Kiribati (2001) | Guyana (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 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) | 10 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper Demerara-Berbice, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
40.53% (male 19,322; female 18,833) 15-64 years: 56.27% (male 26,136; female 26,841) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 1,291; female 1,726) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.5% (male 95,431; female 91,806)
15-64 years: 68.3% (male 243,224; female 239,047) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 16,000; female 20,295) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish | sugar, rice, wheat, vegetable oils; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish (shrimp) |
Airports | 21 (2000 est.) | 49 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
17 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total: 41
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 32 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
717 sq km land: 717 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands |
total: 214,970 sq km
land: 196,850 sq km water: 18,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Idaho |
Background | 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. | Originally a Dutch colony in the 17th century, by 1815 Guyana had become a British possession. The abolition of slavery led to black settlement of urban areas and the importation of indentured servants from India to work the sugar plantations. This ethnocultural divide has persisted and has led to turbulent politics. Guyana achieved independence from the UK in 1966, but until the early 1990s it was ruled mostly by socialist-oriented governments. In 1992, Cheddi JAGAN was elected president, in what is considered the country's first free and fair election since independence. Upon his death five years later, he was succeeded by his wife Janet, who resigned in 1999 due to poor health. Her successor, Bharrat JAGDEO, was reelected in 2001. |
Birth rate | 31.98 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.85 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$33.3 million expenditures: $47.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (1996 est.) |
revenues: $263.4 million
expenditures: $326.7 million, including capital expenditures of $93.4 million (2003) |
Capital | Tarawa | Georgetown |
Climate | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds | tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to mid-January) |
Coastline | 1,143 km | 459 km |
Constitution | 12 July 1979 | 6 October 1980 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Kiribati conventional short form: Kiribati note: pronounced kir-ih-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
conventional long form: Co-operative Republic of Guyana
conventional short form: Guyana former: British Guiana |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | Guyanese dollar (GYD) |
Death rate | 8.88 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.71 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $10 million (1999 est.) | $1.2 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to the Marshall Islands is accredited to Kiribati | chief of mission: Ambassador Roland BULLEN
embassy: 100 Young and Duke Streets, Kingston, Georgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 10507, Georgetown telephone: [592] 225-4900 through 4909 FAX: [592] 225-8497 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu | chief of mission: Ambassador Bayney KARRAN
chancery: 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 232-1297 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | all of the area west of the Essequibo (river) is claimed by Venezuela preventing any discussion of a maritime boundary; Guyana has expressed its intention to join Barbados in asserting claims before UNCLOS that Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela extends into their waters; Suriname claims a triangle of land between the New and Kutari/Koetari rivers in a historic dispute over the headwaters of the Courantyne; Guyana seeks UNCLOS arbitration to resolve the long-standing dispute with Suriname over the axis of the territorial sea boundary in potentially oil-rich waters |
Economic aid - recipient | $15.5 million (1995), largely from UK and Japan | $84 million (1995), Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC) $253 million (1997) (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few national 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. The financial sector is at an early stage of development as is the expansion of private sector initiatives. Foreign financial aid, largely from the UK and Japan, is a critical supplement to GDP, equal to 25%-50% of GDP in recent years. Remittances from workers abroad account for more than $5 million each year. Performance in 2000 fell short of the 2.5% growth in 1999, which benefited from increased copra production and exceptionally large revenues from fishing licenses. | The Guyanese economy exhibited moderate economic growth in 2001-02, based on expansion in the agricultural and mining sectors, a more favorable atmosphere for business initiatives, a more realistic exchange rate, fairly low inflation, and the continued support of international organizations. Growth then slowed in 2003. Chronic problems include a shortage of skilled labor and a deficient infrastructure. The government is juggling a sizable external debt against the urgent need for expanded public investment. The bauxite mining sector should benefit in the near term by restructuring and partial privatization. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.5 million kWh (1999) | 792.4 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 7 million kWh (1999) | 852 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 m |
Environment - current issues | 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 | water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial chemicals; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian | East Indian 50%, black 36%, Amerindian 7%, white, Chinese, and mixed 7% |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) | Guyanese dollars per US dollar - NA (2003), 190.665 (2002), 187.321 (2001), 182.43 (2000), 177.995 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the House of Assembly, includes the president, vice president, attorney general, and up to eight other ministers elections: the House of Assembly chooses the presidential candidates from among their members and then those candidates compete in a general election; president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 27 November 1998 (next to be held by NA November 2002); vice president appointed by the president election results: Teburoro TITO reelected president; percent of vote - Teburoro TITO 52.3%, Dr. Harry TONG 45.8%, Amberoti NIKORA 1.9%, Taberannang TIMEON 0% |
chief of state: President Bharrat JAGDEO (since 11 August 1999); note - assumed presidency after resignation of President Janet JAGAN
head of government: Prime Minister Samuel HINDS (since NA December 1997) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president, responsible to the legislature elections: president elected by the majority party in the National Assembly following legislative elections, which must be held at least every five years; elections last held 19 March 2001 (next to be held by March 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Bharrat JAGDEO reelected; percent of legislative vote - NA |
Exports | $6 million (f.o.b., 1998) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish | sugar, gold, bauxite/alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses, rum, timber |
Exports - partners | Bangladesh, Australia, US, Hong Kong (1999) | Canada 23.2%, US 21.8%, UK 13.5%, Portugal 6.7%, Belgium 6.5%, Jamaica 6.1% (2003) |
Fiscal year | NA | calendar year |
