Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2002) - Netherlands (2008)

Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2002) z Netherlands (2008)

	British Indian Ocean Territory (2002)	Netherlands (2008)

Administrative divisions	-	12 provinces (provincies, singular - provincie); Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland (Fryslan), Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Noord-Brabant (North Brabant), Noord-Holland (North Holland), Overijssel, Utrecht, Zeeland, Zuid-Holland (South Holland)
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 17.8% (male 1,505,931/female 1,436,532) 15-64 years: 67.8% (male 5,683,877/female 5,557,745) 65 years and over: 14.4% (male 1,015,731/female 1,370,797) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	grains, potatoes, sugar beets, fruits, vegetables; livestock
Airports	1 (2001)	27 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2002)	total: 20 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2007)
Area	total: 60 sq km land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago	total: 41,526 sq km land: 33,883 sq km water: 7,643 sq km
Area - comparative	about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC	slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey
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 Dutch United Provinces declared their independence from Spain in 1579; during the 17th century, they became a leading seafaring and commercial power, with settlements and colonies around the world. After a 20-year French occupation, a Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830 Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, but suffered invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU), and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999.
Birth rate	-	10.7 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $302.8 billion expenditures: $352.3 billion (2007 est.)
Capital	-	name: Amsterdam geographic coordinates: 52 23 N, 4 54 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: The Hague (seat of government)
Climate	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds	temperate; marine; cool summers and mild winters
Coastline	698 km	451 km
Constitution	-	adopted 1815; amended many times, most recently in 2002
Country name	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT	conventional long form: Kingdom of the Netherlands conventional short form: Netherlands local long form: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden local short form: Nederland
Death rate	-	8.69 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	-	$2.277 trillion (30 June 2007)
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London	-
Dependent areas	-	Aruba, Netherlands Antilles
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Michael GALLAGHER embassy: Lange Voorhout 102, 2514 EJ, The Hague mailing address: PSC 71, Box 1000, APO AE 09715 telephone: [31] (70) 310-2209 FAX: [31] (70) 361-4688 consulate(s) general: Amsterdam
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	chief of mission: Ambassador Christiaan Mark Johan KROENER chancery: 4200 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-5300, [1] 877-388-2443 FAX: [1] (202) 362-3430 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York
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 - donor	-	ODA, $4 billion (2003 est.)
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.	The Netherlands has a prosperous and open economy, which depends heavily on foreign trade. The economy is noted for stable industrial relations, moderate unemployment and inflation, a sizable current account surplus, and an important role as a European transportation hub. Industrial activity is predominantly in food processing, chemicals, petroleum refining, and electrical machinery. A highly mechanized agricultural sector employs no more than 3% of the labor force but provides large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. The Netherlands, along with 11 of its EU partners, began circulating the euro currency on 1 January 2002. The country continues to be one of the leading European nations for attracting foreign direct investment and is one of the five largest investors in the US. The economy experienced a slowdown in 2005 but in 2006 recovered to the fastest pace in six years on the back of increased exports and strong investment. The pace of job growth reached 10-year highs in 2007.
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	108.2 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	-	5.398 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	-	23.69 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military	94.34 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m	lowest point: Zuidplaspolder -7 m highest point: Vaalserberg 322 m
Environment - current issues	NA	water pollution in the form of heavy metals, organic compounds, and nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates; air pollution from vehicles and refining activities; acid rain
Environment - international agreements	-	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
Ethnic groups	-	Dutch 83%, other 17% (of which 9% are non-Western origin mainly Turks, Moroccans, Antilleans, Surinamese, and Indonesians) (1999 est.)
Exchange rates	-	euros per US dollar - 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003)
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 BEATRIX (since 30 April 1980); Heir Apparent WILLEM-ALEXANDER (born 27 April 1967), son of the monarch head of government: Prime Minister Jan Peter BALKENENDE (since 22 July 2002); Deputy Prime Ministers Wouter BOS (since 22 February 2007) and Andre ROUVOET (since 22 February 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following Second Chamber elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch; deputy prime ministers appointed by the monarch note: there is also a Council of State composed of the monarch, heir apparent, and councilors that provides consultations to the cabinet on legislative and administrative policy
Exports	-	1.546 million bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	-	machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs
Exports - partners	-	Germany 25.5%, Belgium 14%, UK 8.9%, France 8.6%, Italy 5.1%, US 4.5% (2006)
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	three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue; similar to the flag of Luxembourg, which uses a lighter blue and is longer; one of the oldest flags in constant use, originating with WILLIAM I, Prince of Orange, in the latter half of the 16th century
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 2.2% industry: 24% services: 73.8% (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	2.8% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates	6 00 S, 71 30 E	52 30 N, 5 45 E
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	located at mouths of three major European rivers (Rhine, Maas or Meuse, and Schelde)
Heliports	-	1 (2007)
Highways	total: NA km paved: short stretch of paved road of NA km between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	-	lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 22.9% (1999)
Illicit drugs	-	major European producer of synthetic drugs, including ecstasy, and cannabis cultivator; important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe; major source of US-bound ecstasy; large financial sector vulnerable to money laundering; significant consumer of ecstasy
Imports	-	2.465 million bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	-	machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs, clothing
