Jersey

Background:

The island of Jersey and the other Channel Islands represent the last remnants of the medieval Dukedom of Normandy that held sway in both France and England. These islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II.

Geography Jersey

Location:
Western Europe, island in the English Channel, northwest of France

Geographic coordinates:
49 15 N, 2 10 W

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 116 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 116 sq km

Area - comparative:
about 0.7 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
70 km

Maritime claims - as described in UNCLOS 1982 (see Notes and Definitions):
territorial sea: 3 NM
exclusive fishing zone: 12 NM

Climate:
temperate; mild winters and cool summers

Terrain:
gently rolling plain with low, rugged hills along north coast

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 143 m

Natural resources:
arable land

Land use:
arable land: NEGL%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land:
NA sq km

Natural hazards:
NA

Environment - current issues:
NA

Geography - note:
largest and southernmost of Channel Islands; about 30% of population concentrated in Saint Helier

People Jersey

Population:
90,502 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 17.7% (male 8,268; female 7,716)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 30,237; female 30,490)
65 years and over: 15.2% (male 6,016; female 7,775) (2004 est.)

Median age:
total: 40.3 years
male: 39.6 years
female: 41.1 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate:
0.36% (2004 est.)

Birth rate:
10.04 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate:
9.17 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate:
2.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 5.33 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 5.7 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 79.09 years
male: 76.63 years
female: 81.74 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.57 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA%

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Nationality:
noun: Channel Islander(s)
adjective: Channel Islander

Ethnic groups:
UK and Norman-French descent

Religions:
Anglican, Roman Catholic, Baptist, Congregational New Church, Methodist, Presbyterian

Languages:
English (official), French (official), Norman-French dialect spoken in country districts

Literacy:
definition: NA
total population: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA%

Government Jersey

Country name:
conventional long form: Bailiwick of Jersey
conventional short form: Jersey

Dependency status:
British crown dependency

Government type:
NA

Capital:
Saint Helier

Administrative divisions:
none (British crown dependency)

Independence:
none (British crown dependency)

National holiday:
Liberation Day, 9 May (1945)

Constitution:
unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice

Legal system:
English law and local statute; justice is administered by the Royal Court

Suffrage:
NA years of age; universal adult

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor and bailiff appointed by the monarch
head of government: Lieutenant Governor and Commander in Chief Air Chief Marshall Sir John CHESHIRE (since 24 January 2001) and Bailiff Philip Martin BAILHACHE (since NA February 1995)
cabinet: committees appointed by the Assembly of the States

Legislative branch:
unicameral Assembly of the States (55 voting members - 12 senators (elected for 6-year terms), 12 constables or heads of parishes (elected for 3-year terms), 29 deputies (elected for 3-year terms); the bailiff and the deputy bailiff; and 3 non-voting members - the Dean of Jersey, the Attorney General, and the Solicitor General all appointed by the monarch)
elections: last held NA (next to be held NA)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 52

Judicial branch:
Royal Court (judges elected by an electoral college and the bailiff)

Political parties and leaders:
none; all independents

Political pressure groups and leaders:
none

Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (British crown dependency)

Diplomatic representation from the US:
none (British crown dependency)

Flag description:
white with a diagonal red cross extending to the corners of the flag and in the upper quadrant, surmounted by a yellow crown, a red shield holding the three lions of England in yellow

Economy Jersey

Economy - overview:
The economy is based largely on international financial services, agriculture, and tourism. Potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes, and especially flowers are important export crops, shipped mostly to the UK. The Jersey breed of dairy cattle is known worldwide and represents an important export income earner. Milk products go to the UK and other EU countries. In 1996 the finance sector accounted for about 60% of the island's output. Tourism, another mainstay of the economy, accounts for 24% of GDP. In recent years, the government has encouraged light industry to locate in Jersey, with the result that an electronics industry has developed alongside the traditional manufacturing of knitwear. All raw material and energy requirements are imported, as well as a large share of Jersey's food needs. Light taxes and death duties make the island a popular tax haven.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $2.2 billion (1999 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
NA%

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $24,800 (1999 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 5%
industry: 2%
services: 93% (1996)

Population below poverty line:
NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4.7% (1998)

Labor force:
57,050 (1996)

Unemployment rate:
0.7% (1998 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $601 million
expenditures: $588 million, including capital expenditures of $98 million (2000 est.)

Industries:
tourism, banking and finance, dairy

Industrial production growth rate:
NA%

Electricity - imports:
NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by France

Agriculture - products:
potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes; beef, dairy products

Exports:
$NA

Exports - commodities:
light industrial and electrical goods, foodstuffs, textiles

Exports - partners:
UK

Imports:
$NA

Imports - commodities:
machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, foodstuffs, mineral fuels, chemicals

Imports - partners:
UK

Debt - external:
none

Economic aid - recipient:
none

Currency:
British pound (GBP); note - there is also a Jersey pound

Currency code:
GBP

Exchange rates:
Jersey pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999); the Jersey pound is at par with the British pound

Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March

Communications Jersey

Telephones - main lines in use:
73,900 (2001)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
61,400 (2001)

Telephone system:
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: 3 submarine cables

Radio broadcast stations:
AM NA, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios:
NA

Television broadcast stations:
2 (1997)

Televisions:
NA

Internet country code:
.je

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
NA

Internet users:
NA

Transportation Jersey

Railways:
0 km

Highways:
total: 577 km
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km

Waterways:
none

Ports and harbors:
Gorey, Saint Aubin, Saint Helier

Merchant marine:
none

Airports:
1 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2003 est.)

Military Jersey

Military - note:
defense is the responsibility of the UK

Transnational Issues Jersey

Disputes - international:
none