Kiribati (2008) | Jersey (2008) | |
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) | none (British crown dependency); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 12 parishes including Grouville, Saint Brelade, Saint Clement, Saint Helier, Saint John, Saint Lawrence, Saint Martin, Saint Mary, Saint Quen, Saint Peter, Saint Saviour, and Trinity |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 38.2% (male 20,886/female 20,322)
15-64 years: 58.4% (male 31,083/female 31,884) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 1,554/female 2,088) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.9% (male 8,003/female 7,428)
15-64 years: 67.3% (male 30,586/female 30,853) 65 years and over: 15.8% (male 6,388/female 8,063) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish | potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 19 (2007) | 1 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2007) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 4 (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: 116 sq km
land: 116 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | about two-thirds 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. | Jersey and the other Channel Islands represent the last remnants of the medieval Dukedom of Normandy that held sway in both France and England. These islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II. Jersey is a British crown dependency, but is not part of the UK. However, the UK Government is constitutionally responsible for its defense and international representation. |
Birth rate | 30.48 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $55.52 million
expenditures: $59.71 million (FY05) |
revenues: $829 million
expenditures: $851 million (2005) |
Capital | name: Tarawa
geographic coordinates: 1 19 N, 172 58 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Saint Helier
geographic coordinates: 49 11 N, 2 06 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 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 | temperate; mild winters and cool summers |
Coastline | 1,143 km | 70 km |
Constitution | 12 July 1979 | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice |
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: Bailiwick of Jersey
conventional short form: Jersey |
Death rate | 8.12 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.32 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $10 million (1999 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | British crown dependency |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Kiribati | none (British crown dependency) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu | none (British crown dependency) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $27.84 million largely from UK and Japan (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. Private sector initiatives and a financial sector are in the early stages of development. Foreign financial aid from UK, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and China equals more than 10% 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. | Jersey's economy is based on international financial services, agriculture, and tourism. In 2005 the finance sector accounted for about 50% of the island's output. Potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes, and especially flowers are important export crops, shipped mostly to the UK. The Jersey breed of dairy cattle is known worldwide and represents an important export income earner. Milk products go to the UK and other EU countries. Tourism accounts for one-quarter of GDP. In recent years, the government has encouraged light industry to locate in Jersey, with the result that an electronics industry has developed alongside the traditional manufacturing of knitwear. All raw material and energy requirements are imported, as well as a large share of Jersey's food needs. Light taxes and death duties make the island a popular tax haven. Living standards come close to those of the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 8.37 million kWh (2005) | 630.1 million kWh (2004 est.) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by France |
Electricity - production | 9 million kWh (2005) | - |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 143 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 | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | Micronesian 98.8%, other 1.2% (2000 census) | Jersey 51.1%, Britons 34.8%, Irish, French, and other white 6.6%, Portuguese/Madeiran 6.4%, other 1.1% (2001 census) |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.2137 (2007), 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003) | Jersey pounds per US dollar - 0.4993 (2007), 0.5418 (2006), 0.5493 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003)
note: the Jersey pound is at par with the British pound |
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 17 October 2007 (next to be held in 2011); vice president appointed by the president election results: Anote TONG 63.7%, Nabuti MWEMWENIKARAWA 32.9% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Lieutenant Governor Andrew RIDGEWAY (since 14 June 2006)
head of government: Chief Minister Frank WALKER (since December 2005); Bailiff Philip Martin BAILHACHE (since February 1995) cabinet: Cabinet (since December 2005) elections: ministers of the Cabinet including the chief minister are elected by the Assembly of States; the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor and bailiff appointed by the monarch |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $NA |
Exports - commodities | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish | light industrial and electrical goods, dairy cattle, foodstuffs, textiles |
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% (2006) | UK (2006) |
Fiscal year | NA | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | white with a diagonal red cross extending to the corners of the flag; in the upper quadrant, surmounted by a yellow crown, a red shield with the three lions of England in yellow |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8.9%
industry: 24.2% services: 66.8% (2004) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 2% services: 97% (2005) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.3% (2005) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 1 25 N, 173 00 E | 49 15 N, 2 10 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 | largest and southernmost of Channel Islands; about 30% of population concentrated in Saint Helier |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 216.4 bbl/day (2004) | $NA |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, foodstuffs, mineral fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Australia 33%, Fiji 27.1%, Japan 18.1%, NZ 6.9% (2006) | UK (2006) |
Independence | 12 July 1979 (from UK) | none (British crown dependency) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1991 est.) | NA% |
Industries | fishing, handicrafts | tourism, banking and finance, dairy, electronics |
Infant mortality rate | total: 46.02 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 51.03 deaths/1,000 live births female: 40.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 5.08 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.44 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.5% (2005 est.) | 3.7% (December 2006) |
International organization participation | ACP, ADB, C, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO | - |
Irrigated land | NA | NA |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president | Royal Court (judges elected by an electoral college and the bailiff) |
Labor force | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (2001 est.) | 53,560 (June 2006) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 2.7%
industry: 32% services: 65.3% (2000) |
- |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.74%
permanent crops: 47.95% other: 49.31% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | I-Kiribati, English (official) | English 94.5% (official), Portuguese 4.6%, other 0.9% (2001 census) |
Legal system | NA | the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply and local statutes; justice is administered by the Royal Court |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Parliament or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (46 seats; 44 members elected by popular vote, 1 ex officio member - the attorney general, 1 nominated by the Rabi Council of Leaders (representing Banaba Island); to serve four-year terms)
elections: legislative elections were held in two rounds - the first round on 22 August 2007 and the second round on 30 August 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA, other 2 (includes attorney general) |
unicameral Assembly of the States of Jersey (58 seats; 55 are voting members, of which 12 are senators elected for six-year terms, 12 are constables or heads of parishes elected for three-year terms, 29 are deputies elected for three-year terms, the bailiff and the deputy bailiff, and 3 non-voting members includes the Dean of Jersey, the Attorney General, and the Solicitor General appointed by the monarch)
elections: last held 19 October 2005 for senators and 23 November 2005 for deputies (next to be held in 2008) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 55 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 62.45 years
male: 59.41 years female: 65.63 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 79.51 years
male: 77.02 years female: 82.2 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
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 (UTC +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction lie on the other side of the International Date Line | Western Europe, island in the English Channel, northwest of France |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 28,435 GRT/42,682 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 3, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 3 (Malaysia 1, Singapore 1, Turkey 1) (2007) |
- |
Military - note | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) (2007) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) | Liberation Day, 9 May (1945) |
Nationality | noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective: I-Kiribati |
noun: Channel Islander(s)
adjective: Channel Islander |
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) | arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 2.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 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; 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 |
two declared parties: Centre Party; Jersey Democratic Alliance
note: all senators and deputies elected in 2005 were independents |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 107,817 (July 2007 est.) | 91,321 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.235% (2007 est.) | 0.244% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (may be inactive) (2002) | AM NA, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 52%, Protestant (Congregational) 40%, other (includes Seventh-Day Adventist, Muslim, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, Church of God) 8% (1999) | Anglican, Roman Catholic, Baptist, Congregational New Church, Methodist, Presbyterian |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.028 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.975 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.744 male(s)/female total population: 0.986 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.077 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.991 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.792 male(s)/female total population: 0.971 male(s)/female (2007 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 (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: NA
domestic: NA international: submarine cable connectivity to Guernsey and UK |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4,500 (2002) | 73,900 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 600 (2004) | 83,900 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (possibly inactive) (2002) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs | gently rolling plain with low, rugged hills along north coast |
Total fertility rate | 4.12 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.58 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2% official rate; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) | 2.2% (2006 est.) |
Waterways | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) (2007) | - |