Fiji (2004) | New Caledonia (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 divisions and 1 dependency*; Central, Eastern, Northern, Rotuma*, Western | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Iles Loyaute, Nord, and Sud |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.7% (male 142,412; female 136,754)
15-64 years: 64.3% (male 283,690; female 283,027) 65 years and over: 4% (male 16,047; female 18,944) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 30% (male 31,862; female 30,577)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 67,043; female 66,102) 65 years and over: 5.9% (male 5,777; female 6,497) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), rice, sweet potatoes, bananas; cattle, pigs, horses, goats; fish | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products |
Airports | 28 (2003 est.) | 29 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 19 (2004 est.) |
total: 21
914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
Area | total: 18,270 sq km
land: 18,270 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
Background | Fiji became independent in 1970, after nearly a century as a British colony. Democratic rule was interrupted by two military coups in 1987, caused by concern over a government perceived as dominated by the Indian community (descendants of contract laborers brought to the islands by the British in the 19th century). A 1990 constitution favored native Melanesian control of Fiji, but led to heavy Indian emigration; the population loss resulted in economic difficulties, but ensured that Melanesians became the majority. Amendments enacted in 1997 made the constitution more equitable. Free and peaceful elections in 1999 resulted in a government led by an Indo-Fijian, but a coup in May 2000 ushered in a prolonged period of political turmoil. Parliamentary elections held in August 2001 provided Fiji with a democratically elected government and gave a mandate to the government of Prime Minister Laisenia QARASE. | Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s seems to have dissipated. |
Birth rate | 22.91 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 19.91 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $427.9 million
expenditures: $531.4 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $861.3 million
expenditures: $735.3 million, including capital expenditures of $52 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Suva (Viti Levu) | Noumea |
Climate | tropical marine; only slight seasonal temperature variation | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid |
Coastline | 1,129 km | 2,254 km |
Constitution | promulgated on 25 July 1990 and amended on 25 July 1997 to allow nonethnic Fijians greater say in government and to make multiparty government mandatory; entered into force 28 July 1998; note - the May 1999 election was the first test of the amended constitution and introduced open voting - not racially prescribed - for the first time at the national level | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of the Fiji Islands
conventional short form: Fiji |
conventional long form: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies
conventional short form: New Caledonia local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie |
Currency | Fijian dollar (FJD) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF); note - may adopt the euro in 2003 |
Death rate | 5.68 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 5.62 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $188.1 million (2001 est.) | $79 million (1998 est.) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France since 1956 |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador David L. LYON
embassy: 31 Loftus Street, Suva mailing address: P. O. Box 218, Suva telephone: [679] 331-4466 FAX: [679] 330-0081 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Mr. Paula NAVUNISARAVI (Charge D'Affaires ad Interim)
chancery: 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Suite 240, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 337-8320 FAX: [1] (202) 337-1996 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Disputes - international | none | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu |
Economic aid - recipient | $40.3 million (1995) | $880 million annual subsidy from France |
Economy - overview | Fiji, endowed with forest, mineral, and fish resources, is one of the most developed of the Pacific island economies, though still with a large subsistence sector. Sugar exports and a growing tourist industry - with 300,000 to 400,000 tourists annually - are the major sources of foreign exchange. Sugar processing makes up one-third of industrial activity. Long-term problems include low investment, uncertain land ownership rights, and the government's ability to manage its budget. Yet short-run economic prospects are good, provided tensions do not again erupt between indigenous Fijians and Indo-Fijians. | New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. In recent years, the economy has suffered because of depressed international demand for nickel, the principal source of export earnings. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, the substantial financial support from France and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. The situation in 1998 was clouded by the spillover of financial problems in East Asia and by lower prices for nickel. Nickel prices jumped in 1999-2000, and large additions were made to capacity. Strikes in the building industry in 2001, which lasted four months, adversely affected many other sectors of the economy. French Government interests in the New Caledonian nickel industry are being transferred to local ownership. |
Electricity - consumption | 483.7 million kWh (2001) | 1.455 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 520.1 million kWh (2001) | 1.565 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 78%
hydro: 22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Tomanivi 1,324 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | Fijian 51% (predominantly Melanesian with a Polynesian admixture), Indian 44%, European, other Pacific Islanders, overseas Chinese, and other 5% (1998 est.) | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% |
Exchange rates | Fijian dollars per US dollar - 1.8958 (2003), 2.1869 (2002), 2.2766 (2001), 2.1286 (2000), 1.9696 (1999) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 135.04 (January 2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (1998), 106.11 (1997); note - linked at the rate of 119.25 XPF to the euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Ratu Josefa ILOILOVATU Uluivuda (since 18 July 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Laisenia QARASE (since 10 September 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister from among the members of Parliament and is responsible to Parliament; note - there is also a Presidential Council that advises the president on matters of national importance and a Great Council of Chiefs, which consists of the highest ranking members of the traditional chief system elections: president elected by the Great Council of Chiefs for a five-year term; prime minister appointed by the president election results: Ratu Josefa ILOILOVATU Uluivuda elected president by the Great Council of Chiefs; percent of vote - NA% |
chief of state: President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Daniel CONSTANTIN (since 3 July 2002)
head of government: President of the Government Pierre FROGIER (since 5 April 2001) cabinet: Consultative Committee elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress; note - last election held 28 November 2002 when Pierre FROGIER was reelected |
Exports | NA (2001) | $400 million f.o.b. (2000) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, garments, gold, timber, fish, molasses, coconut oil | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish |
Exports - partners | US 23.7%, Australia 18.4%, UK 13.6%, Samoa 6%, Japan 4.8% (2003) | Japan 25.8%, France 18.8%, Taiwan 12%, Australia 8.2%, US 3.0% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Fijian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield depicts a yellow lion above a white field quartered by the cross of Saint George featuring stalks of sugarcane, a palm tree, bananas, and a white dove | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.012 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3.1 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 16.6%
industry: 22.4% services: 61% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 30% services: 65% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,800 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.8% (2003 est.) | 2.1% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 00 S, 175 00 E | 21 30 S, 165 30 E |
Geography - note | includes 332 islands of which approximately 110 are inhabited | consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls |
Heliports | - | 5 (2002) |
Highways | total: 3,440 km
paved: 1,692 km unpaved: 1,748 km (1999 est.) |
total: 4,825 km
paved: 2,287 km unpaved: 2,538 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | $1 billion f.o.b. (2000) |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products, food, chemicals | transport equipment, machinery and electrical equipment, fuels, minerals, wine, sugar, rice |
Imports - partners | Australia 35.1%, Singapore 19.2%, New Zealand 17.2%, Japan 4.9% (2003) | France 50.2%, Australia 15.1%, Singapore 5.9%, New Zealand 5.2%, Japan 3.7% (1999) |
Independence | 10 October 1970 (from UK) | none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014 |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | -0.6% (1996) |
Industries | tourism, sugar, clothing, copra, gold, silver, lumber, small cottage industries | nickel mining and smelting |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.99 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.36 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
8.23 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.6% (2002 est.) | 2.3% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMISET, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ESCAP (associate), FZ, ICFTU, SPC, WFTU, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 160 sq km (1991) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court of Appeal; High Court; Magistrates' Courts | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court |
Labor force | 137,000 (1999) | 79,395 (including 15,018 unemployed, 1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture, including subsistence agriculture 70% (2001 est.) | agriculture 7%, industry 23%, services 70% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.95%
permanent crops: 4.65% other: 84.4% (2001) |
arable land: 0.38%
permanent crops: 0.33% other: 99.29% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Fijian, Hindustani | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects |
Legal system | based on British system | the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (34 seats; 24 appointed by the President on the advice of the Great Council of Chiefs, nine appointed by the president, and one appointed by the council of Rotuma) and the House of Representatives (71 seats; 23 reserved for ethnic Fijians, 19 reserved for ethnic Indians, three reserved for other ethnic groups, one reserved for the council of Rotuma constituency encompassing the whole of Fiji, and 25 open seats; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 25 August through 1 September, 19 September 2001 (next to be held not later than September 2006) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - FLP 26.5%, SDL 27.5%, NFP 1.2%, MV 4.2%, NLUP 1.3%, UGP .3%, independents 1.4%; seats by party - FLP 27, SDL 32, MV 6, NFP 1, NLUP 2, UGP 1, independents 2 |
unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (54 seats; members are members of the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPCR 24, FLNKS 12, UNI 6, FCCI 4, FN 4, Alliance pour la Caledonie 3, LKS 1 note: New Caledonia elects 1 seat to the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; New Caledonia also elects 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 and 16 June 2002 (next to be held 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.2 years
male: 66.74 years female: 71.79 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 73.27 years
male: 70.32 years female: 76.36 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.7% male: 95.5% female: 91.9% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91% male: 92% female: 90% (1976 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island group in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
Map references | Oceania | Oceania |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation; rectilinear shelf claim added |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,372 GRT/7,453 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1, passenger 1 foreign-owned: Australia 1, Singapore 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,261 GRT/1,600 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Malaysia 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF): Land Forces, Naval Division | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $34 million (2003) | $192.3 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.2% (FY02) | 5.3% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 239,221 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 131,349 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 9,302 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, second Monday of October (1970) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Fijian(s)
adjective: Fijian |
noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
Natural hazards | cyclonic storms can occur from November to January | cyclones, most frequent from November to March |
Natural resources | timber, fish, gold, copper, offshore oil potential, hydropower | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper |
Net migration rate | -3.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Bai Kei Viti Party or BKV [Ratu Tevita MOMOEDONU]; Conservative Alliance Party/Matanitu Vanua or MV [Ratu Rakuita VAKALALABURE]; Dodonu Ni Taukei Party or DNT [Fereti S. DEWA]; Fiji Democratic Party or FDP [Felipe BOLE] (a merger of the Christian Democrat Alliance or VLV [Poesci Waqalevu BUNE], Fijian Association Party or FAP [Adi Kuini SPEED], Fijian Political Party or SVT (primarily Fijian) [Felipe BOLE], and New Labor Unity Party or NLUP [Tupeni BABA]); Fiji Labor Party or FLP [Mahendra CHAUDRHRY]; General Voters Party or GVP [leader NA] (became part of United General Party); Girmit Heritage Party or GHP [leader NA]; Justice and Freedom Party or AIM [leader NA]; Lio 'On Famor Rotuma Party or LFR [leader NA]; National Federation Party or NFP (primarily Indian) [Pramond RAE]; Nationalist Vanua Takolavo Party or NVTLP [Saula TELAWA]; Party of National Unity or PANU [Meli BOGILEKA]; Party of the Truth or POTT [leader NA]; United Fiji Party/Sogosogo Duavata ni Lewenivanua or SDL [Laisenia QARASE]; United General Party or UGP [Millis Mick BEDDOES] | Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Raphael MAPOU]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS [Rock WAMYTAN] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic or RPCR [Jacques LAFLEUR]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 880,874 (July 2004 est.) | 207,858 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 25.5% (1990-91) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.41% (2004 est.) | 1.43% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Lambasa, Lautoka, Levuka, Malau, Savusavu, Suva, Vuda | Mueo, Noumea, Thio |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 13, FM 40, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 107,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 597 km
narrow gauge: 597 km 0.600-m gauge note: belongs to the government-owned Fiji Sugar Corporation; used to haul sugarcane during harvest season (May to December) (2003) |
0 km (2002) |
Religions | Christian 52% (Methodist 37%, Roman Catholic 9%), Hindu 38%, Muslim 8%, other 2%
note: Fijians are mainly Christian, Indians are Hindu, and there is a Muslim minority (1986) |
Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% |
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: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern local, interisland, and international (wire/radio integrated) public and special-purpose telephone, telegraph, and teleprinter facilities; regional radio communications center
domestic: NA international: country code - 679; access to important cable links between US and Canada as well as between NZ and Australia; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 102,000 (2003) | 47,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 109,900 (2003) | 13,040 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains of volcanic origin | coastal plains with interior mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.78 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.44 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 7.6% (1999) | 19% (1996) |
Waterways | 203 km
note: 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges (2004) |
none |