Guide to Gibraltar Introduction Background: Strategically important, Gibraltar was ceded to Great Britain by Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht; the British garrison was formally declared a colony in 1830. In referendums held in 1967 and 2002, Gibraltarians ignored Spanish pressure and voted overwhelmingly to remain a British dependency.
Geography Location: Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern coast of Spain
Geographic coordinates: 36 8 N, 5 21 W
Map references: Europe
Area: total
Area - comparative: about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Land boundaries: total
Coastline: 12 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea
Climate: Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers
Terrain: a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar
Elevation extremes: lowest point
Natural resources: none
Land use: arable land
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: limited natural freshwater resources
Geography - note: strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea
People Population: 27,884 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years
Median age: total
Population growth rate: 0.17% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 10.87 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 9.18 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth
Infant mortality rate: total
Life expectancy at birth: total population
Total fertility rate: 1.65 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA%
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun
Ethnic groups: Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese, German, North Africans
Religions: Roman Catholic 78.1%, Church of England 7%, other Christian 3.2%, Muslim 4%, Jewish 2.1%, Hindu 1.8%, other or unspecified 0.9%, none 2.9% (2001 census)
Languages: English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese
Literacy: definition
Government Country name: conventional long form
Dependency status: overseas territory of the UK
Government type: NA
Capital: Gibraltar
Administrative divisions: none (overseas territory of the UK)
Independence: none (overseas territory of the UK)
National holiday: National Day, 10 September (1967); note - day of the national referendum to decide whether to remain with the UK or go with Spain
Constitution: 30 May 1969
Legal system: English law
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal, plus other UK subjects who have been residents six months or more
Executive branch: chief of state
Legislative branch: unicameral House of Assembly (18 seats - 15 elected by popular vote, one appointed for the Speaker, and two ex officio members; members serve four-year terms) elections
Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Court of Appeal
Political parties and leaders: Gibraltar Liberal Party [Joseph GARCIA]; Gibraltar Social Democrats or GSD [Peter CARUANA]; Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party or GSLP [Joseph John BOSSANO]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization; Women's Association
International organization participation: Interpol (subbureau), UPU
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (overseas territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (overseas territory of the UK)
Flag description: two horizontal bands of white (top, double width) and red with a three-towered red castle in the center of the white band; hanging from the castle gate is a gold key centered in the red band
Economy Economy - overview: Self-sufficient Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade, offshore banking, and its position as an international conference center. The British military presence has been sharply reduced and now contributes about 7% to the local economy, compared with 60% in 1984. The financial sector, tourism (almost 5 million visitors in 1998), shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. The financial sector, the shipping sector, and tourism each contribute 25%-30% of GDP. Telecommunications accounts for another 10%. In recent years, Gibraltar has seen major structural change from a public to a private sector economy, but changes in government spending still have a major impact on the level of employment.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $769 million (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: NA%
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $27,900 (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture
Labor force: 14,800 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) (1999)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture negligible, industry 40%, services 60%
Unemployment rate: 2% (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.5% (1998)
Budget: revenues
Agriculture - products: none
Industries: tourism, banking and finance, ship repairing, tobacco
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 104 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel
Electricity - consumption: 96.76 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)
Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 42,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA
Oil - imports: NA
Exports: $136 million f.o.b. (2002)
Exports - commodities: (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8%
Exports - partners: France 19.4%, Spain 14.1%, Turkmenistan 12.1%, Switzerland 11.7%, Germany 10.1%, UK 9.1%, Greece 6.8% (2004)
Imports: $1.743 billion c.i.f. (2002)
Imports - commodities: fuels, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs
Imports - partners: Spain 19.9%, Russia 18.4%, UK 10.8%, Italy 8.8%, Germany 7.5%, US 5.1%, Sweden 4.7%, France 4.2% (2004)
Debt - external: $NA (2000 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $NA
Currency (code): Gibraltar pound (GIP)
Currency code: GIP
Exchange rates: Gibraltar pounds per US dollar - 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002), 0.6947 (2001), 0.6609 (2000) note
Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June
Communications Telephones - main lines in use: 24,512 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 9,797 (2002)
Telephone system: general assessment
Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 37,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (plus three low-power repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 10,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .gi
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 2 (2000)
Internet users: 6,200 (2002)
Transportation Highways: total
Ports and harbors: Gibraltar
Merchant marine: total
Airports: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total
Military Military branches: Royal Gibraltar Regiment
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the UK; the last British regular infantry forces left Gibraltar in 1992, replaced by the Royal Gibraltar Regiment
Transnational Issues Disputes - international: in 2003, Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum to remain a British colony and against a "total shared sovereignty" arrangement while demanding participation in talks between the UK and Spain; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar even greater autonomy
Last updated: 20 October, 2005
| Weather Statistics | Gibraltar |
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | June | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | | Mean | 13 C | 14 C | 15 C | 16 C | 19 C | 21 C | 24 C | 24 C | 23 C | 19 C | 16 C | 14 C | | Prcp | 118mm | 103mm | 104mm | 66mm | 37mm | 9mm | 1mm | 3mm | 25mm | 77mm | 146mm | 137mm |
| Source: Global Historical Climatology Network |
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