Nauru (2001) | Albania (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren | 12 counties (qarqe, singular - qark); Qarku i Beratit, Qarku i Dibres, Qarku i Durresit, Qarku i Elbasanit, Qarku i Fierit, Qarku i Gjirokastres, Qarku i Korces, Qarku i Kukesit, Qarku i Lezhes, Qarku i Shkodres, Qarku i Tiranes, Qarku i Vlores |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
40.33% (male 2,510; female 2,365) 15-64 years: 57.97% (male 3,475; female 3,533) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 103; female 102) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 28.1% (male 520,714; female 486,911)
15-64 years: 64.6% (male 1,115,887; female 1,196,477) 65 years and over: 7.3% (male 115,754; female 146,462) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts | wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products |
Airports | 1 (2000 est.) | 12 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 8
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
Area | total:
21 sq km land: 21 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km water: 1,350 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Nauru's phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by Australian forces in World War I. Upon achieving independence in 1968, Nauru became the smallest independent republic in the world; it joined the UN in 1999. | Between 1990 and 1992 Albania ended 46 years of xenophobic Communist rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has proven difficult as corrupt governments have tried to deal with high unemployment, a dilapidated infrastructure, widespread gangsterism, and disruptive political opponents. International observers judged legislative elections in 2001 to be acceptable and a step toward democratic development, but identified serious deficiencies that should be addressed through reforms in the Albanian electoral code. |
Birth rate | 27.22 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.2 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$23.4 million expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY95/96) |
revenues: $697 million
expenditures: $1.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $368 million (2002 est.) |
Capital | no official capital; government offices in Yaren District | Tirana |
Climate | tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February) | mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter |
Coastline | 30 km | 362 km |
Constitution | 29 January 1968 | a constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the vote |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Nauru conventional short form: Nauru former: Pleasant Island |
conventional long form: Republic of Albania
conventional short form: Albania local long form: Republika e Shqiperise local short form: Shqiperia former: People's Socialist Republic of Albania |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | lek (ALL) |
Death rate | 7.2 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.48 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $33.3 million | $784 million (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru | chief of mission: Ambassador James F. JEFFREY
embassy: Rruga Elbasanit, Labinoti #103, Tirana mailing address: U. S. Department of State, 9510 Tirana Place, Washington, DC 20521-9510 telephone: [355] (4) 247285 FAX: [355] (4) 232222 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Nauru does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a UN office at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, New York 10017; telephone: (212) 937-0074
consulate(s): Hagatna (Guam) |
chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Fatos TARIFA
chancery: 2100 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 223-4942 FAX: [1] (202) 628-7342 |
Disputes - international | none | the Albanian Government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside its borders in the Kosovo region of Serbia and Montenegro, and in the northern Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, while continuing to seek regional cooperation; some outside ethnic Albanian groups voice union with Albania |
Economic aid - recipient | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) | ODA: $315 million (top donors were Italy, EU, Germany) (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within five to ten years. Phosphate production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen in traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest per capita incomes in the Third World, few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of phosphate income have been invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government has called for a freezing of wages, a reduction of over-staffed public service departments, privatization of numerous government agencies, and closure of some overseas consulates. In recent years Nauru has encouraged the registration of offshore banks and corporations. Tens of billions of dollars have been channeled through their accounts. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's per capita GDP varying widely. | Poor and backward by European standards, Albania is making the difficult transition to a more modern open-market economy. The government has taken measures to curb violent crime and to spur economic activity and trade. The economy is bolstered by remittances from abroad of $400-$600 million annually, mostly from Greece and Italy; this helps offset the sizable trade deficit. Agriculture, which accounts for half of GDP, is held back because of frequent drought and the need to modernize equipment and consolidate small plots of land. Severe energy shortages are forcing small firms out of business, increasing unemployment, scaring off foreign investors, and spurring inflation. The government plans to boost energy imports to relieve the shortages. In addition, the government is moving to improve the poor national road network, a long-standing barrier to sustained economic growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 27.9 million kWh (1999) | 5.898 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 221 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 1.2 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 30 million kWh (1999) | 5.289 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 2.9%
hydro: 97.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,753 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater, but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant; intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central 90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land resources | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% | Albanian 95%, Greek 3%, other 2% (Vlach, Gypsy, Serb, and Bulgarian) (1989 est.)
