Cayman Islands

The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries and were administered by Jamaica after 1863. In 1959, the islands became a territory within the Federation of the West Indies. When the Federation dissolved in 1962, the Cayman Islands chose to remain a British dependency. The territory has transformed itself into a significant offshore financial center.

mean elevation:

NA

elevation extremes:

lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m

highest point:

1 km SW of The Bluff on Cayman Brac 50 m

agricultural land:

11.2%;

• arable land 0.8%;
• permanent crops 2.1%;
• permanent pasture 8.3%

forest:

52.9%

other:

35.9% (2011 est.)

noun:

Caymanian(s)

adjective:

Caymanian

at birth:

1.02 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.01 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

0.98 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

0.95 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.91 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.89 male(s)/female

total population:

0.95 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

conventional long form:

none

conventional short form:

Cayman Islands

etymology:

the islands' name comes from the native Carib word "caiman," describing the marine crocodiles living there

name:

George Town (on Grand Cayman)

geographic coordinates:

19 18 N, 81 23 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

chief of state:

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Helen KILPATRICK (since 6 September 2013)

head of government:

Premier Alden MCLAUGHLIN (since 29 May 2013)

cabinet:

Cabinet selected from the Legislative Assembly and appointed by the governor on the advice of the premier

elections/appointments:

• the monarchy is hereditary;
• governor appointed by the monarch;
• following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition appointed premier by the governor

highest resident court(s):

• Court of Appeal (consists of the court president and at least 2 judges);
• Grand Court (consists of the court president and at least 2 judges);
• note - appeals beyond the Court of Appeal are heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London)

judge selection and term of office:

• Court of Appeal and Grand Court judges appointed by the governor on the advice of the Judicial and Legal Services Commission, an 8-member independent body consisting of governor appointees, Court of Appeal president, and attorneys;
• Court of Appeal judges' tenure based on their individual instruments of appointment;
• Grand Court judges normally appointed until retirement at age 65 but can be extended until age 70

subordinate courts:

Summary Court

a blue field with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a crest with a pineapple, representing the connection with Jamaica, and a turtle, representing Cayman's seafaring tradition, above a shield bearing a golden lion, symbolizing Great Britain, below which are three green stars (representing the three islands) surmounting white and blue wavy lines representing the sea and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS

name:

"Beloved Isle Cayman"

lyrics/music:

Leila E. ROSS

note: adopted 1993; served as an unofficial anthem since 1930; as a territory of the United Kingdom, in addition to the local anthem, "God Save the Queen" is official (see United Kingdom)

• vegetables, fruit;
• livestock;
• turtle farming

agriculture:

1.9%

industry:

19.1%

services:

79% (2008 est.)

lowest 10%:

NA%

highest 10%:

NA%

general assessment:

reasonably good overall telephone system with a high fixed-line teledensity

domestic:

liberalization of telecom market in 2003; introduction of competition in the mobile-cellular market in 2004 boosted subscriptions dramatically

international:

• country code - 1-345;
• landing points for the Maya-1, Eastern Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS), and the Cayman-Jamaica Fiber System submarine cables that provide links to the US and parts of Central and South America;
• satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2015)

• 4 TV stations;
• cable and satellite subscription services offer a variety of international programming;
• government-owned Radio Cayman operates 2 networks broadcasting on 5 stations;
• 10 privately owned radio stations operate alongside Radio Cayman (2007)

total:

785 km

paved:

785 km (2007)

country comparison to the world: 190