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United Kingdom - St Helena and St Helena Dependencies (Islands of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha)

St Helena lies in the South Atlantic Ocean, with Ascension 1,131km to the north-west, and Tristan da Cunha 2,100km to the south.

St Helena

Status: UK overseas territory

Population: 4,000 (2007)

Time: GMT

Currency: St Helena pound, at par with pound sterling

Geography

St Helena lies 1,931km from the coast of Angola, Africa.

Area: 122 sq km

Main settlement: Jamestown

Topography: St Helena is volcanic and mountainous, with perpendicular cliffs of 490 to 700m on the eastern, northern and western sides of the island, and mountains to 820m to the south. The only inland waters are small streams, few of them perennial, fed by springs in the central hills.

Climate: The climate is subtropical and mild, with annual rainfall varying from 200mm at sea level to 760mm in the centre, with continuous trade winds.

Vegetation: Indigenous vegetation includes cabbage trees, cedars, bamboo and banana plants. There are approximately 45 plants unique to St Helena. Arable land and pastures comprise some 15% of the land area and woods and forests some 6%.

Transport/Communications: There are 118km of paved roads and about 20km of earth roads, with 2,066 licensed vehicles at the end of 2000.

The only port is Jamestown. The RMS St Helena provides a passenger and freight service between St Helena and the UK, and more frequent services between St Helena, Ascension and Cape Town.

The international dialling code is +290. There are 456 main telephone lines per 1,000 people (2002).

There are 153 internet users per 1,000 people (2005).

Society

Population: 4,000 (2007, not including those working offshore on short-term contracts); growth 0.6% p.a.; birth rate 12 per 1,000 people; life expectancy 78 years. The inhabitants are of diverse origins.

Religion: Mainly Christians (Anglicans at least 80%); St Helena forms a diocese of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa.

Language: English

Media: There is a weekly newspaper, St Helena Herald (www.news.co.sh), and a radio station, Radio St Helena. Television services are provided via satellite.

Education: Education is free and compulsory for ten years from age five to 15. There are four years of primary and four years of secondary education; four first schools, three middle schools and one upper school. The overall pupil–teacher ratio is 11:1 (2000). The school year starts in September.

Health: Jamestown has a small hospital with four medical officers and a dentist. Infant mortality was an estimated 19 per 1,000 live births in 2005.

Economy

Overview: Fishing and agriculture are the main economic activities. Poultry, pigs, sheep, goats and cattle are produced for domestic consumption. A tourist office was established in January 1998 with a view to developing a high-value, low-volume tourist industry. There were 2,298 ship passenger arrivals in 2000 and, in addition, 189 yachts visited the island in 2002.

Trade: Fish and coffee are the only exports, mainly to the UK and South Africa.

Aid: Imports generally greatly exceed exports and the islanders rely on UK aid to make up the balance.

History

St Helena was discovered by the Portuguese navigator Joao da Nova in 1502 and named by him after the saint of that day. The Dutch later annexed it, but it was finally taken over by the British East India Company in 1661, the charter being issued by King Charles II in 1673. It was brought under Crown government in April 1834. Napoleon was exiled on St Helena (in Longwood House, now a museum) from 1815 until his death in 1821. Jamestown was a busy port until 1870, when steam ships and the opening of the Suez Canal changed sea routes. It was of strategic importance during the Second World War.

Constitution

The present constitution came into force in 1989. It provides for a governor (of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha), representing the British monarch who is head of state, and a legislative council (for St Helena), consisting of a speaker, three ex-officio members and 12 elected members.

Administration

Five committees of the legislative council are responsible for general oversight of the activities of the five biggest spending government departments, and have in addition a range of statutory and administrative functions. The governor is also assisted by an executive council of the three ex-officio members and the five chairpersons of the council committees. A process of constitutional modernisation began in 2003, with the aim of introducing a larger degree of self-government.