Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2003) - Montserrat (2004)

Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2003) z Montserrat (2004)

	British Indian Ocean Territory (2003)	Montserrat (2004)

Administrative divisions	-	3 parishes; Saint Anthony, Saint Georges, Saint Peter
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 23.3% (male 1,092; female 1,062) 15-64 years: 65.5% (male 2,889; female 3,162) 65 years and over: 11.2% (male 543; female 497) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	cabbages, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, peppers, livestock products
Airports	1 (2002)	1 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2002)	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 60 sq km land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago	total: 102 sq km land: 102 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC	about 0.6 times the size of 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 that had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia.	Much of this island was devastated and two-thirds of the population fled abroad because of the eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano that began on 18 July 1995.
Birth rate	-	17.63 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $31.4 million expenditures: $31.6 million, including capital expenditures of $8.4 million (1997 est.)
Capital	-	Plymouth (abandoned in 1997 due to volcanic activity; interim government buildings have been built at Brades Estate, in the Carr's Bay/Little Bay vicinity at the northwest end of Montserrat)
Climate	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds	tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation
Coastline	698 km	40 km
Constitution	-	present constitution came into force 19 December 1989
Country name	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Montserrat
Currency	-	East Caribbean dollar (XCD)
Death rate	-	7.36 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	-	$8.9 million (1997)
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London	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	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	-	As of 31 March 2003, UK's DFID had provided about $328 million in economic relief from volcanic activity, and by 31 March 2006, DFID aid is expected to total $411 million.
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.	Severe volcanic activity, which began in July 1995, has put a damper on this small, open economy. A catastrophic eruption in June 1997 closed the airports and seaports, causing further economic and social dislocation. Two-thirds of the 12,000 inhabitants fled the island. Some began to return in 1998, but lack of housing limited the number. The agriculture sector continued to be affected by the lack of suitable land for farming and the destruction of crops. Prospects for the economy depend largely on developments in relation to the volcano and on public sector construction activity. The UK has launched a three-year $122.8 million aid program to help reconstruct the economy. Half of the island is expected to remain uninhabitable for another decade.
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	2.325 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	-	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	-	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military	2.5 million kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Chances Peak (in the Soufriere Hills volcanic complex) 914 m
Environment - current issues	NA	land erosion occurs on slopes that have been cleared for cultivation
Ethnic groups	-	black, white
Exchange rates	-	East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976)
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), represented by Governor Deborah Barnes JONES (since 10 May 2004) head of government: Chief Minister John OSBORNE (since 5 April 2001) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, the chief minister, three other ministers, the attorney general, and the finance secretary elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually becomes chief minister
Exports	-	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	-	electronic components, plastic bags, apparel, hot peppers, live plants, cattle
Exports - partners	-	US, Antigua and Barbuda
Fiscal year	-	1 April - 31 March
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	blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Montserratian coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a woman standing beside a yellow harp with her arm around a black cross
GDP	-	purchasing power parity - $29 million (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 5.4% industry: 13.6% services: 81% (1996 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $3,400 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	-1% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates	6 00 S, 71 30 E	16 45 N, 62 12 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	the island is entirely volcanic in origin and contains seven active volcanoes
Highways	total: NA km paved: short section of paved road between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km	total: 227 km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: volcanic eruptions beginning in 1995 destroyed most of the road system (2003)
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 (2001)
Imports - commodities	-	machinery and transportation equipment, foodstuffs, manufactured goods, fuels, lubricants, and related materials
Imports - partners	-	US, UK, Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, Canada
Independence	-	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Industrial production growth rate	-	NA
Industries	-	tourism, rum, textiles, electronic appliances
Infant mortality rate	-	total: 7.56 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	2.6% (2002 est.)
International organization participation	-	Caricom, CDB, ICFTU, Interpol (subbureau), OECS, UPU
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	0 sq km (1998 est.)	NA sq km
Judicial branch	-	Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia, one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court)
Labor force	-	4,521 ; note - lowered by flight of people from volcanic activity (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: NEGL permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.)	arable land: 20% permanent crops: 0% other: 80% (2001)
Languages	-	English
Legal system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply	English common law and statutory law
Legislative branch	-	unicameral Legislative Council (11 seats, 9 popularly elected; members serve five-year terms) note: expanded in 2001 from 7 to 9 elected members with attorney general and financial secretary sitting as ex-officio members elections: last held April 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NPLM 7, NPP 2 note: in 2001, the Elections Commission instituted a single constituency/voter-at-large system whereby all eligible voters cast ballots for all nine seats of the Legislative Council
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 78.53 years male: 76.39 years female: 80.78 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 97% male: 97% female: 97% (1970 est.)
Location	archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia	Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico
Map references	Political Map of the World	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 3 NM	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	-	none
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
Military branches	-	no regular indigenous military forces; Police Force
National holiday	-	Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926)
Nationality	-	noun: Montserratian(s) adjective: Montserratian
Natural hazards	NA	severe hurricanes (June to November); volcanic eruptions (Soufriere Hills volcano has erupted continuously since 1995)
Natural resources	coconuts, fish, sugarcane	negligible
Net migration rate	-	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Political parties and leaders	-	National Progressive Party or NPP [Reuben T. MEADE]; New People's Liberation Movement or NPLM [John A. OSBORNE]
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	NA
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 in the 1960's and 1970's, in November 2000 they were granted the right of return by a British High Court ruling, though no timetable has been set; 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 2003 est.)	9,245 note: an estimated 8,000 refugees left the island following the resumption of volcanic activity in July 1995; some have returned (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	NA
Population growth rate	-	1.03% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	Diego Garcia	Plymouth (abandoned), Little Bay (anchorages and ferry landing), Carr's Bay
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Religions	-	Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Christian denominations
Sex ratio	-	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.09 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 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: country code - 1-664
Telephones - main lines in use	NA	NA
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	70 (1994)
Television broadcast stations	1 (1997)	1 (1997)
Terrain	flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation)	volcanic island, mostly mountainous, with small coastal lowland
Total fertility rate	-	1.79 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	-	6% (1998 est.)
Waterways	none	-

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