Jamaica Government

The Jamaican government is a parliamentary democracy with a monarchy that is bound by the country’s constitution. The current monarch is Queen Elizabeth II of Britain. She can only exercise her authority within the confines of the country’s laws. She chooses a governor general who then acts as her local representative. The governor general, who is not a member of any political party appoints the prime minister and his deputy as well as civil servants. Jamaica has three arms of government: the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary. The prime minister as head of government is an appointee of the governor general and is appointed when the position falls vacant.

Jamaica adopted its current two chamber representative government in 1944 when it adopted a new constitution and replaced the colonial government. The House of Representatives and the Senate are the two chambers. The representatives are elected for a term of five years while members of the senate are appointed by the governor general. 13 are appointed on the advice given by the prime minister and 8 as advised by the leader of the opposition. There is currently no term limit of service for politicians. A bill is currently being worked that will determine a fixed term limit as well as a fixed election date

Jamaica has a bicameral legislature which has been meeting in George William Gordon House on Duke Street in Kingston since 1960. The official residence of the prime minister is Vale Royal which is on Montrose Road in Kingston while that of the governor general is called King’s House or Government house. It was built in 1872 but had to be restored in 1907 when the previous structure was destroyed by an earthquake. It is located on Hope Road in Kingston.

The active political parties in Jamaica include the People's National Party, the National Democratic Movement, and the Jamaica Labour Party.

This page was last modified on May 1st, 2018

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Published on 2019-11-06


Capital	Kingston
Languages	English, English patois
Ethnic Groups	Black 92.1%, mixed 6.1%, East Indian 0.8%, other 0.4%, unspecified 0.7% (2011 est.)
Religion	Protestant 64.8% (includes Seventh Day Adventist 12.0%, Pentecostal 11.0%, Other Church of God 9.2%, New Testament Church of God 7.2%, Baptist 6.7%, Church of God in Jamaica 4.8%, Church of God of Prophecy 4.5%, Anglican 2.8%, United Church 2.1%, Methodist 1.6%, Revived 1.4%, Brethren 0.9%, and Moravian 0.7%), Roman Catholic 2.2%, Jehovah's Witness 1.9%, Rastafarian 1.1%, other 6.5%, none 21.3%, unspecified 2.3% (2011 est.)
Government	Parliamentary democracy (Parliament) under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm
Independance	6 August 1962 (from the UK)
Area	10,991.00 km²
Water Area	160.00 km²
Land Area	10,831.00 km²
Population	2,970,340.00 Population density is high throughout, but increases in and around Kingston, Montego Bay, and Port Esquivel
Location	Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba
GDP(PPP)	$25,390,000,000.00 (USD)
GDP (Per Capita)	$9,000.00 (USD)
Export Partners	Its major export partners are the United States, Canada, and Russia.
Export Commodities	Its main exports are alumina, bauxite, sugar, rum, coffee, and yams.
Import Partners	Its major import partners are the United States, China, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Import Commodities	Its major imports include food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts, and machinery.
Climate	Tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior
Terrain	Mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain
Learn More	Jamaica

Jamaica Government

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