Kiribati (2006) | Tunisia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 3 units; Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands; note - in addition, there are 6 districts (Banaba, Central Gilberts, Line Islands, Northern Gilberts, Southern Gilberts, Tarawa) and 21 island councils - one for each of the inhabited islands (Abaiang, Abemama, Aranuka, Arorae, Banaba, Beru, Butaritari, Kanton, Kiritimati, Kuria, Maiana, Makin, Marakei, Nikunau, Nonouti, Onotoa, Tabiteuea, Tabuaeran, Tamana, Tarawa, Teraina) | 23 governorates; Ariana (Aryanah), Beja (Bajah), Ben Arous (Bin 'Arus), Bizerte (Banzart), El Kef (Al Kaf), Gabes (Qabis), Gafsa (Qafsah), Jendouba (Jundubah), Kairouan (Al Qayrawan), Kasserine (Al Qasrayn), Kebili (Qibili), Mahdia (Al Mahdiyah), Medenine (Madanin), Monastir (Al Munastir), Nabeul (Nabul), Sfax (Safaqis), Sidi Bou Zid (Sidi Bu Zayd), Siliana (Silyanah), Sousse (Susah), Tataouine (Tatawin), Tozeur (Tawzar), Tunis, Zaghouan (Zaghwan) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 38.6% (male 20,608/female 20,060)
15-64 years: 58.1% (male 30,216/female 31,004) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 1,517/female 2,027) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years:
28.74% (male 1,440,636; female 1,348,133) 15-64 years: 65.12% (male 3,157,988; female 3,161,596) 65 years and over: 6.14% (male 296,930; female 299,819) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish | olives, olive oil, grain, dairy products, tomatoes, citrus fruit, beef, sugar beets, dates, almonds |
Airports | 19 (2006) | 32 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2006) |
total:
15 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 16
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 4 (2006) |
total:
17 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 7 (2000 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:
163,610 sq km land: 155,360 sq km water: 8,250 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Georgia |
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 independence from France in 1956, President Habib BOURGIUBA established a strict one-party state. He dominated the country for 31 years, repressing Islamic fundamentalism and establishing rights for women unmatched by any other Arab nation. In recent years, Tunisia has taken a moderate, non-aligned stance in its foreign relations. Domestically, it has sought to diffuse rising pressure for a more open political society. |
Birth rate | 30.65 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 17.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $55.52 million
expenditures: $59.71 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (FY05) |
revenues:
$7.5 billion expenditures: $8.1 billion, including capital expenditures to $1.6 billion (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Tarawa
geographic coordinates: 1 25 N, 173 00 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Tunis |
Climate | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds | temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers; desert in south |
Coastline | 1,143 km | 1,148 km |
Constitution | 12 July 1979 | 1 June 1959; amended 12 July 1988 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Kiribati
conventional short form: Kiribati local long form: Republic of Kiribati local short form: Kiribati note: pronounced keer-ree-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
conventional long form:
Republic of Tunisia conventional short form: Tunisia local long form: Al Jumhuriyah at Tunisiyah local short form: Tunis |
Currency | - | Tunisian dinar (TND) |
Death rate | 8.26 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 4.99 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $10 million (1999 est.) | $13 billion (2000 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 Rust DEMMING embassy: 144 Avenue de la Liberte, 1002 Tunis-Belvedere mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [216] (1) 782-566 FAX: [216] (1) 789-719 |
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 Hatem ATALLAH chancery: 1515 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 862-1850 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $16.7 million largely from UK and Japan (2004) | $933.2 million (1995); note - ODA, $90 million (1998 est.) |
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 about 20% of GDP. Remittances from seamen on merchant ships abroad account for more than $5 million each year. Kiribati receives around $15 million annually for the government budget from an Australian trust fund. | Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining, energy, tourism, and manufacturing sectors. Governmental control of economic affairs while still heavy has gradually lessened over the past decade with increasing privatization, simplification of the tax structure, and a prudent approach to debt. Real growth averaged 5.5% in the past four years, and inflation is slowing. Growth in tourism and increased trade have been key elements in this steady growth. Tunisia's association agreement with the European Union entered into force on 1 March 1998, the first such accord between the EU and Mediterranean countries to be activated. Under the agreement Tunisia will gradually remove barriers to trade with the EU over the next decade. Broader privatization, further liberalization of the investment code to increase foreign investment, and improvements in government efficiency are among the challenges for the future. |
Electricity - consumption | 11.16 million kWh (2003) | 8.677 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 19 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 165 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 12 million kWh (2003) | 9.173 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
99.2% hydro: 0.8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
lowest point:
Shatt al Gharsah -17 m highest point: Jebel ech Chambi 1,544 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 | toxic and hazardous waste disposal is ineffective and presents human health risks; water pollution from raw sewage; limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification |
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Micronesian 98.8%, other 1.2% (2000 census) | Arab 98%, European 1%, Jewish and other 1% |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001) | Tunisian dinars per US dollar - 1.3753 (January 2001), 1.4667 (November 2000), 1.1862 (1999), 1.1387 (1998), 1.1059 (1997), 0.9734 (1996) |
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 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 (eligible for two more terms); 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 Zine El Abidine BEN ALI (since 7 November 1987) head of government: Prime Minister Mohamed GHANNOUCHI (since 17 November 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI reelected for a third term without opposition; percent of vote - Zine El Abidine BEN ALI nearly 100% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $6.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish | textiles, mechanical goods, phosphates and chemicals, agricultural products, hydrocarbons |
Exports - partners | US 22.8%, Belgium 21.5%, Japan 14.3%, Samoa 7.8%, Australia 7.5%, Malaysia 6.7%, Taiwan 5.6%, Denmark 4.6% (2005) | Germany 28%, France 22%, Italy 17%, Belgium 5%, Libya 4% (1999) |
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 | red with a white disk in the center bearing a red crescent nearly encircling a red five-pointed star; the crescent and star are traditional symbols of Islam |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $62.8 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8.9%
industry: 24.2% services: 66.8% (1998 est.) |
agriculture:
14% industry: 32% services: 54% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $6,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.3% (2005) | 5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 25 N, 173 00 E | 34 00 N, 9 00 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 | strategic location in central Mediterranean; Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration |
Highways | - | total:
23,100 km paved: 18,226 km unpaved: 4,874 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 30.7% (1990) |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $8.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel | machinery and equipment, hydrocarbons, chemicals, food |
Imports - partners | Australia 33%, Fiji 27.1%, Japan 18.1%, NZ 6.9% (2005) | France 23%, Germany 23%, Italy 15%, Belgium 3% (1999) |
Independence | 12 July 1979 (from UK) | 20 March 1956 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1991 est.) | 4.1% (2000 est.) |
Industries | fishing, handicrafts | petroleum, mining (particularly phosphate and iron ore), tourism, textiles, footwear, food, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | total: 47.27 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 52.34 deaths/1,000 live births female: 41.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
29.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.5% (2005 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO | ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, BSEC (observer), CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | 3,850 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president | Court of Cassation or Cour de Cassation |
Labor force | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (2001 est.) | 2.65 million (2000 est.)
