Gibraltar (2004) | Bahamas, The (2005) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 18% (male 2,554; female 2,452)
15-64 years: 66.2% (male 9,460; female 8,965) 65 years and over: 15.8% (male 1,939; female 2,463) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 27.9% (male 42,142/female 42,096)
15-64 years: 65.9% (male 97,865/female 101,047) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 7,616/female 11,024) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | none | citrus, vegetables; poultry |
Airports | 1 (2003 est.) | 63 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 29
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 6.5 sq km
land: 6.5 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 13,940 sq km
land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
Background | Strategically important, Gibraltar was ceded to Great Britain by Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht; the British garrison was formally declared a colony in 1830. In referendums held in 1967 and 2002, Gibraltarians ignored Spanish pressure and voted overwhelmingly to remain a British dependency. | Arawak Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US. |
Birth rate | 10.99 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 17.87 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $307 million
expenditures: $284 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY00/01 est.) |
revenues: $1 billion
expenditures: $1 billion, including capital expenditures of $106.7 million (FY03/04) |
Capital | Gibraltar | Nassau |
Climate | Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers | tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream |
Coastline | 12 km | 3,542 km |
Constitution | 30 May 1969 | 10 July 1973 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Gibraltar |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas
conventional short form: The Bahamas |
Currency | Gibraltar pound (GIP) | - |
Death rate | 9.05 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 8.97 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | NA (2000 est.) | $308.5 million (2002) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador John D. ROOD
embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours) FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Joshua SEARS
chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | since Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum in 2003 against a "total shared sovereignty" arrangement, talks between the UK and Spain over the fate of the 300-year-old UK colony have stalled; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomy | have not been able to agree on the alignment of a maritime boundary with the US; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian refugees fleeing economic privation and political instability |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $9.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade, offshore banking, and its position as an international conference center. The British military presence has been sharply reduced and now contributes about 7% to the local economy, compared with 60% in 1984. The financial sector, tourism (almost 5 million visitors in 1998), shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. The financial sector, the shipping sector, and tourism each contribute 25%-30% of GDP. Telecommunications accounts for another 10%. In recent years, Gibraltar has seen major structural change from a public to a private sector economy, but changes in government spending still have a major impact on the level of employment. | The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism alone accounts for more than 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in 2001-03. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors. In addition to tourism and banking, the government supports the development of a "third pillar," e-commerce. |
Electricity - consumption | 93 million kWh (2001) | 1.596 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 100 million kWh (2001) | 1.716 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Rock of Gibraltar 426 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural freshwater resources: large concrete or natural rock water catchments collect rainwater (no longer used for drinking water) and adequate desalination plant | coral reef decay; solid waste disposal |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese, German, North Africans | black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% |
Exchange rates | Gibraltar pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998); note - the Gibraltar pound is at par with the British pound | Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001), 1 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor and Commander-in-Chief Sir Francis RICHARDS (since 27 May 2003)
head of government: Chief Minister Peter CARUANA (since 17 May 1996) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed from among the 15 elected members of the House of Assembly by the governor in consultation with the chief minister 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 chief minister by the governor |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Ivy DUMONT (since NA May 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia PRATT (since 7 May 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister |
Exports | NA (2001) | transhipments of 29,000 bbl/day (2003) |
Exports - commodities | (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8% | mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals; fruit and vegetables |
Exports - partners | Germany 25.6%, France 24.8%, UK 14.3%, Turkmenistan 9.4%, Switzerland 7.5%, Spain 5.6% (2003) | US 40.2%, Poland 13.3%, Spain 11.6%, Germany 5.9%, France 4.3% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | two horizontal bands of white (top, double width) and red with a three-towered red castle in the center of the white band; hanging from the castle gate is a gold key centered in the red band | three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $500 million (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 3%
industry: 7% services: 90% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,500 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $17,700 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 3% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 36 8 N, 5 21 W | 24 15 N, 76 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea | strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited |
Heliports | - | 1 (2004 est.) |
Highways | total: 29 km
paved: 29 km unpaved: 0 km (2002) |
total: 2,693 km
paved: 1,546 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: 27% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA |
Imports - commodities | fuels, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs | machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals |
Imports - partners | Spain 26.5%, UK 14.8%, Russia 8.2%, Italy 6.6%, Netherlands 6.5%, France 5.3%, Germany 4.6%, Romania 4.2% (2003) | US 22.4%, South Korea 18.9%, Brazil 9.2%, Japan 7.9%, Italy 7.8%, Venezuela 6.6% (2004) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 10 July 1973 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA |
Industries | tourism, banking and finance, ship repairing, tobacco | tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe |
Infant mortality rate | total: 5.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.81 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 25.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (1998) | 1.2% (year ending September 2004) |
International organization participation | Interpol (subbureau), UPU | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOM, IOC, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; magistrates courts |
Labor force | 14,800 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) (1999) | 156,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture negligible, industry 40%, services 60% | agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1.2 km
border countries: Spain 1.2 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 0.8%
permanent crops: 0.4% other: 98.8% (2001) |
Languages | English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese | English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants) |
Legal system | English law | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly (18 seats - 15 elected by popular vote, one appointed for the Speaker, and two ex officio members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 November 2003 (next to be held not later than February 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - GSD 58%, GSLP 41%; seats by party - GSD 8, GSLP 7 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member body appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader for five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms); the government may dissolve the parliament and call elections at any time
elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%, FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29, FNM 7, independents 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.52 years
male: 76.65 years female: 82.54 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 65.54 years
male: 62.11 years female: 69.04 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: above 80% male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 95.6% male: 94.7% female: 96.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern coast of Spain | Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 133 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 980,636 GRT/1,254,661 DWT
by type: bulk 3, cargo 69, chemical tanker 14, container 27, multi-functional large load carrier 3, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 13, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: Belgium 1, Cyprus 3, Denmark 1, Estonia 1, France 1, Germany 92, Greece 11, Hong Kong 2, Iceland 1, Monaco 4, Norway 6, Spain 1, United Kingdom 6, United States 2 registered in other countries: 4 (2004 est.) |
total: 1,119
by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 183, cargo 259, chemical tanker 54, combination ore/oil 17, container 74, liquefied gas 28, livestock carrier 2, passenger 116, passenger/cargo 40, petroleum tanker 168, refrigerated cargo 130, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 24 foreign-owned: 968 (Angola 4, Australia 4, Belgium 17, Canada 9, China 3, Croatia 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 13, Denmark 18, Estonia 1, Finland 7, France 28, Germany 15, Greece 194, Hong Kong 11, Indonesia 2, Ireland 1, Israel 1, Italy 7, Japan 49, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Latvia 1, Malaysia 12, Monaco 15, Netherlands 24, New Zealand 1, Nigeria 2, Norway 229, Poland 13, Reunion 1, Russia 2, Saudi Arabia 12, Serbia & Montenegro 2, Singapore 11, Slovenia 1, South Korea 1, Spain 6, Sweden 9, Switzerland 4, Thailand 1, Trinidad & Tobago 2, Turkey 7, UAE 12, United Kingdom 55, United States 154, Uruguay 2) registered in other countries: 35 (2005) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK; the last British regular infantry forces left Gibraltar in 1992, replaced by the Royal Gibraltar Regiment | - |
Military branches | Royal Gibraltar Regiment | Royal Bahamaian Defense Force (naval forces) (2004) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA |
National holiday | National Day, 10 September (1967); note - day of the national referendum to decide whether to remain with the UK or go with Spain | Independence Day, 10 July (1973) |
Nationality | noun: Gibraltarian(s)
adjective: Gibraltar |
noun: Bahamian(s)
adjective: Bahamian |
Natural hazards | NA | hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage |
Natural resources | none | salt, aragonite, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Gibraltar Liberal Party [Joseph GARCIA]; Gibraltar Social Democrats or GSD [Peter CARUANA]; Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party or GSLP [Joseph John BOSSANO] | Free National Movement or FNM [Tommy TURNQUEST]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization; Women's Association | NA |
Population | 27,833 (July 2004 est.) | 301,790
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA |
Population growth rate | 0.19% (2004 est.) | 0.67% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Gibraltar | Freeport, Nassau, South Riding Point |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 76.9%, Church of England 6.9%, Muslim 6.9%, Jewish 2.3%, none or other 7% (1991) | Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8% (2000 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal, plus other UK subjects who have been residents six months or more | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate, automatic domestic system and adequate international facilities
domestic: automatic exchange facilities international: country code - 350; radiotelephone; microwave radio relay; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: modern facilities
domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed international: country code - 1-242; tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 24,512 (2002) | 131,700 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 9,797 (2002) | 121,800 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three low-power repeaters) (1997) | 2 (2004) |
Terrain | a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar | long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills |
Total fertility rate | 1.65 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.2 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2% (2001 est.) | 10.2% (2004 est.) |