Antigua and Barbuda (2003) | Nauru (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*, Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter, Saint Philip | 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.1% (male 9,706; female 9,371)
15-64 years: 67.4% (male 22,929; female 22,845) 65 years and over: 4.5% (male 1,218; female 1,828) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
40.33% (male 2,510; female 2,365) 15-64 years: 57.97% (male 3,475; female 3,533) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 103; female 102) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock | coconuts |
Airports | 3 (2002) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 443 sq km (Antigua 280 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km)
land: 443 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Redonda, 1.6 sq km |
total:
21 sq km land: 21 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The Siboney were the first to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 B.C., but Arawak and Carib Indians populated the islands when Columbus landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early settlements by the Spanish and French were succeeded by the English who formed a colony in 1667. Slavery, established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in 1834. The islands became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981. | Nauru's phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by Australian forces in World War I. Upon achieving independence in 1968, Nauru became the smallest independent republic in the world; it joined the UN in 1999. |
Birth rate | 18.23 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 27.22 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $123.7 million
expenditures: $145.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$23.4 million expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY95/96) |
Capital | Saint John's | no official capital; government offices in Yaren District |
Climate | tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February) |
Coastline | 153 km | 30 km |
Constitution | 1 November 1981 | 29 January 1968 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda |
conventional long form:
Republic of Nauru conventional short form: Nauru former: Pleasant Island |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 5.64 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 7.2 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $231 million (1999) | $33.3 million |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Antigua and Barbuda (embassy closed 30 June 1994); the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Antigua and Barbuda | the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 362-5211 FAX: [1] (202) 362-5225 consulate(s) general: Miami |
Nauru does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a UN office at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, New York 10017; telephone: (212) 937-0074
consulate(s): Hagatna (Guam) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $2.3 million (1995) | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) |
Economy - overview | Tourism continues to dominate the economy, accounting for more than half of GDP. Weak tourist arrival numbers since early 2000 have slowed the economy, however, and pressed the government into a tight fiscal corner. The dual-island nation's agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited water supply and a labor shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction. Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialized world, especially in the US, which accounts for slightly more than one-third of tourist arrivals. | Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within five to ten years. Phosphate production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen in traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest per capita incomes in the Third World, few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of phosphate income have been invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government has called for a freezing of wages, a reduction of over-staffed public service departments, privatization of numerous government agencies, and closure of some overseas consulates. In recent years Nauru has encouraged the registration of offshore banks and corporations. Tens of billions of dollars have been channeled through their accounts. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's per capita GDP varying widely. |
Electricity - consumption | 97.89 million kWh (2001) | 27.9 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 105.3 million kWh (2001) | 30 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
Environment - current issues | water management - a major concern because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall to run off quickly | limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater, but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant; intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central 90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999), 2.7 (1998) (fixed rate since 1976) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General James B. CARLISLE (since NA 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Lester Bryant BIRD (since 8 March 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Robin YEARWOOD cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general chosen by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
chief of state:
President Bernard DOWIYOGO (since 19 April 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Bernard DOWIYOGO (since 19 April 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 8 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: Bernard DOWIYOGO elected president by a vote in Parliament of nine to eight note: former President Rene HARRIS was deposed in a no-confidence vote; this is the eighth change of government in Nauru since the fall of the Lagumont HARRIS government in a no-confidence motion in early November 1996; six of the last eight governments have resulted because of parliamentary no-confidence motions |
Exports | NA (2001) | $25.3 million (f.o.b., 1991) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, machinery and transport equipment 17%, food and live animals 4%, other 8% | phosphates |
Exports - partners | France 68.5%, Germany 26.4%, Italy 1.2% (2002) | Australia, NZ |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | red, with an inverted isosceles triangle based on the top edge of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands of black (top), light blue, and white, with a yellow rising sun in the black band | blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across the center and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on the hoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation to the Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12 original tribes of Nauru |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $750 million (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $59 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.9%
industry: 19.2% services: 76.8% (2002) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 17 03 N, 61 48 W | 0 32 S, 166 55 E |
Geography - note | Antigua has a deeply indented shoreline with many natural harbors and beaches; Barbuda has a very large western harbor | Nauru is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea in French Polynesia; only 53 km south of Equator |
Highways | total: 250 km (1999 est.) | total:
30 km paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; more significant as an offshore financial center | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | $21.1 million (c.i.f., 1991) |
Imports - commodities | food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery |
Imports - partners | France 23.4%, Germany 14.2%, US 13.2%, Poland 9.8%, South Korea 8.3%, Singapore 5%, UK 4.4% (2002) | Australia, UK, NZ, Japan |
Independence | 1 November 1981 (from UK) | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Industries | tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances) | phosphate mining, financial services, coconut products |
Infant mortality rate | total: 20.9 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 25.14 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
10.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.4% (2000 est.) | -3.6% (1993) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, ICAO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction) | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 30,000 | - |
Labor force - by occupation | commerce and services 82%, agriculture 11%, industry 7% (1983) | employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 18.18%
permanent crops: 0% other: 81.82% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English (official), local dialects | Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes |
Legal system | based on English common law | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (17-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 9 March 1999 (next to be held prior to March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - ALP 53.2%, UPP 45.5%, independent 1.3%; seats by party - ALP 12, UPP 4, independent 1 |
unicameral Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held NA April 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 18 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.31 years
male: 68.99 years female: 73.75 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
61.2 years male: 57.7 years female: 64.88 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling
total population: 89% male: 90% female: 88% (1960 est.) |
definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 816 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,135,866 GRT/6,648,143 DWT
ships by type: bulk 16, cargo 474, chemical tanker 8, combination bulk 3, container 255, liquefied gas 10, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 35 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, Bangladesh 2, Belgium 3, Colombia 1, Cuba 1, Estonia 1, Germany 747, Greece 1, Iceland 8, Latvia 1, Lebanon 2, Lithuania 1, Netherlands 22, New Zealand 2, Portugal 1, Slovenia 6, South Africa 1, Sweden 2, United Kingdom 1, United States 7 (2002 est.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force, Royal Antigua and Barbuda Police Force (including the Coast Guard) | no regular armed forces; Directorate of the Nauru Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
3,018 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,661 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day (National Day), 1 November (1981) | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) |
Nationality | noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s)
adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan |
noun:
Nauruan(s) adjective: Nauruan |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism | phosphates |
Net migration rate | -6.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Antigua Labor Party or ALP [Lester Bryant BIRD]; Barbuda People's Movement or BPM [Thomas H. FRANK]; United Progressive Party or UPP [Baldwin SPENCER] (a coalition of three opposition parties - United National Democratic Party or UNDP, Antigua Caribbean Liberation Movement or ACLM, and Progressive Labor Movement or PLM) | loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [Bernard DOWIYOGO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Antigua Trades and Labor Union or ATLU [William ROBINSON]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh MARSHALL] | NA |
Population | 67,897 (July 2003 est.) | 12,088 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.64% (2003 est.) | 2% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Saint John's | Nauru |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 7,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 77 km
narrow gauge: 64 km 0.760-m gauge; 13 km 0.610-m gauge (used almost exclusively for handling sugarcane) (2001 est.) |
total:
5 km; note - used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast |
Religions | Christian, (predominantly Anglican with other Protestant, and some Roman Catholic) | Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: good automatic telephone system international: 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands Antilles) and Guadeloupe |
general assessment:
adequate local and international radiotelephone communications provided via Australian facilities domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 28,000 (1996) | 2,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,300 (1996) | 450 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center |
Total fertility rate | 2.28 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.61 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11% (2001 est.) | 0% |
Waterways | none | none |