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Country Name

Conventional long form: none

Conventional short form: Aruba

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

Independence

none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)

National Holiday

National Anthem and Flag Day, 18 March (1976)

Constitution

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); note - in October 2010, following dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles, Aruba became a constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands (2018);

Legal System

civil law system based on the Dutch civil code

International Law Organization Participation

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 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:

Election results: Evelyn WEVER-CROES (MEP) elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA

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 22 September 2017 (next to be held in September 2021)

Election results: percent of vote by party AVP 39.8%, MEP 37.6%, POR 9.4%, RED 7.1%, other 6.1%; seats by party - AVP 9, MEP 9, POR 2, RED 1; composition as of October 2018 - men 14, women 7, percent of women 33.3%

Judicial Branch

Judge selection and term of office: Joint Court judges appointed by the monarch for life

Subordinate courts: Courts in First Instance

Political Parties and Leaders

Aruban People's Party or AVP [Michiel "Mike" EMAN]; Democratic Electoral Network or RED [L.R. CROES]; People's Electoral Movement Party or MEP [Evelyn WEVER-CROES]; Pueblo Orguyoso y Respeta or POR [O.E. ODUBER]; Real Democracy or PDR [Andin BIKKER];

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

National Symbols

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

National Anthem

Lyrics:

Year	2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000

Government Type

Parliamentary democracy (Legislature); part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

Capital

Name
Oranjestad
Geographic Coordinates
12 31 N, 70 02 W
Time Difference
UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Diplomatic Representation in the US

None (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) note - there is a Minister Plenipotentiary for Aruba, Rendolf "Andy" LEE, at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

Diplomatic Representation from the US

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

International Organization Participation

Caricom (observer)
FATF
ILO
IMF
Interpol

IOC
ITUC (NGOs)
UNESCO (associate)
UNWTO (associate)
UPU

Aruba