Contents
Gibraltar |
 | ||
|
 | |||
Past | Gibraltar | ||
| Background: | Strategically important, Gibraltar was reluctantly ceded to Great Britain by Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht; the British garrison was formally declared a colony in 1830. In a referendum held in 1967, Gibraltarians voted overwhelmingly to remain a British dependency. Although the current 1969 Constitution for Gibraltar states that the British Government will never allow the people of Gibraltar to pass under the sovereignty of another state against their freely and democratically expressed wishes, a series of talks were held by the UK and Spain between 1997 and 2002 on establishing temporary joint sovereignty over Gibraltar. In response to these talks, the Gibraltar Government called a referendum in late 2002 in which the majority of citizens voted overwhelmingly against any sharing of sovereignty with Spain. Since the referendum, tripartite talks on other issues have been held with Spain, the UK, and Gibraltar, and in September 2006 a three-way agreement was signed. Spain agreed to remove restrictions on air movements, to speed up customs procedures, to implement international telephone dialing, and to allow mobile roaming agreements. Britain agreed to pay increased pensions to Spaniards who had been employed in Gibraltar before the border closed in 1969. Spain will be allowed to open a cultural institute from which the Spanish flag will fly. A new non-colonial constitution came into effect in 2007. | ||
Environment | Gibraltar | ||
| Location: | Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern coast of Spain | ||
| Geographic coordinates: | 36 08 N, 5 21 W | ||
| Map references: | Europe | ||
| Area: | total: 6.5 sq km | ||
| Area - comparative: | a little less than one half the size of Rhode Island | ||
| Land boundaries: | total: 1.2 km | ||
| Coastline: | 12 km | ||
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 3 nm | ||
| Climate: | Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers | ||
| Terrain: | a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar | ||
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m | ||
| Natural resources: | none | ||
| Land use: | arable land: 0% | ||
| Irrigated land: | NA | ||
| Natural hazards: | NA | ||
| Environment - current issues: | limited natural freshwater resources: large concrete or natural rock water catchments collect rainwater (no longer used for drinking water) and adequate desalination plant | ||
| Geography - note: | strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea | ||
People | Gibraltar | ||
| Population: | 27,967 (July 2007 est.) | ||
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 17.2% (male 2,460/female 2,343) | ||
| Median age: | total: 40.1 years | ||
| Population growth rate: | 0.129% (2007 est.) | ||
| Birth rate: | 10.69 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | ||
| Death rate: | 9.4 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | ||
| Net migration rate: | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | ||
| Gender ratio: | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female | ||
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 4.98 deaths/1,000 live births | ||
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 79.93 years | ||
| Total fertility rate: | 1.65 children born/woman (2007 est.) | ||
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | NA | ||
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | NA | ||
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | NA | ||
| Nationality: | noun: Gibraltarian(s) | ||
| Ethnic groups: | Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese, German, North Africans | ||
| Religions: | Roman Catholic 78.1%, Church of England 7%, other Christian 3.2%, Muslim 4%, Jewish 2.1%, Hindu 1.8%, other or unspecified 0.9%, none 2.9% (2001 census) | ||
| Languages: | English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese | ||
| Literacy: | definition: NA | ||
Government | Gibraltar | ||
| Country name: | conventional long form: none | ||
| Dependency status: | overseas territory of the UK | ||
| Government type: | NA | ||
| Capital: | name: Gibraltar | ||
| Administrative divisions: | none (overseas territory of the UK) | ||
| Independence: | none (overseas territory of the UK) | ||
| National holiday: | National Day, 10 September (1967); note - day of the national referendum to decide whether to remain with the UK or go with Spain | ||
| Constitution: | 5 June 2006; came into force 2 January 2007 | ||
| Legal system: | the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply | ||
| Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal; and British citizens who have been residents six months or more | ||
| Executive branch: | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Sir Robert FULTON (since 27 October 2006) | ||
| Legislative branch: | unicameral Parliament (18 seats: 17 members elected by popular vote, 1 for the Speaker appointed by Parliament; to serve four-year terms) | ||
| Judicial branch: | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal | ||
| Political parties and leaders: | Gibraltar Liberal Party [Joseph GARCIA]; Gibraltar Social Democrats or GSD [Peter CARUANA]; Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party or GSLP [Joseph John BOSSANO] | ||
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization; Women's Association | ||
| International organization participation: | Interpol (subbureau), UPU | ||
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | none (overseas territory of the UK) | ||
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | none (overseas territory of the UK) | ||
