British Indian Ocean Territory (2004) | Jersey (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (British crown dependency) |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years:
17.77% (male 8,214; female 7,667) 15-64 years: 67.59% (male 30,065; female 30,331) 65 years and over: 14.64% (male 5,603; female 7,481) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 1 (2003 est.) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 60 sq km
land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago |
total:
116 sq km land: 116 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC | about 0.7 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. | The island of Jersey and the other Channel Islands represent the last remnants of the medieval Dukedom of Normandy that held sway in both France and England. These islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II. |
Birth rate | - | 11.28 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues:
$601 million expenditures: $588 million, including capital expenditures of $98 million (2000 est.) |
Capital | - | Saint Helier |
Climate | tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds | temperate; mild winters and cool summers |
Coastline | 698 km | 70 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 Jersey conventional short form: Jersey |
Currency | - | British pound (GBP); note - there is also a Jersey pound |
Death rate | - | 9.27 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | - | none |
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; the UK resists the Chagossians' demand for an immediate return to the islands; repatriation is complicated by the exclusive US military lease of Diego Garcia that restricted access to the largest island in the chain | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | none |
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 economy is based largely on international financial services, agriculture, and tourism. Potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes, and especially flowers are important export crops, shipped mostly to the UK. The Jersey breed of dairy cattle is known worldwide and represents an important export income earner. Milk products go to the UK and other EU countries. In 1996 the finance sector accounted for about 60% of the island's output. Tourism, another mainstay of the economy, accounts for 24% of GDP. In recent years, the government has encouraged light industry to locate in Jersey, with the result that an electronics industry has developed alongside the traditional manufacturing of knitwear. All raw material and energy requirements are imported, as well as a large share of Jersey's food needs. Light taxes and death duties make the island a popular tax haven. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | - |
Electricity - imports | - | NA kWh
note: electricity supplied by France |
Electricity - production | NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military | - |
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 143 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Ethnic groups | - | UK and Norman-French descent |
Exchange rates | - | Jersey pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); the Jersey pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Commissioner Tony CROMBIE (since January 2004); Administrator Charles A. HAMILTON (since 2002); 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 Air Chief Marshall Sir John CHESHIRE (since 24 January 2001) and Bailiff Philip Martin BAILHACHE (since NA February 1995) cabinet: committees appointed by the Assembly of the States elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor and bailiff appointed by the monarch |
Exports | - | $NA |
Exports - commodities | - | light industrial and electrical goods, foodstuffs, textiles |
Exports - partners | - | UK |
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 | white with a diagonal red cross extending to the corners of the flag and in the upper quadrant, surmounted by a yellow crown, a red shield holding the three lions of England in yellow |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $2.2 billion (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture:
5% industry: 2% services: 93% (1996) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $24,800 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 6 00 S, 71 30 E | 49 15 N, 2 10 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 | largest and southernmost of Channel Islands; about 30% of population concentrated in Saint Helier |
Highways | total: NA km
paved: short section of paved road between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km |
total:
577 km (1995) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | - | $NA |
Imports - commodities | - | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, foodstuffs, mineral fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | - | UK |
Independence | - | none (British crown dependency) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
Industries | - | tourism, banking and finance, dairy |
Infant mortality rate | - | 5.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 4.7% (1998) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | NA |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Royal Court (judges elected by an electoral college and the bailiff) |
Labor force | - | 57,050 (1996) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land:
66% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 34% |
Languages | - | English (official), French (official), Norman-French dialect spoken in country districts |
Legal system | the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply | English law and local statute |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral Assembly of the States (55 voting members - 12 senators, 12 constables or heads of parishes, 29 deputies; all elected for six-year terms, half elected every third year; the bailiff and the deputy bailiff; and 3 non-voting members - the Dean of Jersey, the Attorney General and the Solicitor General all appointed by the monarch
elections: last held NA (next to be held NA) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 52 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population:
78.63 years male: 76.21 years female: 81.23 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition:
NA total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia | Western Europe, island in the English Channel, northwest of France |
Map references | Political Map of the World | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 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 | arable land |
Net migration rate | - | 2.8 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 in the 1960s and 1970s, 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 2004 est.) |
89,361 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 0.48% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Diego Garcia | Gorey, Saint Aubin, Saint Helier |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM NA, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | NA |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | - | Anglican, Roman Catholic, Baptist, Congregational New Church, Methodist, Presbyterian |
Sex ratio | - | at birth:
1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | - | NA years of age; universal adult |
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: 3 submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | NA | 65,500 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 4,400 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation) | gently rolling plain with low, rugged hills along north coast |
Total fertility rate | - | 1.56 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | 0.7% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |