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Compare Kiribati (2003) - Lebanon (2008)

Compare Kiribati (2003) z Lebanon (2008)

 Kiribati (2003)Lebanon (2008)
 KiribatiLebanon
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) 8 governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah); Aakar, Baalbek-Hermel, Beqaa, Beyrouth, Liban-Nord, Liban-Sud, Mont-Liban, Nabatiye
Age structure 0-14 years: 39.7% (male 19,839; female 19,333)


15-64 years: 57% (male 27,705; female 28,438)


65 years and over: 3.3% (male 1,385; female 1,849) (2003 est.)
0-14 years: 26.2% (male 525,199/female 504,240)


15-64 years: 66.7% (male 1,255,624/female 1,361,265)


65 years and over: 7.1% (male 125,904/female 153,270) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats
Airports 20 (2002) 7 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total: 4


1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002)
total: 5


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 16


914 to 1,523 m: 12


under 914 m: 4 (2002)
total: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007)
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: 10,400 sq km


land: 10,230 sq km


water: 170 sq km
Area - comparative four times the size of Washington, DC about 0.7 times the size of Connecticut
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. Following the capture of Syria from the Ottoman Empire by Anglo-French forces in 1918, France received a mandate over this territory and separated out a region of Lebanon in 1920. France granted this area independence in 1943. A lengthy civil war (1975-1990) devastated the country, but Lebanon has since made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions. Under the Ta'if Accord - the blueprint for national reconciliation - the Lebanese established a more equitable political system, particularly by giving Muslims a greater voice in the political process while institutionalizing sectarian divisions in the government. Since the end of the war, Lebanon has conducted several successful elections, most militias have been disbanded, and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) have extended authority over about two-thirds of the country. Hizballah, a radical Shi'a organization listed by the US State Department as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, retains its weapons. During Lebanon's civil war, the Arab League legitimized in the Ta'if Accord Syria's troop deployment, numbering about 16,000 based mainly east of Beirut and in the Bekaa Valley. Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000 and the passage in October 2004 of UNSCR 1559 - a resolution calling for Syria to withdraw from Lebanon and end its interference in Lebanese affairs -encouraged some Lebanese groups to demand that Syria withdraw its forces as well. The assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq HARIRI and 20 others in February 2005 led to massive demonstrations in Beirut against the Syrian presence ("the Cedar Revolution"), and Syria withdrew the remainder of its military forces in April 2005. In May-June 2005, Lebanon held its first legislative elections since the end of the civil war free of foreign interference, handing a majority to the bloc led by Saad HARIRI, the slain prime minister's son. Lebanon continues to be plagued by violence - Hizballah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers in July 2006 leading to a 34-day conflict with Israel. The LAF in May-September 2007 battled Sunni extremist group Fatah al-Islam in the Nahr al-Barid Palestinian refugee camp; and the country has witnessed a string of politically motivated assassinations since the death of Rafiq HARIRI. Lebanese politicians in November 2007 were unable to agree on a successor to Emile LAHUD when he stepped down as president, creating a political vacuum.
Birth rate 31.24 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 18.08 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $28.4 million


expenditures: $37.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
revenues: $6.116 billion


expenditures: $9.421 billion (2007 est.)
Capital Tarawa name: Beirut


geographic coordinates: 33 52 N, 35 30 E


time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Climate tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows
Coastline 1,143 km 225 km
Constitution 12 July 1979 23 May 1926; amended a number of times, most recently Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Ta'if Accord) of October 1989
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Kiribati


conventional short form: Kiribati


note: pronounced keer-ree-bahss


former: Gilbert Islands
conventional long form: Lebanese Republic


conventional short form: Lebanon


local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah


local short form: Lubnan


former: Greater Lebanon
Currency Australian dollar (AUD) -
Death rate 8.63 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) 6.1 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $10 million (1999 est.) $34.67 billion (31 December 2007 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 (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Michele J. SISON


embassy: Awkar, Lebanon; (Awkar facing the Municipality)


mailing address: P. O. Box 70-840, Antelias, Lebanon; from US: US Embassy Beirut, 6070 Beirut Place, Washington, DC 20521-6070


telephone: [961] (4) 542600, 543600


FAX: [961] (4) 544136
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 (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Antoine CHEDID


chancery: 2560 28th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 939-6300


FAX: [1] (202) 939-6324


consulate(s) general: Detroit, New York, Los Angeles
Disputes - international none lacking a treaty or other documentation describing the boundary, portions of the Lebanon-Syria boundary are unclear with several sections in dispute; since 2000, Lebanon has claimed Shab'a Farms area in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights; the roughly 2,000-strong UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has been in place since 1978
Economic aid - recipient $15.5 million largely from UK and Japan (1995) Of the $7.6 billion in grants and loans pledged to Lebanon at the Paris III conference in January 2007, Beirut as of mid-December 2007 had signed agreements for $3 billion, including $1 billion in project financing, $750 million in direct budget support, $750 million in private sector credit, and $285 million in in-kind aid. About $500 million of the $1.7 billion pledged for direct budget support has been disbursed to Lebanon. Donors in August 2006 also pledged nearly $1.8 billion in aid to help Lebanon recover from the 2006 Israel-Hizballah war. During the conflict, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait provided $1.5 billion in concessional loans to the Lebanese central bank to maintain confidence in the Lebanese currency.
(2005)
Economy - overview A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few natural 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. The 1975-90 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure, cut national output by half, and all but ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. In the years since, Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure by borrowing heavily - mostly from domestic banks. In an attempt to reduce the ballooning national debt, the Rafiq HARIRI government began an austerity program, reining in government expenditures, increasing revenue collection, and privatizing state enterprises, but economic and financial reform initiatives stalled and public debt continued to grow despite receipt of more than $2 billion in bilateral assistance at the Paris II Donors Conference. The Israeli-Hizballah conflict in July-August 2006 caused an estimated $3.6 billion in infrastructure damage, and prompted international donors to pledge nearly $1 billion in recovery and reconstruction assistance. Donors met again in January 2007 and pledged over $7.5 billion to Lebanon for development projects and budget support, conditioned on progress on Beirut's fiscal reform and privatization program. Internal Lebanese political tension continues to hamper economic activity, particularly in the tourism and retail sectors.
Electricity - consumption 6.51 million kWh (2001) 10.58 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 455 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 7 million kWh (2001) 9.183 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m


highest point: Qurnat as Sawda' 3,088 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 deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills
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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1%


note: many Christian Lebanese do not identify themselves as Arab but rather as descendents of the ancient Canaanites and prefer to be called Phoenicians
Exchange rates Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.84 (2002), 1.93 (2001), 1.72 (2000), 1.55 (1999), 1.59 (1998) Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (2007), 1,507.5 (2006), 1,507.5 (2005), 1,507.5 (2004), 1,507.5 (2003)
Executive branch chief of state: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President NA; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President NA; 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 4 July 2003 (next to be held not later than July 2007); vice president appointed by the president


election results: Anote TONG 47.4%, Harry TONG 43.5%, Banuera BERINA 9.1%
chief of state: vacant (as of 24 November 2007); note - former President Emile LAHUD's term expired on 23 November 2007, and the Cabinet temporarily assumed presidential powers


head of government: Prime Minister Fuad SINIORA (since 30 June 2005); Deputy Prime Minister Elias MURR (since April 2005)


cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president and members of the National Assembly


elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a six-year term (may not serve consecutive terms); election last held 15 October 1998 (next election orginally scheduled for fall 2004 but was postponed beyond the constitutionally mandated 23 November deadline; under Syrian pressure, Parliament extended Lahoud's term for three years); the prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly; by agreement, the president is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the National Assembly is a Shi'a Muslim


election results: for 15 October 1998 election: Emile LAHUD elected president; National Assembly vote - 118 votes in favor, 0 against, 10 abstentions
Exports NA (2001) 0 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish authentic jewelry, inorganic chemicals, miscellaneous consumer goods, fruit and vegetables, tobacco, construction minerals, electric power machinery and switchgear, textile fibers, paper
Exports - partners Japan 56.7%, Thailand 16.6%, South Korea 16.3% (2002) Syria 26.8%, UAE 12%, Switzerland 6%, Saudi Arabia 5.7%, Turkey 4.5% (2006)
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 consisting of red (top), white (middle, double width), and red (bottom) with a green cedar tree centered in the white band
GDP purchasing power parity - $79 million - supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources (2001 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 30%


industry: 7%


services: 63% (1998 est.)
agriculture: 5.2%


industry: 18.4%


services: 76.4% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $800 (2001 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 1.5% (2001 est.) 0.3% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 1 25 N, 173 00 E 33 50 N, 35 50 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 Nahr el Litani is the only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity
Highways total: 670 km


paved: NA km


unpaved: NA km (1999 est.)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs - cannabis cultivation dramatically reduced to 2,500 hectares in 2002 despite continued significant cannabis consumption; opium poppy cultivation minimal; small amounts of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin transit country on way to European markets and for Middle Eastern consumption; money laundering of drug proceeds fuels concern that extremists are benefiting from drug trafficking
Imports NA (2001) 102,300 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel petroleum products, cars, medicinal products, clothing, meat and live animals, consumer goods, paper, textile fabrics, tobacco, electrical machinery
Imports - partners France 28.7%, Australia 26.3%, Fiji 12.5%, Japan 9.5%, Latvia 5.4%, US 4.6%, New Zealand 4% (2002) Syria 11.6%, Italy 9.8%, US 9.3%, France 7.7%, Germany 6.1%, China 5%, Saudi Arabia 4.7% (2006)
Independence 12 July 1979 (from UK) 22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
Industrial production growth rate 0.7% (1991 est.) NA%
Industries fishing, handicrafts banking, tourism, food processing, wine, jewelry, cement, textiles, mineral and chemical products, wood and furniture products, oil refining, metal fabricating
Infant mortality rate total: 51.26 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 56.45 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 45.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
total: 23.39 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 25.94 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 20.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2.5% (2001 est.) 5.6% (2007 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) ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OIF, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) -
Irrigated land NA sq km 1,040 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases); Constitutional Council (called for in Ta'if Accord - rules on constitutionality of laws); Supreme Council (hears charges against the president and prime minister as needed)
Labor force 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers 1.5 million


note: in addition, there are as many as 1 million foreign workers (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation - agriculture: NA%


industry: NA%


services: NA%
Land boundaries 0 km total: 454 km


border countries: Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km
Land use arable land: 0%


permanent crops: 50.68%


other: 49.32% (1998 est.)
arable land: 16.35%


permanent crops: 13.75%


other: 69.9% (2005)
Languages I-Kiribati, English (official) Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian
Legal system NA mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and civil law; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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)


note: new legislative elections were held in two rounds - the first round on 9 May 2003 and the second round on 14 May 2003
unicameral National Assembly or Majlis Alnuwab (Arabic) or Assemblee Nationale (French) (128 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of sectarian proportional representation to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held in four rounds on 29 May, 5, 12, 19 June 2005 (next to be held 2009)


election results: percent of vote by group - NA; seats by group - Future Movement Bloc 36; Democratic Gathering 15; Development and Resistance Bloc 15; Free Patriotic Movement 15; Loyalty to the Resistance 14; Qornet Shewan 6; Lebanese Forces 5; Popular Bloc 4; Tripoli Independent Bloc 3; Kataeb Reform Movement 2; Syrian National Socialist Party 2; Tashnaq 2; Syrian Ba'th Party 1; Democratic Left 1; Democratic Renewal Movement 1; Kataeb Party 1; Nasserite Popular Movement 1; independent 4
Life expectancy at birth total population: 60.93 years


male: 57.97 years


female: 64.03 years (2003 est.)
total population: 73.15 years


male: 70.67 years


female: 75.77 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: NA


total population: NA%


male: NA%


female: NA%
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 87.4%


male: 93.1%


female: 82.2% (2003 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 Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria
Map references Oceania Middle East
Maritime claims exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
territorial sea: 12 nm
Merchant marine total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) 1,291 GRT/1,295 DWT


ships by type: passenger/cargo 1 (2002 est.)
total: 35 ships (1000 GRT or over) 132,871 GRT/140,011 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 14, livestock carrier 12, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 2, vehicle carrier 2


foreign-owned: 3 (Greece 2, Syria 1)


registered in other countries: 55 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Barbados 1, Cambodia 7, Comoros 5, Cyprus 1, Dominica 1, Egypt 1, Georgia 3, Honduras 2, Hong Kong 1, North Korea 3, Liberia 2, Malta 12, Mongolia 1, Panama 3, St Vincent and The Grenadines 7, Syria 4, unknown 2) (2007)
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) Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF): Army, Navy, and Air Force (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $NA -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% 3.1% (2005 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 12 July (1979) Independence Day, 22 November (1943)
Nationality noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)


adjective: I-Kiribati
noun: Lebanese (singular and plural)


adjective: Lebanese
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 dust storms, sandstorms
Natural resources phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines - gas 43 km (2007)
Political parties and leaders Boutokaan Te Koaua Party or BTK [Taberannang TIMEON]; Maneaban Te Mauri Party or MTM [Teburoro TITO]; Maurin Kiribati Pati or MKP [leader NA]; 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
14 March Coalition: Democratic Gathering Bloc [Walid JUNBLATT, leader of Progressive Socialist Party]; Democratic Left [Ilyas ATALLAH]; Democratic Renewal Movement [Nassib LAHUD]; Future Movement Bloc [Sa'ad HARIRI]; Kataeb Party [Amine GEMAYEL]; Lebanese Forces [Samir JA'JA]; Tripoli Independent Bloc


Change and Reform Alliance Bloc: Free Patriotic Movement [Michel AWN]; Metn Bloc [Michel MURR]; Popular Bloc [Elias SKAFF]; Tashnaq


Hizballah and Amal Alliance: Development and Resistance Bloc [Nabih BERRI, leader of Amal Movement]; Hizballah Party [Hassan NASRALLAH]; Loyalty to the Resistance [Mohammad RA'AD]; Nasserite Popular Movement [Ussama SAAD]; Syrian Ba'th Party [Sayez SHUKR]; Syrian Social Nationalist Party [Ali QANSO]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA none
Population 98,549 (July 2003 est.) 3,925,502 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% 28% (1999 est.)
Population growth rate 2.26% (2003 est.) 1.198% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Banaba, Betio, English Harbour, Kanton -
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1


note: the shortwave station may be inactive (2002)
AM 20, FM 22, shortwave 4 (1998)
Railways 0 km total: 401 km


standard gauge: 319 km 1.435 m


narrow gauge: 82 km 1.050 m


note: rail system became unusable because of damage done during fighting in the 1980s and in 2006 (2006)
Religions Roman Catholic 52%, Protestant (Congregational) 40%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Muslim, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1999) Muslim 59.7% (Shi'a, Sunni, Druze, Isma'ilite, Alawite or Nusayri), Christian 39% (Maronite Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Melkite Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Syrian Catholic, Armenian Catholic, Syrian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Chaldean, Assyrian, Copt, Protestant), other 1.3%


note: 17 religious sects recognized
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 (2003 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.042 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.922 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.821 male(s)/female


total population: 0.944 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education
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: repair of the telecommunications system, severely damaged during the civil war, now complete


domestic: two wireless networks provide good service; political instability hampers privatization and deployment of new technologies; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership approaching 50 per 100 persons


international: country code - 961; submarine cable link to Cyprus; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean); coaxial cable to Syria
Telephones - main lines in use 3,800 (1999) 681,400 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular NA 1.103 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 1 (not reported to be active) (2002) 15 (plus 5 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs narrow coastal plain; El Beqaa (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains
Total fertility rate 4.28 children born/woman (2003 est.) 1.88 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) 20% (2006 est.)
Waterways 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) -
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