| Background: |
Bermuda was first
settled in 1609 by shipwrecked English colonists headed for
Virginia. Tourism to the island to escape North American
winters first developed in Victorian times. Bermuda has
developed into a highly successful offshore financial
center. A referendum on independence was soundly defeated in
1995. |
| Location: |
North America,
group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, east of North
Carolina (US) |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
32 20 N, 64 45 W |
| Map
references: |
North America |
| Area: |
total:
58.8 sq km
land: 58.8 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
about 0.3 times
the size of Washington, DC |
| Maritime
claims: |
exclusive
fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
subtropical;
mild, humid; gales, strong winds common in winter |
| Terrain: |
low hills
separated by fertile depressions |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Town Hill 76 m |
| Natural
resources: |
limestone,
pleasant climate fostering tourism |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
6%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 94% (55% developed, 39% rural/open
space) (1997 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
hurricanes (June
to November) |
| Environment
- current issues: |
asbestos
disposal; water pollution; preservation of open space |
| Geography
- note: |
consists of about
360 small coral islands with ample rainfall, but no rivers
or freshwater lakes; some land, reclaimed and otherwise, was
leased by US Government from 1941 to 1995 |
| Population: |
63,503 (July 2001
est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
19.4% (male 6,091; female 6,230)
15-64 years: 69.43% (male 21,783; female
22,309)
65 years and over: 11.17% (male 3,073; female
4,017) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
0.74% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
12.16
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
7.42 deaths/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
2.66 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
0.94 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
9.55 deaths/1,000
live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 77.12 years
male: 75.04 years
female: 79.06 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
1.81 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
NA% |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Bermudian(s)
adjective: Bermudian |
| Ethnic
groups: |
black 58%, white
36%, other 6% |
| Religions: |
non-Anglican
Protestant 39%, Anglican 27%, Roman Catholic 15%, other 19% |
| Languages: |
English
(official), Portuguese |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: 98%
female: 99% (1970 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: none
conventional short form: Bermuda
former: Somers Islands |
| Dependency
status: |
overseas
territory of the UK |
| Government
type: |
parliamentary
British overseas territory with internal self-government |
| Administrative
divisions: |
9 parishes and 2
municipalities*; Devonshire, Hamilton, Hamilton*, Paget,
Pembroke, Saint George*, Saint Georges, Sandys, Smiths,
Southampton, Warwick |
| Independence: |
none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
| National
holiday: |
Bermuda Day, 24
May |
| Constitution: |
8 June 1968,
amended 1989 |
| Legal
system: |
English law |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age;
universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor Thorold MASEFIELD (since NA June
1997)
head of government: Premier Jennifer SMITH
(since 10 November 1998)
cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the premier,
appointed by the governor
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary;
governor appointed by the monarch; governor invites leader
of largest party in Parliament to form a government as
premier |
| Legislative
branch: |
bicameral
Parliament consists of the Senate (an 11-member body
appointed by the governor) and the House of Assembly (40
seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve
five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 November 1998 (next to
be held NA November 2003)
election results: percent of vote by party -
PLP 54%, UBP 44%, NLP 1%, independents 1%; seats by party -
PLP 26, UBP 14 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Court;
Court of Appeal; Magistrate Courts |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
National Liberal
Party or NLP [Dessaline WALDRON]; Progressive Labor Party or
PLP [Jennifer SMITH]; United Bermuda Party or UBP [Pamela
GORDON] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Bermuda
Industrial Union or BIU [Derrick BURGESS]; Bermuda Public
Services Association or BPSA [Betty CHRISTOPHER] |
| International
organization participation: |
Caricom
(observer), CCC, ICFTU, Interpol (subbureau), IOC |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of
mission: Consul General Lawrence D. OWEN
consulate(s) general: Crown Hill, 16 Middle
Road, Devonshire, Hamilton
mailing address: P. O. Box HM325, Hamilton HMBX;
American Consulate General Hamilton, Department of State,
Washington, DC 20520-5300
telephone: [1] (441) 295-1342
FAX: [1] (441) 295-1592 |
| Flag
description: |
red, with the
flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the
Bermudian coat of arms (white and green shield with a red
lion holding a scrolled shield showing the sinking of the
ship Sea Venture off Bermuda in 1609) centered on the outer
half of the flag |
| Economy
- overview: |
Bermuda enjoys
one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, having
successfully exploited its location by providing financial
services for international firms and luxury tourist
facilities for 360,000 visitors annually. The tourist
industry, which accounts for an estimated 28% of GDP,
attracts 84% of its business from North America. The
industrial sector is small, and agriculture is severely
limited by a lack of suitable land. About 80% of food needs
are imported. International business contributes over 60% of
Bermuda's economic output; a failed independence vote in
late 1995 can be partially attributed to Bermudian fears of
scaring away foreign firms. Government economic priorities
are the further strengthening of the tourist and
international financial sectors. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $2.1 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
1.5% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $33,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
1%
industry: 10%
services: 89% (1995 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
2.7% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
35,296 (1997) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
clerical 23%,
services 22%, laborers 17%, professional and technical 17%,
administrative and managerial 12%, sales 7%, agriculture and
fishing 2% (1996) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
NEGL% (1995) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$504.6 million
expenditures: $537 million, including capital
expenditures of $75 million (FY97/98) |
| Industries: |
tourism, finance,
insurance, structural concrete products, paints, perfumes,
pharmaceuticals, ship repairing |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
NA% |
| Electricity
- production: |
550 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
511.5 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
bananas,
vegetables, citrus, flowers; dairy products |
| Exports: |
$56 million (2000
est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
reexports of
pharmaceuticals |
| Exports
- partners: |
UK 29.5%, US 9.8%
(1997) |
| Imports: |
$739 million
(2000 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
machinery and
transport equipment, construction materials, chemicals, food
and live animals |
| Imports
- partners: |
US 34%, UK 9%,
Mexico 8% (1997) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$27.9 million
(1995) |
| Currency: |
Bermudian dollar
(BMD) |
| Exchange
rates: |
Bermudian dollar
per US dollar - 1.0000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) |
| Fiscal
year: |
1 April - 31
March |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
52,000 (1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
7,980 (1996) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: NA
domestic: modern, fully automatic telephone
system
international: 3 submarine cables; satellite
earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 5, FM 3,
shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
3 (1997) |
| Televisions: |
66,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.bm |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
20 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
25,000 (2000) |
| Highways: |
total:
225 km
paved: 225 km
unpaved: 0 km
note: in addition, there are 232 km of paved
and unpaved roads that are privately owned (1997) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Hamilton, Saint
George |
| Merchant
marine: |
total:
105 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,836,538 GRT/9,728,045
DWT
ships by type: bulk 27, cargo 4, container 15,
liquefied gas 7, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 23,
refrigerated cargo 16, roll on/roll off 8, short-sea
passenger 3
note: includes some foreign-owned ships
registered here as a flag of convenience: Canada 10, Hong
Kong 10, Japan 1, Nigeria 4, Saudi Arabia 1, Sweden 3,
Switzerland 2, UK 10, US 7 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
Bermuda Regiment,
Bermuda Police Force, Bermuda Reserve Constabulary |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$NA |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
NA% |
| Military
- note: |
defense is the
responsibility of the UK |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
|
