Saint Pierre and Miquelon (2004) | Kiribati (2007) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territorial collectivity of France); note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are two communes - Saint Pierre, Miquelon at the second order | 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: 24.6% (male 878; female 840)
15-64 years: 64.9% (male 2,316; female 2,227) 65 years and over: 10.5% (male 323; female 411) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 38.2% (male 20,886/female 20,322)
15-64 years: 58.4% (male 31,083/female 31,884) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 1,554/female 2,088) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish |
Airports | 2 (2003 est.) | 19 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 4 (2007) |
Area | total: 242 sq km
land: 242 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes eight small islands in the Saint Pierre and the Miquelon groups |
total: 811 sq km
land: 811 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | First settled by the French in the early 17th century, the islands represent the sole remaining vestige of France's once vast North American possessions. | 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 | 14.15 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 30.48 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $70 million
expenditures: $60 million, including capital expenditures of $24 million (1996 est.) |
revenues: $55.52 million
expenditures: $59.71 million (FY05) |
Capital | Saint-Pierre | name: Tarawa
geographic coordinates: 1 19 N, 172 58 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | cold and wet, with much mist and fog; spring and autumn are windy | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds |
Coastline | 120 km | 1,143 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 12 July 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon
conventional short form: Saint Pierre and Miquelon local long form: Departement de Saint-Pierre et Miquelon local short form: Saint-Pierre et Miquelon |
conventional long form: Republic of Kiribati
conventional short form: Kiribati local long form: Republic of Kiribati local short form: Kiribati note: pronounced keer-ree-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
Currency | euro (EUR) | - |
Death rate | 6.72 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 8.12 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | NA (2003 est.) | $10 million (1999 est.) |
Dependency status | self-governing territorial collectivity of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territorial collectivity of France) | the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Kiribati |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territorial collectivity of France) | Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | approximately $60 million in annual grants from France | $27.84 million largely from UK and Japan (2005) |
Economy - overview | The inhabitants have traditionally earned their livelihood by fishing and by servicing fishing fleets operating off the coast of Newfoundland. The economy has been declining, however, because of disputes with Canada over fishing quotas and a steady decline in the number of ships stopping at Saint Pierre. In 1992, an arbitration panel awarded the islands an exclusive economic zone of 12,348 sq km to settle a longstanding territorial dispute with Canada, although it represents only 25% of what France had sought. The islands are heavily subsidized by France to the great betterment of living standards. The government hopes an expansion of tourism will boost economic prospects. Recent test drilling for oil may pave the way for development of the energy sector. | A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few natural 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. Private sector initiatives and a financial sector are in the early stages of development. Foreign financial aid from UK, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and China equals more than 10% of GDP. Remittances from seamen on merchant ships abroad account for more than $5 million each year. Kiribati receives around $15 million annually for the government budget from an Australian trust fund. |
Electricity - consumption | 39.08 million kWh (2001) | 8.37 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 42.03 million kWh (2001) | 9 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne de la Grande Montagne 240 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
Environment - current issues | recent test drilling for oil in waters around Saint Pierre and Miquelon may bring future development that would impact the environment | 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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Basques and Bretons (French fishermen) | Micronesian 98.8%, other 1.2% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.0626 (2001), 1.08540 (2000), 0.93863 (1999) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Albert DUPUY (since 10 January 2005)
head of government: President of the General Council Marc PLANTAGENEST (since NA) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held, first round - 21 April 2002, second round - 5 May 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the General Council is elected by the members of the council |
chief of state: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President Teima ONORIO; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President Teima ONORIO cabinet: 12-member cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the House of Parliament elections: the House of Parliament chooses the presidential candidates from among its members and then those candidates compete in a general election; president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for two more terms); election last held 17 October 2007 (next to be held in 2011); vice president appointed by the president election results: Anote TONG 63.7%, Nabuti MWEMWENIKARAWA 32.9% |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | fish and fish products, soybeans, animal feed, mollusks and crustaceans, fox and mink pelts | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish |
Exports - partners | US 42.9%, Ecuador 28.6%, Canada 14.3%, France 14.3% (2003) | US 22.8%, Belgium 21.5%, Japan 14.3%, Samoa 7.8%, Australia 7.5%, Malaysia 6.7%, Taiwan 5.6%, Denmark 4.6% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | NA |
Flag description | a yellow sailing ship facing the hoist side rides on a dark blue background with yellow wavy lines under the ship; on the hoist side, a vertical band is divided into three parts: the top part (called ikkurina) is red with a green diagonal cross extending to the corners overlaid by a white cross dividing the rectangle into four sections; the middle part has a white background with an ermine pattern; the third part has a red background with two stylized yellow lions outlined in black, one above the other; these three heraldic arms represent settlement by colonists from the Basque Country (top), Brittany, and Normandy; the flag of France is used for official occasions | 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 - $48.33 million - supplemented by annual payments from France of about $60 million (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 8.9%
