British Virgin Islands

First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency.

• subtropical;
• humid;
• temperatures moderated by trade winds

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.031 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.055 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

1.105 male(s)/female

total population:

1.053 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

noun:

British Virgin Islander(s)

adjective:

British Virgin Islander

definition:

age 15 and over can read and write

total population:

97.8% (1991 est.)

male:

NA%

female:

NA%

conventional long form:

none

conventional short form:

British Virgin Islands

abbreviation:

BVI

name:

Road Town

geographic coordinates:

18 27 N, 64 37 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

chief of state:

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor David PEAREY (since 18 April 2006)

head of government:

Premier Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 23 August 2007)

cabinet:

Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the House of Assembly

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 premier by the governor

• 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

• 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]

• blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag;
• the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful)

agriculture:

0.6%

industry:

40%

services:

59.4% (2005)

lowest 10%:

NA%

highest 10%:

NA%

• fruits, vegetables;
• livestock, poultry;
• fish

general assessment:

worldwide telephone service

domestic:

NA

international:

• country code - 1-284;
• connected via submarine cable to Bermuda;
• the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable provides connectivity to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean (2007)

total:

177 km

paved:

177 km (2002)