Gibraltar

Dependent territory of the U.K.

Gibraltar

 

Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern coast of Spain

Area

Total area: 6.5 sq km
Land area: 6.5 sq km
Comparative area: about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC

Land Boundaries

Total 1.2 km, Spain 1.2 km

Coastline

12 km

Maritime Claims

Territorial sea: 3 nm

International Disputes

Source of occasional friction between Spain and the U.K.

Climate

Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers

Terrain

A narrow coastal lowland borders The Rock
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Rock of Gibraltar 426 m

Natural Resources

Negligible

Land Use

Arable land: 0%
Permanent crops: 0%
Meadows and pastures: 0%
Forest and woodland: 0%
Other: 100%

Irrigated Land

Environment

Current issues: limited natural freshwater resources, so large concrete or natural rock water catchments collect rain water
Natural hazards: NA
International agreements: NA

Note: Strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea

PEOPLE

Population

28,765 (July 1996 est.)
31,874 (July 1995 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 Years

20% (male 3,109; female 2,728) (July 1996 est.)
24% (male 3,835; female 3,757) (July 1995 est.)

15-64 Years

66% (male 10,668; female 8,292) (July 1996 est.)
63% (male 10,485; female 9,730) (July 1995 est.)

65 Years and Over

14% (male 1,582; female 2,386) (July 1996 est.)
13% (male 1,707; female 2,360) (July 1995 est.)

Population Growth Rate

0.54% (1996 est.)
0.62% (1995 est.)

Birth Rate

13.94 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
15 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death Rate

8.73 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
8.85 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net Migration Rate

0.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.14 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.29 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female
all ages: 1.15 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

6.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
7.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total population: 77.83 years (1996 est.), 76.61 years (1995 est.)
Male: 74.5 years (1996 est.), 73.7 years (1995 est.)
Female: 81.31 years (1996 est.), 79.48 years (1995 est.)

Total Fertility Rate

2.26 children born/woman (1996 est.)
2.29 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

Noun: Gibraltarian(s)
Adjective: Gibraltar

Ethnic Divisions

Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese, Spanish

Religions

Roman Catholic 74%
Protestant 11% (Church of England 8%
Other 3%), Moslem 8%
Jewish 2%
None or other 5% (1981)

Languages

English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian

Literacy

Labor Force

14,800 (including non-Gibraltar laborers)

Note: U.K. military establishments and civil government employ nearly 50% of the labor force

GOVERNMENT

Names

Conventional long form: none
Conventional short form: Gibraltar

Digraph

Type

Dependent territory of the U.K.

Capital

Gilbraltar

Administrative Divisions

None (dependent territory of the U.K.)

Independence

None (dependent territory of the U.K.)

National Holiday

Commonwealth Day (second Monday of March)

Constitution

30 May 1969

Legal System

English law

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal, plus other U.K. subjects resident six months or more

Executive Branch

Chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor and Commander in Chief Gen. Sir John CHAPPLE (since NA March 1993)
Head of government: Chief Minister Joe BOSSANO (since 25 March 1988)

Gibraltar Council

Advises the governor

Cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed from the elected members of the Assembly by the governor in consultation with the chief minister

Legislative Branch

Unicameral

House of Assembly

Elections last held January 1992

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court, Court of Appeal

Political Parties and Leaders

Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party (SL), Joe BOSSANO; Gibraltar Labor Party/Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights (GCL/AACR), Adolfo CANEPA; Gibraltar Social Democrats, Peter CARUANA; Gibraltar National Party, Joe GARCIA

Other Political or Pressure Groups

Housewives Association; Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization

Member of

INTERPOL (subbureau)

Flag

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

ECONOMY

Overview

Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade and offshore banking. The British military presence has been severely reduced and now only contributes about 11% to the local economy. The financial sector accounts for 15% of GDP; tourism, shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. Because more than 70% of the economy is in the public sector, changes in government spending have a major impact on the level of employment.

National Product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $205 million (1993 est.)

National Product Real Growth Rate

National Product Per Capita

$6,600 (1993 est.)

Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

3.6% (1988)

Unemployment Rate

Budget

Revenues: $116 million
Expenditures: $124 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1992-93)

Exports

$57 million (f.o.b., 1992)

Commodities:

(principally re-exports) petroleum 51%
Manufactured goods 41%
Other 8%

Partners:

U.K.
Morocco
Portugal
Netherlands
Spain
U.S.
FRG

Imports

$420 million (c.i.f., 1992)

Commodities:

Fuels
Manufactured goods
And foodstuffs

Partners:

U.K.
Spain
Japan
Netherlands

External Debt

$318 million (1987)

Industrial Production

Growth rate NA

Electricity

Capacity: 47,000 kW
Production: 90 million kWh
Consumption per capita: 2,539 kWh (1993)

Industries

Tourism, banking and finance, construction, commerce
Support to large U.K. naval and air bases
Transit trade and supply depot in the port
Light manufacturing of tobacco, roasted coffee, ice, mineral waters, candy, beer, and canned fish

Agriculture

None

Economic Aid

Recipient: U.S. commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $800,000; Western (non-US) countries and ODA bilateral commitments (1992-93), $2.5 million

Currency

1 Gibraltar pound (#G) = 100 pence

Exchange Rates

Gibraltar pounds (#G) per US$1 - 0.6535 (January 1996), 0.6335 (1995), 0.6529 (1994), 0.6658 (1993), 0.5664 (1992), 0.5652 (1991), 0.5603 (1990); note - the Gibraltar pound is at par with the British pound

Fiscal Year

1 July - 30 June

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads

Total: NA km; 1.000-m gauge system in dockyard area only

Highways

Total: 49.9 km (including 12.9 km public highways)
Paved: 49.9 km

Pipelines

None

Ports

Gibraltar

Merchant Marine

Total: 19 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 357,730 GRT/635,769 DWT
Ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 3, chemical tanker 1, container 1, oil tanker 13 (1995 est.)

Airports

Total: 1
With paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone System

19,529 telephones (1993 est.); adequate, automatic domestic system and adequate international radiocommunication and microwave facilities

Local: NA
Intercity: NA
International: 1 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean) earth station

Radio

Broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 6, shortwave 0
Radios: NA

Television

Broadcast stations: 4
Televisions: NA

DEFENSE FORCES

Branches

British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force

Note: Defense is the responsibility of the U.K.

History
World Atlas

last updated: 19 november 1997

web hosting • domain names
web design • online games