Kiribati (2005) | El Salvador (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) | 14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Vicente, Sonsonate, Usulutan |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 38.9% (male 20,342/female 19,806)
15-64 years: 57.7% (male 29,362/female 30,136) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 1,477/female 1,969) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 36.8% (male 1,237,262; female 1,185,750)
15-64 years: 58.1% (male 1,819,035; female 2,009,032) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 150,221; female 186,241) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 20 (2004 est.) | 73 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 17
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.) |
total: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 54 (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: 21,040 sq km
land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Massachusetts |
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. | El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost about 75,000 lives, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms. |
Birth rate | 30.86 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 27.48 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $28.4 million
expenditures: $37.2 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $2.434 billion
expenditures: $2.625 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | Tarawa | San Salvador |
Climate | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands |
Coastline | 1,143 km | 307 km |
Constitution | 12 July 1979 | 23 December 1983 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Kiribati
conventional short form: Kiribati note: pronounced keer-ree-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
conventional long form: Republic of El Salvador
conventional short form: El Salvador local long form: Republica de El Salvador local short form: El Salvador |
Currency | - | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 8.37 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 5.93 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $10 million (1999 est.) | $6.575 billion (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Kiribati | chief of mission: Ambassador H. Douglas BARCLAY
embassy: Final Boulevard Santa Elena Sur, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 278-4444 FAX: [503] 278-5522 |
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 Rene Antonio LEON Rodriguez
chancery: 2308 California Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9671 FAX: [1] (202) 234-3834 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, and Washington, DC |
Disputes - international | none | in 1992, the ICJ ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, and the OAS is assisting with a technical resolution of undemarcated bolsones; in 2003, the ICJ rejected El Salvador's request to revise its decision on one part of the bolsones; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca with consideration of Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not mentioned by the ICJ, off Honduras in the Gulf de Fonseca |
Economic aid - recipient | $15.5 million largely from UK and Japan (2001 est.) | total $252 million; $57 million from US (1995) |
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 equals 25%-50% of GDP. Remittances from workers abroad account for more than $5 million each year. | With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency, El Salvador has lost control over monetary policy and must concentrate on maintaining a disciplined fiscal policy. GDP per capita is roughly only half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, and the distribution of income is highly unequal. The trade deficit has been offset by annual remittances of almost $2 billion from Salvadorans living abroad and external aid. The government is striving to open new export markets, encourage foreign investment, modernize the tax and healthcare systems, and stimulate the sluggish economy. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.51 million kWh (2002) | 3.777 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 44 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 353 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 7 million kWh (2002) | 3.729 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 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; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, 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, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Micronesian 98.8%, other 1.2% (2000 census) | mestizo 90%, Amerindian 1%, white 9% |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) | the US dollar is the legal tender |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President Teima ONORIO; 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 Teima ONORIO; 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 its 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: President Elias Antonio SACA (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Elias Antonio SACA (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 21 March 2004 (next to be held NA March 2009) election results: Elias Antonio SACA elected president; percent of vote - Elias Antonio SACA (ARENA) 57.7%, Schafik HANDAL (FMLN) 35.6%, Hector SILVA (CDU-PDC) 3.9%, other 2.8% |
Exports | NA | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity |
Exports - partners | France 45.7%, Japan 29.2%, US 9.1%, Thailand 5.4% (2004) | US 67.8%, Guatemala 11.5%, Honduras 5.9% (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 | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band - it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $30.99 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 30%
industry: 7% services: 63% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 9.4%
industry: 31.2% services: 59.3% (2003) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $800 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.5% (2001 est.) | 1.4% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 25 N, 173 00 E | 13 50 N, 88 55 W |
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 | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea |
Heliports | - | 1 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total: 670 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1999 est.) |
total: 10,029 km
paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways) unpaved: 8,043 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 1.4%
highest 10%: 39.3% (2001) |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine; small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic cocaine abuse on the rise |
Imports | NA | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity |
