New Caledonia (2007) | Indian Ocean (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Province des Iles, Province Nord, and Province Sud | - |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 27.9% (male 31,578/female 30,270)
15-64 years: 65.3% (male 72,821/female 72,109) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 7,047/female 8,118) (2007 est.) |
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Agriculture - products | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products; fish | - |
Airports | 25 (2007) | - |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 6 (2007) |
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Area | total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
total:
68.556 million sq km note: includes Andaman Sea, Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal, Great Australian Bight, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, Mozambique Channel, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Strait of Malacca, and other tributary water bodies |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | about 5.5 times the size of the US |
Background | Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s ended in the 1998 Noumea Accord, which over a period of 15 to 20 years will transfer an increasing amount of governing responsibility from France to New Caledonia. The agreement also commits France to conduct as many as three referenda between 2013 and 2018, to decide whether New Caledonia should assume full sovereignty and independence. | The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean, but larger than the Southern Ocean and Arctic Ocean). Four critically important access waterways are the Suez Canal (Egypt), Bab el Mandeb (Djibouti-Yemen), Strait of Hormuz (Iran-Oman), and Strait of Malacca (Indonesia-Malaysia). The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Indian Ocean south of 60 degrees south. |
Birth rate | 17.75 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | - |
Budget | revenues: $996 million
expenditures: $1.072 billion (2001 est.) |
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Capital | name: Noumea
geographic coordinates: 22 16 S, 166 27 E time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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Climate | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid | northeast monsoon (December to April), southwest monsoon (June to October); tropical cyclones occur during May/June and October/November in the northern Indian Ocean and January/February in the southern Indian Ocean |
Coastline | 2,254 km | 66,526 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | - |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies
conventional short form: New Caledonia local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie |
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Death rate | 5.72 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | - |
Debt - external | $79 million (1998 est.) | - |
Dependency status | territorial collectivity of France since 1998 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of France) | - |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of France) | - |
Disputes - international | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu | some maritime disputes (see littoral states) |
Economic aid - recipient | $524.3 million annual subsidy from France (2004) | - |
Economy - overview | New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, substantial financial support from France - equal to more than 15% of GDP - and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. Substantial new investment in the nickel industry, combined with the recovery of global nickel prices, brightens the economic outlook for the next several years. | The Indian Ocean provides major sea routes connecting the Middle East, Africa, and East Asia with Europe and the Americas. It carries a particularly heavy traffic of petroleum and petroleum products from the oilfields of the Persian Gulf and Indonesia. Its fish are of great and growing importance to the bordering countries for domestic consumption and export. Fishing fleets from Russia, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan also exploit the Indian Ocean, mainly for shrimp and tuna. Large reserves of hydrocarbons are being tapped in the offshore areas of Saudi Arabia, Iran, India, and western Australia. An estimated 40% of the world's offshore oil production comes from the Indian Ocean. Beach sands rich in heavy minerals and offshore placer deposits are actively exploited by bordering countries, particularly India, South Africa, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.403 billion kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - production | 1.508 billion kWh (2005) | - |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m |
lowest point:
Java Trench -7,258 m highest point: sea level 0 m |
Environment - current issues | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires | endangered marine species include the dugong, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in the Arabian Sea, Persian Gulf, and Red Sea |
Ethnic groups | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% | - |
Exchange rates | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 95.025 (2006), 95.89 (2005), 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003), 126.71 (2002) | - |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Nicolas SARKOZY (since 16 May 2007); represented by High Commissioner Yves DASSONVILLE (since 9 November 2007)
head of government: President of the Government Harold MARTIN (since 7 August 2007) cabinet: Cabinet consisting of 11 members elected from and by the Territorial Congress elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress for a five-year term (no term limits); note - last election held 7 August 2007 when Harold MARTIN was elected following the resignation of Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU as president on 24 July 2007 (next to be held in 2012) |
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Exports | NA bbl/day | - |
Exports - commodities | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish | - |
Exports - partners | Japan 17.8%, Taiwan 14.9%, France 13.7%, China 11.1%, Spain 9.7%, Belgium 7.5%, Italy 6.2%, Australia 4.7% (2006) | - |
Fiscal year | calendar year | - |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15%
industry: 8.8% services: 76.2% (2003) |
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GDP - real growth rate | NA% | - |
Geographic coordinates | 21 30 S, 165 30 E | 20 00 S, 80 00 E |
Geography - note | consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls | major chokepoints include Bab el Mandeb, Strait of Hormuz, Strait of Malacca, southern access to the Suez Canal, and the Lombok Strait |
Heliports | 6 (2007) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Imports | NA bbl/day | - |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs | - |
Imports - partners | France 38.9%, Singapore 15.3%, Australia 11.4%, NZ 4.8% (2006) | - |
Independence | none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014 | - |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.6% (1996) | - |
Industries | nickel mining and smelting | - |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.42 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.4% (2000 est.) | - |
International organization participation | ITUC, PIF (observer), SPC, UPU, WFTU, WMO | - |
Irrigated land | 100 sq km (2003) | - |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court | - |
Labor force | 78,990 (2004) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 20%
industry: 20% services: 60% (2002) |
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Land boundaries | 0 km | - |
Land use | arable land: 0.32%
permanent crops: 0.22% other: 99.46% (2005) |
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Languages | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects | - |
Legal system | based on French civil law; the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands | - |
Legislative branch | unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres du territoire (54 seats; members belong to the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 May 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPCR-UMP 16, AE 16, UNI-FLNKS 8, UC 7, FN 4, others 3 note: New Caledonia currently holds one seat in the French Senate; by 2010, New Caledonia will gain a second seat in the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held not later than September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 1; New Caledonia also elects two seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 10 and 17 June 2007 (next to be held on June 2012); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 2 |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.5 years
male: 71.52 years female: 77.63 years (2007 est.) |
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Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.2% male: 96.8% female: 95.5% (1996 census) |
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Location | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | body of water between Africa, the Southern Ocean, Asia, and Australia |
Map references | Oceania | World |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,566 GRT/2,543 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2007) |
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Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | - |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | - |
Nationality | noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
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Natural hazards | cyclones, most frequent from November to March | occasional icebergs pose navigational hazard in southern reaches |
Natural resources | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper | oil and gas fields, fish, shrimp, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2007 est.) |
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Political parties and leaders | Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Caledonian Union or UC; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Francois BURCK]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independence) or RPCR-UMP [Jacques LAFLEUR]; The Future Together or AE [Harold MARTIN]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO] | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | - |
Population | 221,943 (July 2007 est.) | - |
Population below poverty line | NA% | - |
Population growth rate | 1.203% (2007 est.) | - |
Ports and harbors | - | Chennai (Madras; India), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Durban (South Africa), Jakarta (Indonesia), Kolkata (Calcutta; India) Melbourne (Australia), Mumbai (Bombay; India), Richards Bay (South Africa) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% | - |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.868 male(s)/female total population: 1.009 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | - |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
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Telephones - main lines in use | 55,300 (2005) | - |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 134,300 (2005) | - |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (plus 25 repeaters) (1997) | - |
Terrain | coastal plains with interior mountains | surface dominated by counterclockwise gyre (broad, circular system of currents) in the southern Indian Ocean; unique reversal of surface currents in the northern Indian Ocean; low atmospheric pressure over southwest Asia from hot, rising, summer air results in the southwest monsoon and southwest-to-northeast winds and currents, while high pressure over northern Asia from cold, falling, winter air results in the northeast monsoon and northeast-to-southwest winds and currents; ocean floor is dominated by the Mid-Indian Ocean Ridge and subdivided by the Southeast Indian Ocean Ridge, Southwest Indian Ocean Ridge, and Ninetyeast Ridge |
Total fertility rate | 2.25 children born/woman (2007 est.) | - |
Unemployment rate | 17.1% (2004) | - |