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Geography


Location:
Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico


Geographic coordinates:
18 30 N, 64 30 W


Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean


Area:
total:151 sq kmcountry comparison to the world: 220
land:151 sq km
water:0 sq km
note:comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke


Area - comparative:
about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC


Land boundaries:
territorial sea:3 nm
exclusive fishing zone:200 nm


    Climate:
subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds


Terrain:
coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly


Elevation extremes:
lowest point:Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point:Mount Sage 521 m


Natural resources:
NEGL


Land use:
arable land:6.67%
permanent crops:6.67%
other:86.67% (2011)


Irrigated land:
NA


Natural hazards:
hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October)


Environment - current issues:
limited natural freshwater resources except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola; most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments


Geography - note:
strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico


People and Society


Nationality:
noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective:British Virgin Islander


Ethnic groups:
black 82%, white 6.8%, other 11.2% (includes Indian and mixed) (2008)


Languages:
English (official)


Religions:
Protestant 84% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 2%, none 2% (1991)


Population:
32,680 (July 2014 est.)country comparison to the world: 216


Age structure:
0-14 years:17.2% (male 2,770/female 2,861)
15-24 years:14.5% (male 2,252/female 2,472)
25-54 years:49.8% (male 7,697/female 8,574)
55-64 years:10.6% (male 1,709/female 1,763)
65 years and over:7.6% (male 1,258/female 1,324) (2014 est.)


Median age:
total:35.6 years
male:35.5 years
female:35.7 years (2014 est.)


Population growth rate:
2.36% (2014 est.)country comparison to the world: 36


Birth rate:
10.83 births/1,000 population (2014 est.)country comparison to the world: 180


Death rate:
4.93 deaths/1,000 population (2014 est.)country comparison to the world: 191


Net migration rate:
17.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2014 est.)country comparison to the world: 4


Urbanization:
urban population:40.6% of total population (2011)
rate of urbanization:1.48% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)


Major urban areas - population:
ROAD TOWN (capital) 10,000 (2011)


Sex ratio:
at birth:1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years:0.97 male(s)/female
15-24 years:0.91 male(s)/female
25-54 years:0.9 male(s)/female
55-64 years:0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over:0.95 male(s)/female
total population:0.93 male(s)/female (2014 est.)


    Infant mortality rate:
total:13.45 deaths/1,000 live birthscountry comparison to the world: 118
male:15.31 deaths/1,000 live births
female:11.49 deaths/1,000 live births (2014 est.)


Life expectancy at birth:
total population:78.29 yearscountry comparison to the world: 57
male:76.99 years
female:79.66 years (2014 est.)


Total fertility rate:
1.25 children born/woman (2014 est.)country comparison to the world: 219


Drinking water source:
improved:
urban: 98% of population
rural: 98% of population
total: 98% of population
unimproved:
urban: 2% of population
rural: 2% of population
total: 2% of population (2010 est.)


Sanitation facility access:
improved:
urban: 97.5% of population
rural: 97.5% of population
total: 97.5% of population
unimproved:
urban: 2.5% of population
rural: 2.5% of population
total: 2.5% of population (2012 est.)


HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA


HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA


HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA


Education expenditures:
4.4% of GDP (2010)country comparison to the world: 96

Literacy:
definition:age 15 and over can read and write
total population:97.8%
male:NA
female:NA (1991 est.)


School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total:15 years
male:15 years
female:16 years (2009)

Government


Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form:British Virgin Islands
abbreviation:BVI


Dependency status:
overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing


Government type:
NA


Capital:
name:Road Town
geographic coordinates:18 25 N, 64 37 W
time difference:UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)


Administrative divisions:
none (overseas territory of the UK)


Independence:
none (overseas territory of the UK)


National holiday:
Territory Day, 1 July (1956)


Constitution:
several previous; latest effective 15 June 2007 (2007)


Legal system:
English common law


Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal


Executive branch:
chief of state:Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Boyd MCCLEARY (since 20 August 2010)
head of government:Premier Orlando SMITH (since 9 November 2011)
cabinet:Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the House of Assembly
elections:the monarchy is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition usually appointed premier by the governor


Legislative branch:
unicameral House of Assembly (13 elected seats, a speaker elected by the 13 members of the House of Assembly, and 1 non-voting ex officio member in the attorney general; members are elected by direct popular vote, 1 member from each of nine electoral districts, 4 at-large members; members serve four-year terms)
elections:last held on 7 November 2011 (next to be held in 2015)
election results:percent of vote by party - NDP 49.4%, VIP 42%, other 8.6%; seats by party - NDP 9, VIP 4