Flag description | 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 | green, with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed on a long, yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow, black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow, white border between the yellow and the green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $76 million (2000 est.), supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources | purchasing power parity - $2.797 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
14% industry: 7% services: 79% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 37.2%
industry: 22.7% services: 40.1% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2000 est.) | 0.5% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 25 N, 173 00 E | 5 00 N, 59 00 W |
Geography - note | 20 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 | the third-smallest country in South America after Suriname and Uruguay; substantial portions of its western and eastern territories are claimed by Venezuela and Suriname respectively |
Highways | total:
670 km (1996) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total: 7,970 km
paved: 590 km unpaved: 7,380 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for narcotics from South America - primarily Venezuela - to Europe and the US; producer of cannabis |
Imports | $44 million (c.i.f., 1999) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel | manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food |
Imports - partners | Australia, Fiji, Japan, NZ, China (1999) | US 22.6%, Trinidad and Tobago 19.2%, Italy 11.2%, UK 7.2%, Cuba 5.2% (2003) |
Independence | 12 July 1979 (from UK) | 26 May 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1992 est.) | 7.1% (1997 est.) |
Industries | fishing, handicrafts | bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, textiles, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | 54 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 37.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 41.28 deaths/1,000 live births female: 32.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1999 est.) | 5.7% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 1,500 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president | Supreme Court of Judicature; Judicial Court of Appeal; High Court |
Labor force | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (1985 est.) | 418,000 (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,462 km
border countries: Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 51% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 3% other: 46% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 2.44%
permanent crops: 0.15% other: 97.41% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), I-Kiribati | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu |
Legal system | NA | based on English common law with certain admixtures of Roman-Dutch law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (41 seats; 39 elected by popular vote, one ex officio member, and one nominated to represent Banaba; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 23 September 1998 (next to be held by NA September 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Maneaban Te Mauri Party 14, National Progressive Party 11, independents 14 |
unicameral National Assembly (68 seats, 65 elected by popular vote, 1 elected Speaker of the National Assembly, and 2 nonvoting members appointed by the president; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PPP/C 34, PNC 27, GAP and WPA 2, ROAR 1, TUF 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
60.16 years male: 57.25 years female: 63.22 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 62.43 years
male: 60.12 years female: 64.84 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98.8% male: 99.1% female: 98.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the equator, 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 (GMT +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction lie on the other side of the International Date Line | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Suriname and Venezuela |
Map references | Oceania | South America |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,291 GRT/1,295 DWT ships by type: passenger/cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,475 GRT/8,758 DWT
by type: cargo 3, container 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: Barbados 1, Panama 1 registered in other countries: 8 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) | Guyana Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Corps; Guyana People's Militia |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $6.5 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 0.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 209,545 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 157,264 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) | Republic Day, 23 February (1970) |
Nationality | noun:
I-Kiribati (singular and plural) adjective: I-Kiribati |
noun: Guyanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Guyanese |
Natural hazards | 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 | flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons |
Natural resources | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) | bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -2.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Maneaban Te Mauri Party [Teburoro TITO]; National Progressive Party [Teatao TEANNAKI]
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 |
Alliance for Guyana or AFG (includes Guyana Labor Party or GLP and Working People's Alliance or WPA) [Rupert ROOPNARAINE]; Guyana Action Party or GAP [Paul HARDY]; Guyana Labor Party or GLP [leader NA]; People's National Congress or PNC/R [Robert Herman Orlando CORBIN]; People's Progressive Party/Civic or PPP/C [Bharrat JAGDEO]; Rise, Organize, and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; The United Force or TUF [Manzoor NADIR]; Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPNARAINE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Civil Liberties Action Committee or CLAC; Guyana Council of Indian Organizations or GCIO; Trades Union Congress or TUC
note: the GCIO and the CLAC are small and active but not well organized |
Population | 94,149 (July 2001 est.) | 705,803
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 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.31% (2001 est.) | 0.61% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Banaba, Betio, English Harbor, Kanton | Bartica, Georgetown, Linden, New Amsterdam, Parika |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 3, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 17,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 187 km
standard gauge: 139 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 48 km 0.914-m gauge note: all dedicated to ore transport (2001 est.) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 54%, Protestant (Congregational) 30%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1996) | Christian 50%, Hindu 35%, Muslim 10%, other 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) note: Kiribati is being linked to the Pacific Ocean Cooperative Telecommunications Network, which should improve telephone service |
general assessment: fair system for long-distance calling
domestic: microwave radio relay network for trunk lines international: country code - 592; tropospheric scatter to Trinidad; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,000 (1997) | 80,400 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 87,300 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 3 (one public station; two private stations which relay US satellite services) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs | mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south |
Total fertility rate | 4.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.06 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) | 9.1% (understated) (2000) |
Waterways | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) | 1,077 km
note: Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km respectively (2004) |