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Background:
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 First
settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were annexed in 1672
by the English. The economy is closely tied to the larger and
more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is
the legal currency. |
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Location:
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Caribbean,
between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east
of Puerto Rico |
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Map references:
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Central
America and the Caribbean |
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Area:
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total: 153
sq km
note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20
uninhabited islands; includes the island of Anegada
water: 0 sq km
land: 153 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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about 0.9 times
the size of Washington, DC |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km |
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Coastline:
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80 km |
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Climate:
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subtropical;
humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds |
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Terrain:
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coral islands
relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
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Natural resources:
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NEGL |
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Land use:
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arable land:
20%
permanent crops: 6.67%
other: 73.33% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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NA sq km |
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Natural hazards:
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hurricanes and
tropical storms (July to October) |
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Environment - current issues:
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limited natural
fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and
springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes
from wells and rainwater catchments) |
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Geography - note:
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strong ties to
nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico |
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Population:
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22,187 (July 2004
est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years:
21.5% (male 2,402; female 2,361)
15-64 years: 73.5% (male 8,395; female 7,911)
65 years and over: 5% (male 594; female 524) (2004
est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
30.9 years
male: 31.1 years
female: 30.7 years (2004 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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2.06% (2004 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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14.96
births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Death rate:
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4.42 deaths/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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10.01 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
18.05 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 14.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 21.02 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 76.27 years
male: 75.24 years
female: 77.36 years (2004 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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NA% |
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Nationality:
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noun:
British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
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Ethnic groups:
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black 83%, white,
Indian, Asian and mixed |
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Religions:
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Protestant 86%
(Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day
Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%),
Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991) |
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Languages:
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English
(official) |
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Literacy:
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA% |
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands
abbreviation: BVI |
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Dependency status:
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overseas
territory of the UK; internal self-governing |
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Government type:
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NA |
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Capital:
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Road Town |
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Administrative divisions:
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none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
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Independence:
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none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
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National holiday:
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Territory Day, 1
July |
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Constitution:
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1 June 1977 |
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Legal system:
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English law |
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Executive branch:
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chief of
state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor Tom MACAN (since 14 October 2002)
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
head of government: Chief Minister Orlando D. SMITH
(since 17 June 2003)
cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor
from members of the Legislative Council |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral
Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct
popular vote, one member from each of 9 electoral districts,
four at-large members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 16 May 2003 (next to be held NA
2007)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats
by party - NDP 8, VIP 5 |
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Judicial branch:
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Eastern Caribbean
Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the
Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident
of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's
Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Concerned
Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic
Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory
MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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NA |
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International organization participation:
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Caricom
(associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate),
UNESCO (associate) |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
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Economy - overview:
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The economy, one
of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly
dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the
national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from
the US, visited the islands in 1998. Tourism suffered in 2002
because of the lackluster US economy. In the mid-1980s, the
government began offering offshore registration to companies
wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees
now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies
were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of
a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a
blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways
for investigation of criminal offenses, is expected to make
the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to
international business. Livestock raising is the most
important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands'
ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of
traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the
British Virgin Islands has used the dollar as its currency
since 1959. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power
parity - $320 million (2002 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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1% (2002 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power
parity - $16,000 (2002 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture:
1.8%
industry: 6.2%
services: 92% (1996 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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NA% (1989 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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2.5% (2002) |
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Labor force:
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4,911 (1980) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture NA%,
industry NA%, services NA% |
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Unemployment rate:
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3% (1995) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$121.5 million
expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital
expenditures of $NA (1997) |
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Industries:
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tourism, light
industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore
financial center |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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NA |
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Electricity - production:
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38.1 million kWh
(2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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35.43 million kWh
(2001) |
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day (2001
est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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420 bbl/day (2001
est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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fruits,
vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish |
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Exports:
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$25.3 million
(2002) |
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Exports - commodities:
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rum, fresh fish,
fruits, animals; gravel, sand |
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Exports - partners:
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Virgin Islands
(US), Puerto Rico, US |
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Imports:
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$187 million
(2002 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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building
materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery |
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Imports - partners:
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Virgin Islands
(US), Puerto Rico, US |
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Debt - external:
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$36.1 million
(1997) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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NA% |
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Currency:
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US dollar (USD) |
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Currency code:
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USD |
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Exchange rates:
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the US dollar is
used |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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11,700 (2002) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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8,000 (2002) |
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Telephone system:
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general
assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA
international: country code - 1-284; submarine cable to
Bermuda |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 1, FM 4,
shortwave 0 (1998) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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1 (plus one cable
company) (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.vg |
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Internet users:
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NA |
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Highways:
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total:
177 km
paved: 177 km
unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
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Waterways:
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none |
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Ports and harbors:
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Road
Town |
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Merchant marine:
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total:
3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 83,825 GRT/155,909 DWT
by type: cargo 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1
foreign-owned: Norway 1
registered in other countries: 32 (2003 est.) |
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Airports:
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3
(2003 est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total:
2
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total:
1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
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Military - note:
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defense is the
responsibility of the UK |
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Disputes - international:
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none |
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Illicit drugs:
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transshipment
point for South American narcotics destined for the US and
Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to
money laundering |
This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004
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