British Indian Ocean Territory (2002) | Guernsey (2001) | |
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 St. Peter Port, St. Sampson, Vale, Castel, St. Saviour, St. Pierre du Bois, Torteval, Forest, St. Martin, St. Andrew |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years:
16.22% (male 5,285; female 5,151) 15-64 years: 66.67% (male 21,264; female 21,630) 65 years and over: 17.11% (male 4,546; female 6,466) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | tomatoes, greenhouse flowers, sweet peppers, eggplant, fruit; Guernsey cattle |
Airports | 1 (2001) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 60 sq km
land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago |
total:
194 sq km land: 194 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Alderney, Guernsey, Herm, Sark, and some other smaller islands |
Area - comparative | about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Washington, DC |
Background | Established as a territory of the UK in 1965, a number of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) islands were transferred to the Seychelles when it attained independence in 1976. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago. The largest and most southerly of the islands, Diego Garcia, contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. All of the remaining islands are uninhabited. Former agricultural workers, earlier residents in the islands, were relocated primarily to Mauritius but also to the Seychelles, between 1967 and 1973. In 2000, a British High Court ruling invalidated the local immigration order which had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia. | 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 | - | 9.9 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues:
$381.3 million expenditures: $368.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | - | Saint Peter Port |
Climate | tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds | temperate with mild winters and cool summers; about 50% of days are overcast |
Coastline | 698 km | 50 km |
Constitution | - | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice |
Country name | conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory
conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT |
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 (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $NA |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London | British crown dependency |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | none (British crown dependency) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | none (British crown dependency) |
Disputes - international | Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; repatriation is complicated by the US military lease of Diego Garcia, the largest island in the chain | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
Economy - overview | All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where joint UK-US defense facilities are located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines, and the US. There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. When the Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing. | 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 rules of the game under which Guernsey operates. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | - | NA kWh |
Electricity - imports | - | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Sark 114 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Ethnic groups | - | UK and Norman-French descent |
Exchange rates | - | Guernsey pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); note - the Guernsey pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Commissioner Alan HUCKLE (since 2001); Administrator Louise SAVILL (since NA); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief Lt. Gen. Sir John FOLEY (since NA 2000) and Bailiff De Vic G. CAREY (since NA) cabinet: Advisory and Finance Committee appointed by the Assembly of the States elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch; bailiff appointed by the monarch |
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 | white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the UK is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag | 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 | 6 00 S, 71 30 E | 49 28 N, 2 35 W |
Geography - note | archipelago of 2,300 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility | large, deepwater harbor at Saint Peter Port |
Highways | total: NA km
paved: short stretch of paved road of NA km between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km |
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 | - | 5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 3.99% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | - | none |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | NA |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Royal Court |
Labor force | - | 31,322 (2000) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: NEGL
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
NA% permanent crops: NA% permanent pastures: NA% forests and woodland: NA% other: NA% |
Languages | - | English, French, Norman-French dialect spoken in country districts |
Legal system | the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply | English law and local statute; justice is administered by the Royal Court |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral Assembly of the States; consists of the Bailiff, 10 Douzaine (parish council) representatives, 45 People's Deputies elected by popular franchise, 2 Alderney representatives, HM Procureur (Attorney General), HM Comptroller (Solicitor General) and HM Greffier (Court Recorder and Registrar General)
elections: last held 12 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - all independents |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population:
79.78 years male: 76.78 years female: 82.88 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southern Asia, archipelago in the Indian Ocean, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia | Western Europe, islands in the English Channel, northwest of France |
Map references | Political Map of the World | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
exclusive fishing zone:
12 NM territorial sea: 3 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016 | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
National holiday | - | Liberation Day, 9 May (1945) |
Nationality | - | noun:
Channel Islander(s) adjective: Channel Islander |
Natural hazards | NA | NA |
Natural resources | coconuts, fish, sugarcane | cropland |
Net migration rate | - | 3.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | none; all independents |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | none |
Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: approximately 1,200 former agricultural workers resident in the Chagos Archipelago, often referred to as Chagossians or Ilois, were relocated to Mauritius and the Seychelles around the time of the construction of UK-US military facilities; in 2001, there were approximately 1,500 UK and US military personnel and 2,000 civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia (July 2002 est.) |
64,342 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 0.39% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Diego Garcia | Saint Peter Port, Saint Sampson |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | NA | NA |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | - | Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Baptist, Congregational, Methodist |
Sex ratio | - | at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available
domestic: all commercial telephone services are available, including connection to the Internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000) |
general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: 1 submarine cable |
Telephones - main lines in use | NA | 44,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 12,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation) | mostly level with low hills in southwest |
Total fertility rate | - | 1.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | 0.5% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |