Saint Helena (2008) | Niue (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* | none; note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 14 villages at the second order |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 18.7% (male 716/female 691)
15-64 years: 71.1% (male 2,755/female 2,608) 65 years and over: 10.2% (male 358/female 415) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: NA%
15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
Agriculture - products | coffee, corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, lobster (on Tristan da Cunha); livestock | coconuts, passion fruit, honey, limes, taro, yams, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, poultry, beef cattle |
Airports | 1 (2007) | 1 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 413 sq km
land: Saint Helena Island 122 sq km; Ascension Island 90 sq km; Tristan da Cunha island group 201 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 260 sq km
land: 260 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Saint Helena is a British Overseas Territory consisting of Saint Helena and Ascension Islands, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha.
Saint Helena: Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. During the Anglo-Boer War in South Africa, several thousand Boer prisoners were confined on the island between 1900 and 1903. Ascension Island: This barren and uninhabited island was discovered and named by the Portuguese in 1503. The British garrisoned the island in 1815 to prevent a rescue of Napoleon from Saint Helena and it served as a provisioning station for the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron on anti-slavery patrol. The island remained under Admiralty control until 1922, when it became a dependency of Saint Helena. During World War II, the UK permitted the US to construct an airfield on Ascension in support of trans-Atlantic flights to Africa and anti-submarine operations in the South Atlantic. In the 1960s the island became an important space tracking station for the US. In 1982, Ascension was an essential staging area for British forces during the Falklands War, and it remains a critical refueling point in the air-bridge from the UK to the South Atlantic. Tristan da Cunha: The island group consists of the islands of Tristan da Cunha, Nightingale, Inaccessible, and Gough. Tristan da Cunha is named after its Portuguese discoverer (1506); it was garrisoned by the British in 1816 to prevent any attempt to rescue Napoleon from Saint Helena. Gough and Inaccessible Islands have been designated World Heritage Sites. South Africa leases a site for a meteorological station on Gough Island. |
Niue's remoteness, as well as cultural and linguistic differences between its Polynesian inhabitants and those of the rest of the Cook Islands, have caused it to be separately administered. The population of the island continues to drop (from a peak of 5,200 in 1966 to about 2,100 in 2002) with substantial emigration to New Zealand, 2,400 km to the southwest. |
Birth rate | 11.93 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $13.09 million
expenditures: $32.16 million note: revenue data reflect locally raised revenues only; the budget deficit is resolved by grant aid from the United Kingdom (FY06/07 est.) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | name: Jamestown
geographic coordinates: 15 56 S, 5 44 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Alofi |
Climate | Saint Helena: tropical marine; mild, tempered by trade winds
Ascension Island: tropical marine; mild, semi-arid Tristan da Cunha: temperate marine; mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
tropical; modified by southeast trade winds |
Coastline | Saint Helena: 60 km
Ascension Island: NA Tristan da Cunha: 40 km |
64 km |
Constitution | 1 January 1989 | 19 October 1974 (Niue Constitution Act) |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Niue former: Savage Island |
Currency | - | New Zealand dollar (NZD) |
Death rate | 6.63 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $NA | $NA |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | self-governing in free association with New Zealand since 1974; Niue fully responsible for internal affairs; New Zealand retains responsibility for external affairs and defense; however, these responsibilities confer no rights of control and are only exercised at the request of the Government of Niue |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $29.56 million obtained in a grant from the United Kingdom (FY06/07) | $2.6 million from New Zealand (2002) |
Economy - overview | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which will amount to about $27 million in FY06/07 or almost 70% of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, raising livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. | The economy suffers from the typical Pacific island problems of geographic isolation, few resources, and a small population. Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, and the shortfall is made up by critically needed grants from New Zealand that are used to pay wages to public employees. Niue has cut government expenditures by reducing the public service by almost half. The agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening, although some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists primarily of small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil, honey, and coconut cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign collectors is an important source of revenue. The island in recent years has suffered a serious loss of population because of migration of Niueans to New Zealand. Efforts to increase GDP include the promotion of tourism and a financial services industry, although Premier LAKATANI announced in February 2002 that Niue will shut down the offshore banking industry. Economic aid from New Zealand in 2002 will be about $2.6 million. |
Electricity - consumption | 7.44 million kWh (2005) | 2.79 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 8 million kWh (2005) | 3 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,062 m; Green Mountain on Ascension Island 859 m; Mount Actaeon on Saint Helena Island 818 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location near Mutalau settlement 68 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | increasing attention to conservationist practices to counter loss of soil fertility from traditional slash and burn agriculture |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% | Polynesian (with some 200 Europeans, Samoans, and Tongans) |
Exchange rates | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.4993 (2007), 0.5434 (2006), 0.5493 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003)
note: the Saint Helenian pound is on par with the British pound |
New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.3535 (January 2002), 2.3776 (2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8629 (1998), 1.5082 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief Andrew GURR (since 11 November 2007) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, three ex-officio officers, and five elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by New Zealand High Commissioner John BRYAN (since NA May 2000)
head of government: Premier Young VIVIAN (since 1 May 2002) cabinet: Cabinet consists of the premier and three ministers elections: the monarch is hereditary; premier elected by the Legislative Assembly for a three-year term; election last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2005) election results: Young VIVIAN elected premier; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - Young VIVIAN (NPP) 70%, Hunukitama HUNUKI (AI)30% |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $137,200 (1999) |
Exports - commodities | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts | canned coconut cream, copra, honey, vanilla, passion fruit products, pawpaws, root crops, limes, footballs, stamps, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Tanzania 37.7%, US 17.4%, Japan 15.2%, UK 8.4%, Nigeria 4.8%, Spain 4.5% (2006) | NZ mainly, Fiji, Cook Islands, Australia |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship | yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars - a large one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on each arm of the bold red cross |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $7.6 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: 55% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $3,600 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | -0.3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | Saint Helena: 15 57 S, 5 42 W
Ascension Island: 7 57 S, 14 22 W Tristan da Cunha island group: 37 15 S, 12 30 W |
19 02 S, 169 52 W |
Geography - note | Saint Helena harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns; Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha is the highest island mountain in the South Atlantic and a prominent landmark on the sea lanes around southern Africa | one of world's largest coral islands |
Highways | - | total: 234 km
paved: 86 km unpaved: 148 km (106 km of which is access and plantation road) (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 64.07 bbl/day (2004) | $2.38 million (1999) |
Imports - commodities | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts | food, live animals, manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, lubricants, chemicals, drugs |
Imports - partners | UK 53.5%, South Africa 14.3%, Spain 10.3%, Tanzania 8.5%, US 4.6% (2006) | NZ mainly, Fiji, Japan, Samoa, Australia, US |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | on 19 October 1974, Niue became a self-governing parliamentary government in free association with New Zealand |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing, philatelic sales | tourism, handicrafts, food processing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 17.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
NA deaths/1,000 live births |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.2% (1997 est.) | 1% (1995) (1995) |
International organization participation | UPU | ACP, ESCAP (associate), FAO, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UNESCO, WHO, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Magistrate's Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal | Supreme Court of New Zealand; High Court of Niue |
Labor force | 2,486
note: 1,200 work offshore (1998 est.) |
NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 6%
industry: 48% services: 46% (1987 est.) |
most work on family plantations; paid work exists only in government service, small industry, and the Niue Development Board |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 12.9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 87.1% (2005) |
arable land: 19.23%
permanent crops: 7.69% other: 73.08% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English | Niuean, a Polynesian language closely related to Tongan and Samoan; English |
Legal system | English common law and statutes, supplemented by local statutes | English common law
note: Niue is self-governing, with the power to make its own laws |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, three ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 31 August 2005 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 12 |
unicameral Legislative Assembly (20 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; six elected from a common roll and 14 are village representatives)
elections: last held 21 March 2002 (next to be held in March 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 9, independents 11; note - all 20 seats were reelected |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.09 years
male: 75.19 years female: 81.15 years (2007 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
Literacy | definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: 95% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa; Ascension Island lies 700 nm northwest of Saint Helena; Tristan da Cunha lies 2300 nm southwest of Saint Helena | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Tonga |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand |
Military branches | - | no regular indigenous military forces; Police Force |
National holiday | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian note: referred to locally as "Saints" |
noun: Niuean(s)
adjective: Niuean |
Natural hazards | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha, last eruption in 1961 | typhoons |
Natural resources | fish, lobster | fish, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population |
Political parties and leaders | none | Niue People's Action Party or NPP [Young VIVIAN]; Alliance of Independents or AI [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 7,543
note: only Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha islands are inhabited (July 2007 est.) |
2,134 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.53% (2007 est.) | 0.5% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none; offshore anchorage only |
Radio broadcast stations | Saint Helena: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0
Ascension: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2005) |
AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 1,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic | Ekalesia Niue (Niuean Church - a Protestant church closely related to the London Missionary Society) 75%, Latter-Day Saints 10%, other 15% (mostly Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventist) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.036 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.056 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.863 male(s)/female total population: 1.031 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
NA |
Suffrage | NA years of age | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic digital network international: country code (Saint Helena) - 290, (Ascension Island) - 247; international direct dialing; satellite voice and data communications; satellite earth stations - 5 (Ascension Island - 4, Saint Helena - 1) |
domestic: single-line telephone system connects all villages on island
international: NA |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,200 (2002) | 376 (1991) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 0 (1991) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (3 television channels are received via satellite and distributed by UHF) (2005) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | the islands of this group result from volcanic activity associated with the Atlantic Mid-Ocean Ridge
Saint Helena: rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains Ascension: surface covered by lava flows and cinder cones of 44 dormant volcanoes; ground rises to the east Tristan da Cunha: sheer cliffs line the coastline of the nearly circular island; the flanks of the central volcanic peak are deeply dissected; narrow coastal plain lies between The Peak and the coastal cliffs |
steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau |
Total fertility rate | 1.55 children born/woman (2007 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Transportation - note | there is no air connection to Saint Helena or Tristan da Cunha; an international airport for Saint Helena is in development for 2010 | - |
Unemployment rate | 14% (1998 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | - | none |