Kiribati (2002) | Seychelles (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) | 23 administrative districts; Anse aux Pins, Anse Boileau, Anse Etoile, Anse Louis, Anse Royale, Baie Lazare, Baie Sainte Anne, Beau Vallon, Bel Air, Bel Ombre, Cascade, Glacis, Grand' Anse (on Mahe), Grand' Anse (on Praslin), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe La Rue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 40.2% (male 19,588; female 19,092)
15-64 years: 56.6% (male 26,905; female 27,625) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 1,339; female 1,786) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.9% (male 10,987; female 10,717)
15-64 years: 66.9% (male 26,380; female 27,731) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 1,638; female 3,379) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish | coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fish |
Airports | 21 (2001) | 15 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002) |
total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 16
914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 811 sq km
land: 811 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands |
total: 455 sq km
land: 455 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | 2.5 times 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. | A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. The most recent presidential elections were held 31 August-2 September 2001. President RENE, who has served since 1977, was re-elected. On 14 April 2004 RENE stepped down and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president. |
Birth rate | 31.58 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 16.55 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $28.4 million
expenditures: $37.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (2000 est.) (2000 est.) |
revenues: $338.7 million
expenditures: $323.3 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | Tarawa | Victoria |
Climate | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds | tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) |
Coastline | 1,143 km | 491 km |
Constitution | 12 July 1979 | 18 June 1993 |
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 Seychelles
conventional short form: Seychelles |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | Seychelles rupee (SCR) |
Death rate | 8.76 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.41 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $10 million (1999 est.) | $213 million (2003 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 | the US does not have an embassy in Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to the Seychelles |
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 Claude Sylvestre MOREL
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785 FAX: [1] (212) 972-1786 |
Disputes - international | none | together with Mauritius, Seychelles claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory) |
Economic aid - recipient | $15.5 million (1995), largely from UK and Japan | $16.4 million (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, from UK, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and China, 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. | Since independence in 1976, per capita output in this Indian Ocean archipelago has expanded to roughly seven times the old near-subsistence level. Growth has been led by the tourist sector, which employs about 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings, and by tuna fishing. In recent years the government has encouraged foreign investment in order to upgrade hotels and other services. At the same time, the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, and small-scale manufacturing. A sharp drop illustrated the vulnerability of the tourist sector in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf war, and once again following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. Other issues facing the government are the curbing of the budget deficit, including the containment of social welfare costs, and further privatization of public enterprises. Growth slowed in 1998-2002, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors. Also, tight controls on exchange rates and the scarcity of foreign exchange have impaired short-term economic prospects. The black market value of the Seychelles rupee is half the official exchange rate; without a devaluation of the currency the tourist sector should remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.51 million kWh (2000) | 148.8 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 7 million kWh (2000) | 160 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | 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: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne Seychellois 905 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 supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater |
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, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian | mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese, and Arab |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.9354 (January 2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997) | Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 5.4007 (2003), 5.48 (2002), 5.8575 (2001), 5.7138 (2000), 5.3426 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Beniamina TIINGA (since NA December 2000); 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 Beniamina TIINGA (since NA December 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: 12-member Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the House of Parliament elections: the House of Parliament 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 25 February 2003 (next to be held by November 2007); vice president appointed by the president election results: Teburoro TITO reelected president; percent of vote - Teburoro TITO 50.4%, Taberannang TIMEON 48.4%, Bakeua Bakeua TEKITA 1.2% |
chief of state: President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 31 August-2 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: France Albert RENE re-elected president; percent of vote - France Albert RENE (SPPF) 54.19%, Wavel RAMKALAWAN (UO) 44.95%, Philippe BOULLE 0.86%; note - the first time that presidential elections have been held separately from legislative elections; France Albert RENE stepped down 14 April 2004 and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president |
Exports | $6 million f.o.b. (1998) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish | canned tuna, frozen fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports) |
Exports - partners | Japan, Bangladesh, US, Australia, Brazil, Poland (2000) | UK 38.8%, France 31.8%, Italy 14.5%, Germany 7.5% (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 | five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $79 million (2001 est.), supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $626 million (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 30%
