Compare Pacific Ocean (2004) - New Caledonia (2006)

Compare Pacific Ocean (2004) z New Caledonia (2006)

	Pacific Ocean (2004)	New Caledonia (2006)

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 Iles Loyaute, Nord, and Sud
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 28.4% (male 31,818/female 30,503) 15-64 years: 64.9% (male 71,565/female 70,815) 65 years and over: 6.6% (male 6,773/female 7,772) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products; fish
Airports	-	25 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	-	total: 11 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 2 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 6 (2006)
Area	total: 155.557 million sq km note: includes Bali Sea, Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Gulf of Tonkin, Philippine Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, South China Sea, Tasman Sea, and other tributary water bodies	total: 19,060 sq km land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km
Area - comparative	about 15 times the size of the US; covers about 28% of the global surface; larger than the total land area of the world	slightly smaller than New Jersey
Background	The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the world's five oceans (followed by the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean). Strategically important access waterways include the La Perouse, Tsugaru, Tsushima, Taiwan, Singapore, and Torres Straits. 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 Pacific Ocean south of 60 degrees south.	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.
Birth rate	-	18.11 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $856.3 million expenditures: $836.5 million (1996 est.)
Capital	-	name: Noumea geographic coordinates: 22 16 S, 166 27 E time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	planetary air pressure systems and resultant wind patterns exhibit remarkable uniformity in the south and east; trade winds and westerly winds are well-developed patterns, modified by seasonal fluctuations; tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico from June to October and affect Mexico and Central America; continental influences cause climatic uniformity to be much less pronounced in the eastern and western regions at the same latitude in the North Pacific Ocean; the western Pacific is monsoonal - a rainy season occurs during the summer months, when moisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a dry season during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asian landmass back to the ocean; tropical cyclones (typhoons) may strike southeast and east Asia from May to December	tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid
Coastline	135,663 km	2,254 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
Death rate	-	5.69 deaths/1,000 population (2006 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	some maritime disputes (see littoral states)	Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu
Economic aid - recipient	-	$525 million annual subsidy from France (2004)
Economy - overview	The Pacific Ocean is a major contributor to the world economy and particularly to those nations its waters directly touch. It provides low-cost sea transportation between East and West, extensive fishing grounds, offshore oil and gas fields, minerals, and sand and gravel for the construction industry. In 1996, over 60% of the world's fish catch came from the Pacific Ocean. Exploitation of offshore oil and gas reserves is playing an ever-increasing role in the energy supplies of the US, Australia, NZ, China, and Peru. The high cost of recovering offshore oil and gas, combined with the wide swings in world prices for oil since 1985, has led to fluctuations in new drillings.	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 one-fourth 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.
Electricity - consumption	-	1.47 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	-	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	-	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	-	1.581 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench -10,924 m highest point: sea level 0 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m
Environment - current issues	endangered marine species include the dugong, sea lion, sea otter, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in Philippine Sea and South China Sea	erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires
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 - 95.89 (2005), 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003), 126.71 (2002), 133.26 (2001)
Executive branch	-	chief of state: President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Michel MATHIEU (since 15 July 2005) head of government: President of the Government Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU (since 10 June 2004) cabinet: Consultative Committee consists of eight members chosen from leading figures on the island to advise the High Commissioner 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 29 June 2004 when Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU was elected on the third vote with 8 votes for and 3 abstentions
Exports	-	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	-	ferronickels, nickel ore, fish
Exports - partners	-	Japan 21.4%, France 16%, Taiwan 11.4%, South Korea 10.1%, Spain 9%, China 7.2%, South Africa 5.2%, Belgium 4.5% (2005)
Fiscal year	-	calendar year
Flag description	-	the flag of France is used
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 15% industry: 8.8% services: 76.2% (1997 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	NA%
Geographic coordinates	0 00 N, 160 00 W	21 30 S, 165 30 E
Geography - note	the major chokepoints are the Bering Strait, Panama Canal, Luzon Strait, and the Singapore Strait; the Equator divides the Pacific Ocean into the North Pacific Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean; dotted with low coral islands and rugged volcanic islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean	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
Heliports	-	6 (2006)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	-	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Imports	-	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	-	machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs
Imports - partners	-	France 39%, Singapore 17.4%, Australia 13%, NZ 5.3% (2005)
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: 7.57 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	-0.6% (2000 est.)
International organization participation	-	ICFTU, 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 (including 11,300 unemployed) (2004)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture: 20% industry: 20% services: 60% (1999 est.)
Land boundaries	-	0 km
Land use	-	arable land: 0.32% permanent crops: 0.22% other: 99.46% (2005)
Languages	-	French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects
Legal system	-	the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law
Legislative branch	-	unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (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 NA 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 1 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 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 and 16 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 2
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 74.27 years male: 71.29 years female: 77.39 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 91% male: 92% female: 90% (1976 est.)
Location	body of water between the Southern Ocean, Asia, Australia, and the Western Hemisphere	Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia
Map references	Political Map of the World	Oceania
Maritime claims	-	territorial sea: 12 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 (2006)
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 - dollar figure	-	NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	NA
National holiday	-	Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Nationality	-	noun: New Caledonian(s) adjective: New Caledonian
Natural hazards	surrounded by a zone of violent volcanic and earthquake activity sometimes referred to as the "Pacific Ring of Fire"; subject to tropical cyclones (typhoons) in southeast and east Asia from May to December (most frequent from July to October); tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico and strike Central America and Mexico from June to October (most common in August and September); cyclical El Nino/La Nina phenomenon occurs in the equatorial Pacific, influencing weather in the Western Hemisphere and the western Pacific; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme north from October to May; persistent fog in the northern Pacific can be a maritime hazard from June to December	cyclones, most frequent from November to March
Natural resources	oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, fish	nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper
Net migration rate	-	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (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 [leader NA] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independent) 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	-	219,246 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	NA%
Population growth rate	-	1.24% (2006 est.)
Ports and harbors	Bangkok (Thailand), Hong Kong, Kao-hsiung (Taiwan), Los Angeles (US), Manila (Philippines), Pusan (South Korea), San Francisco (US), Seattle (US), Shanghai (China), Singapore, Sydney (Australia), Vladivostok (Russia), Wellington (NZ), Yokohama (Japan)	-
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	-	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	-	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	-	55,300 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	134,300 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	-	6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	surface currents in the northern Pacific are dominated by a clockwise, warm-water gyre (broad circular system of currents) and in the southern Pacific by a counterclockwise, cool-water gyre; in the northern Pacific, sea ice forms in the Bering Sea and Sea of Okhotsk in winter; in the southern Pacific, sea ice from Antarctica reaches its northernmost extent in October; the ocean floor in the eastern Pacific is dominated by the East Pacific Rise, while the western Pacific is dissected by deep trenches, including the Mariana Trench, which is the world's deepest	coastal plains with interior mountains
Total fertility rate	-	2.28 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Transportation - note	Inside Passage offers protected waters from southeast Alaska to Puget Sound (Washington state)	-
Unemployment rate	-	17.1% (2004)

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