Imports - partners	-	Germany 17.1%, Belgium 9.4%, China 9.4%, US 7.8%, UK 5.9%, Russia 5.1%, France 4.5% (2006)
Independence	-	23 January 1579 (the northern provinces of the Low Countries conclude the Union of Utrecht breaking with Spain; on 26 July 1581 they formally declared their independence with an Act of Abjuration; however, it was not until 30 January 1648 and the Peace of Westphalia that Spain recognized this independence)
Industrial production growth rate	-	2% (2007 est.)
Industries	-	agroindustries, metal and engineering products, electrical machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum, construction, microelectronics, fishing
Infant mortality rate	-	total: 4.88 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	1.8% (2007 est.)
International organization participation	-	ADB (nonregional members), AfDB, Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CBSS (observer), CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	0 sq km (1998 est.)	5,650 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	-	Supreme Court or Hoge Raad (justices are nominated for life by the monarch)
Labor force	-	7.5 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture: 3% industry: 21% services: 76% (2005 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 1,027 km border countries: Belgium 450 km, Germany 577 km
Land use	arable land: NEGL permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.)	arable land: 21.96% permanent crops: 0.77% other: 77.27% (2005)
Languages	-	Dutch (official), Frisian (official)
Legal system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply	based on civil law system incorporating French penal theory; constitution does not permit judicial review of acts of the States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Legislative branch	-	bicameral States General or Staten Generaal consists of the First Chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly elected by the country's 12 provincial councils to serve four-year terms) and the Second Chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: First Chamber - last held 29 May 2007 (next to be held in May 2011); Second Chamber - last held 22 November 2006 (next to be held by early 2011) election results: First Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CDA 21, PvdA 14, VVD 14, Socialist Party 11, Christian Union 4, Green Left Party 4, D66 2, other 5; Second Chamber - percent of vote by party - CDA 26.5%, PvdA 21.2%, Socialist Party 16.6%, VVD 14.6%, Party for Freedom 5.9%, Green Party 4.6%, Christian Union 4.0%, other 6.6%; seats by party - CDA 41, PvdA 33, Socialist Party 25, VVD 22, Party for Freedom 9, Green Party 7, Christian Union 6, other 7
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 79.11 years male: 76.52 years female: 81.82 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Asia, archipelago in the Indian Ocean, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia	Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between Belgium and Germany
Map references	Political Map of the World	Europe
Maritime claims	exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 3 NM	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	-	total: 566 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,210,664 GRT/5,217,874 DWT by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 346, carrier 19, chemical tanker 39, container 63, liquefied gas 13, passenger 14, passenger/cargo 16, petroleum tanker 12, refrigerated cargo 11, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 4 foreign-owned: 172 (Belgium 2, Denmark 19, Finland 14, France 1, Germany 70, Ireland 9, South Korea 1, Norway 9, Sweden 27, UK 7, US 13) registered in other countries: 220 (Antigua and Barbuda 19, Australia 2, Austria 2, Bahamas 24, Canada 1, Cyprus 23, Gibraltar 11, Isle of Man 1, Liberia 28, Luxembourg 1, Malta 3, Marshall Islands 5, Netherlands Antilles 53, Norway 1, Panama 14, Paraguay 1, Philippines 22, Portugal 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 5, UK 2, US 1, unknown 1) (2007)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016	-
Military branches	-	Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (includes Naval Air Service and Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force (Koninklijke Luchtmacht, KLu), Royal Military Police, Defense Interservice Command (DICO) (2006)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	1.6% (2005 est.)
National holiday	-	Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX), 30 April (1909 and 1980)
Nationality	-	noun: Dutchman(men), Dutchwoman(women) adjective: Dutch
Natural hazards	NA	flooding
Natural resources	coconuts, fish, sugarcane	natural gas, petroleum, peat, limestone, salt, sand and gravel, arable land
Net migration rate	-	2.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	-	condensate 81 km; gas 7,394 km; oil 578 km; refined products 716 km (2007)
Political parties and leaders	-	Christian Democratic Appeal or CDA [Jan Peter BALKENENDE]; Christian Union Party [Andre ROUVOET]; Democrats 66 or D66 [Alexander PECHTOLD]; Green Left Party [Femke HALSEMA]; Labor Party or PvdA [Wouter BOS]; Party for Freedom or PVV [Geert WILDERS]; Party for the Animals or PvdD [Marianne THIEME]; People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (Liberal) or VVD [Mark RUTTE]; Reformed Political Party of SGP [Bas VAN DER VLIES]; Socialist Party [Jan MARIJNISSEN]; plus a few minor parties
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	Christian Trade Union Federation or CNV [Rene PAAS]; Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers or VNO-NCW [Bernard WIENTJES]; Federation for Small and Medium-sized businesses or MBK [Loek HERMANS]; Netherlands Trade Union Federation or FNV [Agnes JONGERIUS]; Social Economic Council or SER [ Alexander RINNOOY Kan]; Trade Union Federation of Middle and High Personnel or MHP [Ad VERHOEVEN]
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.)	16,570,613 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	10.5% (2005)
Population growth rate	-	0.464% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors	Diego Garcia	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 4, FM 246, shortwave 3 (2004)
Radios	NA	-
Railways	-	total: 2,811 km standard gauge: 2,811 km 1.435-m gauge (2,064 km electrified) (2006)
Religions	-	Roman Catholic 31%, Dutch Reformed 13%, Calvinist 7%, Muslim 5.5%, other 2.5%, none 41% (2002)
Sex ratio	-	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.048 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.023 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.741 male(s)/female total population: 0.981 male(s)/female (2007 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: highly developed and well maintained domestic: extensive fixed-line fiber-optic network; cellular telephone system is one of the largest in Europe with 5 major network operators utilizing the third generation of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) international: country code - 31; submarine cables provide links to the US and Europe; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) (2004)
Telephones - main lines in use	NA	7.6 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	15.834 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	1 (1997)	21 (plus 26 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation)	mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders); some hills in southeast
Total fertility rate	-	1.66 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	-	4.5% (2007 est.)
Waterways	none	6,183 km (navigable for ships of 50 tons) (2005)

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