Cocos (Keeling) Islands (2006) | Tuvalu (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | none |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.8% (male 1,823/female 1,756)
15-64 years: 64.2% (male 3,620/female 3,847) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 229/female 361) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts | coconuts; fish |
Airports | 1 (2006) | 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island |
total: 26 sq km
land: 26 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century. Annexed by the UK in 1857, they were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island. | In 1974, ethnic differences within the British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands caused the Polynesians of the Ellice Islands to vote for separation from the Micronesians of the Gilbert Islands. The following year, the Ellice Islands became the separate British colony of Tuvalu. Independence was granted in 1978. In 2000, Tuvalu negotiated a contract leasing its Internet domain name ".tv" for $50 million in royalties over the next dozen years. |
Birth rate | NA | 21.91 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues: $22.5 million
expenditures: $11.2 million, including capital expenditures of $4.2 million (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: West Island
geographic coordinates: 12 10 S, 96 55 E time difference: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Funafuti; note - administrative offices are located in Vaiaku Village on Fongafale Islet |
Climate | tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year | tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March) |
Coastline | 26 km | 24 km |
Constitution | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1955) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 | 1 October 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tuvalu former: Ellice Islands note: "Tuvalu" means "group of eight," referring to the country's eight traditionally inhabited islands |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 7.22 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | - | NA |
Dependency status | non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tuvalu |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | Tuvalu does not have an embassy in the US - the country's only diplomatic post is in Fiji - Tuvalu does, however, have a UN office located at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400D, New York, New York 10017, telephone: [1] (212) 490-0534 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $13 million; note - major donors are Australia, Japan, and the US (1999 est.) |
Economy - overview | Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small tourist industry. | Tuvalu consists of a densely populated, scattered group of nine coral atolls with poor soil. The country has no known mineral resources and few exports. Subsistence farming and fishing are the primary economic activities. Fewer than 1,000 tourists, on average, visit Tuvalu annually. Government revenues largely come from the sale of stamps and coins and worker remittances. About 1,000 Tuvaluans work in Nauru in the phosphate mining industry. Nauru has begun repatriating Tuvaluans, however, as phosphate resources decline. Substantial income is received annually from an international trust fund established in 1987 by Australia, NZ, and the UK and supported also by Japan and South Korea. Thanks to wise investments and conservative withdrawals, this fund has grown from an initial $17 million to over $35 million in 1999. The US government is also a major revenue source for Tuvalu because of payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries. In an effort to reduce its dependence on foreign aid, the government is pursuing public sector reforms, including privatization of some government functions and personnel cuts of up to 7%. In 1998, Tuvalu began deriving revenue from use of its area code for "900" lines and in 2000, from the lease of its ".tv" Internet domain name. Royalties from these new technology sources could increase substantially over the next decade. With merchandise exports only a fraction of merchandise imports, continued reliance must be placed on fishing and telecommunications license fees, remittances from overseas workers, official transfers, and income from overseas investments. |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
Environment - current issues | fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs | since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable, most water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities (the Japanese Government has built one desalination plant and plans to build one other); beachhead erosion because of the use of sand for building materials; excessive clearance of forest undergrowth for use as fuel; damage to coral reefs from the spread of the Crown of Thorns starfish; Tuvalu is very concerned about global increases in greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on rising sea levels, which threaten the country's underground water table; in 2000, the government appealed to Australia and New Zealand to take in Tuvaluans if rising sea levels should make evacuation necessary |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Europeans, Cocos Malays | Polynesian 96%, Micronesian 4% |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001) | Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator (nonresident) Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Filoimea TELITO (since 15 April 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Maatia TOAFA (since 11 October 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by and from the members of Parliament; election last held 11 October 2004 (next to be held following parliamentary elections in 2006) election results: Saufatu SOPOANGA resigned parliamentary seat on 27 August 2004 following no-confidence vote on 25 August 2004; succeeded by Deputy Prime Minister Maatia TOAFA in an acting capacity on 27 August 2004; Maatia TOAFA confirmed Prime Minister in a Parliamentary election (8-7 vote) on 11 October 2004 |
Exports | $NA | $1 million f.o.b. (2002) |
Exports - commodities | copra | copra, fish |
Exports - partners | Australia (2004) | Germany 56.5%, Fiji 14.3%, Italy 10.9%, UK 7.7%, Poland 4.9% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of Australia is used | light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the outer half of the flag represents a map of the country with nine yellow five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 30 S, 96 50 E | 8 00 S, 178 00 E |
Geography - note | islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation | one of the smallest and most remote countries on Earth; six of the coral atolls - Nanumea, Nui, Vaitupu, Nukufetau, Funafuti, and Nukulaelae - have lagoons open to the ocean; Nanumaya and Niutao have landlocked lagoons; Niulakita does not have a lagoon |
Highways | - | total: 8 km
paved: 0 km unpaved: 8 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | $NA | $79 million c.i.f. (2002) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs | food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | Australia (2004) | Fiji 50.2%, Japan 18.1%, Australia 9.6%, China 8%, New Zealand 5.5% (2004) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 1 October 1978 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
Industries | copra products and tourism | fishing, tourism, copra |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 20.03 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 5% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | none | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, IFRCS (observer), IMO, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
Irrigated land | NA | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court | High Court (a chief justice visits twice a year to preside over its sessions; its rulings can be appealed to the Court of Appeal in Fiji); eight Island Courts (with limited jurisdiction) |
Labor force | NA | 7,000 (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | note: the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others | people make a living mainly through exploitation of the sea, reefs, and atolls and from wages sent home by those abroad (mostly workers in the phosphate industry and sailors) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
Languages | Malay (Cocos dialect), English | Tuvaluan, English, Samoan, Kiribati (on the island of Nui) |
Legal system | based upon the laws of Australia and local laws | NA |
Legislative branch | unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held in May 2005 (next to be held in May 2007) |
unicameral Parliament or Fale I Fono, also called House of Assembly (15 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 68.01 years
male: 65.79 years female: 70.33 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka | Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 54,993 GRT/86,048 DWT
by type: cargo 20, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 16 (China 9, Germany 2, Hong Kong 4, Thailand 1) (2005) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory has a five-person police force | - |
Military branches | - | no regular military forces; national police force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA |
National holiday | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) | Independence Day, 1 October (1978) |
Nationality | noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander |
noun: Tuvaluan(s)
adjective: Tuvaluan |
Natural hazards | cyclone season is October to April | severe tropical storms are usually rare, but, in 1997, there were three cyclones; low level of islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level |
Natural resources | fish | fish |
Net migration rate | NA | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | none | there are no political parties but members of Parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | none |
Population | 574 (July 2006 est.) | 11,636 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA |
Population growth rate | 0% (2006 est.) | 1.47% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Funafuti |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.) | Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6% |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | NA | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: connected within Australia's telecommunication system
domestic: NA international: country code - 61; telephone, telex, and facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite; 1 INTELSAT satellite earth station |
general assessment: serves particular needs for internal communications
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands international: country code - 688; international calls can be made by satellite |
Telephones - main lines in use | 287 (1992) | 700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | note - analog cellular service available | 0 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 0 (2004) |
Terrain | flat, low-lying coral atolls | very low-lying and narrow coral atolls |
Total fertility rate | NA | 3 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 60% (2000 est.) | NA% |