    Judicial branch:
highest court(s):the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is the itinerant superior court of record for the 9-member Organization of Eastern Caribbean States to include the British Virgin Islands; the ECSC - with its headquarters on St. Lucia - is headed by the chief justice and is comprised of the Court of Appeal with 3 justices and the High Court with 16 judges; sittings of the Court of Appeal and High Court rotate among the 9 member states; 3 High Court judges reside in member states; 3 High Court judges reside on the British Virgin Islands
judge selection and term of office:Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court chief justice appointed by Her Majesty, Queen ELIZABETH II; other justices and judges appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission; Court of Appeal justices appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 65; High Court judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 62
subordinate courts:Magistrates' Courts


Political parties and leaders:
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]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
The Family Support Network; The Women's Desk


International organization participation:
Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS, UNESCO (associate), UPU


Diplomatic representation in the US:
note:as a territory of the United Kingdom, 'God Save the Queen' is official (see United Kingdom)


Economy


Economy - overview:
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. More than 934,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 2008. 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, made 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 US dollar as its currency since 1959.


GDP (purchasing power parity):
$500 million (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 215

GDP (official exchange rate):
$1.095 billion (2008)


GDP - real growth rate:
1.3% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 169
-0.6% (2008 est.)


GDP - per capita (PPP):
$42,300 (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 23

GDP - composition, by end use:
household consumption:34.1%
government consumption:8.3%
investment in fixed capital:23.7%
investment in inventories:0%
exports of goods and services:107.8%
imports of goods and services:-73.9%
(2013 est.)


GDP - composition, by sector of origin:
agriculture:1.1%
industry:11.7%
services:87.2% (2013 est.)


Agriculture - products:
fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish


Industries:
tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore banking center


Industrial production growth rate:
3% (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 103

    Labor force:
12,770 (2004)
country comparison to the world: 214


Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture:0.6%
industry:40%
services:59.4% (2005)


Unemployment rate:
8.7% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 96

Population below poverty line:
NA%


Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%:NA%
highest 10%:NA%


Budget:
revenues:$300 million
expenditures:$300 million (2013 est.)


Taxes and other revenues:
27.4% of GDP (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 107

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-):
0% of GDP (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 44


Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March


Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1.6% (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 45
2.2% (2012 est.)


Current account balance:
$362.6 million (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 54
$279.8 million (2010 est.)


Exports:
$26 million (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 203
$25 million (2011 est.)


Exports - commodities:
rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand


Imports:
$310 million (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 198
$320 million (2011 est.)


Imports - commodities:
building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery


Debt - external:
$36.1 million (1997)
country comparison to the world: 194

Exchange rates:
the US dollar is used

Energy


Electricity - production:
50 million kWh (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 207


Electricity - consumption:
46.5 million kWh (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 207


Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 210


Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 213


Electricity - installed generating capacity:
44,000 kW (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 192


Electricity - from fossil fuels:
100% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39


Electricity - from nuclear fuels:
0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 200


Electricity - from hydroelectric plants:
0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 206


Electricity - from other renewable sources:
0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 137


Crude oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 142


Crude oil - exports:
0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 202


Crude oil - imports:
0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 138


    Crude oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 203


Refined petroleum products - production:
0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 206


Refined petroleum products - consumption:
1,000 bbl/day (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 202


Refined petroleum products - exports:
0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 142


Refined petroleum products - imports:
773 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 199


Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 205


Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 205


Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 203


Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 145


Natural gas - proved reserves:
0 cu m (1 January 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 204


Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy:
147,200 Mt (2011 est.)


Communications


Telephones - main lines in use:
12,268 (2012)
country comparison to the world: 199


Telephones - mobile cellular:
48,700 (2012)
country comparison to the world: 202


Telephone system:
general assessment:good overall telephone service
domestic:fixed line connections exceed 80 per 100 persons and mobile cellular subscribership is roughly 150 per 100 persons
international:country code - 1-284; connected via submarine cable to Bermuda; the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) submarine cable provides connectivity to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean (2011)



    Broadcast media:
1 private TV station; multi-channel TV is available from cable and satellite subscription services; about a half dozen private radio stations (2007)


Internet country code:
.vg


Internet hosts:
505 (2012)
country comparison to the world: 182


Internet users:
4,000 (2002)
country comparison to the world: 207


Transportation


Airports
4 (2013)
country comparison to the world: 190


Airports - with paved runways
total:2
914 to 1,523 m:1
under 914 m:1 (2013)


Airports - with unpaved runways
total:2
914 to 1,523 m:2 (2013)


    Roadways
total:200 kmcountry comparison to the world: 208
paved:200 km (2007)


Ports and terminals
seaport(s):Road Harbor

Military


Manpower available for military service
males age 16-49:6,057
females age 16-49:5,805 (2010 est.)


Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually
male:168
female:162 (2010 est.)


    Military - note
defense is the responsibility of the UK

Transnational Issues


Disputes - international
none


    Illicit drugs
transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering
Information provided by CIA - The World Fact Book

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