First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands (1872-1960); they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. On 6 September 2017, Hurricane Irma devastated the island of Tortola. An estimated 80% of residential and business structures were destroyed or damaged, communications disrupted, and local roads rendered impassable.
land: 151 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
arable land: 6.7% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 6.7% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 33.3% (2018 est.)
forest: 24.3% (2018 est.)
other: 29% (2018 est.)
39,369 (2023 est.)
noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander
African/Black 76.3%, Latino 5.5%, White 5.4%, mixed 5.3%, Indian 2.1%, East Indian 1.6%, other 3%, unspecified 0.8% (2010 est.)
English (official), Virgin Islands Creole
Protestant 70.2% (Methodist 17.6%, Church of God 10.4%, Anglican 9.5%, Seventh Day Adventist 9.0%, Pentecostal 8.2%, Baptist 7.4%, New Testament Church of God 6.9%, other Protestant 1.2%), Roman Catholic 8.9%, Jehovah’s Witness 2.5%, Hindu 1.9%, other 6.2%, none 7.9%, unspecified 2.4% (2010 est.)
0-14 years: 16.56% (male 3,231/female 3,287)
15-64 years: 71.87% (male 13,322/female 14,972)
65 years and over: 11.58% (2023 est.) (male 2,156/female 2,401)
total dependency ratio: 32.8
youth dependency ratio: 20.2
elderly dependency ratio: 12.6
potential support ratio: 8 (2021)
total: 38.2 years (2023 est.)
male: 37.9 years
female: 38.6 years
1.87% (2023 est.)
10.9 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
5.4 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
13.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
a fairly even distribution throughout the inhabited islands, with the largest islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, and Jost Van Dyke having the largest populations
urban population: 49.7% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 1.73% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
15,000 ROAD TOWN (capital) (2018)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.89 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female
total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2023 est.)
total: 13.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
male: 16.4 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 11 deaths/1,000 live births
total population: 79.9 years (2023 est.)
male: 78.4 years
female: 81.5 years
1.37 children born/woman (2023 est.)
0.67 (2023 est.)
NA
improved: total: 99.9% of population
unimproved: total: 0.1% of population (2020 est.)
NA
NA
improved: urban: 97.5% of population
rural: 97.5% of population
total: 97.5% of population
unimproved: urban: 2.5% of population
rural: 2.5% of population
total: 2.5% of population (2015 est.)
NA
46.6% (2023 est.)
2.6% of GDP (2020 est.)
total population: NA
male: NA
female: NA
total: 12 years
male: 12 years
female: 12 years (2018)
limited natural freshwater resources except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola; most of the islands’ water supply comes from desalination plants; sewage and mining/industry waste contribute to water pollution, threatening coral reefs
subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds
agricultural land: 46.7% (2018 est.)
arable land: 6.7% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 6.7% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 33.3% (2018 est.)
forest: 24.3% (2018 est.)
other: 29% (2018 est.)
urban population: 49.7% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 1.73% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
carbon dioxide emissions: 0.21 megatons (2016 est.)
municipal solid waste generated annually: 21,099 tons (2000 est.)
British Caribbean island territorial economy; strong tourism and services industries; vulnerable to hurricanes; navigating public debt insolvency since 2008 Crisis; considered a tax haven; high electrification costs; major rum exporter
$500 million (2017 est.)
$490.2 million (2016 est.)
$481.1 million (2015 est.)
2% (2017 est.)
1.9% (2016 est.)
1.8% (2015 est.)
$34,200 (2017 est.)
$1.38 billion (2018 est.)
4.2% (2022 est.)
2.8% (2021 est.)
0.4% (2020 est.)
agriculture: 0.2% (2017 est.)
industry: 6.8% (2017 est.)
services: 93.1% (2017 est.)comparison rankings:
household consumption: 25.1% (2017 est.)
government consumption: 7.5% (2017 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 21.7% (2017 est.)
investment in inventories: 20.4% (2017 est.)
exports of goods and services: 94.7% (2017 est.)
imports of goods and services: -69.4% (2017 est.)
fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish
tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore banking center
1.1% (2017 est.)
12,770 (2004)
2.9% (2015 est.)
NA
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA
revenues: $400 million (2017 est.)
expenditures: $400 million (2017 est.)
0% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
38.9% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
1 April - 31 March
$362.6 million (2011 est.)
$279.8 million (2010 est.)
$23 million (2017 est.)
$23 million (2015 est.)
note: Data are in current year dollars and do not include illicit exports or re-exports.
Malta 30%, Seychelles 29%, Switzerland 14% (2019)
aircraft, recreational boats, ships, hydrogen, halogens (2021)
$300 million (2017 est.) NA
$210 million (2016 est.)
Germany 32%, United States 22%, Italy 9%, France 7%, Seychelles 7% (2019)
recreational boats, aircraft, refined petroleum, cars, furniture (2019)
$36.1 million (1997)
the US dollar is used
electrification - total population: 100% (2021)
installed generating capacity: 33,000 kW (2020 est.)
consumption: 116.298 million kWh (2019 est.)
exports: 0 kWh (2020 est.)
imports: 0 kWh (2020 est.)
transmission/distribution losses: 22.5 million kWh (2019 est.)comparison rankings:
fossil fuels: 98.8% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
solar: 0.2% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
wind: 1% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
biomass and waste: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
production: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
consumption: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
exports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
imports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
proven reserves: 0 metric tons (2019 est.)
total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2021 est.)
refined petroleum consumption: 1,200 bbl/day (2019 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate imports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil estimated reserves: 0 barrels (2021 est.)
0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
1,227 bbl/day (2015 est.)
production: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
consumption: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
exports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
imports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
proven reserves: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
173,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from coal and metallurgical coke: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from petroleum and other liquids: 173,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from consumed natural gas: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
80.136 million Btu/person (2019 est.)
VP-L
4 (2021)
2
note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)
2
note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control
total: 200 km (2007)
paved: 200 km (2007)
total: 30 (2022)
by type: general cargo 3, other 27
major seaport(s): Road Harbor
cruise port(s): Tortola
manyapis