Cayman Islands (2001) | Denmark (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western | metropolitan Denmark - 14 counties (amter, singular - amt) and 2 kommunes*; Arhus, Bornholm, Fredericksberg*, Frederiksborg, Fyn, Kobenhavn, Kobenhavns*, Nordjylland, Ribe, Ringkobing, Roskilde, Sonderjylland, Storstrom, Vejle, Vestsjalland, Viborg
note: see separate entries for the Faroe Islands and Greenland, which are part of the Kingdom of Denmark and are self-governing administrative divisions |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
22.21% (male 3,807; female 4,084) 15-64 years: 69.74% (male 12,102; female 12,676) 65 years and over: 8.05% (male 1,318; female 1,540) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
18.59% (male 510,826; female 484,385) 15-64 years: 66.56% (male 1,804,617; female 1,758,019) 65 years and over: 14.85% (male 331,906; female 463,062) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming | grain, potatoes, rape, sugar beets; pork and beef, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 119 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total:
28 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
91 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 83 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
259 sq km land: 259 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
43,094 sq km land: 42,394 sq km water: 700 sq km note: includes the island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea and the rest of metropolitan Denmark (the Jutland Peninsula, and the major islands of Sjaeland and Fyn), but excludes the Faroe Islands and Greenland |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts |
Background | The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries. Administered by Jamaica from 1863, they remained a British dependency after 1962 when the former became independent. | Once the seat of Viking raiders and later a major north European power, Denmark has evolved into a modern, prosperous nation that is participating in the political and economic integration of Europe. So far, however, the country has opted out of some aspects of the European Union's Maastricht Treaty, including the economic and monetary system (EMU) and issues concerning certain internal affairs. |
Birth rate | 13.79 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.96 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$265.2 million expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues:
$52.9 billion expenditures: $51.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2001 est.) |
Capital | George Town | Copenhagen |
Climate | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) | temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers |
Coastline | 160 km | 7,314 km |
Constitution | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 | 1849 was the original constitution; there was a major overhaul 5 June 1953, allowing for a unicameral legislature and a female chief of state |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
conventional long form:
Kingdom of Denmark conventional short form: Denmark local long form: Kongeriget Danmark local short form: Danmark |
Currency | Caymanian dollar (KYD) | Danish krone (DKK) |
Death rate | 5.15 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.9 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $70 million (1996) | $21.7 billion (2000) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Stuart BERNSTEIN embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Alle 24, 2100 Copenhagen mailing address: PSC 73, APO AE 09716 telephone: [45] 35 55 31 44 FAX: [45] 35 38 96 16 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ulrik Andreas FEDERSPIEL chancery: 3200 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 328-1470 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | none | Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Iceland and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area); dispute with Iceland over the Faroe Islands fisheries median line boundary within 200 NM; disputes with Iceland, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.63 billion (1999) |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | - |
Economy - overview | With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1997, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million visitors in 1997. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. | This thoroughly modern market economy features high-tech agriculture, up-to-date small-scale and corporate industry, extensive government welfare measures, comfortable living standards, and high dependence on foreign trade. Denmark is a net exporter of food and energy and has a comfortable balance of payments surplus. The center-left coalition government has reduced the formerly high unemployment rate and attained a budget surplus as well as followed the previous government's policies of maintaining low inflation and a stable currency. The coalition has lowered marginal income tax rates and raised environmental taxes thus maintaining overall tax revenues. Problems of bottlenecks, and longer term demographic changes reducing the labor force, are being addressed through labor market reforms. The government has been successful in meeting, and even exceeding, the economic convergence criteria for participating in the third phase (a common European currency) of the European Monetary Union (EMU), but Denmark, in a September 2000 referendum, reconfirmed its decision not to join the 11 other EU members in the euro. Even so, the Danish currency remains pegged to the euro. |
Electricity - consumption | 306.9 million kWh (1999) | 32.916 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 7.28 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 4.963 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 330 million kWh (1999) | 37.885 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
88.4% hydro: 0.07% nuclear: 0% other: 11.53% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: The Bluff 43 m |
lowest point:
Lammefjord -7 m highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchment | air pollution, principally from vehicle and power plant emissions; nitrogen and phosphorus pollution of the North Sea; drinking and surface water becoming polluted from animal wastes and pesticides |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% | Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, German, Turkish, Iranian, Somali |
Exchange rates | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) | Danish kroner per US dollar - 7.951 (January 2001), 8.083 (2000), 6.976 (1999), 6.701 (1998), 6.604 (1997), 5.799 (1996); note - the Danes rejected the Euro in a 28 September 2000 referendum |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Governor and President of the Executive Council Peter SMITH (since 5 May 1999) head of government: Kurt TIBBETTS (since November 2000) cabinet: Executive Council (three members appointed by the governor, four members elected by the Legislative Assembly) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor is appointed by the monarch |
chief of state:
Queen MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972); Heir Apparent Crown Prince FREDERIK, elder son of the monarch (born 26 May 1968) head of government: Prime Minister Poul Nyrup RASMUSSEN (since 25 January 1993) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $1.5 million (1998) | $50.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods | machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills |
Exports - partners | mostly US | EU 66.5% (Germany 20.1%, Sweden 11.7%, UK 9.6%, France 5.3%, Netherlands 4.7%), Norway 5.8%, US 5.4% (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms on a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a pineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representing the three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS | red with a white cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side, and that design element of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) was subsequently adopted by the other Nordic countries of Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $930 million (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $136.2 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
1.4% industry: 3.2% services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
agriculture:
