Saint Lucia (2004) | Kiribati (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros-Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux-Fort | 3 units; Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands; note - in addition, there are 6 districts (Banaba, Central Gilberts, Line Islands, Northern Gilberts, Southern Gilberts, Tarawa) and 21 island councils - one for each of the inhabited islands (Abaiang, Abemama, Aranuka, Arorae, Banaba, Beru, Butaritari, Kanton, Kiritimati, Kuria, Maiana, Makin, Marakei, Nikunau, Nonouti, Onotoa, Tabiteuea, Tabuaeran, Tamana, Tarawa, Teraina) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 30.7% (male 25,913; female 24,467)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 51,750; female 53,530) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 3,159; female 5,394) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
40.53% (male 19,322; female 18,833) 15-64 years: 56.27% (male 26,136; female 26,841) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 1,291; female 1,726) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish |
Airports | 2 (2003 est.) | 21 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
17 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 616 sq km
land: 606 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total:
717 sq km land: 717 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands |
Area - comparative | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979. | The Gilbert Islands were granted self-rule by the UK in 1971 and complete independence in 1979 under the new name of Kiribati. The US relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited Phoenix and Line Island groups in a 1979 treaty of friendship with Kiribati. |
Birth rate | 20.5 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 31.98 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $141.2 million
expenditures: $146.7 million, including capital expenditures of $25.1 million (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$33.3 million expenditures: $47.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Castries | Tarawa |
Climate | tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to April, rainy season from May to August | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds |
Coastline | 158 km | 1,143 km |
Constitution | 22 February 1979 | 12 July 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Lucia |
conventional long form:
Republic of Kiribati conventional short form: Kiribati note: pronounced kir-ih-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 5.18 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 8.88 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $214 million (2000) | $10 million (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador to Barbados, Ambassador Mary E. KRAMER, is accredited to Saint Lucia | the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to the Marshall Islands is accredited to Kiribati |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Sonia Merlyn JOHNNY
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6723 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu |
Disputes - international | joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $51.8 million (1995) | $15.5 million (1995), largely from UK and Japan |
Economy - overview | Changes in the EU import preference regime and the increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. The island nation has been able to attract foreign business and investment, especially in its offshore banking and tourism industries. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean area, and the government is trying to revitalize the banana industry. Economic fundamentals remain solid. | A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few national resources. Commercially viable phosphate deposits were exhausted at the time of independence from the UK in 1979. Copra and fish now represent the bulk of production and exports. The economy has fluctuated widely in recent years. Economic development is constrained by a shortage of skilled workers, weak infrastructure, and remoteness from international markets. Tourism provides more than one-fifth of GDP. The financial sector is at an early stage of development as is the expansion of private sector initiatives. Foreign financial aid, largely from the UK and Japan, is a critical supplement to GDP, equal to 25%-50% of GDP in recent years. Remittances from workers abroad account for more than $5 million each year. Performance in 2000 fell short of the 2.5% growth in 1999, which benefited from increased copra production and exceptionally large revenues from fishing licenses. |
Electricity - consumption | 111.8 million kWh (2001) | 6.5 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 120.2 million kWh (2001) | 7 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region | heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 90%, mixed 6%, East Indian 3%, white 1% | predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Pearlette LOUISY (since September 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Kenneth Davis ANTHONY (since 24 May 1997) and Deputy Prime Minister Mario MICHEL (since 24 May 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is 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 Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the House of Assembly, includes the president, vice president, attorney general, and up to eight other ministers elections: the House of Assembly chooses the presidential candidates from among their members and then those candidates compete in a general election; president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 27 November 1998 (next to be held by NA November 2002); vice president appointed by the president election results: Teburoro TITO reelected president; percent of vote - Teburoro TITO 52.3%, Dr. Harry TONG 45.8%, Amberoti NIKORA 1.9%, Taberannang TIMEON 0% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $6 million (f.o.b., 1998) |
Exports - commodities | bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish |
Exports - partners | UK 48%, US 24%, Antigua and Barbuda 6%, Dominica 6%, Grenada 4% (2003) | Bangladesh, Australia, US, Hong Kong (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | NA |
Flag description | blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border | the upper half is red with a yellow frigate bird flying over a yellow rising sun, and the lower half is blue with three horizontal wavy white stripes to represent the ocean |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $866 million (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $76 million (2000 est.), supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 7%
industry: 20% services: 73% (2002 est.) |
agriculture:
14% industry: 7% services: 79% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,400 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.3% (2002 est.) | 1% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 53 N, 60 68 W | 1 25 N, 173 00 E |
Geography - note | the twin Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit Piton), striking cone-shaped peaks south of Soufriere, are one of the scenic natural highlights of the Caribbean | 20 of the 33 islands are inhabited; Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru |
Highways | total: 1,210 km
paved: 63 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1999 est.) |
total:
670 km (1996) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | $44 million (c.i.f., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel |
Imports - partners | US 36.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 19.6%, UK 7.4%, Venezuela 6.8% (2003) | Australia, Fiji, Japan, NZ, China (1999) |
Independence | 22 February 1979 (from UK) | 12 July 1979 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -8.9% (1997 est.) | 0.7% (1992 est.) |
Industries | clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism, lime processing, coconut processing | fishing, handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | total: 13.95 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
54 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2001 est.) | 2% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (jurisdiction extends to Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president |
Labor force | 43,800 (2001 est.) | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (1985 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 21.7%, industry, commerce, and manufacturing 24.7%, services 53.6% (2002 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 6.56%
permanent crops: 22.95% other: 70.49% (2001) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 51% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 3% other: 46% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English (official), French patois | English (official), I-Kiribati |
Legal system | based on English common law | NA |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (11 seats; six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 3 December 2001 (next to be held in December 2006) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - SLP 55%, UWP 37%, NA 3.5%; seats by party - SLP 14, UWP 3 |
unicameral House of Assembly or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (41 seats; 39 elected by popular vote, one ex officio member, and one nominated to represent Banaba; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 23 September 1998 (next to be held by NA September 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Maneaban Te Mauri Party 14, National Progressive Party 11, independents 14 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.34 years
male: 69.78 years female: 77.16 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
60.16 years male: 57.25 years female: 63.22 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 67% male: 65% female: 69% (1980 est.) |
definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Oceania, group of islands in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the equator, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia; note - on 1 January 1995, Kiribati proclaimed that all of its territory lies in the same time zone as its Gilbert Islands group (GMT +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction lie on the other side of the International Date Line |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,291 GRT/1,295 DWT ships by type: passenger/cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ |
Military branches | Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (including Special Service Unit, Coast Guard) | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | NA% |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 February (1979) | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Saint Lucian(s)
adjective: Saint Lucian |
noun:
I-Kiribati (singular and plural) adjective: I-Kiribati |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and volcanic activity | typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level |
Natural resources | forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) |
Net migration rate | -2.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | National Alliance or NA [George ODLUM]; Saint Lucia Freedom Party or SFP [Martinus FRANCOIS]; Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Kenneth ANTHONY]; Sou Tout Apwe Fete Fini or STAFF [Christopher HUNTE]; United Workers Party or UWP [Dr. Morella JOSEPH] | Maneaban Te Mauri Party [Teburoro TITO]; National Progressive Party [Teatao TEANNAKI]
note: there is no tradition of formally organized political parties in Kiribati; they more closely resemble factions or interest groups because they have no party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 164,213 (July 2004 est.) | 94,149 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.27% (2004 est.) | 2.31% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Castries, Vieux Fort | Banaba, Betio, English Harbor, Kanton |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 17,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 90%, Anglican 3%, other Protestant 7% | Roman Catholic 54%, Protestant (Congregational) 30%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1996) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate system
domestic: system is automatically switched international: country code - 1-758; direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados; international calls beyond these countries are carried by Intelsat from Martinique |
general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) note: Kiribati is being linked to the Pacific Ocean Cooperative Telecommunications Network, which should improve telephone service |
Telephones - main lines in use | 51,100 (2002) | 2,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 14,300 (2002) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (of which one is a commercial broadcast station and one is a community antenna television or CATV channel) (2004) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs |
Total fertility rate | 2.25 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 4.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16.5% (1997 est.) | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) |
Waterways | - | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) |