| GEOGRAPHY |
| Country name: |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Montserrat |
| Capital: |
Plymouth (abandoned in 1997 due to volcanic activity; interim government buildings have been built at Brades Estate, in the Carr's Bay/Little Bay vicinity at the northwest end of Montserrat) |
| Location: |
Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico |
| Geographic
Coordinates: |
16 45 N, 62 12 W |
| Area: |
total: 102 sq km
land: 102 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
| Area
Comparative: |
about 0.6 times the size of Washington, DC |
| Land
Boundaries: |
0 km |
| Coastline: |
40 km |
| Maritime
Claims: |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
| Climate: |
tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation |
| Terrain: |
volcanic island, mostly mountainous, with small coastal lowland |
| Elavation
Extremes: |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Chances Peak (in the Soufriere Hills volcanic complex) 914 m |
| Natural
Resources: |
NEGL |
| GOVERNEMENT |
| Governement
Type: |
NA |
| Administratives
Divisions: |
3 parishes; Saint Anthony, Saint Georges, Saint Peter |
| Independence |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| National
Holiday: |
Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
| Constitution: |
present constitution came into force 19 December 1989 |
| Legal
System; |
English common law and statutory law |
| Suffrage |
18 years of age; universal |
| Executive
Branch: |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Deborah BARNES-JONES (since 10 May 2004)
head of government: Chief Minister John OSBORNE (since 5 April 2001)
cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, the chief minister, three other ministers, the attorney general, and the finance secretary
elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually becomes chief minister |
| Legislative
Branch: |
unicameral Legislative Council (11 seats, 9 popularly elected; members serve five-year terms)
note: expanded in 2001 from 7 to 9 elected members with attorney general and financial secretary sitting as ex-officio members
elections: last held April 2001 (next to be held by November 2006)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPLM 7, NPP 2
note: in 2001, the Elections Commission instituted a single constituency/voter-at-large system whereby all eligible voters cast ballots for all nine seats of the Legislative Council |
| Judicial
Branch: |
Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia, one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court) |
| Political
parties and Leaders: |
National Progressive Party or NPP [Reuben T. MEADE]; New People's Liberation Movement or NPLM [John A. OSBORNE] |
| PEOPLE |
| Population: |
9,341
note: an estimated 8,000 refugees left the island following the resumption of volcanic activity in July 1995; some have returned (July 2005 est.) |
| Age structure: |
0-14 years: 23.3% (male 1,109/female 1,072)
15-64 years: 65.6% (male 2,923/female 3,201)
65 years and over: 11.1% (male 536/female 500) (2005 est.) |
| Median age: |
total: 28.56 years
male: 28.29 years
female: 28.79 years (2005 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: Montserratian(s)
adjective: Montserratian |
| Ethnic groups: |
black, white |
| Religions: |
Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Christian denominations |
| Languages: |
English |
| COMUNICATIONS |
| Telephones - main
lines in use: |
NA |
| Telephones - mobile
cellular: |
70 (1994) |
| Telephone system: |
general assessment: modern and fully digitalized
domestic: NA
international: country code - 1-664 |
| Radio broadcast
stations: |
AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television broadcast
stations: |
1 (1997) |
| Internet country
code: |
.ms |
| Internet hosts: |
|
| Internet users: |
NA |
| TRANSPORT |
| Railways: |
|
| Highways: |
total: 227 km
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km
note: volcanic eruptions beginning in 1995 destroyed most of the road system (2003) |
| Waterways: |
|
| Pipelines: |
|
| Ports and harbors: |
Plymouth (abandoned), Little Bay (anchorages and ferry landing), Carr's Bay |
| Merchant marine: |
|
| Airports: |
1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
paved runways: |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
unpaved runways: |
|
| Heliports: |
|
