Cyprus

Wealth and National Well-Being

Country Comparisons:
2010: see chart (bottom)

World Factbook (2011): "The area of the Republic of Cyprus under government control has a market economy dominated by the service sector, which accounts for nearly four-fifths of GDP. Tourism, financial services, and real estate are the most important sectors. Erratic growth rates over the past decade reflect the economy's reliance on tourism, the profitability of which often fluctuates with political instability in the region and economic conditions in Western Europe."

The Greek sector benefits from tourism, which diminishes with eruptions of political conflict between the Greeks and Turks. The Turkish sector has been suffering from water shortages, but a few desalination plants are now online.

Public debt
2010: 61.1% of GDP
2009: 52.4% of GDP

People

Living in an urban area
2010: 70%

Density in 2005: 84.4 persons per square kilometer.

Geography

Island in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey. Capital: Nicosia. Turkish Cypriot areas include Kyrenia, all but a small part of Famagusta, and small parts of Nicosia (Lefkosia).

Government

A republic, its chief of state is also head of the government, the president, elected by popular vote to a five-year term. Capital: Nicosia

2011: The Republic of Cyprus has legal claim to sovereignty over the entire island of Cyprus and its surrounding waters except for the areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, which contain British military bases. About 36% of the island's area, in the north, calls itself the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and is recognized only by Turkey.

Recent History

Received independence from the British in 1960. Divided between Greeks and Turks. UN peacekeepers arrived in 1964. In 1983, the Turkish-held area declared itself the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which was recognized only by Turkey. Greek Cypriots controlled the only internationally recognized government.

On May 1, 2004, the Greek controlled area, the Republic of Cyprus, joined the European Union. Every Cypriot was to have the status of a European citizen. EU laws, however, will not apply to the Turkish sector in north Cyprus. The Greek Cypriots have been trying to encourage the Turkish Cypriots to unite the island.

SOURCES:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/