French Polynesia (2001) | Tonga (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 5 archipelagic divisions named Archipel des Marquises, Archipel des Tuamotu, Archipel des Tubuai, Iles du Vent, and Iles Sous-le-Vent
note: Clipperton Island is administered by France from French Polynesia |
3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
29.74% (male 38,473; female 36,925) 15-64 years: 65.17% (male 86,128; female 79,076) 65 years and over: 5.09% (male 6,481; female 6,423) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 34.6% (male 20,624/female 19,779)
15-64 years: 61.2% (male 35,551/female 36,052) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 2,087/female 2,828) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, vanilla, vegetables, fruits; poultry, beef, dairy products | squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish |
Airports | 45 (2000 est.) | 6 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
32 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 6 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
13 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Area | total:
4,167 sq km (118 islands and atolls) land: 3,660 sq km water: 507 sq km |
total: 748 sq km
land: 718 sq km water: 30 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut | four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The French annexed various Polynesian island groups during the 19th century. In September 1995, France stirred up widespread protests by resuming nuclear testing on the Mururoa atoll after a three-year moratorium. The tests were suspended in January 1996. | Tonga - unique among Pacific nations - never completely lost its indigenous governance. The archipelagos of "The Friendly Islands" were united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. Tonga became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900; it withdrew from the protectorate and joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970. Tonga remains the only monarchy in the Pacific. |
Birth rate | 18.6 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 23.67 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1 billion expenditures: $900 million, including capital expenditures of $185 million (1996) |
revenues: $56.97 million
expenditures: $83.88 million (FY04/05) |
Capital | Papeete | name: Nuku'alofa
geographic coordinates: 21 08 S, 175 12 W time difference: UTC+13 (18 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical, but moderate | tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December) |
Coastline | 2,525 km | 419 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 4 November 1875; revised 1 January 1967 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Territory of French Polynesia conventional short form: French Polynesia local long form: Territoire de la Polynesie Francaise local short form: Polynesie Francaise former: French Colony of Oceania |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Tonga
conventional short form: Tonga local long form: Pule'anga Tonga local short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands |
Currency | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF) | - |
Death rate | 4.45 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.2 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $80.7 million (2004) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of France since 1946 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of France) | the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Fekitamoeloa 'UTOIKAMANU
chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025 FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024 consulate(s) general: San Francisco |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $367 million (1997) | $31.75 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | Since 1962, when France stationed military personnel in the region, French Polynesia has changed from a subsistence economy to one in which a high proportion of the work force is either employed by the military or supports the tourist industry. Tourism accounts for about one-fourth of GDP and is a primary source of hard currency earnings. The small manufacturing sector primarily processes agricultural products. The territory benefited from a five-year (1994-98) development agreement with France aimed principally at creating new jobs. | Tonga has a small, open, South Pacific island economy. It has a narrow export base in agricultural goods. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic infrastructure and well-developed social services. High unemployment among the young, a continuing upturn in inflation, pressures for democratic reform, and rising civil service expenditures are major issues facing the government. |
Electricity - consumption | 399.9 million kWh (1999) | 32.55 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 430 million kWh (1999) | 35 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
51.16% hydro: 48.84% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Orohena 2,241 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian 78%, Chinese 12%, local French 6%, metropolitan French 4% | Polynesian, Europeans |
Exchange rates | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 127.11 (January 2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (1998), 106.11 (1997), 93.00 (1996); note - pegged at the rate of 119.25 XPF to the euro | pa'anga per US dollar - NA (2007), 2.0277 (2006), 1.96 (2005), 1.9716 (2004), 2.142 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Paul RONCIERE (since NA 1994) head of government: President of the Territorial Government of French Polynesia Gaston FLOSSE (since 4 April 1991); President of the Territorial Assembly Justin ARAPARI (since 13 May 1996) cabinet: Council of Ministers; president submits a list of members of the Territorial Assembly for approval by them to serve as ministers elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the Territorial Government and the president of the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly |
chief of state: King George TUPOU V (since 11 September 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Feleti SEVELE (since 11 February 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Viliami TANGI (since 16 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet consists of 14 members, 10 appointed by the monarch for life; four appointed from among the elected members of the Legislative Assembly, including two each from the nobles' and peoples' representatives serving three-year terms note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the cabinet, and two governors elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $205 million (f.o.b., 1999) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | cultured pearls 50%, coconut products, mother-of-pearl, vanilla, shark meat (1997) | squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops |
Exports - partners | Japan 62%, US 21% (1999) | US 39.7%, Japan 27.8%, NZ 8.2%, South Korea 7.6% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | two narrow red horizontal bands encase a wide white band; centered on the white band is a disk with blue and white wave pattern on the lower half and gold and white ray pattern on the upper half; a stylized red, blue and white ship rides on the wave pattern; the French flag is used for official occasions | red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.6 billion (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
4% industry: 18% services: 78% (1997) |
agriculture: 23%
industry: 27% services: 50% (FY03/04 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $10,800 (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (1997 est.) | 2.4% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 S, 140 00 W | 20 00 S, 175 00 W |
Geography - note | includes five archipelagoes; Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru | archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited) |
Highways | total:
792 km paved: 264 km unpaved: 528 km (2000) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $749 million (f.o.b., 1999) | 842.3 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | fuels, foodstuffs, equipment | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | France 53%, US 13%, Australia 10% (1999) | Fiji 30.3%, NZ 27.7%, US 8.2%, Australia 7.5%, France 5.7%, UK 4.7% (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of France) | 4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1% (2003 est.) |
Industries | tourism, pearls, agricultural processing, handicrafts | tourism, fishing |
Infant mortality rate | 9.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 11.99 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (1994) | 11.1% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ESCAP (associate), FZ, ICFTU, SPC, WMO | ACP, ADB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (Chief Justice and high court justices from overseas chosen and approved by Privy Council) |
Labor force | 70,000 (1996) | 33,910 (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 13%, industry 19%, services 68% (1997) | agriculture: 65%
industry and services: 35% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
1% permanent crops: 6% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 31% other: 57% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 14.67% other: 65.33% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Tahitian (official) | Tongan, English |
Legal system | based on French system | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Territorial Assembly or Assemblee Territoriale (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 12 May 1996 (next to be held NA 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - People's Rally for the Republic (Gaullist) 22, Independent Front for the Liberation of Polynesia 10, New Fatherland Party 5, other 4 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 24 September 1989 (next to be held NA September 1998); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UC 1; two seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 25 May - 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - People's Rally for the Republic (Gaullist) 2 |
unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (32 seats - 14 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, nine for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and nine elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held on 21 March 2005 (next to be held in 2008) election results: Peoples Representatives: percent of vote - HRDMT 70%, other 30%; seats - HRDMT 7, independents 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
75.01 years male: 72.67 years female: 77.46 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 70.12 years
male: 67.6 years female: 72.76 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 14 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1977 est.) |
definition: can read and write Tongan and/or English
total population: 98.9% male: 98.8% female: 99% (1999 est.) |
Location | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from South America to Australia | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Oceania | Oceania |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | total:
4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,240 GRT/7,765 DWT ships by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 14 ships (1000 GRT or over) 58,756 GRT/67,889 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 9, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Australia 1, Switzerland 1, UK 1) (2007) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French Forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | Tonga Defense Services (TDS): Land Force (Royal Guard), Naval Force (includes Royal Marines, Air Wing) (2008) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.9% (2006 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Emancipation Day, 4 June (1970) |
Nationality | noun:
French Polynesian(s) adjective: French Polynesian |
noun: Tongan(s)
adjective: Tongan |
Natural hazards | occasional cyclonic storms in January | cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou |
Natural resources | timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower | fish, fertile soil |
Net migration rate | 3.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Centrist Union or UC [leader NA]; Independent Front for the Liberation of Polynesia (Tavini Huiraatira) [Oscar TEMARU]; New Fatherland Party (Ai'a Api) [Emile VERNAUDON]; People's Rally for the Republic (Tahoeraa Huiraatira) [Gaston FLOSSE] | People's Democratic Party [Tesina FUKO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA, chairman]; Public Servant's Association [Finau TUTONE] |
Population | 253,506 (July 2001 est.) | 116,921 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 24% (FY03/04) |
Population growth rate | 1.72% (2001 est.) | 1.847% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mataura, Papeete, Rikitea, Uturoa | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 14, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) |
Radios | 128,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Protestant 54%, Roman Catholic 30%, other 16% | Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.986 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.738 male(s)/female total population: 0.993 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: competition between Tonga Telecommunications Corporation (TCC) and Shoreline Communications Tonga (SCT) is accelerating expansion of telecommunications; SCT recently granted authority to develop high-speed digital service for telephone, Internet, and television
domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 40 telephones per 100 persons; fully automatic switched network international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2004) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 52,000 (1997) | 13,700 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 5,427 (1997) | 29,900 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (plus 17 low-power repeaters) (1997) | 3 (2004) |
Terrain | mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs | most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base |
Total fertility rate | 2.23 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.75 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1992 est.) | 13% (FY03/04 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |