New Caledonia (2007) | Marshall Islands (2006) | |
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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 | 33 municipalities; Ailinginae, Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikar, Bikini, Bokak, Ebon, Enewetak, Erikub, Jabat, Jaluit, Jemo, Kili, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Rongrik, Toke, Ujae, Ujelang, Utirik, Wotho, Wotje |
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.) |
0-14 years: 38.1% (male 11,720/female 11,295)
15-64 years: 59.2% (male 18,305/female 17,445) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 801/female 856) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products; fish | coconuts, tomatoes, melons, taro, breadfruit, fruits; pigs, chickens |
Airports | 25 (2007) | 15 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 6 (2007) |
total: 11
914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
Area | total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
total: 11,854.3 sq km
land: 181.3 sq km water: 11,673 sq km (note - lagoon waters) note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | about the size of Washington, DC |
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. | After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing on some of the atolls between 1947 and 1962. The Marshall Islands hosts the US Army Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) Reagan Missile Test Site, a key installation in the US missile defense network. |
Birth rate | 17.75 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 33.05 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $996 million
expenditures: $1.072 billion (2001 est.) |
revenues: $42 million
expenditures: $40 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (1999) |
Capital | name: Noumea
geographic coordinates: 22 16 S, 166 27 E time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Majuro
geographic coordinates: 7 05 N, 171 08 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid | tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November; islands border typhoon belt |
Coastline | 2,254 km | 370.4 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | 1 May 1979 |
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 |
conventional long form: Republic of the Marshall Islands
conventional short form: Marshall Islands local long form: Republic of the Marshall Islands local short form: Marshall Islands abbreviation: RMI former: Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Marshall Islands District |
Death rate | 5.72 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.78 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $79 million (1998 est.) | $86.5 million (FY99/00 est.) |
Dependency status | territorial collectivity of France since 1998 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Greta N. MORRIS
embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692] 247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Banny DE BRUM
chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general: Honolulu |
Disputes - international | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu | claims US territory of Wake Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $524.3 million annual subsidy from France (2004) | $51.1 million more than $1 billion from the US, 1986-2002 |
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. | US Government assistance is the mainstay of this tiny island economy. Agricultural production, primarily subsistence, is concentrated on small farms; the most important commercial crops are coconuts and breadfruit. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, tuna processing, and copra. The tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. Under the terms of the Amended Compact of Free Association, the US will provide millions of dollars per year to the Marshall Islands (RMI) through 2023, at which time a Trust Fund made up of US and RMI contributions will begin perpetual annual payouts. Government downsizing, drought, a drop in construction, the decline in tourism and foreign investment due to the Asian financial difficulties, and less income from the renewal of fishing vessel licenses have held GDP growth to an average of 1% over the past decade. |
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: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 m |
Environment - current issues | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires | inadequate supplies of potable water; pollution of Majuro lagoon from household waste and discharges from fishing vessels |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% | Micronesian |
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) | the US dollar is used |
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) |
chief of state: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 5 January 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 5 January 2004) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the members of the legislature elections: president elected by Parliament from among its own members for a four-year term; election last held 17 November 2003 (next to be held November 2007) election results: Kessai Hesa NOTE elected president; percent of Parliament vote - 100% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $9.1 million f.o.b. (2000) |
Exports - commodities | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish | copra cake, coconut oil, handicrafts, 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) | US, Japan, Australia, China (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15%
industry: 8.8% services: 76.2% (2003) |
agriculture: 31.7%
industry: 14.9% services: 53.4% (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 3.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 30 S, 165 30 E | 9 00 N, 168 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 | Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is used as a US missile test range; island city of Ebeye is the second largest settlement in the Marshall Islands, after the capital of Majuro, and one of the most densely populated locations in the Pacific |
Heliports | 6 (2007) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $54.7 million f.o.b. (2000) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels, beverages and tobacco |
