100% electrification - rural areas: 100%

Electricity generation sources

fossil fuels: 84.9% of total installed capacity (2022 est.) solar: 1.2% of total installed capacity (2022 est.) wind: 13.9% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)

Energy consumption per capita

161.715 million Btu/person (2022 est.)

Petroleum

refined petroleum consumption: 8,000 bbl/day (2022 est.)

Air pollutants

carbon dioxide emissions: 0.88 megatons (2016 est.)

Climate

tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation

Environment - current issues

difficulty in properly disposing of waste produced by large numbers of tourists; waste burning that occurs in the landfill causes air pollution and poses an environmental and health risk; ocean environmental damage due to plastic pollution

Land use

agricultural land: 11.1% (2018 est.) arable land: 11.1% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 0% (2018 est.) forest: 2.3% (2018 est.) other: 86.6% (2018 est.)

Revenue from forest resources

0% of GDP (2017 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 44.3% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 0.77% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Waste and recycling

municipal solid waste generated annually: 88,132 tons (2013 est.) municipal solid waste recycled annually: 9,695 tons (2013 est.) percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 11% (2013 est.)

Area

total : 180 sq km land: 180 sq km water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than Washington, DC

Climate

tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation

Coastline

68.5 km

Elevation

highest point: Ceru Jamanota 188 m lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m

Geographic coordinates

12 30 N, 69 58 W

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)

Irrigated land

NA

Land boundaries

total: 0 km

Land use

agricultural land: 11.1% (2018 est.) arable land: 11.1% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 0% (2018 est.) forest: 2.3% (2018 est.) other: 86.6% (2018 est.)

Location

Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela

Map references

Central America and the Caribbean

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Natural hazards

hurricanes; lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt and is rarely threatened

Natural resources

NEGL; white sandy beaches foster tourism

Population distribution

most residents live in or around Oranjestad and San Nicolaas; most settlments tend to be located on the less mountainous western side of the island

Terrain

flat with a few hills; scant vegetation

Administrative divisions

none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) note: Aruba is one of four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; the other three are the Netherlands, Curacao, and Sint Maarten

Capital

name: Oranjestad geographic coordinates: 12 31 N, 70 02 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: translates as "orange town" in Dutch; the city is named after William I (1533-1584), Prince of Orange, the first ruler of the Netherlands

Citizenship

see the Netherlands

Constitution

history: previous 1947, 1955; latest drafted and approved August 1985, enacted 1 January 1986 (regulates governance of Aruba but is subordinate to the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands); in 1986, Aruba became a semi-autonomous entity within the Kingdom of the Netherlands

Country name

conventional long form: Country of Aruba conventional short form: Aruba local long form: Land Aruba (Dutch); Pais Aruba (Papiamento) local short form: Aruba etymology: the origin of the island's name is unclear; according to tradition, the name comes from the Spanish phrase "oro huba" (there was gold), but in fact no gold was ever found on the island; another possibility is the native word "oruba," which means "well-situated"

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

Diplomatic representation from the US

embassy: the US does not have an embassy in Aruba; the Consul General to Curacao is accredited to Aruba

Diplomatic representation in the US

none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands)

Executive branch

chief of state: King WILLEM-ALEXANDER of the Netherlands (since 30 April 2013); represented by Governor General Alfonso BOEKHOUDT (since 1 January 2017) head of government: Prime Minister Evelyn WEVER-CROES (since 17 November 2017) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the Legislature (Staten) elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch for a 6-year term; prime minister and deputy prime minister indirectly elected by the Staten for 4-year term; election last held on 25 June 2021 (next to be held by June 2025) election results: as leader of the majority party of the ruling coalition, Evelyn WEVER-CROES (MEP) elected prime minister; percent of Staten vote - NA

Flag description

blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner; the star represents Aruba and its red soil and white beaches, its four points the four major languages (Papiamento, Dutch, Spanish, English) as well as the four points of a compass, to indicate that its inhabitants come from all over the world; the blue symbolizes Caribbean waters and skies; the stripes represent the island's two main "industries": the flow of tourists to the sun-drenched beaches and the flow of minerals from the earth

Government type

parliamentary democracy; part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

Independence

none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)

International organization participation

ACS (associate), Caricom (observer), FATF, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITUC (NGOs), UNESCO (associate), UNWTO (associate), UPU

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 for life by the monarch subordinate courts: Court in First Instance

Legal system

civil law system based on the Dutch civil code

Legislative branch

description: unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms) elections: last held on 6 December 2024 (next to be held in 2028) election results: percent of vote by party AVP 32.2%, MEP 31.7%, FUTURO 13.2%, PPA 6.4%; seats by party - AVP 9, MEP 8, FUTURO 3, PPA 1; composition - men NA, women NA, percentage women - NA%

National anthem

name: "Aruba Deshi Tera" (Aruba Precious Country) lyrics/music: Juan Chabaya 'Padu' LAMPE/Rufo Inocencio WEVER note: local anthem adopted 1986; as part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, "Het Wilhelmus" is official (see Netherlands)

National holiday

National Anthem and Flag Day, 18 March (1976)

National symbol(s)

Hooiberg (Haystack) Hill; national colors: blue, yellow, red, white

Political parties

Accion21 Aruban People's Party or AVP Democratic Network or RED Movimiento Aruba Soberano (Aruban Sovereignty Movement) or MAS People's Electoral Movement Party or MEP Pueblo Orguyoso y Respeta or POR RAIZ (ROOTS)

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Background

Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the Dutch in 1636. Three main industries have since dominated the island's economy: gold mining, oil refining, and tourism. A 19th-century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening of an oil refinery in 1924. 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, semi-autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990.

Military - note

defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; the Aruba security services focus on organized crime and terrorism; the Dutch Government controls foreign and defense policy; the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard (DCCG) provides maritime security; the Dutch military maintains a presence on Aruba, including a marine company and a naval base (2024)

Military and security forces

no regular military forces; Aruban Militia (ARUMIL); Police Department for local law enforcement, supported by the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee (Gendarmerie), the Dutch Caribbean Police Force (Korps Politie Caribisch Nederland, KPCN), and the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard (DCCG or Kustwacht Caribisch Gebied (KWCARIB)) (2024)

Age structure

0-14 years: 17.2% (male 10,815/female 10,747) 15-64 years: 65.7% (male 39,621/female 42,487) 65 years and over: 17.1% (2024 est.) (male 8,665/female 12,728)

Birth rate

11.6 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

NA

Contraceptive prevalence rate

NA

Current health expenditure

NA

Currently married women (ages 15-49)

42.1% (2023 est.)

Death rate

8.8 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 47.8 youth dependency ratio: 24.8 elderly dependency ratio: 23 potential support ratio: 4.4 (2021 est.)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 98.1% of population rural: 98.1% of population total: 98.1% of population unimproved: urban: 1.9% of population rural: 1.9% of population total: 1.9% of population (2015 est.)

Education expenditures

5.5% of GDP (2016 est.)

Ethnic groups

Dutch 78.7%, Colombian 6.6%, Venezuelan 5.5%, Dominican 2.8%, Haitian 1.3%, other 5.1% (2020 est.) note: data represent population by nationality

Gross reproduction rate

0.9 (2024 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 11.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.) male: 15.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Languages

Papiamento (official) (a creole language that mixes Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, English, French, African languages, and Arawak) 69.4%, Spanish 13.7%, English (widely spoken) 7.1%, Dutch (official) 6.1%, Chinese 1.5%, other 1.7%, unspecified 0.4% (2010 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 78.5 years (2024 est.) male: 75.4 years female: 81.6 years

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.8% male: 97.8% female: 97.8% (2018)

Major urban areas - population

30,000 ORANJESTAD (capital) (2018)

Median age

total: 40.9 years (2024 est.) male: 39.3 years female: 42.4 years

Nationality

noun: Aruban(s) adjective: Aruban; Dutch

Net migration rate

8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Physician density

NA

Population

total: 125,063 male: 59,101 female: 65,962 (2024 est.)

Population distribution

most residents live in or around Oranjestad and San Nicolaas; most settlments tend to be located on the less mountainous western side of the island

Population growth rate

1.08% (2024 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 75.3%, Protestant 4.9% (includes Methodist 0.9%, Adventist 0.9%, Anglican 0.4%, other Protestant 2.7%), Jehovah's Witness 1.7%, other 12%, none 5.5%, unspecified 0.5% (2010 est.)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 97.7% of population rural: 97.7% of population total: 97.7% of population unimproved: urban: 2.3% of population rural: 2.3% of population total: 2.3% of population (2015 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 14 years male: 13 years female: 14 years (2012)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.9 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.82 children born/woman (2024 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 44.3% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 0.77% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Illicit drugs

northbound transshipment point for cocaine from Colombia and Venezuela; cocaine shipped to the United States, other Caribbean islands, Africa, and Europe

Refugees and internally displaced persons

refugees (country of origin): 17,085 (Venezuela) (2023)

Airports

1 (2024)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

P4

Merchant marine

total: 1 (2023) by type: other 1

National air transport system

number of registered air carriers: 3 (2020) inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 19 annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 274,280 (2018)

Ports

total ports: 2 (2024) large: 0 medium: 0 small: 1 very small: 1 ports with oil terminals: 1 key ports: Paardenbaai (Oranjestad), Sint Nicolaas Baai

Roadways

total: 1,000 km (2010)