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British Indian Ocean Territory information
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location:
archipelago in the indian ocean. south of india. about one-half the way from africa to indonesia
geographic coordinates:
6 00 s. 71 30 e
map references:
political map of the world
area:
total: 60 sq km land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire chagos archipelago
area - comparative:
about 0.3 times the size of washington. dc
land boundaries:
0 km
coastline:
698 km
maritime claims:
territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
climate:
tropical marine; hot. humid. moderated by trade winds
terrain:
flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation)
elevation extremes:
lowest point: indian ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on diego garcia 15 m
natural resources:
coconuts. fish. sugarcane
land use:
arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001)
irrigated land:
0 sq km (1998 est.)
natural hazards:
na
environment - current issues:
na
geography - note:
archipelago of 2.300 islands; diego garcia. largest and southernmost island. occupies strategic location in central indian ocean; island is site of joint us-uk military facility
population:
no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 1.200 former agricultural workers resident in the chagos archipelago. often referred to as chagossians or ilois. were relocated to mauritius and the seychelles in the 1960s and 1970s. in november 2000 they were granted the right of return by a british high court ruling. though no timetable has been set; in 2001. there were approximately 1.500 uk and us military personnel and 2.000 civilian contractors living on the island of diego garcia (july 2005 est.)
country name:
conventional long form: british indian ocean territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: biot
dependency status:
overseas territory of the uk; administered by a commissioner. resident in the foreign and commonwealth office in london
legal system:
the laws of the uk. where applicable. apply
executive branch:
chief of state: queen elizabeth ii (since 6 february 1952) head of government: commissioner tony crombie (since january 2004); administrator tony humphries (since february 2005); note - both reside in the uk cabinet: na elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch
diplomatic representation in the us:
none (overseas territory of the uk)
diplomatic representation from the us:
none (overseas territory of the uk)
flag description:
white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the uk is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag
economy - overview:
all economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of diego garcia. where joint uk-us defense facilities are located. construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the uk. mauritius. the philippines. and the us. there are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. when the ilois return. they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing.
electricity - production:
na kwh; note - electricity supplied by the us military
electricity - consumption:
na kwh
telephones - main lines in use:
na
telephone system:
general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available domestic: all commercial telephone services are available. including connection to the internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)
radio broadcast stations:
am 1. fm 2. shortwave 0 (1998)
radios:
na
television broadcast stations:
1 (1997)
televisions:
na
internet country code:
.io
internet service providers (isps):
1 (2000)
airports:
1 (2004 est.)
airports - with paved runways:
total: 1 over 3.047 m: 1 (2005 est.)
ports and terminals:
diego garcia
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