| Introduction - Gibraltar: |
Country | Gibraltar |
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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 Gibraltarian Government set up a referendum in late 2002 in which a majority of the citizens voted overwhelmingly against any sharing of sovereignty with Spain. Since the referendum, tripartite talks have been held with Spain, the UK, and Gibraltar, and in September 2006 a three-way agreement was signed. Spain agreed to allow airlines other than British to serve Gibraltar, to speed up customs procedures, and to add more telephone lines into Gibraltar. Britain agreed to pay 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. |
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| Location - 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 |
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Geographic coordinates | 36 08 N, 5 21 W |
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Map references | Europe |
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Area | total: 6.5 sq km
land: 6.5 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
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Area comparative | a little less than one half the size of Rhode Island |
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Land boundaries | total: 1.2 km
border countries: Spain 1.2 km |
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Coastline | 12 km |
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Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm |
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Climate | Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers |
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Terrain | a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Rock of Gibraltar 426 m |
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Natural resources | none |
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Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (2005) |
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Irrigated land | NA |
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Natural hazards | NA |
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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 |
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Geography note | strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea |
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| People - Gibraltar: |
Population | 27,967 (July 2007 est.) |
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Age structure | 0-14 years: 17.2% (male 2,460/female 2,343)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 9,470/female 9,070)
65 years and over: 16.5% (male 2,090/female 2,534) (2007 est.) |
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Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK |
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Median age | total: 40.1 years
male: 39.6 years
female: 40.4 years (2007 est.) |
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Population growth rate | 0.129% (2007 est.) |
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Birth rate | 10.69 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Death rate | 9.4 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.044 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.825 male(s)/female
total population: 1.005 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate | total: 4.98 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.54 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.93 years
male: 77.05 years
female: 82.96 years (2007 est.) |
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Total fertility rate | 1.65 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
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Hiv aids adult prevalence rate | NA |
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Hiv aids people living with hiv aids | NA |
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Hiv aids deaths | NA |
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Nationality | noun: Gibraltarian(s)
adjective: Gibraltar |
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Ethnic groups | Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese, German, North Africans |
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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) |
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Languages | English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese |
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Literacy | definition: NA
total population: above 80%
male: NA
female: NA |
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| Government - Gibraltar: |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Gibraltar |
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Government type | NA |
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Capital | name: Gibraltar
geographic coordinates: 36 08 N, 5 21 W
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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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 |
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Constitution | 30 May 1969 |
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Legal system | the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; and British citizens who have been residents six months or more |
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Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Sir Robert FULTON (since 27 October 2006)
head of government: Chief Minister Peter CARUANA (since 17 May 1996)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed from among the 15 elected members of the House of Assembly by the governor in consultation with the chief minister
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 chief minister by the governor |
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Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly (18 seats; 15 members elected by popular vote, 1 appointed for the Speaker, and 2 ex officio members; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 November 2003 (next to be held not later than February 2008)
election results: percent of vote by party - GSD 58%, GSLP 41%; seats by party - GSD 8, GSLP 7 |
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Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal |
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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] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders | Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization; Womens Association |
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International organization participation | Interpol (subbureau), UPU |
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Diplomatic representation in the us | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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Diplomatic representation from the us | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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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 |
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| Economy - Gibraltar: |
Economy 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. |
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Gdp purchasing power parity | $769 million (2000 est.) |
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Gdp official exchange rate | NA |
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Gdp real growth rate | NA% |
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Gdp per capita ppp | $27,900 (2000 est.) |
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Gdp composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
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Labor force | 12,690 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) (2001) |
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Labor force by occupation | agriculture: negligible
industry: 40%
services: 60% |
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Unemployment rate | 2% (2001 est.) |
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Population below poverty line | NA% |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Inflation rate consumer prices | 1.5% (1998) |
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Budget | revenues: $307 million
expenditures: $284 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (FY00/01 est.) |
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Agriculture products | none |
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Industries | tourism, banking and finance, ship repairing, tobacco |
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Industrial production growth rate | NA% |
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Electricity production | 131.2 million kWh (2004) |
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Electricity consumption | 122 million kWh (2004) |
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Electricity exports | 0 kWh (2004) |
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Electricity imports | 0 kWh (2004) |
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Oil production | 0 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
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Oil consumption | 24,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
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Oil exports | NA bbl/day |
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Oil imports | NA bbl/day |
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Oil proved reserves | 0 bbl |
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Natural gas production | 0 cu m (2004 est.) |
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Natural gas consumption | 0 cu m (2004 est.) |
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Exports | $271 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
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Exports commodities | (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8% |
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Exports partners | UK 30.8%, Spain 22.7%, Germany 13.7%, Turkmenistan 10.4%, Switzerland 8.3%, Italy 6.7% (2006) |
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Imports | $2.967 billion c.i.f. (2004 est.) |
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Imports commodities | fuels, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs |
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Imports partners | Spain 23.4%, Russia 12.3%, Italy 12%, UK 9%, France 8.9%, Netherlands 6.8%, US 4.7% (2006) |
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Debt external | $NA |
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Economic aid recipient | $NA |
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Currency code | Gibraltar pound (GIP) |
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Exchange rates | Gibraltar pounds per US dollar - 0.5434 (2006), 0.5504 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002)
note: the Gibraltar pound is at par with the British pound |
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| Communications - Gibraltar: |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June |
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Telephones main lines in use | 24,512 (2002) |
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Telephones mobile cellular | 9,797 (2002) |
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Telephone system | general assessment: adequate, automatic domestic system and adequate international facilities
domestic: automatic exchange facilities
international: country code - 350; radiotelephone; microwave radio relay; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
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Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus 3 repeaters) (1997) |
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Internet country code | .gi |
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Internet hosts | 641 (2006) |
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Internet users | 6,200 (2002) |
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| Transportation - Gibraltar: |
Airports | 1 (2006) |
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Airports with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
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Roadways | total: 29 km
paved: 29 km (2002) |
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Merchant marine | total: 180 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,129,379 GRT/1,437,754 DWT
by type: barge carrier 3, bulk carrier 1, cargo 105, chemical tanker 26, container 26, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 11, roll on/roll off 6, specialized tanker 1
foreign-owned: 165 (Belgium 2, Cyprus 1, Denmark 1, Finland 3, France 1, Germany 108, Greece 7, Iceland 1, Ireland 1, Italy 6, Latvia 2, Netherlands 5, Norway 18, Sweden 5, UK 4) (2006) |
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Ports and terminals | Gibraltar |
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| Military - Gibraltar: |
Military branches | Royal Gibraltar Regiment |
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Manpower available for military service | males age 18-49: 5,959 (2005 est.) |
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Manpower fit for military service | males age 18-49: 4,893 (2005 est.) |
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Military note | defense is the responsibility of the UK; the Royal Gibraltar Regiment replaced the last British regular infantry forces in 1992 |
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Manpower reaching military service age annually | males age 18-49: 187 (2005 est.) |
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This page was last updated on 16 September, 2007
