]! ^! The islands were part of the UK's Jamaican colony until 1962, when they assumed the status of a separate crown colony upon Jamaica's independence. The governor of The Bahamas oversaw affairs from 1965 to 1973. With Bahamian independence, the islands received a separate governor in 1973. Although independence was agreed upon for 1982, the policy was reversed and the islands remain a British overseas territory. 
]" ^" Caribbean, two island groups in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of The Bahamas, north of Haiti ^# 21 45 N, 71 35 W ^$ Central America and the Caribbean ^% `! 430 sq km `" 430 sq km `# 0 sq km ^& 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC ^' 0 km ^( 389 km ^) `$ 12 nm `a 200 nm ^* tropical; marine; moderated by trade winds; sunny and relatively dry ^+ low, flat limestone; extensive marshes and mangrove swamps ^, `% Caribbean Sea 0 m `& Blue Hills 49 m ^- spiny lobster, conch ^. `' 2.33% `( 0% `) 97.67% (2001) ^/ NA sq km ^0 frequent hurricanes ^1 limited natural fresh water resources, private cisterns collect rainwater ^2 about 40 islands (eight inhabited) 
]# ^3 20,556 (July 2005 est.) ^4 `* 32.5% (male 3,396/female 3,277) `+ 63.8% (male 6,900/female 6,220) `, 3.7% (male 342/female 421) (2005 est.) ^5 `! 27.35 years `- 28.08 years `. 26.62 years (2005 est.) ^6 2.9% (2005 est.) ^7 22.23 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^8 4.28 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^9 11.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^: `/ 1.05 male(s)/female `0 1.04 male(s)/female `+ 1.11 male(s)/female `, 0.81 male(s)/female `1 1.07 male(s)/female (2005 est.) ^; `! 15.67 deaths/1,000 live births `- 18.11 deaths/1,000 live births `. 13.11 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) ^< `1 74.51 years `- 72.28 years `. 76.84 years (2005 est.) ^= 3.08 children born/woman (2005 est.) ^> NA ^? NA ^@ NA ^A `2 none `3 none ^B black 90%, mixed, European, or North American 10% ^C Baptist 40%, Methodist 16%, Anglican 18%, Church of God 12%, other 14% (1990) ^D English (official) ^E `M age 15 and over has ever attended school `1 98% `- 99% `. 98% (1970 est.) _` destination and transit point for illegal Haitian immigrants bound for the Turks and Caicos Islands, Bahamas, and US 
]$ ^F `4 none `5 Turks and Caicos Islands ^G overseas territory of the UK ^H NA ^I Grand Turk ^J none (overseas territory of the UK) ^K none (overseas territory of the UK) ^L Constitution Day, 30 August (1976) ^M introduced 30 August 1976; suspended in 1986; restored and revised 5 March 1988 ^N based on laws of England and Wales, with a few adopted from Jamaica and The Bahamas ^O 18 years of age; universal ^P `6 Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1953), represented by Governor Richard TAUWHARE (since 11 July 2005) `7 Chief Minister Michael Eugene MISICK (since 15 August 2003) `8 Executive Council consists of three ex officio members and five appointed by the governor from among the members of the Legislative Council `9 none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is appointed chief minister by the governor ^Q unicameral Legislative Council (19 seats of which 13 are popularly elected; members serve four-year terms) `9 last held 24 April 2003 (next to be held in 2007) `: percent of vote by party - PDM 53.8%, PNP 46.2%; seats by party - PDM 7, PNP 6; note - in by-elections held 7 August 2003, the PNP gained two seats for a majority of 8 seats; PDM now has 5 ^R Supreme Court ^S People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Derek H. TAYLOR]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Michael Eugene MISICK] ^T NA ^U Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), UPU ^V none (overseas territory of the UK) ^W none (overseas territory of the UK) ^X blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the colonial shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield is yellow and contains a conch shell, lobster, and cactus 
]% ^Y The Turks and Caicos economy is based on tourism, fishing, and offshore financial services. Most capital goods and food for domestic consumption are imported. The US is the leading source of tourists, accounting for more than half of the annual 93,000 visitors in the late 1990s. Major sources of government revenue also include fees from offshore financial activities and customs receipts. ^Z $216 million (2002 est.) ^[ 4.9% (2000 est.) ^\ purchasing power parity - $11,500 (2002 est.) ^] `; NA% `< NA% `= NA% ^^ 4,848 (1990 est.) ^_ about 33% in government and 20% in agriculture and fishing; significant numbers in tourism, financial, and other services ^` 10% (1997 est.) ^a NA% _! `> NA `? NA _" 4% (1995) _# `@ $47 million `A $33.6 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997-98 est.) _$ corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), citrus fruits; fish _% tourism, offshore financial services _& NA% _' 5 million kWh (2002) _( 4.65 million kWh (2002) _) 0 kWh (2002) _* 0 kWh (2002) _+ 0 bbl/day _, 0 bbl/day _- NA _. NA _/ $169.2 million (2000) _0 lobster, dried and fresh conch, conch shells _1 US, UK _2 $175.6 million (2000) _3 food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufactures, construction materials _4 US, UK _5 NA _6 $4.1 million (1997) _7 US dollar (USD) _8 the US dollar is used _9 calendar year 
]& _: 5,700 (2002) _; 1,700 (1999) _< `B fully digital system with international direct dialing `C full range of services available `D country code - 1-649; 2 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) _= AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2004) _> 0 (broadcasts from The Bahamas are received; 2 cable television networks) (2004) _? .tc _A NA 
]' _B `! 121 km `E 24 km `F 97 km (2000) _C Grand Turk, Providenciales _D 8 (2004 est.) _E `! 6 `^ 3 `_ 1 `T 2 (2004 est.) _L `! 2 `T 2 (2004 est.) 
]( _G defense is the responsibility of the UK 
]) _H have received Haitians fleeing economic and civil disorder _I transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe 