Paracel Islands (2002) | Saint Helena (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 18.7% (male 716/female 691)
15-64 years: 71.1% (male 2,755/female 2,608) 65 years and over: 10.2% (male 358/female 415) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | coffee, corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, lobster (on Tristan da Cunha); livestock |
Airports | 1 (2001) | 1 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
Area | total: NA sq km
land: NA sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 413 sq km
land: Saint Helena Island 122 sq km; Ascension Island 90 sq km; Tristan da Cunha island group 201 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | NA | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
Background | This archipelago is surrounded by productive fishing grounds and by potential oil and gas reserves. In 1932, French Indochina annexed the islands and set up a weather station on Pattle Island; maintenance was continued by its successor, Vietnam. China has occupied the Paracel Islands since 1974, when its troops seized a South Vietnamese garrison occupying the western islands. The islands are claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan. | Saint Helena is a British Overseas Territory consisting of Saint Helena and Ascension Islands, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha.
Saint Helena: Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. During the Anglo-Boer War in South Africa, several thousand Boer prisoners were confined on the island between 1900 and 1903. Ascension Island: This barren and uninhabited island was discovered and named by the Portuguese in 1503. The British garrisoned the island in 1815 to prevent a rescue of Napoleon from Saint Helena and it served as a provisioning station for the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron on anti-slavery patrol. The island remained under Admiralty control until 1922, when it became a dependency of Saint Helena. During World War II, the UK permitted the US to construct an airfield on Ascension in support of trans-Atlantic flights to Africa and anti-submarine operations in the South Atlantic. In the 1960s the island became an important space tracking station for the US. In 1982, Ascension was an essential staging area for British forces during the Falklands War, and it remains a critical refueling point in the air-bridge from the UK to the South Atlantic. Tristan da Cunha: The island group consists of the islands of Tristan da Cunha, Nightingale, Inaccessible, and Gough. Tristan da Cunha is named after its Portuguese discoverer (1506); it was garrisoned by the British in 1816 to prevent any attempt to rescue Napoleon from Saint Helena. Gough and Inaccessible Islands have been designated World Heritage Sites. South Africa leases a site for a meteorological station on Gough Island. |
Birth rate | - | 11.93 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $13.09 million
expenditures: $32.16 million note: revenue data reflect locally raised revenues only; the budget deficit is resolved by grant aid from the United Kingdom (FY06/07 est.) |
Capital | - | name: Jamestown
geographic coordinates: 15 56 S, 5 44 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical | Saint Helena: tropical marine; mild, tempered by trade winds
Ascension Island: tropical marine; mild, semi-arid Tristan da Cunha: temperate marine; mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
Coastline | 518 km | Saint Helena: 60 km
Ascension Island: NA Tristan da Cunha: 40 km |
Constitution | - | 1 January 1989 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Paracel Islands |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
Death rate | - | 6.63 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | occupied by China, but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $29.56 million obtained in a grant from the United Kingdom (FY06/07) |
Economy - overview | China announced plans in 1997 to open the islands for tourism. | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which will amount to about $27 million in FY06/07 or almost 70% of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, raising livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 7.44 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | - | 8 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Rocky Island 14 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,062 m; Green Mountain on Ascension Island 859 m; Mount Actaeon on Saint Helena Island 818 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Ethnic groups | - | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
Exchange rates | - | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.4993 (2007), 0.5434 (2006), 0.5493 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003)
note: the Saint Helenian pound is on par with the British pound |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief Andrew GURR (since 11 November 2007) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, three ex-officio officers, and five elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | - | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | - | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | - | Tanzania 37.7%, US 17.4%, Japan 15.2%, UK 8.4%, Nigeria 4.8%, Spain 4.5% (2006) |
Fiscal year | - | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | - | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - real growth rate | - | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 16 30 N, 112 00 E | Saint Helena: 15 57 S, 5 42 W
Ascension Island: 7 57 S, 14 22 W Tristan da Cunha island group: 37 15 S, 12 30 W |
Geography - note | composed of 130 small coral islands and reefs divided into the northeast Amphitrite Group and the western Crescent Group | Saint Helena harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns; Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha is the highest island mountain in the South Atlantic and a prominent landmark on the sea lanes around southern Africa |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | - | 64.07 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | - | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts |
Imports - partners | - | UK 53.5%, South Africa 14.3%, Spain 10.3%, Tanzania 8.5%, US 4.6% (2006) |
Independence | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
Industries | - | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing, philatelic sales |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: 17.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 3.2% (1997 est.) |
International organization participation | - | UPU |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | - | Magistrate's Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal |
Labor force | - | 2,486
note: 1,200 work offshore (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture: 6%
industry: 48% services: 46% (1987 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 12.9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 87.1% (2005) |
Languages | - | English |
Legal system | - | English common law and statutes, supplemented by local statutes |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, three ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 31 August 2005 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 12 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 78.09 years
male: 75.19 years female: 81.15 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, group of small islands and reefs in the South China Sea, about one-third of the way from central Vietnam to the northern Philippines | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa; Ascension Island lies 700 nm northwest of Saint Helena; Tristan da Cunha lies 2300 nm southwest of Saint Helena |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | NA | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | occupied by China | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
National holiday | - | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | - | noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian note: referred to locally as "Saints" |
Natural hazards | typhoons | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha, last eruption in 1961 |
Natural resources | none | fish, lobster |
Net migration rate | - | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | none |
Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: there are scattered Chinese garrisons (July 2002 est.) |
7,543
note: only Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha islands are inhabited (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 0.53% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | small Chinese port facilities on Woody Island and Duncan Island being expanded | - |
Radio broadcast stations | - | Saint Helena: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0
Ascension: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2005) |
Religions | - | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.036 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.056 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.863 male(s)/female total population: 1.031 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | - | NA years of age |
Telephone system | - | general assessment: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic digital network international: country code (Saint Helena) - 290, (Ascension Island) - 247; international direct dialing; satellite voice and data communications; satellite earth stations - 5 (Ascension Island - 4, Saint Helena - 1) |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 2,200 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 0 (3 television channels are received via satellite and distributed by UHF) (2005) |
Terrain | mostly low and flat | the islands of this group result from volcanic activity associated with the Atlantic Mid-Ocean Ridge
Saint Helena: rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains Ascension: surface covered by lava flows and cinder cones of 44 dormant volcanoes; ground rises to the east Tristan da Cunha: sheer cliffs line the coastline of the nearly circular island; the flanks of the central volcanic peak are deeply dissected; narrow coastal plain lies between The Peak and the coastal cliffs |
Total fertility rate | - | 1.55 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Transportation - note | - | there is no air connection to Saint Helena or Tristan da Cunha; an international airport for Saint Helena is in development for 2010 |
Unemployment rate | - | 14% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |