Congo, Republic of the (2006) | Kiribati (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 commune*; Bouenza, Brazzaville*, Cuvette, Cuvette-Ouest, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha | 3 units; Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands; note - in addition, there are 6 districts (Banaba, Central Gilberts, Line Islands, Northern Gilberts, Southern Gilberts, Tarawa) and 21 island councils - one for each of the inhabited islands (Abaiang, Abemama, Aranuka, Arorae, Banaba, Beru, Butaritari, Kanton, Kiritimati, Kuria, Maiana, Makin, Marakei, Nikunau, Nonouti, Onotoa, Tabiteuea, Tabuaeran, Tamana, Tarawa, Teraina) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.4% (male 864,407/female 853,728)
15-64 years: 50.7% (male 930,390/female 945,545) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 44,430/female 63,814) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 38.2% (male 20,886/female 20,322)
15-64 years: 58.4% (male 31,083/female 31,884) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 1,554/female 2,088) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish |
Airports | 32 (2006) | 19 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2006) |
total: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 28
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 11 (2006) |
total: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 4 (2007) |
Area | total: 342,000 sq km
land: 341,500 sq km water: 500 sq km |
total: 811 sq km
land: 811 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Montana | four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government took office in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, and ushered in a period of ethnic and political unrest. Southern-based rebel groups agreed to a final peace accord in March 2003, but the calm is tenuous and refugees continue to present a humanitarian crisis. The Republic of Congo was once one of Africa's largest petroleum producers, but with declining production it will need to hope for new offshore oil finds to sustain its oil earnings over the long term. | The Gilbert Islands were granted self-rule by the UK in 1971 and complete independence in 1979 under the new name of Kiribati. The US relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited Phoenix and Line Island groups in a 1979 treaty of friendship with Kiribati. |
Birth rate | 42.57 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 30.48 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.328 billion
expenditures: $1.065 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
revenues: $55.52 million
expenditures: $59.71 million (FY05) |
Capital | name: Brazzaville
geographic coordinates: 4 16 S, 15 17 E time difference: UTC+1 (six hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Tarawa
geographic coordinates: 1 19 N, 172 58 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); persistent high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds |
Coastline | 169 km | 1,143 km |
Constitution | approved by referendum 20 January 2002 | 12 July 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of the Congo
conventional short form: Congo (Brazzaville) local long form: Republique du Congo local short form: none former: Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo |
conventional long form: Republic of Kiribati
conventional short form: Kiribati local long form: Republic of Kiribati local short form: Kiribati note: pronounced keer-ree-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
Death rate | 12.93 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 8.12 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $5 billion (2000 est.) | $10 million (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Mark BIEDLINGMAIER
embassy: NA mailing address: NA telephone: [243] (88) 43608 note: the embassy is temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (US Embassy Kinshasa, 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa) |
the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Kiribati |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Serge MOMBOULI
chancery: 4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1860 |
Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu |
Disputes - international | about 7,000 Congolese refugees fleeing internal civil conflicts since the mid-1990s still reside in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $159.1 million (1995) | $27.84 million largely from UK and Japan (2005) |
Economy - overview | The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based largely on oil, support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings through oil-backed loans that have contributed to a growing debt burden and chronic revenue shortfalls. Economic reform efforts have been undertaken with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. However, the reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. Economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. Recovery of oil prices has boosted the economy's GDP and near-term prospects. The Republic of Congo may be eligible for an IMF-World Bank heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative in early 2006, provided it meets the strict fiscal and monetary targets set out for it under a new three-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) with the IMF. | A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few natural resources. Commercially viable phosphate deposits were exhausted at the time of independence from the UK in 1979. Copra and fish now represent the bulk of production and exports. The economy has fluctuated widely in recent years. Economic development is constrained by a shortage of skilled workers, weak infrastructure, and remoteness from international markets. Tourism provides more than one-fifth of GDP. Private sector initiatives and a financial sector are in the early stages of development. Foreign financial aid from UK, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and China equals more than 10% of GDP. Remittances from seamen on merchant ships abroad account for more than $5 million each year. Kiribati receives around $15 million annually for the government budget from an Australian trust fund. |
Electricity - consumption | 619 million kWh (2003) | 8.37 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 300 million kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 343 million kWh (2003) | 9 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation | heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3% | Micronesian 98.8%, other 1.2% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.2137 (2007), 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO reelected president; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO 89.4%, Joseph Kignoumbi Kia MBOUNGOU 2.7% |
chief of state: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President Teima ONORIO; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President Teima ONORIO cabinet: 12-member cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the House of Parliament elections: the House of Parliament chooses the presidential candidates from among its members and then those candidates compete in a general election; president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for two more terms); election last held 17 October 2007 (next to be held in 2011); vice president appointed by the president election results: Anote TONG 63.7%, Nabuti MWEMWENIKARAWA 32.9% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish |
Exports - partners | China 38.9%, US 29%, Taiwan 11.8%, South Korea 7.2% (2005) | US 22.8%, Belgium 21.5%, Japan 14.3%, Samoa 7.8%, Australia 7.5%, Malaysia 6.7%, Taiwan 5.6%, Denmark 4.6% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | NA |
Flag description | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | the upper half is red with a yellow frigate bird flying over a yellow rising sun, and the lower half is blue with three horizontal wavy white stripes to represent the ocean |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6.2%
industry: 57% services: 36.9% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 8.9%
industry: 24.2% services: 66.8% (2004) |