industry: 7% services: 63% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 28.7% services: 68.9% (2003) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $840 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.5% (2001 est.) | 1.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 25 N, 173 00 E | 4 35 S, 55 40 E |
Geography - note | 21 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 | 40 granitic and about 50 coralline islands |
Highways | total: 670 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: 27 km are paved in South Tarawa (2001) |
total: 373 km
paved: 315 km unpaved: 58 km (1997 est.) |
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) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Australia, Japan, Fiji, Poland, US (2000) | Saudi Arabia 15.7%, South Africa 10.9%, Spain 10.4%, France 9.7%, Italy 9.2%, Singapore 7%, UK 6.8% (2003) |
Independence | 12 July 1979 (from UK) | 29 June 1976 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1991 est.) | NA |
Industries | fishing, handicrafts | fishing; tourism; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages |
Infant mortality rate | 52.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 15.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2001 est.) | 3.3% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 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 | Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president |
Labor force | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (1985 est.) | 30,900 (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 10%, industry 19%, services 71% (1989) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 50.68% other: 49.32% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 2.22%
permanent crops: 13.33% other: 84.45% (2001) |
Languages | I-Kiribati, English (official) | English (official), French (official), Creole |
Legal system | NA | based on English common law, French civil law, and customary law |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Parliament or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (42 seats; 39 elected by popular vote, one ex officio member - the attorney general, one appointed to represent Banaba, and one other; members serve four-year terms)
elections: first round elections last held 29 November 2002; second round elections held 6 December 2002 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BTK 17, MTM 16, independents 7, other 2 (includes attorney general) |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (34 seats - 25 elected by popular vote, 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least 10% of the vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 4-6 December 2002 (next held by 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - SPPF 54.3%, SNP 42.6%, DP 3.1%; seats by party - SPPF 23, SNP 11 note: the 9 awarded seats are apportioned according to the percentage that each party won of the total vote |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 60.54 years
male: 57.61 years female: 63.62 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 71.53 years
male: 66.1 years female: 77.14 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 58% male: 56% female: 60% (1971 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the equator; the capital Tarawa is 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 | Eastern Africa, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the 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 (2002 est.) |
total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 42,223 GRT/63,538 DWT
by type: cargo 4, chemical tanker 3, container 1 foreign-owned: Bulgaria 1, Cyprus 1, Nigeria 1, South Africa 2 (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) | Army, Coast Guard (including Navy Wing, Air Wing), National Guard, Presidential Protection Unit (includes Presidential Guard), Seychelles National Police (includes Police Mobile Unit) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $11.6 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 1.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 23,661 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 11,712 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) | Constitution Day (National Day), 18 June (1993) |
Nationality | noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective: I-Kiribati |
noun: Seychellois (singular and plural)
adjective: Seychellois |
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 | lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible |
Natural resources | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) | fish, copra, cinnamon trees |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -5.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Boutokaan Te Koaua Party or BTK [Taberannang TIMEON]; Maneaban Te Mauri Party or MTM [Teburoro TITO]; National Progressive Party or NPP [Dr. Harry TONG]
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 |
Democratic Party or DP [James MANCHAM, Daniel BELLE]; Mouvement Seychellois pour la Democratie [Jacques HODOUL]; Seychelles National Party or SNP (formerly the United Opposition or UO) [Wavel RAMKALAWAN]; Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE, James MICHEL] - the governing party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Roman Catholic Church; trade unions |
Population | 96,335 (July 2002 est.) | 80,832 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.28% (2002 est.) | 0.45% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Banaba, Betio, English Harbour, Kanton | Victoria |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1
note: the shortwave station may be inactive (2002) |
AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | 17,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 52%, Protestant (Congregational) 40%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Muslim, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1999) | Roman Catholic 86.6%, Anglican 6.8%, other Christian 2.5%, other 4.1% |
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 (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 17 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: effective system
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago international: country code - 248; direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,800 (1999) | 21,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 54,500 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (not reported to be active) (2002) | 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs | Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs |
Total fertility rate | 4.32 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.77 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) | NA |
Waterways | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) | - |