Baker Island (2001) | Guernsey (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (British crown dependency); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 10 parishes including Saint Peter Port, Saint Sampson, Vale, Castel, Saint Saviour, Saint Pierre du Bois, Torteval, Forest, Saint Martin, Saint Andrew |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 15.6% (male 5,161; female 5,013)
15-64 years: 66.7% (male 21,497; female 21,897) 65 years and over: 17.6% (male 4,812; female 6,651) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | tomatoes, greenhouse flowers, sweet peppers, eggplant, fruit; Guernsey cattle |
Airports | 1 abandoned World War II runway of 1,665 m, completely covered with vegetation and unusable (2000 est.) | 2 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
1.4 sq km land: 1.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 78 sq km
land: 78 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Alderney, Guernsey, Herm, Sark, and some other smaller islands |
Area - comparative | about 2.5 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | about one-half the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The US took possession of the island in 1857, and its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization was begun on this island - as well as on nearby Howland Island - but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. Presently the island is a National Wildlife Refuge run by the US Department of the Interior; a day beacon is situated near the middle of the west coast. | The island of Guernsey and the other Channel Islands represent the last remnants of the medieval Dukedom of Normandy, which held sway in both France and England. The islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II. |
Birth rate | - | 9.16 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $381.3 million
expenditures: $368.8 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | - | Saint Peter Port |
Climate | equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun | temperate with mild winters and cool summers; about 50% of days are overcast |
Coastline | 4.8 km | 50 km |
Constitution | - | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Baker Island |
conventional long form: Bailiwick of Guernsey
conventional short form: Guernsey |
Currency | - | British pound (GBP); note - there is also a Guernsey pound |
Death rate | - | 9.87 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | - | NA |
Dependency status | unincorporated territory of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge system | British crown dependency |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | none (British crown dependency) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | none (British crown dependency) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | NA |
Economy - overview | no economic activity | Financial services - banking, fund management, insurance, etc. - account for about 55% of total income in this tiny Channel Island economy. Tourism, manufacturing, and horticulture, mainly tomatoes and cut flowers, have been declining. Light tax and death duties make Guernsey a popular tax haven. The evolving economic integration of the EU nations is changing the environment under which Guernsey operates. |
Electricity - consumption | - | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | - | NA kWh |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 8 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Sark 114 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources | NA |
Ethnic groups | - | UK and Norman-French descent with small percentages from other European countries |
Exchange rates | - | Guernsey pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998); note - the Guernsey pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief Lt. Gen. Sir John FOLEY (since NA 2000)
head of government: Chief Minister Laurie MORGAN (since 1 May 2004) cabinet: Policy Council elected by the States of Deliberation elections: the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch; chief minister is elected by States of Delibertion election results: Laurie MORGAN elected chief minister, percent of vote of the States of Deliberation NA |
Exports | - | NA |
Exports - commodities | - | tomatoes, flowers and ferns, sweet peppers, eggplant, other vegetables |
Exports - partners | - | UK (regarded as internal trade) |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of the US is used | white with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England) extending to the edges of the flag and a yellow equal-armed cross of William the Conqueror superimposed on the Saint George cross |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.3 billion (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 3%
industry: 10% services: 87% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $20,000 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 5.7% (1999 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 13 N, 176 31 W | 49 28 N, 2 35 W |
Geography - note | treeless, sparse, and scattered vegetation consisting of grasses, prostrate vines, and low growing shrubs; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife | large, deepwater harbor at Saint Peter Port |
Highways | - | total: NA km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | - | NA |
Imports - commodities | - | coal, gasoline, oil, machinery and equipment |
Imports - partners | - | UK (regarded as internal trade) |
Independence | - | none (British crown dependency) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA |
Industries | - | tourism, banking |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: 4.78 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 4% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | - | UPU |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1993) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Royal Court |
Labor force | - | 31,320 (2000) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% |
arable land: NA
permanent crops: NA other: NA (2001) |
Languages | - | English, French, Norman-French dialect spoken in country districts |
Legal system | the laws of the US, where applicable, apply | English law and local statute; justice is administered by the Royal Court |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral States of Deliberation (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote for 4 years); note - Alderney and Sark have their own parliaments
elections: last held 21 April 2004 (next to be held NA 2008) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - all independents |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 80.17 years
male: 77.17 years female: 83.27 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | Oceania, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia | Western Europe, islands in the English Channel, northwest of France |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | - | none |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US; visited annually by the US Coast Guard | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
National holiday | - | Liberation Day, 9 May (1945) |
Nationality | - | noun: Channel Islander(s)
adjective: Channel Islander |
Natural hazards | the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard | NA |
Natural resources | guano (deposits worked until 1891), terrestrial and aquatic wildlife | cropland |
Net migration rate | - | 3.84 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | none; all independents |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | none |
Population | uninhabited
note: American civilians evacuated in 1942 after Japanese air and naval attacks during World War II; occupied by US military during World War II, but abandoned after the war; public entry is by special-use permit from US Fish and Wildlife Service only and generally restricted to scientists and educators; a cemetery and remnants of structures from early settlement are located near the middle of the west coast; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service (July 2001 est.) |
65,031 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA |
Population growth rate | - | 0.31% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only; note - there is one small boat landing area along the middle of the west coast | Saint Peter Port, Saint Sampson |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Religions | - | Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Baptist, Congregational, Methodist |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | - | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: 1 submarine cable |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 55,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 31,500 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | low, nearly level coral island surrounded by a narrow fringing reef | mostly level with low hills in southwest |
Total fertility rate | - | 1.38 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | 0.5% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |