Akrotiri (2006) | Turks and Caicos Islands (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 32.5% (male 3,396/female 3,277)
15-64 years: 63.8% (male 6,900/female 6,220) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 342/female 421) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), citrus fruits; fish |
Airports | - | 8 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 123 sq km
note: includes a salt lake and wetlands |
total: 430 sq km
land: 430 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.7 times the size of Washington, DC | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | By terms of the 1960 Treaty of Establishment that created the independent Republic of Cyprus, the UK retained full sovereignty and jurisdiction over two areas of almost 254 square kilometers - Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The southernmost and smallest of these is the Akrotiri Sovereign Base Area, which is also referred to as the Western Sovereign Base Area. | The islands were part of the UK's Jamaican colony until 1962, when they assumed the status of a separate crown colony upon Jamaica's independence. The governor of The Bahamas oversaw affairs from 1965 to 1973. With Bahamian independence, the islands received a separate governor in 1973. Although independence was agreed upon for 1982, the policy was reversed and the islands remain a British overseas territory. |
Birth rate | - | 22.23 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $47 million
expenditures: $33.6 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997-98 est.) |
Capital | name: Episkopi Cantonment; also serves as capital of Dhekelia
geographic coordinates: 34 40 N, 32 51 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Grand Turk |
Climate | temperate; Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and cool winters | tropical; marine; moderated by trade winds; sunny and relatively dry |
Coastline | 56.3 km | 389 km |
Constitution | Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia Order in Council 1960, effective 16 August 1960 | introduced 30 August 1976; suspended in 1986; restored and revised 5 March 1988 |
Country name | conventional long form: Akrotiri Sovereign Base Area
conventional short form: Akrotiri |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turks and Caicos Islands |
Death rate | - | 4.28 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | - | NA |
Dependency status | overseas territory of UK; administered by an administrator who is also the Commander, British Forces Cyprus | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | - | have received Haitians fleeing economic and civil disorder |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $4.1 million (1997) |
Economy - overview | Economic activity is limited to providing services to the military and their families located in Akrotiri. All food and manufactured goods must be imported. | The Turks and Caicos economy is based on tourism, fishing, and offshore financial services. Most capital goods and food for domestic consumption are imported. The US is the leading source of tourists, accounting for more than half of the annual 93,000 visitors in the late 1990s. Major sources of government revenue also include fees from offshore financial activities and customs receipts. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 4.65 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | - | 5 million kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | - | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Hills 49 m |
Environment - current issues | shooting around the salt lake; note - breeding place for loggerhead and green turtles; only remaining colony of griffon vultures is on the base | limited natural fresh water resources, private cisterns collect rainwater |
Ethnic groups | - | black 90%, mixed, European, or North American 10% |
Exchange rates | - | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Administrator Air Vice-Marshal Richard LACEY (since 26 April 2006); note - reports to the British Ministry of Defence elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the administrator is appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1953), represented by Governor Richard TAUWHARE (since 11 July 2005)
head of government: Chief Minister Michael Eugene MISICK (since 15 August 2003) cabinet: Executive Council consists of three ex officio members and five appointed by the governor from among the members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is appointed chief minister by the governor |
Exports | - | NA |
Exports - commodities | - | lobster, dried and fresh conch, conch shells |
Exports - partners | - | US, UK |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of the UK is used | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the colonial shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield is yellow and contains a conch shell, lobster, and cactus |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $11,500 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 4.9% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 34 37 N, 32 58 E | 21 45 N, 71 35 W |
Geography - note | British extraterritorial rights also extended to several small off-post sites scattered across Cyprus | about 40 islands (eight inhabited) |
Highways | - | total: 121 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 97 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | - | NA |
Imports - commodities | - | food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufactures, construction materials |
Imports - partners | - | US, UK |
Independence | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
Industries | - | tourism, offshore financial services |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: 15.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.11 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.11 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 4% (1995) |
International organization participation | - | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), UPU |
Irrigated land | - | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court |
Labor force | - | 4,848 (1990 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | about 33% in government and 20% in agriculture and fishing; significant numbers in tourism, financial, and other services |
Land boundaries | total: 47.4 km
border countries: Cyprus 47.4 km |
0 km |
Land use | - | arable land: 2.33%
permanent crops: 0% other: 97.67% (2001) |
Languages | English, Greek | English (official) |
Legal system | the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply | based on laws of England and Wales, with a few adopted from Jamaica and The Bahamas |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral Legislative Council (19 seats of which 13 are popularly elected; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 24 April 2003 (next to be held in 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PDM 53.8%, PNP 46.2%; seats by party - PDM 7, PNP 6; note - in by-elections held 7 August 2003, the PNP gained two seats for a majority of 8 seats; PDM now has 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 74.51 years
male: 72.28 years female: 76.84 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
Location | peninsula on the southwest coast of Cyprus | Caribbean, two island groups in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of The Bahamas, north of Haiti |
Map references | Middle East | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | - | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | Akrotiri has a full RAF base, Headquarters for British Forces on Cyprus, and Episkopi Support Unit | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
National holiday | - | Constitution Day, 30 August (1976) |
Nationality | - | noun: none
adjective: none |
Natural hazards | - | frequent hurricanes |
Natural resources | - | spiny lobster, conch |
Net migration rate | - | 11.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
People - note | - | destination and transit point for illegal Haitian immigrants bound for the Turks and Caicos Islands, Bahamas, and US |
Political parties and leaders | - | People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Derek H. TAYLOR]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Michael Eugene MISICK] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: approximately 1,300 military personnel are on the base; there are another 5,000 British citizens who are families of military personnel or civilian staff on both Akrotiri and Dhekelia; Cyprus citizens work on the base, but do not live there |
20,556 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 2.9% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Grand Turk, Providenciales |
Radio broadcast stations | FM 1
note: British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) provides Radio 1 and Radio 2 service to Akrotiri, Dhekelia, and Nicosia (2006) |
AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Religions | - | Baptist 40%, Methodist 16%, Anglican 18%, Church of God 12%, other 14% (1990) |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.11 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | - | general assessment: fully digital system with international direct dialing
domestic: full range of services available international: country code - 1-649; 2 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 5,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 1,700 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) provides multi-channel satellite service to Akrotiri, Dhekelia, and Nicosia (2006) | 0 (broadcasts from The Bahamas are received; 2 cable television networks) (2004) |
Terrain | - | low, flat limestone; extensive marshes and mangrove swamps |
Total fertility rate | - | 3.08 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | 10% (1997 est.) |