An Introduction to British Virgin Islands
Officially The Virgin Islands but often prefixed with 'British' to distinguish it from the nearby Virgin Islands of the US, this state lies to the east of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean. There are four main and more than fifty smaller islands, with a total of 15 inhabited. The largest island is Tortola, home to the capital and 80% of the population. Christopher Columbus gave them the fanciful name Santa Ursula y las Once Mil Vírgenes (Saint Ursula and her 11,000 Virgins). See full country profile.Latest Research News from Latin America
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GOVERNMENT: British Overseas Territory / parliamentary democracy
AREA: 153 sq km
POPULATION: 27,800 (2012 est.)
MAJOR LANGUAGE: English
Some business and general info
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Trade and Industry in British Virgin Islands
The best fun to be had in the BVI is arguably on the water: location, climate and the mass of small islands make it one of the world's greatest sailing destinations. The Spring Regatta, hosted every year since 1972, is a seven-day race event attended from around the globe by everything from full-size mono-hull yachts to dinghies and characterised by games, music and some serious partying.
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Officially The Virgin Islands but often prefixed with 'British' to distinguish it from the nearby Virgin Islands of the US, this state lies to the east of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean. There are four main and more than fifty smaller islands, with a total of 15 inhabited. The largest island is Tortola, home to the capital and 80% of the population. Christopher Columbus gave them the fanciful name Santa Ursula y las Once Mil Vírgenes (Saint Ursula and her 11,000 Virgins).
The country became autonomous within the Commonwealth in 1967 but defence and foreign affairs remain the responsibility of the UK. Most of the islands are volcanic in origin and have a hilly, rugged terrain.
GDP: $853.4m (2011 est.); per capita $43,666
Religions Christian 84% (Methodist 23%, Anglican 12%, Church of God 11%, Catholic 9%).
Currency: US dollar
Telephone Code: +1 284
Since the 1960s, the islands have diversified away from agriculture and towards tourism and financial services, becoming one of the wealthiest areas in the Caribbean.
Tourism accounts for 45% of national income and the largest proportion of workers. In 2006 a total of 825,603 peopl' visited the islands (of whom 443,987 were cruise ship passengers). However, as an offshore financial centre the BVI makes more of its income from financial services - 51.8% of the Government's revenue comes directly from licence fees for offshore companies with more from taxes on the wealthier-than-average financial sector employees.
2002 exports of $25.3m included rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals, gravel and sand, much going to the US, US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. 2004 imports of $187m came from the same three territories and consisted largely of building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs and machinery.
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