Antigua and Barbuda

Living Conditions

Parents and other relatives care for children at equal rates due to family situations or finances. Fathers do not aid in care for children born out of wedlock. There is a general lack of reliable childcare. Primary and secondary education is compulsory for all children from age 5 to 16. Preschool is also available. The school system suffers from a shortage of adequate supplies, facilities, and qualified teachers. The literacy rate is high at 89 percent. Internationally renowned female author Jamaica Kincaid, who was born in Antigua and Barbuda but now resides in the United States, has produced acclaimed novels, essays, and short stories on the islands’ lifestyle and history.

The class structure still reflects the historical legacy of a racial hierarchy with blacks predominating the middle and lower classes. The population is mostly rural, close to 40 percent living in urban areas. Antigua and Barbuda has a national system of social insurance. Most people have adequate living conditions despite an overall shortage of housing, but issues include poor sanitation, lack of clean drinking water, and a poor healthcare system. There are state institutions for the elderly and infirm, and the nation has one private hospital. Life expectancy is 76.81 for women and 72.81 for men. Social problems faced by women in the islands as well as the rest of the Caribbean include widespread sexual violence such as rape, the sex trafficking, and commercial sex industries, and rising rates of human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) among both women and girls.

Many females remain socioeconomically dependent on males, although there has been slow progress in developing programs to improve economic opportunities for women. Creole women have traditionally worked outside the home in limited roles and women make up approximately half of the nation's workforce. Key employers include government and public service, agriculture, industry, tourism, and related services. Over 80 percent of the workforce are employed in the service sector. Urban women are generally more economically and politically active than their rural counterparts.

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