Saint Helena - Island background information

The island of St Helena, an overseas territory of the United Kingdom (UK), lies in the South Atlantic Ocean, is of volcanic origin and has an area of 47 square miles. It is over 4,000 miles from the UK, 700 miles southeast of Ascension Island, and 1,700 miles NNW from South Africa (Cape Town). The island's total population is around 4,000, of whom about 900 live in the capital, Jamestown. The climate is kept mild and equable by the southeast trade winds and temperatures range from 14-32 degrees centigrade in the summer and 14-26 degrees centigrade in winter. The economy is small and is mainly based on offshore employment, fisheries licences, agriculture, fishing and more recently a small volume of tourism. Most commodities are imported and St Helena relies heavily on UK Aid to support the standard of living of the population.

St Helena has no aerodrome and the only regular mode of access to the island is via the Royal Mail Ship (RMS) St Helena based in the South Atlantic.

All (dry) goods and equipment are transported to St Helena by sea and the maximum size and weight of any single component are limited by the RMS' cargo space and capacity of its cranes. Landing infrastructure on the island is limited, with no breakwater or mooring facilities at the sea front (Jamestown). The ship anchors off, cargo is transferred ashore using towed barges, and passengers are ferried to and from the ship by small launches. These transfer processes are subject to ocean swells that often appear out of the North East (in the opposite direction to the SE Trades - which are continuous). Combined with a lack of heavy transport, there is a limit on the size and weight of equipment that can be transported on the island. Fuel is supplied via a commercial arrangement with a separate shipping agency and is landed at Rupert's Bay.