New Zealand (2003) | Nauru (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 16 regions; Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Canterbury, Gisborne, Hawke's Bay, Marlborough, Nelson, Northland, Otago, Southland, Taranaki, Tasman, Waikato, Manawatu-Wanganui, Wellington, West Coast | 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.9% (male 443,837; female 423,118)
15-64 years: 66.5% (male 1,318,751; female 1,307,796) 65 years and over: 11.6% (male 199,722; female 258,083) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 38.2% (male 2,516; female 2,372)
15-64 years: 60% (male 3,782; female 3,898) 65 years and over: 1.9% (male 128; female 113) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses, fruits, vegetables; wool, beef, dairy products; fish | coconuts |
Airports | 113 (2002) | 1 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 46
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 67
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 26 under 914 m: 39 (2002) |
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Area | total: 268,680 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km note: includes Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, Chatham Islands, and Kermadec Islands |
total: 21 sq km
land: 21 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about the size of Colorado | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. In that same year, the British began the first organized colonial settlement. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the UK militarily in both World Wars. New Zealand's full participation in a number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, the government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances. | 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. |
Birth rate | 14.14 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 25.61 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $29.2 billion
expenditures: $31.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2002) |
revenues: $23.4 million
expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY95/96) |
Capital | Wellington | no official capital; government offices in Yaren District |
Climate | temperate with sharp regional contrasts | tropical with a monsoonal pattern; rainy season (November to February) |
Coastline | 15,134 km | 30 km |
Constitution | consists of a series of legal documents, including certain acts of the UK and New Zealand Parliaments and The Constitution Act 1986 which is the principal formal charter | 29 January 1968 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: New Zealand abbreviation: NZ |
conventional long form: Republic of Nauru
conventional short form: Nauru former: Pleasant Island |
Currency | New Zealand dollar (NZD) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 7.54 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 6.95 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $33 billion (2002 est.) | $33.3 million (2002) |
Dependent areas | Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Charles J. SWINDELLS
embassy: 29 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington mailing address: P. O. Box 1190, Wellington; PSC 467, Box 1, APO AP 96531-1034 telephone: [64] (4) 462-6000 FAX: [64] (4) 472-3478 consulate(s) general: Auckland |
the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador L. John WOOD
chancery: 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-4800 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5227 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York |
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) |
Disputes - international | territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross Dependency) | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $99.7 million | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | Since 1984 the government has accomplished major economic restructuring, transforming New Zealand from an agrarian economy dependent on concessionary British market access to a more industrialized, free market economy that can compete globally. This dynamic growth has boosted real incomes (but left behind many at the bottom of the ladder), broadened and deepened the technological capabilities of the industrial sector, and contained inflationary pressures. While per capita incomes have been rising, however, they remain below the level of the four largest EU economies, and there is some government concern that New Zealand is not closing the gap. New Zealand is heavily dependent on trade - particularly in agricultural products - to drive growth, and it has been affected by the global economic slowdown and the slump in commodity prices. Thus far the New Zealand economy has been relatively resilient, although growth may slow to 2.5% in 2003. | Revenues of this tiny island have traditionally come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are now depleted. Few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, mainly from Australia, its former occupier and later major source of support. 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. As a result of heavy spending from the trust funds, the government faces virtual bankruptcy. 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. In 2004 the deterioration in housing, hospitals, and other capital plant continued, and the cost to Australia of keeping the government and economy afloat has substantially mounted. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's GDP varying widely. |
Electricity - consumption | 34.88 billion kWh (2001) | 27.9 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 37.51 billion kWh (2001) | 30 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 31.6%
hydro: 57.8% nuclear: 0% other: 10.7% (2001) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Aoraki-Mount Cook 3,754 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; native flora and fauna hard-hit by species introduced from outside | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic Seals, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation |
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 |
Ethnic groups | New Zealand European 74.5%, Maori 9.7%, other European 4.6%, Pacific Islander 3.8%, Asian and others 7.4% | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% |
Exchange rates | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.16 (2002), 2.38 (2001), 2.2 (2000), 1.89 (1999), 1.87 (1998) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.5419 (2003), 1.2641 (2002) 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Silvia CARTWRIGHT (since 4 April 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Helen CLARK (since 10 December 1999) and Deputy Prime Minister Michael CULLEN (since NA July 2002) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
chief of state: President Ludwig SCOTTY (since 26 October 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ludwig SCOTTY (since 26 October 2004); 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 23 October 2004 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Ludwig SCOTTY was unopposed in the parliamentary elections for president |
Exports | 30,220 bbl/day (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | dairy products, meat, wood and wood products, fish, machinery | phosphates |
Exports - partners | Australia 20.3%, US 15.5%, Japan 11.5%, UK 4.8%, China 4.6%, South Korea 4.4% (2002) | Japan 42.3%, India 38.5%, South Korea 7.7% (2003) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with four red five-pointed stars edged in white centered in the outer half of the flag; the stars represent the Southern Cross constellation | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $78.4 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $60 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8%
