Nauru (2002) | Equatorial Guinea (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren | 7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 39.6% (male 2,515; female 2,366)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 3,578; female 3,656) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 108; female 106) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
42.56% (male 103,909; female 102,946) 15-64 years: 53.68% (male 124,808; female 136,088) 65 years and over: 3.76% (male 8,178; female 10,131) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts | coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber |
Airports | 1 (2001) | 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 21 sq km
land: 21 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
28,051 sq km land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 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. Nauru achieved independence in 1968 and joined the UN in 1999. Nauru is the world's smallest independent republic. | Composed of a mainland portion and five inhabited islands, Equatorial Guinea has been ruled by ruthless leaders who have badly mismanaged the economy since independence from 190 years of Spanish rule in 1968. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 presidential and 1999 legislative elections were widely seen as being flawed. |
Birth rate | 26.6 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 37.72 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $23.4 million
expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY95/96) |
revenues:
$47 million expenditures: $43 million, including capital expenditures of $7 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | no official capital; government offices in Yaren District | Malabo |
Climate | tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February) | tropical; always hot, humid |
Coastline | 30 km | 296 km |
Constitution | 29 January 1968 | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Nauru
conventional short form: Nauru former: Pleasant Island |
conventional long form:
Republic of Equatorial Guinea conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States |
Death rate | 7.06 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 13.11 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $33.3 million | $290 million (1999 est.) |
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 John M. YATES; note - the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); US relations with Equatorial Guinea are handled through the US Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo |
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 Teodoro BIYOGO NSUEA chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 528-5252 |
Disputes - international | none | tripartite maritime boundary and economic zone dispute with Cameroon and Nigeria is currently before the ICJ; maritime boundary dispute with Gabon because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay |
Economic aid - recipient | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) | $33.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within a few 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 freeze on 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. | The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the deterioration of the rural economy under successive brutal regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth. A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of the government's gross corruption and mismanagement. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. The country responded favorably to the devaluation of the CFA franc in January 1994. Boosts in production and high world oil prices stimulated growth in 2000, with oil accounting for 90% of greatly increased exports. |
Electricity - consumption | 27.9 million kWh (2000) | 19.5 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 30 million kWh (2000) | 21 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
85.71% hydro: 14.29% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 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 | tap water is not potable; 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% | Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.9354 (January 2002) 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: Acting President Derog GIOURA (since 10 March 2003) following death of President Bernard DOWIYOGO note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Acting President Derog GIOURA (since 10 March 2003) following death of President Bernard DOWIYOGO 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 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2004); following Rene HARRIS' resignation, Bernard DOWIYOGO was elected president election results: Rene HARRIS elected president; percent of Parliamentary vote - NA%; replaced by Bernard DOWIYOGO 9 January 2003 following a no-confidence vote; HARRIS reinstated 17 January 2003, then gives up presidency 18 January and DOWIYOGO is elected president; DOWIYOGO dies 10 March 2003; with 9 votes over 8 for Kinza CLODUMAR, Derog GIOURA was named acting president |
chief of state:
President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup) head of government: Prime Minister Candido Muatetema RIVAS (since 26 February 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Miguel OYONO NDONG (since NA January 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Demetrio Elo NDONG NZE FUMU (since NA January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote to a seven-year term; election last held 25 February 1996 (next to be held NA February 2003); prime minister and vice prime ministers appointed by the president election results: President Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected with 98% of popular vote in elections marred by widespread fraud |
Exports | $25.3 million f.o.b. (1991) | $860 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | phosphates | petroleum, timber, cocoa |
Exports - partners | NZ, Australia, South Korea, US (2000) | US 62%, Spain 17%, China 9%, France 3%, Japan 3%, (1997) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $60 million (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $960 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture:
20% industry: 60% services: 20% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 12% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 32 S, 166 55 E | 2 00 N, 10 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 | insular and continental regions rather widely separated |
Highways | total: 30 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 km (1998 est.) |
total:
2,880 km paved: 0 km unpaved: 2,880 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | broad-based money-laundering center | - |
Imports | $21.1 million c.i.f. (1991) | $300 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery | manufactured goods and equipment |
Imports - partners | Australia, US, UK, Indonesia, India (2000) | US 35%, France 15%, Spain 10%, Cameroon 10%, UK 6% (1997) |
Independence | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) | 12 October 1968 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 7.4% (1994 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, offshore banking, coconut products | petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas |
Infant mortality rate | 10.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 92.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -3.6% (1993) (1993) | 6% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, ICAO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (applicant) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Tribunal |
Labor force | - | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
539 km border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
5% permanent crops: 4% permanent pastures: 4% forests and woodland: 46% other: 41% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes | Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo |
Legal system | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law | partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom |
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 House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PDGE 80%, UP 6%, CPDS 5%; seats by party - PDGE 75, UP 4 and CPDS 1 note: opposition parties have refused to take up their seats in the House to protest widespread irregularities in the 1999 legislative elections |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 61.57 years
male: 58.05 years female: 65.26 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
53.95 years male: 51.89 years female: 56.07 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 78.5% male: 89.6% female: 68.1% (1995 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total:
12 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 26,035 GRT/27,927 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 7, combination bulk 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Nauru Police Force | Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $3 million (FY97/98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 0.6% (FY97/98) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 3,103 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
108,973 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,710 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
55,347 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) | Independence Day, 12 October (1968) |
Nationality | noun: Nauruan(s)
adjective: Nauruan |
noun:
Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s) adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts | violent windstorms, flash floods |
Natural resources | phosphates, fish | oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [Bernard DOWIYOGO] | Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido Miko ABOGO]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY, mayor of Malabo]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 12,329 (July 2002 est.) | 486,060 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.96% (2002 est.) | 2.46% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Nauru | Bata, Luba, Malabo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 7,000 (1997) | 180,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 5 km
note: gauge unknown; used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast (2001) |
total:
0 km |
Religions | Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) | nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices |
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: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate local and international radiotelephone communication provided via Australian facilities
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment:
poor system with adequate government services domestic: NA international: international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,000 (1996) | 4,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 450 (1994) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center | coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic |
Total fertility rate | 3.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.88 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0% | 30% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |