St. Lucia - Economic sectors

The contribution made by agriculture to gross domestic product fell steadily throughout the 1990s, from 14.5 percent in 1990 to 8.1 percent in 1998. This fall reflected the crisis in the banana industry and the resulting decrease in agricultural production and exports. Attempts to diversify agricultural products (plant new kinds of crops) did not improve the agricultural sector as a whole. Despite the decline in output, agriculture was St. Lucia's second largest source of employment, providing jobs for 13,150 people in 1999 or approximately 20 percent of the workforce.

Industry's contribution to gross domestic product remained constant throughout the 1990s, rising only slightly from 18.1 percent in 1990 to 18.9 percent in 1998. The main sector of industry was manufacturing, which provided 5,160 jobs in 1999, or 8 percent of total employment. Most manufacturing work was done for the U.S. market, although there were also some industrial plants producing goods such as processed foods and beverages for the local market. Export-oriented

Communications
Country	Telephones a	Telephones, Mobile/Cellular a	Radio Stations b	Radios a	TV Stations a	Televisions a	Internet Service Providers c	Internet Users c
St. Lucia	37,000	1,600	AM 2; FM 7; shortwave 0	111,000	3	32,000	15	5,000
United States	194 M	69.209 M (1998)	AM 4,762; FM 5,542; shortwave 18	575 M	1,500	219 M	7,800	148 M
Jamaica	353,000 (1996)	54,640 (1996)	AM 10; FM 13; shortwave 0	1.215 M	7	460,000	21	60,000
Bahamas	96,000	6,152	AM 3; FM 4; shortwave 0	215,000	1	67,000	19	15,000
a Data is for 1997 unless otherwise noted.
b Data is for 1998 unless otherwise noted.
c Data is for 2000 unless otherwise noted.
SOURCE: CIA World Factbook 2001 [Online].

manufacturing declined during the 1990s, but was balanced out by a boom in construction activity.

Services grew as a percentage of gross domestic product through the 1990s, from 67.3 percent in 1990 to 72.9 percent in 1998. Tourism was the main factor in this growth, and the industry was responsible for 5,390 jobs in hotels and restaurants in 1998 (8 percent of employment). An additional 11,300 people, or 17 percent of the workforce, were employed in the retail sector, which had strong links with tourism. The fastest-growing economic force in St. Lucia during the 1990s was tourism, affecting not only the services and retail sectors, but the construction

sector as well, accounting for at least 25 percent of workforce employment.