Micronesia, Federated States of (2004) | Akrotiri (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 4 states; Chuuk (Truk), Kosrae (Kosaie), Pohnpei (Ponape), Yap | - |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.7% (male 20,830; female 19,993)
15-64 years: 59.2% (male 32,055; female 31,927) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 1,505; female 1,845) (2004 est.) |
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Agriculture - products | black pepper, tropical fruits and vegetables, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), betel nuts, sweet potatoes; pigs, chickens | - |
Airports | 6 (2003 est.) | - |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
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Area | total: 702 sq km
land: 702 sq km water: 0 sq km (fresh water only) note: includes Pohnpei (Ponape), Chuuk (Truk) Islands, Yap Islands, and Kosrae (Kosaie) |
total: 123 sq km
note: includes a salt lake and wetlands |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC (land area only) | about 0.7 times the size of 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 US, which was amended and renewed in 2003. Present concerns include large-scale unemployment, overfishing, and overdependence on US aid. | By terms of the 1960 Treaty of Establishment that created the independent Republic of Cyprus, the UK retained full sovereignty and jurisdiction over two areas of almost 254 square kilometers - Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The southernmost and smallest of these is the Akrotiri Sovereign Base Area, which is also referred to as the Western Sovereign Base Area. |
Birth rate | 25.8 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
Budget | revenues: $161 million ($69 million less grants)
expenditures: $160 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1998 est.) |
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Capital | Palikir | name: Episkopi Cantonment (base administrative center for Akrotiri and Dhekelia)
geographic coordinates: 34 40 N, 32 51 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; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage | temperate; Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and cool winters |
Coastline | 6,112 km | 56.3 km |
Constitution | 10 May 1979 | Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia Order in Council 1960, effective 16 August 1960, functions as a basic legal document |
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: Akrotiri Sovereign Base Area
conventional short form: Akrotiri |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
Death rate | 4.97 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
Debt - external | $53.1 million (FY02/03 est.) | - |
Dependency status | - | a special form of UK overseas territory; administered by an administrator who is also the Commander, British Forces Cyprus |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Suzanne K. HALE
embassy: 101 Upper Pics Road, Kolonia mailing address: P. O. Box 1286, Kolonia, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia 96941 telephone: [691] 320-2187 FAX: [691] 320-2186 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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) |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | none | - |
Economic aid - recipient | under terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US pledged $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 remote location, a lack of adequate facilities, and limited air connections hinder development. In November 2002, the country experienced a further reduction in future revenues from the Compact of Free Association - the agreement with the US in which Micronesia received $1.3 billion in financial and technical assistance over a 15-year period until 2001. The country's medium-term economic outlook appears fragile due not only to the reduction in US assistance but also to the slow growth of the private sector. Geographical isolation and a poorly developed infrastructure remain major impediments to long-term growth. | Economic activity is limited to providing services to the military and their families located in Akrotiri. All food and manufactured goods must be imported. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | - |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | - |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Dolohmwar (Totolom) 791 m |
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Environment - current issues | overfishing, climate change, pollution | shooting around the salt lake; note - breeding place for loggerhead and green turtles; only remaining colony of griffon vultures is on the base |
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 | Cypriot pounds per US dollar - NA (2007), 0.46019 (2006), 0.4641 (2005), 0.4686 (2004), 0.5174 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Joseph J. URUSEMAL (since 11 May 2003); Vice President Redley KILLION (11 May 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Joseph J. URUSEMAL (since 11 May 2003); Vice President Redley KILLION (11 May 2003); 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 11 May 2003 (next to be held NA May 2007); note - a proposed constitutional amendment to establish popular elections for president and vice president failed election results: Joseph J. URUSEMAL elected president; percent of Congress vote - NA; Redley KILLION elected vice president; percent of Congress vote - NA |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Administrator Air Vice-Marshal Richard LACEY (since 26 April 2006); note - reports to the British Ministry of Defense elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the administrator is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $22 million (f.o.b.) (FY99/00 est.) | - |
Exports - commodities | fish, garments, bananas, black pepper | - |
Exports - partners | Japan, US, Guam (2000) | - |
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 the UK is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $277 million
note: GDP is supplemented by grant aid, averaging perhaps $100 million annually (2002 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 50%
industry: 4% services: 46% (2000 est.) |
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GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | - |
Geographic coordinates | 6 55 N, 158 15 E | 34 37 N, 32 58 E |
Geography - note | four major island groups totaling 607 islands | British extraterritorial rights also extended to several small off-post sites scattered across Cyprus; of the Sovereign Base Area land, 60% is privately owned and farmed, 20% is owned by the Ministry of Defense, and 20% is SBA Crown land |
Highways | total: 240 km
paved: 42 km unpaved: 198 km (1999 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
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Imports | $149 million f.o.b. (FY99/00 est.) | - |
Imports - commodities | food, manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, beverages | - |
Imports - partners | US, Australia, Japan (2000) | - |
Independence | 3 November 1986 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | - |
Industries | tourism, construction, fish processing, specialized aquaculture, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls | - |
Infant mortality rate | total: 31.28 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 34.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 27.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2002 est.) | - |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IOC, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO, WMO | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | - |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | - |
Labor force | NA (2000 est.) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | two-thirds are government employees | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 47.4 km
border countries: Cyprus 47.4 km |
Land use | arable land: 5.71%
permanent crops: 45.71% other: 48.58% (2001) |
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Languages | English (official and common language), Trukese, Pohnpeian, Yapese, Kosrean, Ulithian, Woleaian, Nukuoro, Kapingamarangi | English, Greek |
Legal system | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws | the Sovereign Base Area Administration has its own court system to deal with civil and criminal matters; laws applicable to the Cypriot population are, as far as possible, the same as the laws of the Republic of Cyprus |
Legislative branch | unicameral Congress (14 seats; four - one elected from each state to serve four-year terms and 10 - elected from single-member districts delineated by population to serve two-year terms; members elected by popular vote)
elections: elections for four-year term seats last held 4 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2007); elections for two-year term seats last held 4 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 14 |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.44 years
male: 67.68 years female: 71.29 years (2004 est.) |
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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 | peninsula on the southwest coast of Cyprus |
Map references | Oceania | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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Merchant marine | none (2004 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 | Akrotiri has a full RAF base, Headquarters for British Forces on Cyprus, and Episkopi Support Unit |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 10 May (1979) | - |
Nationality | noun: Micronesian(s)
adjective: Micronesian; Chuukese, Kosraen(s), Pohnpeian(s), Yapese |
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Natural hazards | typhoons (June to December) | - |
Natural resources | forests, marine products, deep-seabed minerals | - |
Net migration rate | -20.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
Political parties and leaders | no formal parties | - |
Population | 108,155 (July 2004 est.) | approximately 15,700 live on the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia including 7,700 Cypriots, 3,600 Service and UK Based Contract personnel, and 4,400 dependents |
Population below poverty line | 26.7% | - |
Population growth rate | -0.02% (2004 est.) | - |
Ports and harbors | Colonia (Yap), Kolonia (Pohnpei), Lele, Moen | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 1, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM NA, FM 1, shortwave NA (British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) provides Radio 1 and Radio 2 service to Akrotiri, Dhekelia, and Nicosia) (2006) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 47% | - |
Sex ratio | 1.05 male(s)/female (2004 est.) | - |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | - |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate system
domestic: islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes), satellite (Intelsat) ground stations, and some coaxial and fiber-optic cable; cellular service available on Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap international: country code - 691; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2002) |
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Telephones - main lines in use | 10,100 (2001) | - |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,800 (2002) | - |
Television broadcast stations | 3; note - cable TV also available (2004) | 0 (British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) provides multi-channel satellite service to Akrotiri, Dhekelia, and Nicosia) (2006) |
Terrain | islands vary geologically from high mountainous islands to low, coral atolls; volcanic outcroppings on Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Chuuk | - |
Total fertility rate | 3.37 children born/woman (2004 est.) | - |
Unemployment rate | 16% (1999 est.) | - |