industry: 23% services: 69% (2001) |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $20,100 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.3% (2002 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 41 00 S, 174 00 E | 0 32 S, 166 55 E |
Geography - note | about 80% of the population lives in cities; Wellington is the southernmost national capital in the world | 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 |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 92,053 km
paved: 57,809 km (including at least 190 km of expressways) unpaved: 34,244 km (2000) |
total: 30 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.3%
highest 10%: 29.8% (1991 est.) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | offshore banking recently stopped, remains on Financial Action Task Force Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories List for continued failure to address deficiencies in money-laundering control regime |
Imports | 119,700 bbl/day (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, vehicles and aircraft, petroleum, electronics, textiles, plastics | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery |
Imports - partners | Australia 22.1%, US 13.6%, Japan 12%, China 8%, Germany 5.2% (2002) | Australia 67.9%, Indonesia 10.7%, US 7.1% (2003) |
Independence | 26 September 1907 (from UK) | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2001 est.) | NA |
Industries | food processing, wood and paper products, textiles, machinery, transportation equipment, banking and insurance, tourism, mining | phosphate mining, offshore banking, coconut products |
Infant mortality rate | total: 6.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.96 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 10.14 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 12.76 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.7% (2002 est.) | -3.6% (1993) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ANZUS (US suspended security obligations to NZ on 11 August 1986), APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, C, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOP, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, ICAO, ICCt, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 36 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 2,850 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | High Court; Court of Appeal | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 1.92 million (2001 est.) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | services 65%, industry 25%, agriculture 10% (1995) | employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 5.8%
permanent crops: 6.44% other: 87.76% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Maori (official) | Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes |
Legal system | based on English law, with special land legislation and land courts for the Maori; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Representatives - commonly called Parliament (120 seats; 69 members elected by popular vote in single-member constituencies including 7 Maori constituencies, and 51 proportional seats chosen from party lists, all to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 27 July 2002 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NZLP 52, NP 27, NZFP 13, ACT New Zealand 9, Green Party 9, UF 8, other 2 |
unicameral Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 3 May 2003 (next to be held not later than May 2006) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - Nauru First Party 3, independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.32 years
male: 75.34 years female: 81.44 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 62.33 years
male: 58.78 years female: 66.06 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1980 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of Australia | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands |
Map references | Oceania | Oceania |
Maritime claims | continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 69,685 GRT/106,627 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 2, container 1, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1 (2002 est.) |
none |
Military - note | - | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand Navy, Royal New Zealand Air Force | no regular military forces; Nauru Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $605.7 million (FY02) | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (FY02) | NA |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,021,770 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 3,275 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 859,505 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,810 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 26,803 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) |
Nationality | noun: New Zealander(s)
adjective: New Zealand |
noun: Nauruan(s)
adjective: Nauruan |
Natural hazards | earthquakes are common, though usually not severe; volcanic activity | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower, gold, limestone | phosphates, fish |
Net migration rate | 4.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 2,213 km; liquid petroleum gas 79 km; oil 160 km; refined products 304 km (2003) | - |
Political parties and leaders | ACT New Zealand [Richard PREBBLE]; Alliance (a coalition of the New Labor Party, Democratic Party, New Zealand Liberal Party, and Mana Motuhake) [James (Jim) ANDERTON]; Green Party [Jeanette FITZSIMONS and Rod DONALD]; National Party or NP [Don BRASH]; New Zealand First Party or NZFP [Winston PETERS]; New Zealand Labor Party or NZLP [Helen CLARK]; United Future or UF [Peter DUNNE] | loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [leader NA]; Naoero Amo (Nauru First) Party [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,951,307 (July 2003 est.) | 12,809 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.09% (2003 est.) | 1.87% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Tauranga, Wellington | Nauru |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 124, FM 290, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 3,898 km
narrow gauge: 3,898 km 1.067-m gauge (506 km electrified) (2002) |
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Religions | Anglican 24%, Presbyterian 18%, Roman Catholic 15%, Methodist 5%, Baptist 2%, other Protestant 3%, unspecified or none 33% (1986) | Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: excellent domestic and international systems
domestic: NA international: submarine cables to Australia and Fiji; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: adequate local and international radiotelephone communication provided via Australian facilities
domestic: NA international: country code - 674; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.92 million (2000) | 1,900 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2.2 million (2000) | 1,500 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 41 (plus 52 medium-power repeaters and over 650 low-power repeaters) (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center |
Total fertility rate | 1.79 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.29 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.3% (2002 est.) | 0% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 1,609 km
note: of little importance in satisfying total transportation requirements |
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