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Guide
Introduction
| |
| Background: |
First settled by the Dutch in
1648, the islands were soon after (1672) annexed by the English. The
economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin
Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. |
| Location: |
Caribbean, between the
Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
18 30 N, 64 30 W |
| Map
references: |
Central America and the
Caribbean |
| Area: |
total: 150 sq km
land: 150 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes the island of Anegada |
| Area
- comparative: |
about 0.9 times the size of
Washington, DC |
| Maritime
claims: |
exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
| Climate: |
subtropical; humid;
temperatures moderated by trade winds |
| Terrain: |
coral islands relatively
flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
| Land
use: |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 7%
permanent pastures: 33%
forests and woodland: 7%
other: 33% (1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
hurricanes and tropical
storms (July to October) |
| Environment
- current issues: |
limited natural fresh water
resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola,
most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater
catchment) |
| Geography
- note: |
strong ties to nearby US
Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico |
| Population: |
20,812 (July 2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
22.77% (male 2,399; female 2,339)
15-64 years: 72.31% (male 7,741; female 7,309)
65 years and over: 4.92% (male 555; female 469) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
2.22% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
15.18 births/1,000 population
(2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
4.42 deaths/1,000 population
(2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
11.39 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth: 1.05
male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.18 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
20.3 deaths/1,000 live births
(2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population:
75.64 years
male: 74.74 years
female: 76.59 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
1.72 children born/woman
(2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
NA% |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| Nationality: |
noun: British
Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
| Ethnic
groups: |
black 90%, white, Asian |
| Religions: |
Protestant 86% (Methodist
45%, Anglican 21%, Church of God 7%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5%, Baptist
4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 2%), Roman Catholic 6%, none 2%, other
6% (1981) |
| Languages: |
English (official) |
| Literacy: |
definition: age
15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA% |
| Country
name: |
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands
abbreviation: BVI |
| Dependency
status: |
overseas territory of the UK |
| Administrative
divisions: |
none (overseas territory of
the UK) |
| Independence: |
none (overseas territory of
the UK) |
| National
holiday: |
Territory Day, 1 July |
| Constitution: |
1 June 1977 |
| Legal
system: |
English law |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age; universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor
Francis J. SAVAGE (since NA)
head of government: Chief Minister Ralph T. O'NEAL (since
15 May 1995)
cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from
members of the Legislative Council
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor
appointed by the monarch; chief minister appointed by the governor from
among the members of the Legislative Council |
| Legislative
branch: |
unicameral Legislative
Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, one
member from each of 9 electoral districts, four at-large members;
members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 17 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by
party - VIP 7, CCM 1, NDP 5 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Eastern Caribbean Supreme
Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal
(one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and
presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court
of Summary Jurisdiction |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Concerned Citizens Movement
or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH];
United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph
T. O'NEAL] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
NA |
| International
organization participation: |
Caricom (associate), CDB,
ECLAC (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO
(associate) |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
none (overseas territory of
the UK) |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
none (overseas territory of
the UK) |
| Flag
description: |
blue, with the flag of the UK
in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms
centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman
flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a
scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) |
| Economy
- overview: |
The economy, one of the most
stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism,
which generates an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated
350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1997. In
the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to
companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees
now generate substantial revenues. An estimated 250,000 companies were
on the offshore registry by yearend 1997. The adoption of a
comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of
confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of
criminal offenses, is expected to make the British Virgin Islands even
more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most
important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability
to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links
with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the
dollar as its currency since 1959. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power parity -
$311 million (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
6% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity -
$16,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
1.8%
industry: 6.2%
services: 92% (1996 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
2% (2000) |
| Labor
force: |
4,911 (1980) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture NA%, industry
NA%, services NA% |
| Unemployment
rate: |
3% (1995) |
| Budget: |
revenues: $121.5
million
expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital
expenditures of $NA (1997) |
| Industries: |
tourism, light industry,
construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
4% (1985) |
| Electricity
- production: |
42 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
39.1 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
fruits, vegetables;
livestock, poultry; fish |
| Exports: |
$6.2 million (2000 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
rum, fresh fish, fruits,
animals; gravel, sand |
| Exports
- partners: |
Virgin Islands (US), Puerto
Rico, US |
| Imports: |
$220 million (2000 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
building materials,
automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery |
| Imports
- partners: |
Virgin Islands (US), Puerto
Rico, US |
| Debt
- external: |
$36.1 million (1997) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$2.6 million (1995) |
| Currency: |
US dollar (USD) |
| Exchange
rates: |
the US dollar is used |
| Fiscal
year: |
1 April - 31 March |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
10,000 (1996) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
NA |
| Telephone
system: |
general assessment:
worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA
international: submarine cable to Bermuda |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0
(1998) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
1 (plus one cable company)
(1997) |
| Televisions: |
4,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.vg |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
16 (2000) |
| Highways: |
total: 132 km
paved: 132 km
unpaved: 0 km (1997) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Road Town |
| Merchant
marine: |
total: 1 ship
(1,000 GRT or over) totaling 70,285 GRT/6,946 DWT
ships by type: passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Military
- note: |
defense is the responsibility
of the UK |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
| Illicit
drugs: |
transshipment point for South
American narcotics destined for the US and Europe |
|
