Kiribati (2001) | Marshall Islands (2001) | |
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) | 33 municipalities; Ailinginae, Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikar, Bikini, Bokak, Ebon, Enewetak, Erikub, Jabat, Jaluit, Jemo, Kili, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Rongrik, Toke, Ujae, Ujelang, Utirik, Wotho, Wotje |
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:
49.29% (male 17,808; female 17,101) 15-64 years: 48.61% (male 17,573; female 16,853) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 707; female 780) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish | coconuts, tomatoes, melons, cacao, taro, breadfruit, fruits; pigs, chickens |
Airports | 21 (2000 est.) | 16 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
17 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total:
12 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 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:
181.3 sq km land: 181.3 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, and Kwajalein |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | about the size of Washington, DC |
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. | After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing on some of the islands between 1947 and 1962. |
Birth rate | 31.98 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 45.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$33.3 million expenditures: $47.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (1996 est.) |
revenues:
$80.1 million expenditures: $77.4 million, including capital expenditures of $19.5 million (FY95/96 est.) |
Capital | Tarawa | Majuro |
Climate | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds | wet season from May to November; hot and humid; islands border typhoon belt |
Coastline | 1,143 km | 370.4 km |
Constitution | 12 July 1979 | 1 May 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Kiribati conventional short form: Kiribati note: pronounced kir-ih-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
conventional long form:
Republic of the Marshall Islands conventional short form: Marshall Islands former: Marshall Islands District (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 8.88 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.23 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $10 million (1999 est.) | $125 million (FY96/97 est.) |
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 Joan M. PLAISTED embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692] 247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012 |
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 Banny DE BRUM chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general: Honolulu |
Disputes - international | none | claims US territory of Wake Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $15.5 million (1995), largely from UK and Japan | approximately $65 million annually from the US |
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. | US Government assistance is the mainstay of this tiny island economy. Agricultural production is concentrated on small farms, and the most important commercial crops are coconuts, tomatoes, melons, and breadfruit. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, fish processing, and copra. The tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. Under the terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US provides roughly $65 million in annual aid. Negotiations were underway in 1999 for an extended agreement. Government downsizing, drought, a drop in construction, and the decline in tourism and foreign investment due to the Asian financial difficulties caused GDP to fall in 1996-98. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.5 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 7 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 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 | inadequate supplies of potable water |
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, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian | Micronesian |
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) | the US dollar is used |
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 Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament from among its own members for a four-year term; election last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: Kessai Hesa NOTE elected president; percent of Parliament vote - 100% |
Exports | $6 million (f.o.b., 1998) | $28 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) |
Exports - commodities | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish | fish, coconut oil, trochus shells |
Exports - partners | Bangladesh, Australia, US, Hong Kong (1999) | US, Japan, Australia |
Fiscal year | NA | 1 October - 30 September |
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 | blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $76 million (2000 est.), supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources | purchasing power parity - $105 million (1998 est.), supplemented by approximately $65 million annual US aid |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
14% industry: 7% services: 79% (1996 est.) |
agriculture:
15% industry: 13% services: 72% (1995) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,670 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2000 est.) | -5% (1998 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 25 N, 173 00 E | 9 00 N, 168 00 E |
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 | two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US missile test range |
Highways | total:
670 km (1996) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total:
NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: paved roads on major islands (Majuro, Kwajalein), otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads and tracks |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $44 million (c.i.f., 1999) | $58 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels, beverages and tobacco |
Imports - partners | Australia, Fiji, Japan, NZ, China (1999) | US, Japan, Australia, NZ, Guam, Singapore |
Independence | 12 July 1979 (from UK) | 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1992 est.) | NA% |
Industries | fishing, handicrafts | copra, fish, tourism, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls, offshore banking (embryonic) |
Infant mortality rate | 54 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 39.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1999 est.) | 5% (1997) |
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, AsDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president | Supreme Court; High Court |
Labor force | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (1985 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 51% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 3% other: 46% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 60% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 40% |
Languages | English (official), I-Kiribati | English (universally spoken and is the official language), two major Marshallese dialects from the Malayo-Polynesian family, Japanese |
Legal system | NA | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws |
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 Parliament or Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA note: the Council of Chiefs is a 12-member body that advises on matters affecting customary law and practice |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
60.16 years male: 57.25 years female: 63.22 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
65.84 years male: 64.04 years female: 67.73 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 100% female: 88% (1980 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 | Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Papua New Guinea |
Map references | Oceania | Oceania |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
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:
212 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 9,768,406 GRT/16,242,699 DWT ships by type: bulk 63, cargo 9, chemical tanker 10, combination ore/oil 2, container 29, liquefied gas 10, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 87, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 1, Germany 1, Japan 1, US 6 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ | defense is the responsibility of the US |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) | no regular military forces (a coast guard may be established); Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | NA% |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) | Constitution Day, 1 May (1979) |
Nationality | noun:
I-Kiribati (singular and plural) adjective: I-Kiribati |
noun:
Marshallese (singular and plural) adjective: Marshallese |
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 | occasional typhoons |
Natural resources | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) | phosphate deposits, marine products, deep seabed minerals |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 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 |
traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Kabua Party [Imata KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 94,149 (July 2001 est.) | 70,822 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.31% (2001 est.) | 3.88% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Banaba, Betio, English Harbor, Kanton | Majuro |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 17,000 (1997) | NA |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 54%, Protestant (Congregational) 30%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1996) | Christian (mostly Protestant) |
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 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:
telex services domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,000 (1997) | 3,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 365 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 3 (of which two are US military stations) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs | low coral limestone and sand islands |
Total fertility rate | 4.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.55 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) | 16% (1991 est.) |
Waterways | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) | none |