Micronesia, Federated States of (2001) | Iles Eparses (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 states; Chuuk (Truk), Kosrae, Pohnpei, Yap | - |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
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Agriculture - products | black pepper, tropical fruits and vegetables, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, chickens | - |
Airports | 7 (2000 est.) | 4 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
702 sq km land: 702 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Pohnpei (Ponape), Truk (Chuuk) Islands, Yap Islands, and Kosrae |
Bassas da India: total - 80 sq km; land - 0.2 sq km; water - 79.8 sq km (lagoon)
Europa Island: total - 28 sq km; land - 28 sq km; water - 0 sq km Glorioso Islands: total - 5 sq km; land - 5 sq km; water - 0 sq km Juan de Nova Island: total - 4.4 sq km; land - 4.4 sq km; water - 0 sq km Tromelin Island: total - 1 sq km; land - 1 sq km; water - 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | Bassas da India: land area about one-third the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Europa Island: about one-sixth the size of Washington, DC Glorioso Islands: about eight times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Juan de Nova Island: about seven times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Tromelin Island: about 1.7 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | In 1979 the Federated States of Micronesia, a UN Trust Territory under US administration, adopted a constitution. In 1986 independence was attained under a Compact of Free Association with the United States. Present concerns include large-scale unemployment, overfishing, and overdependence on US aid. | The Iles Eparses, or scattered islands, are a group of five French entities - Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, and Tromelin Island - which on 1 April 1960 came under the authority of the Minister in charge of overseas possessions. On 19 September 1960 by decree, the islands were transferred to the charge of the Prefet of Reunion where they remained until 3 January 2005 when they were transferred by another decree to the Senior Administrator of the Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (TAAF).
Bassas da India: A French possession since 1897, this atoll is a volcanic seamount surrounded by reefs and awash at high tide. Europa Island: A French possession since 1897, the island is heavily wooded; it is the site of a small military garrison that staffs a weather station. Glorioso Islands: A French possession since 1892, the Glorioso Islands are composed of two lushly vegetated coral islands (Ile Glorieuse and Ile du Lys) and three rock islets. A military garrison operates a weather and radio station on Ile Glorieuse. Juan de Nova Island: Named after a famous 15th century Spanish navigator and explorer, the island has been a French possession since 1897. It has been exploited for its guano and phosphate. Presently a small military garrison oversees a meteorological station. Tromelin Island: First explored by the French in 1776, the island came under the jurisdiction of Reunion in 1814. At present, it serves as a sea turtle sanctuary and is the site of an important meteorological station. |
Budget | revenues:
$161 million ($69 million less grants) expenditures: $160 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
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Capital | Palikir | - |
Climate | tropical; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage | tropical |
Coastline | 6,112 km | Bassas da India: 35.2 km
Europa Island: 22.2 km Glorioso Islands: 35.2 km Juan de Nova Island: 24.1 km Tromelin Island: 3.7 km |
Constitution | 10 May 1979 | - |
Country name | conventional long form:
Federated States of Micronesia conventional short form: none former: Ponape, Truk, and Yap Districts (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) abbreviation: FSM |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, Tromelin Island local long form: none local short form: Bassas da India, Ile Europa, Iles Glorieuses, Ile Juan de Nova, Ile Tromelin |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
Debt - external | $111 million (1997 est.) | - |
Dependency status | - | possessions of France; administered by the Senior Administrator of the Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (TAAF), resident in Reunion |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Diane E. WATSON embassy: address NA, Kolonia mailing address: P. O. Box 1286, Kolonia, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia 96941 telephone: [691] 320-2187 FAX: [691] 320-2186 |
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Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Jesse Bibiano MAREHALAU chancery: 1725 N Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 223-4383 FAX: [1] (202) 223-4391 consulate(s) general: Honolulu and Tamuning (Guam) |
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Disputes - international | none | Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island: claimed by Madagascar
Tromelin Island: claimed by Mauritius |
Economic aid - recipient | under terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US will provide $1.3 billion in grant aid during the period 1986-2001 | - |
Economy - overview | Economic activity consists primarily of subsistence farming and fishing. The islands have few mineral deposits worth exploiting, except for high-grade phosphate. The potential for a tourist industry exists, but the remoteness of the location and a lack of adequate facilities hinder development. In 1996, the country experienced a 20% reduction in revenues from the Compact of Free Association - the agreement between the US and Micronesia in which Micronesia receives $1.3 billion in financial and technical assistance over a 15-year period until 2001 - as a result of the second step-down under the agreement. Since these revenues accounted for 57% of consolidated government revenues, reduced Compact funding resulted in a severe depression. While Micronesia's economy appears to have bottomed out in 1999, the country's medium-term economic outlook remains fragile due to likely further reductions in external grants made under the US Compact funding. Geographical isolation and a poorly developed infrastructure remain major impediments to long-term growth. | no economic activity |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | - |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | - |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Totolom 791 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bassas da India 2.4 m; Europa Island 24 m; Glorioso Islands 12 m; Juan de Nova Island 10 m; Tromelin Island 7 m (all unnamed locations) |
Environment - current issues | overfishing | - |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Ethnic groups | nine ethnic Micronesian and Polynesian groups | - |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | - |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Leo A. FALCAM (since 21 July 1999); Vice President Redley KILLION (since 21 July 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Leo A. FALCAM (since 21 July 1999); Vice President Redley KILLION (since 21 July 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet elections: president and vice president elected by Congress from among the four senators-at-large for four-year terms; election last held NA May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2003) election results: Leo A. FALCAM elected president; percent of Congress vote - NA%; Redley KILLION elected vice president; percent of Congress vote - NA% |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Senior Administrator Michel CHAMPON |
Exports | $73 million (f.o.b., 1996 est.) | - |
Exports - commodities | fish, garments, bananas, black pepper | - |
Exports - partners | Japan, US, Guam | - |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | - |
Flag description | light blue with four white five-pointed stars centered; the stars are arranged in a diamond pattern | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $263 million (1999 est.)
note: GDP is supplemented by grant aid, averaging perhaps $100 million annually |
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GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
19% industry: 4% services: 77% (1996 est.) |
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GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (1999 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.3% (1999 est.) | - |
Geographic coordinates | 6 55 N, 158 15 E | Bassas da India: 21 30 S, 39 50 E
Europa Island: 22 20 S, 40 22 E Glorioso Islands: 11 30 S, 47 20 E Juan de Nova Island: 17 03 S, 42 45 E Tromelin Island: 15 52 S, 54 25 E |
Geography - note | four major island groups totaling 607 islands | Bassas da India: the atoll is a circular reef that sits atop a long-extinct, submerged volcano
Europa Island and Juan de Nova Island: wildlife sanctuary for seabirds and sea turtles Glorioso Islands: the islands and rocks are surrounded by an extensive reef system Tromelin Island: climatologically important location for forecasting cyclones in the western Indian Ocean; wildlife sanctuary (seabirds, tortoises) |
Highways | total:
240 km paved: 42 km unpaved: 198 km (1996) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
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Imports | $168 million (c.i.f., 1996 est.) | - |
Imports - commodities | food, manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, beverages | - |
Imports - partners | US, Japan, Australia | - |
Independence | 3 November 1986 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | - |
Industries | tourism, construction, fish processing, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls | - |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.6% (FY98/99) | - |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, ESCAP, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, Intelsat, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO, WMO | - |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | - |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | - |
Labor force | NA | - |
Labor force - by occupation | two-thirds are government employees | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | none |
Land use | arable land:
NA% permanent crops: NA% permanent pastures: NA% forests and woodland: NA% other: NA% |
Bassas da India - 100% rock, coral reef, and sand; Europa Island - 100% mangrove swamp and dry woodlands; Glorioso Islands - 100% lush vegetation and coconut palms; Juan de Nova Island - 90% forest, 10% other; Tromelin Island - 100% grasses and scattered brush |
Languages | English (official and common language), Trukese, Pohnpeian, Yapese, Kosrean | - |
Legal system | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws | the laws of France, where applicable, apply |
Legislative branch | unicameral Congress (14 seats; members elected by popular vote; four - one elected from each of state - to serve four-year terms and 10 - elected from single-member districts delineated by population - to serve two-year terms)
elections: elections for four-year term seats last held 2 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003); elections for two-year term seats last held 6 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 14 |
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Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 89% male: 91% female: 88% (1980 est.) |
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Location | Oceania, island group in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Indonesia | Southern Africa, in the Indian Ocean
Bassas da India: atoll in the southern Mozambique Channel, about half way from Madagascar to Mozambique Europa Island: island in the Mozambique Channel, about half way between southern Madagascar and southern Mozambique Glorioso Islands: group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northwest of Madagascar Juan de Nova Island: island in the Mozambique Channel, about one-third of the way between Madagascar and Mozambique Tromelin Island: island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; note - Juan de Nova Island and Tromelin Island claim a continental shelf of 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | - |
Military - note | Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) is a sovereign, self-governing state in free association with the US; FSM is totally dependent on the US for its defense | defense is the responsibility of France |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 10 May (1979) | - |
Nationality | noun:
Micronesian(s) adjective: Micronesian; Kosrae(s), Pohnpeian(s), Trukese, Yapese |
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Natural hazards | typhoons (June to December) | all islands subject to periodic cyclones
Bassas da India: maritime hazard since it is under water for a period of three hours prior to and following the high tide and surrounded by reefs |
Natural resources | forests, marine products, deep-seabed minerals | Bassas da India and Europa Island: none
Glorioso Islands and Juan de Nova Island: guano, phosphates; coconuts Tromelin Island: fish |
Political parties and leaders | no formal parties | - |
Population | 134,597 (July 2001 est.) | Bassas da India: uninhabitable
Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island: a small French military garrison and a few meteorologists on each possession; visited by scientists Tromelin Island: uninhabited, except for visits by scientists |
Population below poverty line | NA% | - |
Ports and harbors | Colonia (Yap), Kolonia (Pohnpei), Lele, Moen | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | - |
Radios | NA | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 47%, other and none 3% | - |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | - |
Telephone system | general assessment:
adequate system domestic: islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
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Telephones - main lines in use | 11,000 (2001) | - |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | - |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | - |
Terrain | islands vary geologically from high mountainous islands to low, coral atolls; volcanic outcroppings on Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Truk | Bassas da India: atoll, awash at high tide; shallow (15 m) lagoon
Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island: low, flat, and sandy Tromelin Island: low, flat, sandy; likely volcanic seamount |
Transportation - note | - | aids to navigation - lighthouses: Europa Island 18m; Juan de Nova Island (W side) 37m; Tromelin Island (NW point) 11m |
Unemployment rate | 16% (1999 est.) | - |
Waterways | none | - |