note: shortage of skilled labor |
Labor force - by occupation | 2.70213%, 32%, 65.3% | services 55%, industry 23%, agriculture 22% (1995 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
1,424 km border countries: Algeria 965 km, Libya 459 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.74%
permanent crops: 47.95% other: 49.31% (2005) |
arable land:
19% permanent crops: 13% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 4% other: 44% (1993 est.) |
Languages | I-Kiribati, English (official) | Arabic (official and one of the languages of commerce), French (commerce) |
Legal system | NA | based on French civil law system and Islamic law; some judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court in joint session |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Parliament or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (42 seats; 39 elected by popular vote, 1 ex officio member - the attorney general, 1 appointed to represent Banaba, and 1 other; members serve four-year terms)
elections: legislative elections were held in two rounds - the first round on 9 May 2003 and the second round on 14 May 2003 (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 Chamber of Deputies or Majlis al-Nuwaab (182 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - RCD 92%; seats by party - RCD 148, MDS 13, UDU 7, PUP 7, Al-Tajdid 5, PSL 2; note - reforms enabled opposition parties to win up to 20% of seats; the opposition increased number of seats from 19 to 34 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 62.08 years
male: 59.06 years female: 65.24 years (2006 est.) |
total population:
73.92 years male: 72.35 years female: 75.62 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 66.7% male: 78.6% female: 54.6% (1995 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 | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Libya |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone:
24 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,749 GRT/3,911 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 1 foreign-owned: 1 (UAE 1) (2006) |
total:
15 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 149,554 GRT/156,861 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 4, chemical tanker 3, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 1 (2000 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, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary forces, National Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $356 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 1.5% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
2,739,566 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,561,484 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
105,146 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) | Independence Day, 20 March (1956) |
Nationality | noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective: I-Kiribati |
noun:
Tunisian(s) adjective: Tunisian |
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 | NA |
Natural resources | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) | petroleum, phosphates, iron ore, lead, zinc, salt |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 797 km; petroleum products 86 km; natural gas 742 km |
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; 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 |
Al-Tajdid Movement [Adel CHAOUCH]; Constitutional Democratic Rally Party (Rassemblement Constitutionnel Democratique) or RCD [President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI (official ruling party)]; Liberal Social Party or PSL [Mounir BEJI]; Movement of Democratic Socialists or MDS [Khamis CHAMMARI]; Popular Unity Party or PUP [Mohamed Belhaj AMOR]; Unionist Democratic Union or UDU [Abderrahmane TLILI] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | the Islamic fundamentalist party, Al Nahda (Renaissance), is outlawed |
Population | 105,432 (July 2006 est.) | 9,705,102 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 6% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.24% (2006 est.) | 1.15% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Bizerte, Gabes, La Goulette, Sfax, Sousse, Tunis, Zarzis |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1
note: the shortwave station may be inactive (2002) |
AM 7, FM 20, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | - | 2.06 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
2,168 km standard gauge: 471 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,687 km 1.000-m gauge dual gauge: 10 km 1.000-m and 1.435-m gauges (three rails) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 52%, Protestant (Congregational) 40%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Muslim, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, Church of God (1999) | Muslim 98%, Christian 1%, Jewish and other 1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth:
1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.99 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: generally good quality national and international service
domestic: wire line service available on Tarawa and Kiritimati (Christmas Island); 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:
above the African average and continuing to be upgraded; key centers are Sfax, Sousse, Bizerte, and Tunis; Internet access available domestic: trunk facilities consist of open-wire lines, coaxial cable, and microwave radio relay international: 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Algeria and Libya; participant in Medarabtel; two international gateway digital switches |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4,500 (2002) | 654,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 600 (2004) | 50,000 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (not reported to be active) (2002) | 26 (plus 76 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs | mountains in north; hot, dry central plain; semiarid south merges into the Sahara |
Total fertility rate | 4.16 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 1.99 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2% official rate; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) | 15.6% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) (2003) | none |