Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2007) - Turks and Caicos Islands (2003)

Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2007) z Turks and Caicos Islands (2003)

	British Indian Ocean Territory (2007)	Turks and Caicos Islands (2003)

Administrative divisions	-	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 32.5% (male 3,202; female 3,094) 15-64 years: 63.7% (male 6,484; female 5,848) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 321; female 401) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), citrus fruits; fish
Airports	1 (2007)	8 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2007)	total: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002)
Area	total: 54,400 sq km land: 60 sq km; Diego Garcia 44 sq km water: 54,340 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago of 55 islands	total: 430 sq km land: 430 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	land area is about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC	2.5 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 islands were part of the UK's Jamaican colony until 1962, when they assumed the status of a separate crown colony upon Jamaica's independence. The governor of The Bahamas oversaw affairs from 1965 to 1973. With Bahamian independence, the islands received a separate governor in 1973. Although independence was agreed upon for 1982, the policy was reversed and the islands are presently a British overseas territory.
Birth rate	-	23.51 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $47 million expenditures: $33.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997-98 est.)
Capital	-	Grand Turk (Cockburn Town)
Climate	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds	tropical; marine; moderated by trade winds; sunny and relatively dry
Coastline	698 km	389 km
Constitution	-	introduced 30 August 1976; suspended in 1986; restored and revised 5 March 1988
Country name	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Turks and Caicos Islands
Currency	-	US dollar (USD)
Death rate	-	4.34 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external	-	$NA
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 including Diego Garcia; in 2001, the former inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago, evicted in 1967 and 1973 and now residing chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation; in May 2006, the High Court of London reversed U.K. Government's 2004 orders of council that banned habitation on the islands; a small group of Chagossians visited Diego Garcia in April 2006; repatriation is complicated by the exclusive US military lease of Diego Garcia that restricts access to the largest viable island in the chain	none
Economic aid - recipient	-	$4.1 million (1997)
Economy - overview	All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where a joint UK-US military facility is located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installation are performed 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 native Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing. The territory makes money by selling fishing licenses and postage stamps.	The Turks and Caicos economy is based on tourism, fishing, and offshore financial services. Most capital goods and food for domestic consumption are imported. The US is the leading source of tourists, accounting for more than half of the 93,000 visitors in 1998. Major sources of government revenue include fees from offshore financial activities and customs receipts. Tourism fell by 6% in 2002 but appeared to be picking up at yearend.
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	4.65 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	-	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	-	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military	5 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (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: Blue Hills 49 m
Environment - current issues	NA	limited natural fresh water resources, private cisterns collect rainwater
Ethnic groups	-	black 90%, mixed, European, or north American 10%
Exchange rates	-	the US dollar is used
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner Leigh TURNER (since July 2006); Administrator Tony HUMPHRIES (since February 2005); note - both reside in the UK and are represented by the officer commanding British Forces on Diego Garcia cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1953), represented by Governor Jim POSTON (since 16 December 2002) head of government: Chief Minister Derek H. TAYLOR (since 31 January 1995) cabinet: Executive Council consists of three ex officio members and five appointed by the governor from among the members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is appointed chief minister by the governor
Exports	-	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	-	lobster, dried and fresh conch, conch shells
Exports - partners	-	US, UK
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	blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the colonial shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield is yellow and contains a conch shell, lobster, and cactus
GDP	-	purchasing power parity - $231 million (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $9,600 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	4.9% (2000 est.)
Geographic coordinates	6 00 S, 71 30 E; note - Diego Garcia 7 20 S, 72 25 E	21 45 N, 71 35 W
Geography - note	archipelago of 55 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility	about 40 islands (eight inhabited)
Highways	-	total: 121 km paved: 24 km unpaved: 97 km (2000)
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	-	food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufactures, construction materials
Imports - partners	-	US, UK
Independence	-	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Industrial production growth rate	-	NA%
Industries	-	tourism, offshore financial services
Infant mortality rate	-	total: 16.87 deaths/1,000 live births male: 19.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	4% (1995)
International organization participation	-	Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	14 (2000)
Irrigated land	0 sq km	NA sq km
Judicial branch	-	Supreme Court
Labor force	-	4,848 (1990 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	about 33% in government and 20% in agriculture and fishing; significant numbers in tourism, financial, and other services
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005)	arable land: 2.33% permanent crops: 0% other: 97.67% (1998 est.)
Languages	-	English (official)
Legal system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply	based on laws of England and Wales, with a few adopted from Jamaica and The Bahamas
Legislative branch	-	unicameral Legislative Council (19 seats, of which 13 are popularly elected; members serve four-year terms) elections: last held 24 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PDM 53.8%, PNP 46.2%; seats by party - PDM 7, PNP 6; note - in by-elections held 7 August 2003, the PNP gained two seats for a majority of 8 seats; PDM now has 5
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 74 years male: 71.82 years female: 76.3 years (2003 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1970 est.)
Location	archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia	Caribbean, two island groups in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of The Bahamas, north of Haiti
Map references	Political Map of the World	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm	exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	-	none (2002 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	-	Constitution Day, 30 August (1976)
Nationality	-	noun: none adjective: none
Natural hazards	NA	frequent hurricanes
Natural resources	coconuts, fish, sugarcane	spiny lobster, conch
Net migration rate	-	12.25 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
People - note	-	destination and transit point for illegal Haitian immigrants bound for the Turks and Caicos Islands, Bahamas, and US
Political parties and leaders	-	People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Derek H. TAYLOR]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Washington MISICK]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Wendal SWANN]
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 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 November 2004, there were approximately 4,000 UK and US military personnel and civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia	19,350 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	NA%
Population growth rate	-	3.14% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Grand Turk, Providenciales
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 3 (one inactive), FM 6, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways	-	0 km
Religions	-	Baptist 40%, Methodist 16%, Anglican 18%, Church of God 12%, other 14% (1990)
Sex ratio	-	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.11 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2003 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: country code (Diego Garcia) - 246; international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)	general assessment: fair cable and radiotelephone services domestic: NA international: 2 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	NA	3,000 (1994)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	0 (1994)
Television broadcast stations	1 (1997)	0 (broadcasts from The Bahamas are received; cable television is established) (1997)
Terrain	flat and low (most areas do not exceed two meters in elevation)	low, flat limestone; extensive marshes and mangrove swamps
Total fertility rate	-	3.15 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate	-	10% (1997 est.)
Waterways	-	none

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