Compare South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2008) - Holy See (Vatican City) (2001)

Compare South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2008) z Holy See (Vatican City) (2001)

	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2008)	Holy See (Vatican City) (2001)

Airports	-	none
Area	total: 3,903 sq km land: 3,903 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Shag Rocks, Black Rock, Clerke Rocks, South Georgia Island, Bird Island, and the South Sandwich Islands, which consist of 11 islands	total: 0.44 sq km land: 0.44 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Rhode Island	about 0.7 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Background	The islands, which have large bird and seal populations, lie approximately 1,000 km east of the Falkland Islands and have been under British administration since 1908 - except for a brief period in 1982 when Argentina occupied them. Grytviken, on South Georgia, was a 19th and early 20th century whaling station. Famed explorer Ernest SHACKLETON stopped there in 1914 en route to his ill-fated attempt to cross Antarctica on foot. He returned some 20 months later with a few companions in a small boat and arranged a successful rescue for the rest of his crew, stranded off the Antarctic Peninsula. He died in 1922 on a subsequent expedition and is buried in Grytviken. Today, the station houses scientists from the British Antarctic Survey. Recognizing the importance of preserving the marine stocks in adjacent waters, the UK, in 1993, extended the exclusive fishing zone from 12 nm to 200 nm around each island.	Popes in their secular role ruled much of the Italian peninsula for more than a thousand years until the mid 19th century, when many of the Papal States were seized by the newly united Kingdom of Italy. In 1870, the pope's holdings were further circumscribed when Rome itself was annexed. Disputes between a series of "prisoner" popes and Italy were resolved in 1929 by three Lateran Treaties, which established the independent state of Vatican City and granted Roman Catholicism special status in Italy. In 1984, a concordat between the Vatican and Italy modified certain of the earlier treaty provisions, including the primacy of Roman Catholicism as the Italian state religion. Present concerns of the Holy See include the failing health of Pope John Paul II, interreligious dialogue and reconciliation, and the adjustment of church doctrine in an era of rapid change and globalization. About 1 billion people worldwide profess the Catholic faith.
Budget	-	revenues: $209.6 million expenditures: $198.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997)
Capital	-	Vatican City
Climate	variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as snow	temperate; mild, rainy winters (September to mid-May) with hot, dry summers (May to September)
Coastline	NA km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	-	Apostolic Constitution of 1967 (effective 1 March 1968)
Country name	conventional long form: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands conventional short form: none abbreviation: SGSSI	conventional long form: The Holy See (State of the Vatican City) conventional short form: Holy See (Vatican City) local long form: Santa Sede (Stato della Citta del Vaticano) local short form: Santa Sede (Citta del Vaticano)
Currency	-	Italian lira (ITL); euro (EUR)
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina; administered from the Falkland Islands by a commissioner, who is concurrently governor of the Falkland Islands, representing Queen ELIZABETH II	-
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant) embassy: Villa Domiziana, Via delle Terme Deciane 26, 00162 Rome mailing address: PSC 59, Box F, APO AE 09624 telephone: [39] (06) 4674-3428 FAX: [39] (06) 5758346
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)	chief of mission: Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Gabriele MONTALVO chancery: 3339 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-7121
Disputes - international	Argentina, which claims the islands in its constitution and briefly occupied them by force in 1982, agreed in 1995 to no longer seek settlement by force	none
Economic aid - recipient	-	none
Economy - overview	Some fishing takes place in adjacent waters. There is a potential source of income from harvesting finfish and krill. The islands receive income from postage stamps produced in the UK, sale of fishing licenses, and harbor and landing fees from tourist vessels. Tourism from specialized cruise ships is increasing rapidly.	This unique, noncommercial economy is supported financially by contributions (known as Peter's Pence) from Roman Catholics throughout the world, the sale of postage stamps and tourist mementos, fees for admission to museums, and the sale of publications. The incomes and living standards of lay workers are comparable to, or somewhat better than, those of counterparts who work in the city of Rome.
Electricity - consumption	-	NA kWh
Electricity - imports	-	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Italy
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA%
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Paget (South Georgia) 2,934 m	lowest point: unnamed location 19 m highest point: unnamed location 75 m
Environment - current issues	NA	NA
Environment - international agreements	-	party to: none of the selected agreements signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution, Environmental Modification
Ethnic groups	-	Italians, Swiss, other
Exchange rates	-	euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Vatican lire per US dollar - 2,099 (2000), 1817.2 (1999), 1,736.2 (1998), 1,703.1 (1997), 1,542.9 (1996); note - the Vatican lira is at par with the Italian lira; the Vatican will start using euros in 2002 in conjunction with Italy at a fixed rate of 1,936.17 lire per euro
Executive branch	-	chief of state: Pope JOHN PAUL II (since 16 October 1978) head of government: Secretary of State Cardinal Angelo SODANO (since 2 December 1990) cabinet: Pontifical Commission appointed by the pope elections: pope elected for life by the College of Cardinals; election last held 16 October 1978 (next to be held after the death of the current pope); secretary of state appointed by the pope election results: Karol WOJTYLA elected pope
Fiscal year	-	calendar year
Flag description	blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a shield with a golden lion centered; the shield is supported by a fur seal on the left and a penguin on the right; a reindeer appears above the shield, and below it on a scroll is the motto LEO TERRAM PROPRIAM PROTEGAT (Let the Lion Protect its Own Land)	two vertical bands of yellow (hoist side) and white with the crossed keys of Saint Peter and the papal miter centered in the white band
Geographic coordinates	54 30 S, 37 00 W	41 54 N, 12 27 E
Geography - note	the north coast of South Georgia has several large bays, which provide good anchorage; reindeer, introduced early in the 20th century, live on South Georgia	urban; landlocked; enclave of Rome, Italy; world's smallest state; outside the Vatican City, 13 buildings in Rome and Castel Gandolfo (the pope's summer residence) enjoy extraterritorial rights
Heliports	-	1 (2000 est.)
Highways	-	none; all city streets
Household income or consumption by percentage share	-	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Imports	-	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Italy
Independence	-	11 February 1929 (from Italy)
Industries	-	printing and production of a small amount of mosaics and staff uniforms; worldwide banking and financial activities
International organization participation	-	CE (observer), IAEA, ICFTU, Intelsat, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM (guest), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, UN (observer), UNCTAD, UNHCR, UPU, WHO (observer), WIPO, WToO (observer), WTrO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	93 (Holy See and Italy) (2000)
Irrigated land	0 sq km	0 sq km (1993)
Judicial branch	-	none; normally handled by Italy
Labor force	-	NA
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%; note - dignitaries, priests, nuns, guards, and 3,000 lay workers live outside the Vatican
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 3.2 km border countries: Italy 3.2 km
Land use	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (largely covered by permanent ice and snow with some sparse vegetation consisting of grass, moss, and lichen) (2005)	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (urban area)
Languages	-	Italian, Latin, French, various other languages
Legal system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply; the senior magistrate from the Falkland Islands presides over the Magistrates Court	NA
Legislative branch	-	unicameral Pontifical Commission
Literacy	-	definition: NA total population: 100% male: NA% female: NA%
Location	Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east of the tip of South America	Southern Europe, an enclave of Rome (Italy)
Map references	Antarctic Region	Europe
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm	none (landlocked)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK	defense is the responsibility of Italy; Swiss Papal Guards are posted at entrances to the Vatican City to provide security and protect the Pope
National holiday	-	Coronation Day of Pope JOHN PAUL II, 22 October (1978)
Nationality	-	noun: none adjective: none
Natural hazards	the South Sandwich Islands have prevailing weather conditions that generally make them difficult to approach by ship; they are also subject to active volcanism	NA
Natural resources	fish	none
Political parties and leaders	-	none
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	none (exclusive of influence exercised by church officers)
Population	no indigenous inhabitants note: the small military garrison on South Georgia withdrew in March 2001 replaced by a permanent group of scientists of the British Antarctic Survey, which also has a biological station on Bird Island; the South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited	890 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	NA%
Population growth rate	-	1.15% (2001 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	none
Radio broadcast stations	0 (2003)	AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios	-	NA
Railways	-	total: 862 m; note - a spur of the Italian Railways system, serving Rome's Saint Peter's station standard gauge: 862 m 1.435-m gauge (1999)
Religions	-	Roman Catholic
Suffrage	-	limited to cardinals less than 80 years old
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: coastal radiotelephone station at Grytviken	general assessment: automatic exchange domestic: tied into Italian system international: uses Italian system
Telephones - main lines in use	-	NA
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	NA
Television broadcast stations	0 (2003)	1 (1996)
Terrain	most of the islands, rising steeply from the sea, are rugged and mountainous; South Georgia is largely barren and has steep, glacier-covered mountains; the South Sandwich Islands are of volcanic origin with some active volcanoes	low hill
Waterways	-	none

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