note: in 1989, other estimates of the Greek population ranged from 1% (official Albanian statistics) to 12% (from a Greek organization) |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) | leke per US dollar - NA (2002), 143.49 (2001), 143.71 (2000), 137.69 (1999), 150.63 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Bernard DOWIYOGO (since 19 April 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Bernard DOWIYOGO (since 19 April 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 8 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: Bernard DOWIYOGO elected president by a vote in Parliament of nine to eight note: former President Rene HARRIS was deposed in a no-confidence vote; this is the eighth change of government in Nauru since the fall of the Lagumont HARRIS government in a no-confidence motion in early November 1996; six of the last eight governments have resulted because of parliamentary no-confidence motions |
chief of state: President of the Republic Alfred MOISIU (since 24 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Fatos NANO (since 31 July 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and approved by the president elections: president elected by the People's Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 24 June 2002 (next to be held NA June 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Alfred MOISIU elected president; People's Assembly vote by number - total votes 116, for 97, against 19 |
Exports | $25.3 million (f.o.b., 1991) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | phosphates | textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco |
Exports - partners | Australia, NZ | Italy 76.6%, Germany 5.6%, Greece 2.7% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across the center and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on the hoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation to the Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12 original tribes of Nauru | red with a black two-headed eagle in the center |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $59 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15.69 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 49%
industry: 27% services: 24% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 7.3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 32 S, 166 55 E | 41 00 N, 20 00 E |
Geography - note | Nauru is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea in French Polynesia; only 53 km south of Equator | strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea) |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total:
30 km paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 km (1998 est.) |
total: 18,000 km
paved: 5,400 km unpaved: 12,600 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | increasingly active transshipment point for Southwest Asian opiates, hashish, and cannabis transiting the Balkan route and - to a far lesser extent - cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe; limited opium and growing cannabis production; ethnic Albanian narcotrafficking organizations active and rapidly expanding in Europe; vulnerable to money laundering associated with regional trafficking in narcotics, arms, contraband, and illegal aliens |
Imports | $21.1 million (c.i.f., 1991) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Australia, UK, NZ, Japan | Italy 39.4%, Greece 24.5%, Turkey 6%, Germany 5% (2002) |
Independence | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) | 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 9% (2000 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, financial services, coconut products | food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower |
Infant mortality rate | 10.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 37.28 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 39.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 34.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -3.6% (1993) | 6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, ICAO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO | ACCT, BSEC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMIG, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 10 (2001) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 3,400 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court (chairman is elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term) |
Labor force | - | 1.283 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation | agriculture 50%, industry and services 50% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 21.09%
permanent crops: 4.45% other: 74.46% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes | Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek |
Legal system | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law | has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held NA April 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 18 |
unicameral People's Assembly or Kuvendi Popullor (140 seats; 100 are elected by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote for four-year terms)
elections: last held 24 June 2001 with subsequent rounds on 8 July, 22 July, 29 July, 19 August 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - PS 41.5%, PD and coalition allies 36.8%, NDP 5.2%, PSD 3.6%, PBDNJ 2.6%, PASH 2.6%, PAD 2.5%; seats by party - PS 73, PD and coalition allies 46, NDP 6, PSD 4, PBDNJ 3, PASH 3, PAD 3, independents 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
61.2 years male: 57.7 years female: 64.88 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 72.37 years
male: 69.53 years female: 75.42 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 9 and over can read and write
total population: 86.5% male: 93.3% female: 79.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 21,954 GRT/34,412 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 11, roll on/roll off 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 1, Honduras 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia | - |
Military branches | no regular armed forces; Directorate of the Nauru Police Force | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $56.5 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 1.49% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
3,018 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 906,168 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,661 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 742,837 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 36,985 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) | Independence Day, 28 November (1912) |
Nationality | noun:
Nauruan(s) adjective: Nauruan |
noun: Albanian(s)
adjective: Albanian |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts | destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; floods; drought |
Natural resources | phosphates | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 339 km; oil 207 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [Bernard DOWIYOGO] | Agrarian Party of Albania or PASH [Lufter XHUVELI]; Christian Democratic Party or PDK [Zef BUSHATI]; Communist Party of Albania or PKSH [Hysni MILLOSHI]; Democratic Alliance or PAD [Nerltan CEKA]; Democratic Party or PD [Sali BERISHA]; Legality Movement Party or PLL [Guri DUROLLARI]; National Front Party (Balli Kombetar) or PBK [Abaz ERMENJI]; Party of National Unity or PUK [Idajet BEQUIRI]; Republican Party or PR [Fatmir MEDIU]; Social Democracy or DS [Paskal MILO]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Skender GJINUSHI]; Socialist Party or PS (formerly the Albanian Party of Labor) [Fatos NANO]; Union for Human Rights Party or PBDNJ [Vasil MELO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Omonia [Vangjel DULES] |
Population | 12,088 (July 2001 est.) | 3,582,205 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 30% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2% (2001 est.) | 1.03% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Nauru | Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 13, FM 4, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Radios | 7,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
5 km; note - used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast |
total: 447 km
standard gauge: 447 km 1.435-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) | Muslim 70%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Roman Catholic 10%
note: all mosques and churches were closed in 1967 and religious observances prohibited; in November 1990, Albania began allowing private religious practice |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment:
adequate local and international radiotelephone communications provided via Australian facilities domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: Albania has the poorest telephone service in Europe with fewer than two telephones per 100 inhabitants; it is doubtful that every village has telephone service
domestic: obsolete wire system; no longer provides a telephone for every village; in 1992, following the fall of the Communist government, peasants cut the wire to about 1,000 villages and used it to build fences international: inadequate; international traffic carried by microwave radio relay from the Tirana exchange to Italy and Greece |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,000 (1996) | 120,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 450 (1994) | 250,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 3 (plus 58 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center | mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast |
Total fertility rate | 3.61 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.22 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0% | 17% officially; may be as high as 30% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | 43 km
note: includes Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990) |