Imports - partners | Australia 33.6%, Fiji 29.8%, Japan 10.3%, New Zealand 6.9%, France 4.1% (2004) | US 50%, Guatemala 8.1%, Mexico 5.5% (2003) |
Independence | 12 July 1979 (from UK) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1991 est.) | 1.6% (2003 est.) |
Industries | fishing, handicrafts | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals |
Infant mortality rate | total: 48.52 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 53.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 43.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 25.93 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 28.79 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2001 est.) | 2.1% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 360 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 or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) |
Labor force | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (2001 est.) | 2.62 million (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 30%, industry 15%, services 55% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 545 km
border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.74%
permanent crops: 50.68% other: 46.58% (2001) |
arable land: 31.85%
permanent crops: 12.07% other: 56.08% (2001) |
Languages | I-Kiribati, English (official) | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) |
Legal system | NA | based on civil and Roman law, with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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: legislative elections were held in two rounds - the first round on 9 May 2003 and the second round on 14 May 2003 |
unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (84 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 16 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FMLN 31, ARENA 28, PCN 15, PDC 5, CD 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 61.71 years
male: 58.71 years female: 64.86 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 70.92 years
male: 67.31 years female: 74.7 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 10 and over can read and write
total population: 80.2% male: 82.8% female: 77.7% (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 | Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,291 GRT/1,295 DWT
by type: passenger/cargo 1 (2005) |
none |
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, Navy (FNES), Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $157 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 1.1% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,571,299 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 995,672 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 69,993 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
Nationality | noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective: I-Kiribati |
noun: Salvadoran(s)
adjective: Salvadoran |
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 | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible to hurricanes |
Natural resources | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -3.74 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]; 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 |
Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER]; United Democratic Center or CDU [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general]; Democratic Party or PD [Jorge MELENDEZ]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Medardo GONZALEZ]; Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Kirio Waldo SALGADO, president]; National Action Party or PAN [Gustavo Rogelio SALINAS, secretary general]; National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ ZEPEDA, president]; National Republican Alliance or ARENA [Elias Antonio SACA]; Social Christian Union or USC (formed by the merger of Christian Social Renewal Party or PRSC and Unity Movement or MU) [Abraham RODRIGUEZ, president]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Juan MEDRANO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | labor organizations - Electrical Industry Union of El Salvador or SIES; Federation of the Construction Industry, Similar Transport and other activities, or FESINCONTRANS; National Confederation of Salvadoran Workers or CNTS; National Union of Salvadoran Workers or UNTS; Port Industry Union of El Salvador or SIPES; Salvadoran Union of Ex-Petrolleros and Peasant Workers or USEPOC; Salvadoran Workers Central or CTS; Workers Union of Electrical Corporation or STCEL; business organizations - National Association of Small Enterprise or ANEP; Salvadoran Assembly Industry Association or ASIC; Salvadoran Industrial Association or ASI |
Population | 103,092 (July 2005 est.) | 6,587,541 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 48% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.25% (2005 est.) | 1.78% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Betio | Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco, La Libertad, La Union, Puerto El Triunfo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1
note: the shortwave station may be inactive (2002) |
AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 283 km
narrow gauge: 283 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of operational route reduced from 562 km to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintenance (2003) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 52%, Protestant (Congregational) 40%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Muslim, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1999) | Roman Catholic 83%
note: there is extensive activity by Protestant groups throughout the country; by the end of 1992, there were an estimated 1 million Protestant evangelicals in El Salvador |
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 (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: generally good quality national and international service
domestic: wire line service available on Tarawa and Kiritimati; connections to outer islands by HF/VHF radiotelephone; wireless service available in Tarawa since 1999 international: country code - 686; Kiribati is being linked to the Pacific Ocean Cooperative Telecommunications Network, which should improve telephone service; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system international: country code - 503; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4,500 (2002) | 752,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 500 (2002) | 1,149,800 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (not reported to be active) (2002) | 5 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau |
Total fertility rate | 4.2 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 3.2 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) | 6.5% - but the economy has much underemployment (2003 est.) |
Waterways | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) (2003) | Rio Lempa partially navigable (2004) |