| Flag description: | two horizontal bands of white (top, double width) and red with a three-towered red castle in the center of the white band; hanging from the castle gate is a gold key centered in the red band | ||
Business | Gibraltar | ||
| Business - overview: | Self-sufficient Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade, offshore banking, and its position as an international conference center. The British military presence has been sharply reduced and now contributes about 7% to the local economy, compared with 60% in 1984. The financial sector, tourism (almost 5 million visitors in 1998), shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. The financial sector, the shipping sector, and tourism each contribute 25%-30% of GDP. Telecommunications accounts for another 10%. In recent years, Gibraltar has seen major structural change from a public to a private sector economy, but changes in government spending still have a major impact on the level of employment. | ||
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | $1.066 billion (2005 est.) | ||
| GDP (official exchange rate): | $1.066 billion (2005 est.) | ||
| GDP - real growth rate: | 7% (2005 est.) | ||
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | $38,200 (2005 est.) | ||
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: NA% | ||
| Labor force: | 12,690 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) (2001) | ||
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: negligible | ||
| Unemployment rate: | 3% (2005 est.) | ||
| Population below poverty line: | NA% | ||
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: NA% | ||
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 2.9% (2005) | ||
| Budget: | revenues: $455.1 million | ||
| Public debt: | 15.7% of GDP (2005 est.) | ||
| Agriculture - products: | none | ||
| Industries: | tourism, banking and finance, ship repairing, tobacco | ||
| Industrial production growth rate: | NA% | ||
| Electricity - production: | 141 million kWh (2005) | ||
| Electricity - production by source: | fossil fuel: 100% | ||
| Electricity - consumption: | 141 million kWh (2005) | ||
| Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2005) | ||
| Electricity - imports: | 0 kWh (2005) | ||
| Oil - production: | 0 bbl/day (2005 est.) | ||
| Oil - consumption: | 25,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) | ||
| Oil - exports: | 0 bbl/day (2004) | ||
| Oil - imports: | 24,350 bbl/day (2004) | ||
| Oil - proved reserves: | 0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.) | ||
| Natural gas - production: | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | ||
| Natural gas - consumption: | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | ||
| Natural gas - exports: | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | ||
| Natural gas - imports: | 0 cu m (2005) | ||
| Natural gas - proved reserves: | 0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.) | ||
| Exports: | $271 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) | ||
| Exports - commodities: | (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8% | ||
| Exports - partners: | UK 30.8%, Spain 22.7%, Germany 13.7%, Turkmenistan 10.4%, Switzerland 8.3%, Italy 6.7% (2006) | ||
| Imports: | $2.967 billion c.i.f. (2004 est.) | ||
| Imports - partners: | Spain 23.4%, Russia 12.3%, Italy 12%, UK 9%, France 8.9%, Netherlands 6.8%, US 4.7% (2006) | ||
| Economic aid - recipient: | $NA | ||
| Debt - external: | $NA | ||
| Currency (code): | Gibraltar pound (GIP) | ||
| Currency code: | GIP | ||
| Exchange rates: | Gibraltar pounds per US dollar - 0.4993 (2007), 0.5434 (2006), 0.5504 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003) | ||
| Fiscal year: | 1 July - 30 June | ||
Communications | Gibraltar | ||
| Telephones - main lines in use: | 24,512 (2002) | ||
| Telephones - mobile cellular: | 9,797 (2002) | ||
| Telephone system: | general assessment: adequate, automatic domestic system and adequate international facilities | ||
| Radio broadcast stations: | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | ||
| Radios: | 37,000 (1997) | ||
| Television broadcast stations: | 1 (plus 3 repeaters) (1997) | ||
| Televisions: | 10,000 (1997) | ||
| Internet country code: | .gi | ||
| Internet hosts: | 380 (2007) | ||
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 2 (2000) | ||
| Internet users: | 6,200 (2002) | ||
Transportation | Gibraltar | ||
| Airports: | 1 (2007) | ||
| Airports - with paved runways: | total: 1 | ||
| Roadways: | total: 29 km | ||
| Merchant marine: | total: 216 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,422,155 GRT/1,866,572 DWT | ||
| Ports and terminals: | Gibraltar | ||
Security | Gibraltar | ||
| Military branches: | Royal Gibraltar Regiment | ||
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 18-49: 5,959 (2005 est.) | ||
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 18-49: 4,893 (2005 est.) | ||
| Manpower reaching military service age annually: | males age 18-49: 187 (2005 est.) | ||
| Military - note: | defense is the responsibility of the UK; the Royal Gibraltar Regiment replaced the last British regular infantry forces in 1992 | ||
International | Gibraltar | ||
| Disputes - international: | in 2002, Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum to reject any "shared sovereignty" arrangement; the government of Gibraltar insists on equal participation in talks between the UK and Spain; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar even greater autonomy | ||
| This page was last updated on 17 January, 2008 Source: The World Factbook | |||
