Compare Arctic Ocean (2006) - British Virgin Islands (2007)

Compare Arctic Ocean (2006) z British Virgin Islands (2007)

	Arctic Ocean (2006)	British Virgin Islands (2007)

Administrative divisions	-	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 20.2% (male 2,410/female 2,337) 15-64 years: 74.5% (male 9,004/female 8,534) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 665/female 602) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish
Airports	-	3 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	-	total: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)
Area	total: 14.056 million sq km note: includes Baffin Bay, Barents Sea, Beaufort Sea, Chukchi Sea, East Siberian Sea, Greenland Sea, Hudson Bay, Hudson Strait, Kara Sea, Laptev Sea, Northwest Passage, and other tributary water bodies	total: 153 sq km land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke
Area - comparative	slightly less than 1.5 times the size of the US	about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	The Arctic Ocean is the smallest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and the recently delimited Southern Ocean). The Northwest Passage (US and Canada) and Northern Sea Route (Norway and Russia) are two important seasonal waterways. A sparse network of air, ocean, river, and land routes circumscribes the Arctic Ocean.	First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency.
Birth rate	-	14.82 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $204.7 million expenditures: $180.4 million (2004)
Capital	-	name: Road Town geographic coordinates: 18 27 N, 64 37 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	polar climate characterized by persistent cold and relatively narrow annual temperature ranges; winters characterized by continuous darkness, cold and stable weather conditions, and clear skies; summers characterized by continuous daylight, damp and foggy weather, and weak cyclones with rain or snow	subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds
Coastline	45,389 km	80 km
Constitution	-	13 June 2007
Country name	-	conventional long form: none conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI
Death rate	-	4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	-	$36.1 million (1997)
Dependency status	-	overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing
Diplomatic representation from the US	-	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation in the US	-	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Disputes - international	some maritime disputes (see littoral states)	none
Economic aid - recipient	-	$NA
Economy - overview	Economic activity is limited to the exploitation of natural resources, including petroleum, natural gas, fish, and seals.	The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 820,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 2005. 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. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. 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, made 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 US dollar as its currency since 1959.
Electricity - consumption	-	41.85 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	-	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	-	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	-	45 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Fram Basin -4,665 m highest point: sea level 0 m	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Sage 521 m
Environment - current issues	endangered marine species include walruses and whales; fragile ecosystem slow to change and slow to recover from disruptions or damage; thinning polar icepack	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 catchments)
Ethnic groups	-	black 83%, other 17% (includes white, Indian, Asian and mixed)
Exchange rates	-	the US dollar is used
Executive branch	-	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor David PEAREY (since 18 April 2006) head of government: Premier Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 23 August 2007) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the House of Assembly elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed premier by the governor
Exports	-	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	-	rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand
Exports - partners	-	Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006)
Fiscal year	-	1 April - 31 March
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)
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 1.8% industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	1% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates	90 00 N, 0 00 E	18 30 N, 64 30 W
Geography - note	major chokepoint is the southern Chukchi Sea (northern access to the Pacific Ocean via the Bering Strait); strategic location between North America and Russia; shortest marine link between the extremes of eastern and western Russia; floating research stations operated by the US and Russia; maximum snow cover in March or April about 20 to 50 centimeters over the frozen ocean; snow cover lasts about 10 months	strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico
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; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering
Imports	-	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	-	building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery
Imports - partners	-	Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006)
Independence	-	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Industrial production growth rate	-	NA%
Industries	-	tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center
Infant mortality rate	-	total: 16.13 deaths/1,000 live births male: 18.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	2% (2005)
International organization participation	-	Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU
Irrigated land	-	NA
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
Labor force	-	12,770 (2004)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture: 0.6% industry: 40% services: 59.4% (2005)
Land boundaries	-	0 km
Land use	-	arable land: 20% permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2005)
Languages	-	English (official)
Legal system	-	English law
Legislative branch	-	unicameral House of Assembly (13 elected seats and 1 non-voting ex officio member in the attorney general; members are elected by direct popular vote, 1 member from each of nine electoral districts, 4 at-large members; to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 20 August 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - VIP 45.2%, NDP 39.6%, independent 15.2%; seats by party - VIP 10, NDP 2, independent 1
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 76.86 years male: 75.71 years female: 78.07 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA%
Location	body of water between Europe, Asia, and North America, mostly north of the Arctic Circle	Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico
Map references	Arctic Region	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	-	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of the UK
National holiday	-	Territory Day, 1 July (1956)
Nationality	-	noun: British Virgin Islander(s) adjective: British Virgin Islander
Natural hazards	ice islands occasionally break away from northern Ellesmere Island; icebergs calved from glaciers in western Greenland and extreme northeastern Canada; permafrost in islands; virtually ice locked from October to June; ships subject to superstructure icing from October to May	hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October)
Natural resources	sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules, oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales)	NEGL
Net migration rate	-	8.83 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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
Population	-	23,552 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	NA%
Population growth rate	-	1.923% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	-	AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004)
Religions	-	Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, other 2%, none 2% (1991)
Sex ratio	-	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.031 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.055 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.105 male(s)/female total population: 1.053 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	-	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	-	general assessment: worldwide telephone service domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; connected via submarine cable to Bermuda; the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable provides connectivity to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use	-	11,700 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	8,000 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	-	1 (plus 1 cable company) (1997)
Terrain	central surface covered by a perennial drifting polar icepack that, on average, is about 3 meters thick, although pressure ridges may be three times that thickness; clockwise drift pattern in the Beaufort Gyral Stream, but nearly straight-line movement from the New Siberian Islands (Russia) to Denmark Strait (between Greenland and Iceland); the icepack is surrounded by open seas during the summer, but more than doubles in size during the winter and extends to the encircling landmasses; the ocean floor is about 50% continental shelf (highest percentage of any ocean) with the remainder a central basin interrupted by three submarine ridges (Alpha Cordillera, Nansen Cordillera, and Lomonosov Ridge)	coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly
Total fertility rate	-	1.72 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Transportation - note	sparse network of air, ocean, river, and land routes; the Northwest Passage (North America) and Northern Sea Route (Eurasia) are important seasonal waterways	-
Unemployment rate	-	3.6% (1997)

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