Compare British Virgin Islands (2008) - British Indian Ocean Territory (2006)

Compare British Virgin Islands (2008) z British Indian Ocean Territory (2006)

	British Virgin Islands (2008)	British Indian Ocean Territory (2006)

Administrative divisions	none (overseas territory of the UK)	-
Age structure	0-14 years: 20.2% (male 2,410/female 2,337) 15-64 years: 74.5% (male 9,004/female 8,534) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 665/female 602) (2007 est.)	-
Agriculture - products	fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish	-
Airports	3 (2007)	1 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)	-
Area	total: 153 sq km land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke	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
Area - comparative	about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC	land area is about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency.	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.
Birth rate	14.82 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-
Budget	revenues: $204.7 million expenditures: $180.4 million (2004)	-
Capital	name: Road Town geographic coordinates: 18 27 N, 64 37 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	-
Climate	subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds
Coastline	80 km	698 km
Constitution	13 June 2007	-
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT
Death rate	4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-
Debt - external	$36.1 million (1997)	-
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London
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	none	Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia; in 2001 the former inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago, evicted in 1965 and now residing chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation; 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 restricts access to the largest island in the chain;
Economic aid - recipient	$NA	-
Economy - overview	The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 820,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 2005. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, made the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the US dollar as its currency since 1959.	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 country makes money by selling fishing licenses and postage stamps.
Electricity - consumption	41.85 million kWh (2005)	NA kWh
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - production	45 million kWh (2005)	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Sage 521 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m
Environment - current issues	limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments)	NA
Ethnic groups	black 83%, other 17% (includes white, Indian, Asian and mixed)	-
Exchange rates	the US dollar is used	-
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor David PEAREY (since 18 April 2006) head of government: Premier Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 23 August 2007) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the House of Assembly elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed premier by the governor	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner Tony CROMBIE (since January 2004); Administrator Tony HUMPHRIES (since February 2005); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch
Exports	0 bbl/day (2004)	-
Exports - commodities	rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand	-
Exports - partners	Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006)	-
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	-
Flag description	blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful)	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
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1.8% industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	1% (2002 est.)	-
Geographic coordinates	18 30 N, 64 30 W	6 00 S, 71 30 E; note - Diego Garcia 7 20 S, 72 25 E
Geography - note	strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico	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
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; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering	-
Imports	604.3 bbl/day (2004)	-
Imports - commodities	building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery	-
Imports - partners	Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006)	-
Independence	none (overseas territory of the UK)	-
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	-
Industries	tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center	-
Infant mortality rate	total: 16.13 deaths/1,000 live births male: 18.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	-
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2% (2005)	-
International organization participation	Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS, UNESCO (associate), UPU	-
Irrigated land	NA	0 sq km
Judicial branch	Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction	-
Labor force	12,770 (2004)	-
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 0.6% industry: 40% services: 59.4% (2005)	-
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 20% permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2005)	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005)
Languages	English (official)	-
Legal system	English law	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply
Legislative branch	unicameral House of Assembly (13 elected seats and 1 non-voting ex officio member in the attorney general; members are elected by direct popular vote, 1 member from each of nine electoral districts, 4 at-large members; to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 20 August 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - VIP 45.2%, NDP 39.6%, independent 15.2%; seats by party - VIP 10, NDP 2, independent 1	-
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 76.86 years male: 75.71 years female: 78.07 years (2007 est.)	-
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA%	-
Location	Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico	archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Political Map of the World
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK	defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016
National holiday	Territory Day, 1 July (1956)	-
Nationality	noun: British Virgin Islander(s) adjective: British Virgin Islander	-
Natural hazards	hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October)	NA
Natural resources	NEGL	coconuts, fish, sugarcane
Net migration rate	8.83 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-
Political parties and leaders	Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL]	-
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	-
Population	23,552 (July 2007 est.)	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 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	-
Population growth rate	1.923% (2007 est.)	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004)	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Religions	Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, other 2%, none 2% (1991)	-
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.031 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.055 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.105 male(s)/female total population: 1.053 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	-
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	-
Telephone system	general assessment: worldwide telephone service domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; connected via submarine cable to Bermuda; the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable provides connectivity to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean (2007)	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)
Telephones - main lines in use	11,700 (2002)	NA
Telephones - mobile cellular	8,000 (2002)	-
Television broadcast stations	1 (plus 1 cable company) (1997)	1 (1997)
Terrain	coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly	flat and low (most areas do not exceed two meters in elevation)
Total fertility rate	1.72 children born/woman (2007 est.)	-
Unemployment rate	3.6% (1997)	-

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