GDP - real growth rate | 8.2% (2005 est.) | 0.3% (2005) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 00 S, 15 00 E | 1 25 N, 173 00 E |
Geography - note | about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them | 21 of the 33 islands are inhabited; Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA bbl/day | 216.4 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel |
Imports - partners | France 25.6%, China 11.3%, US 8.1%, India 8%, Italy 7.5%, Belgium 5.1%, Netherlands 4.2% (2005) | Australia 33%, Fiji 27.1%, Japan 18.1%, NZ 6.9% (2006) |
Independence | 15 August 1960 (from France) | 12 July 1979 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0% (2002 est.) | 0.7% (1991 est.) |
Industries | petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes | fishing, handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | total: 85.29 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 79.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 46.02 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 51.03 deaths/1,000 live births female: 40.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.2% (2005 est.) | 0.5% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, ADB, C, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO |
Irrigated land | 20 sq km (2003) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president |
Labor force | NA | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture: 2.7%
industry: 32% services: 65.3% (2000) |
Land boundaries | total: 5,504 km
border countries: Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 1.45%
permanent crops: 0.15% other: 98.4% (2005) |
arable land: 2.74%
permanent crops: 47.95% other: 49.31% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread) | I-Kiribati, English (official) |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law | NA |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (66 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (137 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 11 July 2002 (next to be held July 2007); National Assembly - last held 27 May and 26 June 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FDP 56, other 10; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FDP 83, UDR 6, UPADS 3, other 45 |
unicameral House of Parliament or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (46 seats; 44 members elected by popular vote, 1 ex officio member - the attorney general, 1 nominated by the Rabi Council of Leaders (representing Banaba Island); to serve four-year terms)
elections: legislative elections were held in two rounds - the first round on 22 August 2007 and the second round on 30 August 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA, other 2 (includes attorney general) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 52.8 years
male: 51.65 years female: 53.98 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 62.45 years
male: 59.41 years female: 65.63 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83.8% male: 89.6% female: 78.4% (2003 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon | Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator; the capital Tarawa is about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia; note - on 1 January 1995, Kiribati proclaimed that all of its territory lies in the same time zone as its Gilbert Islands group (UTC +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction lie on the other side of the International Date Line |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 nm | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | registered in other countries: 1 (Congo, Democratic Republic of the 1) (2006) | total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 28,435 GRT/42,682 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 3, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 3 (Malaysia 1, Singapore 1, Turkey 1) (2007) |
Military - note | - | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ |
Military branches | Congolese Armed Forces (FAC): Army, Congolese Air Force (Armee de l'Air Congolaise), Navy, Gendarmerie, Republican Guard (2005) | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $85.22 million (2005 est.) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (2005 est.) | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 August (1960) | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo |
noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective: I-Kiribati |
Natural hazards | seasonal flooding | typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level |
Natural resources | petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, gold, magnesium, natural gas, hydropower | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) |
Net migration rate | -3.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 89 km; liquid petroleum gas 4 km; oil 744 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | the most important of the many parties are the Democratic and Patriotic Forces or FDP [Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, president] (an alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy, Congolese Labor Party or PCT, Liberal Republican Party, National Union for Democracy and Progress, Patriotic Union for the National Reconstruction, and Union for the National Renewal); Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Rally for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA, president]; Rally for Democracy and the Republic or RDR [Raymond Damasge NGOLLO]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO] | Boutokaan Te Koaua Party or BTK [Taberannang TIMEON]; Maneaban Te Mauri Party or MTM [Teburoro TITO]; Maurin Kiribati Pati or MKP; National Progressive Party or NPP [Dr. Harry TONG]
note: there is no tradition of formally organized political parties in Kiribati; they more closely resemble factions or interest groups because they have no party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Congolese Trade Union Congress or CSC; General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students or UGEEC; Revolutionary Union of Congolese Women or URFC; Union of Congolese Socialist Youth or UJSC | NA |
Population | 3,702,314
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.) |
107,817 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.6% (2006 est.) | 2.235% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (may be inactive) (2002) |
Railways | total: 894 km
narrow gauge: 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2005) |
- |
Religions | Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2% | Roman Catholic 52%, Protestant (Congregational) 40%, other (includes Seventh-Day Adventist, Muslim, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, Church of God) 8% (1999) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.028 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.975 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.744 male(s)/female total population: 0.986 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out of order
domestic: primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable international: country code - 242; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: generally good quality national and international service
domestic: wire line service available on Tarawa and Kiritimati (Christmas Island); connections to outer islands by HF/VHF radiotelephone; wireless service available in Tarawa since 1999 international: country code - 686; Kiribati is being linked to the Pacific Ocean Cooperative Telecommunications Network, which should improve telephone service; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 13,800 (2004) | 4,500 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 490,000 (2005) | 600 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 1 (possibly inactive) (2002) |
Terrain | coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs |
Total fertility rate | 6.07 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 4.12 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 2% official rate; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) |
Waterways | 4,385 km (on Congo and Oubanqui rivers) (2005) | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) (2007) |