ego Garcia expires in 2016
@British Indian Ocean Territory:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: the Chagos Archipelago is claimed by
Mauritius and Seychelles
______________________________________________________________________
BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS
@British Virgin Islands:Introduction
Background: First settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were soon
after (1672) annexed 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.
@British Virgin Islands: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: 150 sq km
land: 150 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes the island of Anegada
Area - comparative: about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 80 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 3 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: 20%
permanent crops: 7%
permanent pastures: 33%
forests and woodland: 7%
other: 33% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October)
Environment - current issues: 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 catchment)
Geography - note: strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto
Rico
@British Virgin Islands:People
Population: 19,615 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 20% (male 2,022; female 1,975)
15-64 years: 75% (male 7,517; female 7,102)
65 years and over: 5% (male 545; female 454) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.34% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 15.86 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 4.59 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 12.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
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: 1.2 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/
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