Bonaire, home to 11,000 residents of African and European descent, was first inhabited over 2,000 years ago. In 1633, Bonaire became a plantation island belonging to the Dutch West Indies Company and host to the first African slaves. By 1837, salt production was the island’s main industry, which was revitalized again in 1963. Tourism, scuba diving, salt production, and oil transshipment facilities are currently the island’s primary economic industries.