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.

lowest point:

Caribbean Sea 0 m

highest point:

1 km SW of The Bluff on Cayman Brac 50 m

• no natural freshwater resources;
• drinking water supplies are met by reverse osmosis desalination plants and rainwater catchment;
• trash washing up on the beaches or being deposited there by residents;
• no recycling or waste treatment facilities;
• deforestation (trees being cut down to create space for commercial use)

noun:

Caymanian(s)

adjective:

Caymanian

0-14 years:

17.91% (male 5,376 /female 5,298)

15-24 years:

12.2% (male 3,609 /female 3,662)

25-54 years:

42.12% (male 12,256 /female 12,855)

55-64 years:

14.64% (male 4,169 /female 4,558)

65 years and over:

13.13% (male 3,627 /female 4,203) (2018 est.)

total:

40.2 years (2018 est.)

male:

39.5 years

female:

40.9 years

at birth:

1.02 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.01 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

0.99 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

0.95 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.91 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.86 male(s)/female

total population:

0.95 male(s)/female (2018 est.)

total:

5.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2018 est.)

male:

6.5 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

4.9 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

81.4 years (2018 est.)

male:

78.7 years

female:

84.2 years

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)

etymology:

named after English King George III (1760-1820)

history:

several previous; latest approved 10 June 2009, entered into force 6 November 2009 (The Cayman Islands Constitution Order 2009)

amendments:

amended several times, last in 2016 (2018)

chief of state:

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Martyn ROPER (since 29 October 2018)

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

description:

unicameral Legislative Assembly (21 seats; 19 members directly elected by majority vote and 2 ex officio members - the deputy governor and attorney general - appointed by the governor; members serve 4-year terms)

elections:

last held on 24 May 2017 (next to be held in 2021)

election results:

• percent of vote by party - independent 44.7%, PPM 31.2%, CDP 24.1%;
• seats by party - independent 9, PPM 7, CDP 3;
• composition - men 18, women 3, percent of women 14.3%

highest courts:

• 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;
• a scroll below the shield bears 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;
• given the high dependence of tourism and activities such as fisheries and offshore financial services, the telecom sector provides a relatively high contribution to overall GDP;
• good competion in all sectors promotes advancement in mobile telephony and data segments (2018)

domestic:

introduction of competition in the mobile-cellular market in 2004 boosted subscriptions dramatically; 60 per 100 fixed-line, 164 per 100 mobile-cellular (2018)

international:

• country code - 1-345;
• landing points for the Maya-1, Deep Blue Cable, 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) (2019)

• 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

total:

785 km (2007)

paved:

785 km (2007)