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Compare Christmas Island (2003) - British Indian Ocean Territory (2005)
Compare Christmas Island (2003) z British Indian Ocean Territory (2005)
| Christmas Island (2003) | British Indian Ocean Territory (2005) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | - |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: NA%
15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% (2003 est.) |
- |
| Agriculture - products | NA | - |
| Airports | 1 (2002) | 1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 135 sq km
land: 135 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 60 sq km
land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago |
| Area - comparative | about 0.7 times the size of Washington, DC | about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC |
| Background | Named in 1643 for the day of its discovery, the island was annexed and settlement was begun by the UK in 1888. Phosphate mining began in the 1890s. The UK transferred sovereignty to Australia in 1958. Almost two-thirds of the island has been declared a national park. | 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 | NA births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
| Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
- |
| Capital | The Settlement | - |
| Climate | tropical; heat and humidity moderated by trade winds | tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds |
| Coastline | 80 km | 698 km |
| Constitution | NA | - |
| Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Christmas Island
conventional short form: Christmas Island |
conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory
conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT |
| Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | - |
| Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
| Debt - external | $NA | - |
| Dependency status | territory of Australia; administered by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services | overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Disputes - international | none | 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 restricts access to the largest island in the chain |
| Economic aid - recipient | $NA | - |
| Economy - overview | Phosphate mining had been the only significant economic activity, but in December 1987 the Australian Government closed the mine. In 1991, the mine was reopened. With the support of the government, a $34 million casino opened in 1993. The casino closed in 1998. The Australian Government in 2001 agreed to support the creation of a commercial space-launching site on the island, slated to begin operation in 2003. | 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. |
| Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | NA kWh |
| Electricity - production | NA kWh | NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Murray Hill 361 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m |
| Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
| Ethnic groups | Chinese 70%, European 20%, Malay 10%
note: no indigenous population (2001) |
- |
| Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.9354 (2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173(2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998) | - |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator William Leonard TAYLOR (since 4 February 1999) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
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 | $NA | - |
| Exports - commodities | phosphate | - |
| Exports - partners | Australia, NZ | - |
| Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | - |
| Flag description | the flag of Australia is used; note - in early 1986, the Christmas Island Assembly held a design competition for an island flag, however, the winning design has never been formally adopted as the official flag of the territory | 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 | purchasing power parity - $NA | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
- |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $NA | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | NA% | - |
| Geographic coordinates | 10 30 S, 105 40 E | 6 00 S, 71 30 E |
| Geography - note | located along major sea lanes of Indian Ocean | 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 |
| Highways | total: 240 km
paved: 30 km unpaved: 210 km (2000) |
total: NA km
paved: short section of paved road between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
- |
| Imports | $NA | - |
| Imports - commodities | consumer goods | - |
| Imports - partners | principally Australia | - |
| Independence | none (territory of Australia) | - |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | - |
| Industries | tourism, phosphate extraction (near depletion) | - |
| Infant mortality rate | total: NA%
male: NA% female: NA% |
- |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | - |
| International organization participation | none | - |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 0 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court; District Court; Magistrate's Court | - |
| Labor force | NA | - |
| Labor force - by occupation | tourism 400 people, mining 100 people (1995) | - |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
| Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% note: mainly tropical rainforest; 63% of the island is a national park (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
| Languages | English (official), Chinese, Malay | - |
| Legal system | under the authority of the governor general of Australia and Australian law | the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Christmas Island Shire Council (9 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve one-year terms)
elections: last held NA December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 |
- |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years (2003 est.) |
- |
| Literacy | NA | - |
| Location | Southeastern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of Indonesia | archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Political Map of the World |
| Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 12 NM
exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
| Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia | defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016 |
| National holiday | NA | - |
| Nationality | noun: Christmas Islander(s)
adjective: Christmas Island |
- |
| Natural hazards | the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard | NA |
| Natural resources | phosphate, beaches | coconuts, fish, sugarcane |
| Net migration rate | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
| Political parties and leaders | none | - |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | none | - |
| Population | 433 (July 2003 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 2001, there were approximately 1,500 UK and US military personnel and 2,000 civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | - |
| Population growth rate | -9% (2003 est.) | - |
| Ports and harbors | Flying Fish Cove | Diego Garcia |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Railways | 24 km to serve phosphate mines | - |
| Religions | Buddhist 36%, Muslim 25%, Christian 18%, other 21% (1997) | - |
| Sex ratio | NA (2003 est.) | - |
| Telephone system | general assessment: service provided by the Australian network
domestic: only analog mobile telephone service is available international: satellite earth stations - one Intelsat earth station provides telephone and telex service (2000) |
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 | NA | NA |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | - |
| Television broadcast stations | NA | 1 (1997) |
| Terrain | steep cliffs along coast rise abruptly to central plateau | flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation) |
| Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman (2003 est.) | - |
| Unemployment rate | NA% | - |
| Waterways | none | - |
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