3% industry: 25% services: 72% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,500 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $25,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (1999 est.) | 2.8% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 30 N, 80 30 W | 56 00 N, 10 00 E |
Geography - note | important location between Cuba and Central America | controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen |
Highways | total:
406 km paved: 304 km unpaved: 102 km |
total:
71,474 km paved: 71,474 km (including 880 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
2% highest 10%: 24% (2000 est.) |
Illicit drugs | vulnerable to drug money laundering and drug transshipment to the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $507.6 million (1998) | $43.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods | machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan | EU 72.1% (Germany 21.6%, Sweden 12.4%, UK 8.0%, Netherlands 8.0%, France 5.8%), Norway 4.2%, US 4.5% (1999) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 3% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture | food processing, machinery and equipment, textiles and clothing, chemical products, electronics, construction, furniture, and other wood products, shipbuilding, windmills |
Infant mortality rate | 10.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 5.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (1998) | 2.9% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate) | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | 13 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 4,350 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life) |
Labor force | 19,820 (1995) | 2.856 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) | services 79%, industry 17%, agriculture 4% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
68 km border countries: Germany 68 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 8% forests and woodland: 23% other: 69% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
60% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 10% other: 25% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English | Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language |
Legal system | British common law and local statutes | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (18 seats, three appointed members and 15 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
unicameral Parliament or Folketing (179 seats, including 2 from Greenland and 2 from the Faroe Islands; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 11 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - progovernment parties: Social Democratic Party 65, Socialist People's Party 13, Social Liberal Party 7, Red-Green Unity List 5; opposition: Liberal Party 43, Conservative Party 17, Danish People's Party 13, Center Democratic Party 8, Christian People's Party 4, Progress Party 4; seats by party as of 1 January 2001: government coalition parties - Social Democrats 63, Social Liberals 7; pro-government parties - Socialist People's Party 13, Unity List 5; opposition - Liberals 42, Conservatives 16, Danish People's Party 13, Center Democrats 8, Christian People's Party 4, Progress Party 4 (now named Freedom 2000); does not include the 4 overseas seats |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
79.03 years male: 76.24 years female: 81.43 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
76.72 years male: 74.12 years female: 79.47 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras | Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, on a peninsula north of Germany (Jutland); also includes two major islands (Sjaeland and Fyn) |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
106 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,656,452 GRT/2,643,036 DWT ships by type: bulk 21, cargo 5, chemical tanker 27, container 4, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 13, refrigerated cargo 30, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 2, Denmark 2, Finland 1, Greece 11, Norway 3, UK 3, US 3 (2000 est.) |
total:
342 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,073,489 GRT/8,027,002 DWT ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 128, chemical tanker 27, container 76, liquefied gas 26, livestock carrier 6, petroleum tanker 22, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 13, roll on/roll off 23, short-sea passenger 7, specialized tanker 3 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Finland 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | Royal Cayman Islands Police Force (RCIPF) | Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force, Home Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $2.47 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.4% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
1,292,619 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,106,094 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
29,212 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, first Monday in July | none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June is generally viewed as the National Day |
Nationality | noun:
Caymanian(s) adjective: Caymanian |
noun:
Dane(s) adjective: Danish |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (July to November) | flooding is a threat in some areas of the country (e.g., parts of Jutland, along the southern coast of the island of Lolland) that are protected from the sea by a system of dikes |
Natural resources | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism | petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, stone, gravel and sand |
Net migration rate | 12.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US |
1.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 110 km; petroleum products 578 km; natural gas 700 km |
Political parties and leaders | there are no formal political parties but the following loose groupings act as political organizations; National Team; Democratic Alliance; Team Cayman | Center Democratic Party [Mimi JAKOBSEN]; Christian People's Party [Jann SJURSEN]; Conservative Party (sometimes known as Conservative People's Party) [Bendt BENDTSEN]; Danish People's Party [Pia KJAERSGAARD]; Liberal Party [Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN]; Progress Party (now named Freedom 2000) [Kim BEHNKE]; Social Democratic Party [Poul Nyrup RASMUSSEN]; Social Liberal Party (sometimes called the Radical Left) [Marianne JELVED, leader; Johannes LEBECH, chairman]; Socialist People's Party [Holger K. NIELSEN]; Red-Green Unity List (bloc includes Left Socialist Party, Communist Party of Denmark, Socialist Workers' Party) [collective leadership] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 35,527 (July 2001 est.) | 5,352,815 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.12% (2001 est.) | 0.3% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayman Brac, George Town | Abenra, Alborg, Arhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 36,000 (1997) | 6.02 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
2,859 km (508 km privately owned and operated) standard gauge: 2,859 km 1.435-m gauge (600 km electrified; 760 km double track) (1998) |
Religions | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Roman Catholic, Church of God, other Protestant | Evangelical Lutheran 95%, other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, Muslims 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
0.86 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
excellent telephone and telegraph services domestic: buried and submarine cables and microwave radio relay form trunk network, 4 cellular mobile communications systems international: 18 submarine fiber-optic cables linking Denmark with Norway, Sweden, Russia, Poland, Germany, Netherlands, UK, Faroe Islands, Iceland, and Canada; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 10 Eutelsat, 1 Orion, 1 Inmarsat (Blaavand-Atlantic-East); note - the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) share the Danish earth station and the Eik, Norway, station for worldwide Inmarsat access (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 19,000 (1995) | 4.785 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,534 (1995) | 1,444,016 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs | low and flat to gently rolling plains |
Total fertility rate | 2.04 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.73 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (1997) | 5.3% (2000) |
Waterways | none | 417 km |