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The British Virgin Islands (BVI)THE VIRGIN STATE The BVI is located 60 miles east of Puerto Rico between latitude 18.25 degrees north and longitude 64.37 degrees west, and 15 miles from St. Thomas in the U.S Virgin Islands. We are about 50-60 island rock and cays that makes up the BVI, twelve islands are now inhabited. The capital city , Road Town, is on Tortola the largest of all of the islands (21.5 square miles, with 80 percent of the population). The next most populous islands are Virgin Gorda (8.5 square miles), Anegada (15.2 square miles), Jost Van Dyke (3.2 square miles), Peter Island, Marina cay and Guana island, They are all hilly and of volcanic origin, except for Anegada, the most northerly, which is low lying and of coral origins.
The Virgin Islands' peaks made such an impression on Columbus in 1493 that he named them Las Once Mil Virgenes, after the legendary 11,000 virgins who St. Ursula (a British Princess) was supposed to have led to their martyrdom near Cologne in Germany. He was met by Amerindians who had lived here for centuries and were followed by European pirates and settlers, enslaved Africans and Lebanese merchants. PROUD VIRGIN ISLANDERS The days of prosperity were short-lived after the slave trade was abolished throughout the British Empire in 1807. War, violent hurricanes and severe drought brought hardship to every aspect of the plantation economy before Britain finally abolished slavery in 1834. Early Virgin Islanders proudly boast that by granting freedom and land to all their salves in 1780, even as early as 1823, slaves owned 41 percent of the land. After 1834, the freed slaves purchased the unprofitable plantations deserted by their white owners. Today,66 percent of the land is owned by Virgin Islanders. MODERN ECONOMY The new government's assertiveness aims to ensure that he accelerated growth of policies and initiatives to stimulate tourism, achieved by ministerial government in 1967, does not waver. The BVI Tourist Board, the Financial Services Commission and the International Financial Centre established in 2003 are engaged in aggressive programmes ensuring that the bedrocks of the Territory's present prosperity- tourism and offshore financial services- remain on the cutting edge of global competition. There are about 500,000 international business companies registered in the BVI, some 45 percent of the world's market.
The 26,000 inhabitants include a high percentage of immigrants, as the BVI is becoming a melting pot of nationalities and cultures. About 80 percent of Virgin Islanders are of African descent, with the remainder being of mixed race, European, Arab and Asian. This vibrant economy has attracted intellectual capital and skilled labour from throughout the Caribbean and far beyond. For more information on the British Virgin Islands, visit the BVI Tourist Board Web site or call the office number in your area to request a brochure or travel package:
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