industry: 24.2% services: 66.8% (2004) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,900 (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 0.3% (2005) |
Geographic coordinates | 46 50 N, 56 20 W | 1 25 N, 173 00 E |
Geography - note | vegetation scanty | 21 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: 114 km
paved: 69 km unpaved: 45 km |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | meat, clothing, fuel, electrical equipment, machinery, building materials | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel |
Imports - partners | France 51%, Canada 31.4%, Italy 11.8% (2003) | Australia 33%, Fiji 27.1%, Japan 18.1%, NZ 6.9% (2006) |
Independence | none (territorial collectivity of France; has been under French control since 1763) | 12 July 1979 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 0.7% (1991 est.) |
Industries | fish processing and supply base for fishing fleets; tourism | fishing, handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 46.02 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 51.03 deaths/1,000 live births female: 40.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.1% (1991-96 average) | 0.5% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU, WFTU | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA |
Judicial branch | Superior Tribunal of Appeals or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president |
Labor force | 3,261 (1999) | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | fishing 18%, industry (mainly fish-processing) 41%, services 41% (1996 est.) | agriculture: 2.7%
industry: 32% services: 65.3% (2000) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 13.04%
permanent crops: 0% other: 86.96% (2001) |
arable land: 2.74%
permanent crops: 47.95% other: 49.31% (2005) |
Languages | French (official) | I-Kiribati, English (official) |
Legal system | French law with special adaptations for local conditions, such as housing and taxation | NA |
Legislative branch | unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats - 15 from Saint Pierre and 4 from Miquelon; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: elections last held 19 and 26 March 2000 (next to be held NA April 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PS 12, PRG 2, UDF-RPR 5 note: Saint Pierre and Miquelon elect 1 seat to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 1995 (next to be held NA September 2004); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR 1; Saint Pierre and Miquelon also elects 1 seat to the French National Assembly; elections last held, first round - 9 June 2002, second round - 16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UDF 1 |
unicameral House of Parliament or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (46 seats; 44 members elected by popular vote, 1 ex officio member - the attorney general, 1 nominated by the Rabi Council of Leaders (representing Banaba Island); to serve four-year terms)
elections: legislative elections were held in two rounds - the first round on 22 August 2007 and the second round on 30 August 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA, other 2 (includes attorney general) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.28 years
male: 75.97 years female: 80.7 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 62.45 years
male: 59.41 years female: 65.63 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1982 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | Northern North America, islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, south of Newfoundland (Canada) | Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator; the capital Tarawa is 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 (UTC +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 | North America | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none | total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 28,435 GRT/42,682 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 3, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 3 (Malaysia 1, Singapore 1, Turkey 1) (2007) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ |
Military branches | - | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) (2007) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women)
adjective: French |
noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective: I-Kiribati |
Natural hazards | persistent fog throughout the year can be a maritime hazard | 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 | fish, deepwater ports | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) |
Net migration rate | -4.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | PRG [leader NA]; Rassemblement pour la Republique or RPR (now UMP) [leader NA]; Socialist Party or PS [leader NA]; Union pour la Democratie Francaise or UDF [leader NA] | Boutokaan Te Koaua Party or BTK [Taberannang TIMEON]; Maneaban Te Mauri Party or MTM [Teburoro TITO]; Maurin Kiribati Pati or MKP; National Progressive Party or NPP [Dr. Harry TONG]
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 | 6,995 (July 2004 est.) | 107,817 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.26% (2004 est.) | 2.235% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Saint Pierre | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (may be inactive) (2002) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 99% | Roman Catholic 52%, Protestant (Congregational) 40%, other (includes Seventh-Day Adventist, Muslim, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, Church of God) 8% (1999) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.028 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.975 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.744 male(s)/female total population: 0.986 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate
domestic: NA international: country code - 508; radiotelephone communication with most countries in the world; 1 earth station in French domestic satellite system |
general assessment: generally good quality national and international service
domestic: wire line service available on Tarawa and Kiritimati (Christmas Island); connections to outer islands by HF/VHF radiotelephone; wireless service available in Tarawa since 1999 international: country code - 686; Kiribati is being linked to the Pacific Ocean Cooperative Telecommunications Network, which should improve telephone service; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4,800 (2002) | 4,500 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1994) | 600 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (there are, however, two repeaters which rebroadcast programs from France, Canada, and the US) (1997) | 1 (possibly inactive) (2002) |
Terrain | mostly barren rock | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs |
Total fertility rate | 2.05 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 4.12 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.8% (1997) | 2% official rate; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) |
Waterways | - | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) (2007) |