Kiribati (2001) | Oman (2002) | |
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) | 6 regions (mintaqat, singular - mintaqah) and 2 governorates* (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al Batinah, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat, Musandam*, Zufar*; note - the US Embassy in Oman reports that Masqat is a governorate, but this has not been confirmed by the US Board on Geographic Names (BGN) |
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: 41.9% (male 579,065; female 556,923)
15-64 years: 55.7% (male 914,494; female 597,948) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 34,555; female 30,477) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish | dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish |
Airports | 21 (2000 est.) | 143 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total: 6
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
17 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total: 133
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 55 914 to 1,523 m: 37 under 914 m: 32 (2002) |
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: 212,460 sq km
land: 212,460 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Kansas |
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. | In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al Said ousted his father and has ruled as sultan ever since. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world and has preserved a long-standing political and military relationship with the UK. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries. |
Birth rate | 31.98 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 37.76 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$33.3 million expenditures: $47.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (1996 est.) |
revenues: $9.2 billion
expenditures: $6.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Tarawa | Muscat |
Climate | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds | dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south |
Coastline | 1,143 km | 2,092 km |
Constitution | 12 July 1979 | none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a new basic law which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Kiribati conventional short form: Kiribati note: pronounced kir-ih-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
conventional long form: Sultanate of Oman
conventional short form: Oman local long form: Saltanat Uman local short form: Uman former: Muscat and Oman |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | Omani rial (OMR) |
Death rate | 8.88 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.03 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $10 million (1999 est.) | $5.3 billion (2000 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 Richard Lewis BALTIMORE III
embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat mailing address: international: P. O. Box 202, P.C. 115, Madinat Al-Sultan Qaboos, Muscat telephone: [968] 698989, extension 203 FAX: [968] 699771 |
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 Mohamed Ali AL KHUSAIBY
chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1981, 1988 FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933 |
Disputes - international | none | Oman signed a boundary treaty with the UAE in 1999, but the completed boundary is not expected until the end of 2002; undefined segments of the Oman-UAE boundary remain with Ra's al-Khaymah and Ash Shariqah (Sharjah) emirates, including the Musandam Peninsula, where an administrative boundary substitutes for an international boundary |
Economic aid - recipient | $15.5 million (1995), largely from UK and Japan | $76.4 million (1995) (1995) |
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. | Oman's economic performance improved significantly in 2000 due largely to the upturn in oil prices. The government is moving ahead with privatization of its utilities, the development of a body of commercial law to facilitate foreign investment, and increased budgetary outlays. Oman continues to liberalize its markets and joined the World Trade Organization (WTrO) in November 2000. GDP growth improved in 2001 despite the global slowdown. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.5 million kWh (1999) | 7.533 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 7 million kWh (1999) | 8.1 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 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 | rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources |
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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian | Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African |
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) | Omani rials per US dollar - 0.3845 (fixed rate since 1986) |
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: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
Exports | $6 million (f.o.b., 1998) | $10.9 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish | petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles |
Exports - partners | Bangladesh, Australia, US, Hong Kong (1999) | Japan 21%, Thailand 18%, China 16%, South Korea 12%, UAE 12%, US 3% (2001) |
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 | three horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered near the top of the vertical band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $76 million (2000 est.), supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources | purchasing power parity - $21.5 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
14% industry: 7% services: 79% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 3%
industry: 40% services: 57% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,200 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2000 est.) | 7.4% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 25 N, 173 00 E | 21 00 N, 57 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 | strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total:
670 km (1996) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total: 32,800 km
paved: 9,840 km (including 550 km of expressways) unpaved: 22,960 km (1996) |
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) | $5.4 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants |
Imports - partners | Australia, Fiji, Japan, NZ, China (1999) | UAE 23% (largely reexports), Japan 16%, UK 13%, Italy 7%, Germany 5%, US 5% (2001) |
Independence | 12 July 1979 (from UK) | 1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1992 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
Industries | fishing, handicrafts | crude oil production and refining, natural gas production, construction, cement, copper |
Infant mortality rate | 54 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 21.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1999 est.) | 1% (2001 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) | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 620 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
note: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, has non-Islamic judges as well as traditional Islamic judges |
Labor force | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (1985 est.) | 920,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,374 km
border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 51% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 3% other: 46% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0.08%
permanent crops: 0.22% other: 99.7% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), I-Kiribati | Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects |
Legal system | NA | based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to the monarch; 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 |
bicameral Majlis Oman consists of an upper chamber or Majlis al-Dawla (48 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory powers only) and a lower chamber or Majlis al-Shura (83 seats; members elected by limited suffrage for three-year term, however, the monarch makes final selections and can negate election results; body has some limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory powers)
elections: last held NA September 2000 (next to be held NA September 2003) election results: NA; note - two women were elected for the first time to the Majlis al-Shura, about 100,000 people voted |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
60.16 years male: 57.25 years female: 63.22 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 72.31 years
male: 70.15 years female: 74.57 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: NA
total population: approaching 80% male: NA% female: NA% |
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 | Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE |
Map references | Oceania | Middle East |
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: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 17,291 GRT/9,457 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Singapore 1 (2002 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) | Royal Omani Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Royal Omani Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $2,424.4 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 12.2% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 780,292 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 434,026 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 14 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 26,470 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) | Birthday of Sultan QABOOS, 18 November (1940) |
Nationality | noun:
I-Kiribati (singular and plural) adjective: I-Kiribati |
noun: Omani(s)
adjective: Omani |
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 | summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) | petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 1,300 km; natural gas 1,030 km |
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 |
none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 94,149 (July 2001 est.) | 2,713,462
note: includes 527,078 non-nationals (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.31% (2001 est.) | 3.41% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Banaba, Betio, English Harbor, Kanton | Matrah, Mina' al Fahl, Mina' Raysut |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Radios | 17,000 (1997) | 1.4 million (1997) |
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) | Ibadhi Muslim 75%, Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu |
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: 1.53 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female total population: 1.29 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | in Oman's most recent elections in 2000, limited to approximately 175,000 Omanis chosen by the government to vote in elections for the Majlis ash-Shura |
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: modern system consisting of open wire, microwave, and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable
domestic: open wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,000 (1997) | 201,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 59,822 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 13 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1999) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs | central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south |
Total fertility rate | 4.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.99 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) | none |