Imports - partners | France 38.9%, Singapore 15.3%, Australia 11.4%, NZ 4.8% (2006) | US, Japan, Australia, NZ, Singapore, Fiji, China, Philippines (2004) |
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 | 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.6% (1996) | NA% |
Industries | nickel mining and smelting | copra, tuna processing, tourism, craft items from seashells, wood, and pearls |
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.) |
total: 28.43 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 24.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.4% (2000 est.) | 3% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ITUC, PIF (observer), SPC, UPU, WFTU, WMO | ACP, AsDB, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, IDA, IFC, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO |
Irrigated land | 100 sq km (2003) | 0 sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court | Supreme Court; High Court; Traditional Rights Court |
Labor force | 78,990 (2004) | 14,680 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 20%
industry: 20% services: 60% (2002) |
agriculture: 21.4%
industry: 20.9% services: 57.7% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.32%
permanent crops: 0.22% other: 99.46% (2005) |
arable land: 11.11%
permanent crops: 44.44% other: 44.45% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects | Marshallese 98.2%, other languages 1.8% (1999 census)
note: English widely spoken as a second language; both Marshallese and English are official languages |
Legal system | based on French civil law; the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws |
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 |
unicameral legislature or Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 November 2003 (next to be held by November 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA note: the Council of Chiefs or Ironij is a 12-member body comprised of tribal chiefs that advises on matters affecting customary law and practice |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.5 years
male: 71.52 years female: 77.63 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 70.31 years
male: 68.33 years female: 72.39 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.2% male: 96.8% female: 95.5% (1996 census) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.7% male: 93.6% female: 93.7% (1999) |
Location | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | Oceania, two archipelagic island chains of 29 atolls, each made up of many small islets, and five single islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia |
Map references | Oceania | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,566 GRT/2,543 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2007) |
total: 795 ships (1000 GRT or over) 30,772,611 GRT/50,987,293 DWT
by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 178, cargo 53, chemical tanker 133, container 147, liquefied gas 25, passenger 7, petroleum tanker 234, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 7, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 5 foreign-owned: 730 (Australia 2, Bermuda 4, Brazil 1, Canada 6, Chile 1, Croatia 2, Cyprus 15, Denmark 1, Finland 2, Germany 194, Greece 199, Hong Kong 7, Isle of Man 1, Italy 1, Japan 7, South Korea 1, Latvia 7, Monaco 8, Netherlands 1, Norway 65, Russia 1, Saudi Arabia 1, Singapore 6, Slovenia 3, Spain 3, Switzerland 13, Turkey 20, UAE 3, UK 12, US 143) registered in other countries: 1 (North Korea 1) (2006) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | defense is the responsibility of the US |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force | no regular military forces; Marshall Islands Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | NA |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Constitution Day, 1 May (1979) |
Nationality | noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
noun: Marshallese (singular and plural)
adjective: Marshallese |
Natural hazards | cyclones, most frequent from November to March | infrequent typhoons |
Natural resources | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper | coconut products, marine products, deep seabed minerals |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2007 est.) |
-5.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
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] | traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Aelon Kein Ad Party [Michael KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 221,943 (July 2007 est.) | 60,422 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.203% (2007 est.) | 2.25% (2006 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0
note: additionally, the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Services (Central Pacific Network) operate one FM and one AM station on Kwajalein (2005) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% | Protestant 54.8%, Assembly of God 25.8%, Roman Catholic 8.4%, Bukot nan Jesus 2.8%, Mormon 2.1%, other Christian 3.6%, other 1%, none 1.5% (1999 census) |
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.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.94 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: digital switching equipment; modern services include telex, cellular, internet, international calling, caller ID, and leased data circuits
domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by high frequency radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) and mini-satellite telephones international: country code - 692; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 55,300 (2005) | 5,510 (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 134,300 (2005) | 1,198 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (plus 25 repeaters) (1997) | 2 (both are US military stations)
note: Marshalls Broadcasting Service (cable company) operates on Majuro (2005) |
Terrain | coastal plains with interior mountains | low coral limestone and sand islands |
Total fertility rate | 2.25 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 3.85 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 17.1% (2004) | 30.9% (2000 est.) |