| GEOGRAPHY |
| Country name: |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
| Capital: |
Jamestown |
| Location: |
islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa |
| Geographic
Coordinates: |
15 56 S, 5 42 W |
| Area: |
total: 410 sq km
land: 410 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Saint Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
| Area
Comparative: |
slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
| Land
Boundaries: |
0 km |
| Coastline: |
60 km |
| Maritime
Claims: |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
| Climate: |
Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
| Terrain: |
Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
| Elavation
Extremes: |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m |
| Natural
Resources: |
fish |
| GOVERNEMENT |
| Governement
Type: |
NA |
| Administratives
Divisions: |
1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
| Independence |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| National
Holiday: |
Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
| Constitution: |
1 January 1989 |
| Legal
System; |
NA |
| Suffrage |
NA years of age |
| Executive
Branch: |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief Michael CLANCY (since 15 October 2004)
cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
| Legislative
Branch: |
unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 June 2001 (next to be held June 2005)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
| Judicial
Branch: |
Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court |
| Political
parties and Leaders: |
none |
| PEOPLE |
| Population: |
7,460 (July 2005 est.) |
| Age structure: |
0-14 years: 18.8% (male 715/female 691)
15-64 years: 71.3% (male 2,745/female 2,575)
65 years and over: 9.8% (male 330/female 404) (2005 est.) |
| Median age: |
total: 35.4 years
male: 35.61 years
female: 35.21 years (2005 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian |
| Ethnic groups: |
African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
| Religions: |
Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic |
| Languages: |
English |
| COMUNICATIONS |
| Telephones - main
lines in use: |
2,200 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile
cellular: |
0 (1997) |
| Telephone system: |
general assessment: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic network
international: country code - 290; HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascension Island, which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Radio broadcast
stations: |
AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television broadcast
stations: |
0
note: television programs are received in Saint Helena via satellite and distributed by cable (2002) |
| Internet country
code: |
.sh |
| Internet hosts: |
|
| Internet users: |
500 (2002) |
| TRANSPORT |
| Railways: |
|
| Highways: |
total: 198 km (Saint Helena 138 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 20 km)
paved: 168 km (Saint Helena 118km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km)
unpaved: 30 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) (2000) |
| Waterways: |
|
| Pipelines: |
|
| Ports and harbors: |
Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown |
| Merchant marine: |
|
| Airports: |
1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
paved runways: |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
unpaved runways: |
|
| Heliports: |
|
