Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the Dutch in 1636. The island's economy has been dominated by three main industries. A 19th century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening in 1924 of an oil refinery. 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, autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990.

Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela

slightly larger than Washington, DC

tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation

flat with a few hills; scant vegetation

NEGL; white sandy beaches

0.01 sq km (1998 est.)

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

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)

12.79 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)

7.71 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)

9.7 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)

1.85 children born/woman (2010 est.)

mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80%, other 20%

Roman Catholic 80.8%, Evangelist 4.1%, Protestant 2.5%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%, Methodist 1.2%, Jewish 0.2%, other 5.1%, none or unspecified 4.6%

Papiamento (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect) 66.3%, Spanish 12.6%, English (widely spoken) 7.7%, Dutch (official) 5.8%, other 2.2%, unspecified or unknown 5.3% (2000 census)

member 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

parliamentary democracy

none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)

Flag Day, 18 March (1976)

based on Dutch civil law system with some English common law influence

18 years of age; universal

unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)

Common Court of Justice of Aruba (judges are appointed by the monarch)

Aliansa/Aruban Social Movement or MSA [Robert WEVER]; Aruban Liberal Organization or OLA [Glenbert CROES]; Aruban Patriotic Movement or MPA [Monica ARENDS-KOCK]; Aruban Patriotic Party or PPA [Benny NISBET]; Aruban People's Party or AVP [Mike EMAN]; People's Electoral Movement Party or MEP [Nelson O. ODUBER]; Real Democracy or PDR [Andin BIKKER]; RED [Rudy LAMPE]; Workers Political Platform or PTT [Gregorio WOLFF]

Caricom (observer), FATF, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITUC, UNESCO (associate), UNWTO (associate), UPU, WFTU, WMO

none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands); note - Mr. Henry BAARH, Minister Plenipotentiary for Aruba at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

the US does not have an embassy in Aruba; the Consul General to Netherlands Antilles is accredited to Aruba

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

Tourism is the mainstay of the small open Aruban economy, together with offshore banking. Oil refining and storage ended in 2009. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Over 1.5 million tourists per year visit Aruba with 75% of those from the US. Construction continues to boom with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level. Tourist arrivals rebounded strongly following a dip after the 11 September 2001 attacks. The government has made cutting the budget and trade deficits a high priority.

$2.258 billion (2005 est.)

$2.205 billion (2004 est.)

$2.258 billion (2005 est.)

5% (31 December 2008)

5% (31 December 2007)

11.23% (31 December 2008)

11.01% (31 December 2007)

$781 million (31 December 2008)

$640.9 million (31 December 2007)

$890.3 million (31 December 2008)

$792.9 million (31 December 2007)

$1.321 billion (31 December 2008)

$1.348 billion (31 December 2007)

aloes; livestock; fish

tourism, transshipment facilities

850 million kWh (2007 est.)

790.5 million kWh (2007 est.)

2,235 bbl/day (2009 est.)

8,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

231,100 bbl/day (2007 est.)

236,400 bbl/day (2007 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2009 est.)

$124 million (2006); note - includes oil reexports

live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment, transport equipment

Panama 23.84%, Netherlands Antilles 20.49%, Colombia 17.48%, Venezuela 12.61%, US 9.12%, Netherlands 7.5% (2009)

$1.054 billion (2006)

machinery and electrical equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport, chemicals; foodstuffs

US 49.51%, Netherlands 16.15%, UK 4.94% (2009)

$478.6 million (2005 est.)

Aruban guilders/florins (AWG) per US dollar - NA (2007), 1.79 (2006), 1.79 (2005), 1.79 (2004), 1.79 (2003)

2 commercial television stations; cable TV subscription service provides access to foreign channels; about 20 commercial radio stations broadcast (2007)

Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas

no regular military forces; the Netherlands maintains a detachment of marines, a frigate, and an amphibious combat detachment in the neighboring Netherlands Antilles (2010)

defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

transit point for US- and Europe-bound narcotics with some accompanying money-laundering activity; relatively high percentage of population consumes cocaine