Tokelau (2005) | Sri Lanka (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (territory of New Zealand) | 8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western; note - North Eastern province may have been divided in two - Northern and Eastern |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42%
15-64 years: 53% 65 years and over: 5% (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 25.6% (male 2,559,246; female 2,446,393)
15-64 years: 67.7% (male 6,446,320; female 6,802,515) 65 years and over: 6.7% (male 628,398; female 693,911) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats | rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef |
Airports | none; lagoon landings are possible by amphibious aircraft (2004 est.) | 15 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 14
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 6 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 1 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 10 sq km
land: 10 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 65,610 sq km
land: 64,740 sq km water: 870 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 17 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | slightly larger than West Virginia |
Background | Originally settled by Polynesian emigrants from surrounding island groups, the Tokelau Islands were made a British protectorate in 1889. They were transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925. | The Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced beginning in about the mid-3rd century B.C. and a great civilization developed at such cities as Anuradhapura (kingdom from c. 200 B.C. to c. 1000 A.D.) and Polonnaruwa (c. 1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian dynasty seized power in the north and established a Tamil kingdom. Occupied by the Portuguese in the 16th century and by the Dutch in the 17th century, the island was ceded to the British in 1796 and became a crown colony in 1802. As Ceylon it became independent in 1948; its name was changed in 1972. Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted in violence in the mid-1980s. Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic war that continues to fester. |
Birth rate | NA | 16.36 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $430,800
expenditures: $2.8 million, including capital expenditures of $37,300 (1987 est.) |
revenues: $2.8 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | none; each atoll has its own administrative center | Colombo; note - Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte is the legislative capital |
Climate | tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) | tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October) |
Coastline | 101 km | 1,340 km |
Constitution | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948; amended in 1970 | adopted 16 August 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tokelau |
conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
conventional short form: Sri Lanka former: Serendib, Ceylon |
Currency | - | Sri Lankan rupee (LKR) |
Death rate | NA | 6.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $0 | $9.9 billion (2000) |
Dependency status | self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution and developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves toward free association with New Zealand | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of New Zealand) | chief of mission: Ambassador E. Ashley WILLS
embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3 mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo telephone: [94] (1) 448007 FAX: [94] (1) 437345 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of New Zealand) | chief of mission: Ambassador Devinda R. SUBASINGHE
chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4025 (through 4028) FAX: [1] (202) 232-7181 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | from New Zealand about $4 million annually | $577 million (1998) (1998) |
Economy - overview | Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The people rely heavily on aid from New Zealand - about $4 million annually - to maintain public services, with annual aid being substantially greater than GDP. The principal sources of revenue come from sales of copra, postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand. | In 1977, Colombo abandoned statist economic policies and its import substitution trade policy for market-oriented policies and export-oriented trade. Sri Lanka's most dynamic sectors now are food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, telecommunications, and insurance and banking. By 1996 plantation crops made up only 20% of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at an average annual rate of 5.5% throughout the 1990s until a drought and a deteriorating security situation lowered growth to 3.8% in 1996. The economy rebounded in 1997-2000 with average growth of 5.3%. But 2001 saw the first contraction in the country's history, due to a combination of power shortages, severe budgetary problems, the global slowdown, and continuing civil strife. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 6.156 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 6.619 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 32%
hydro: 68% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m |
Environment - current issues | very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand | deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal; air pollution in Colombo |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian | Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1% |
Exchange rates | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.5087 (2004), 1.7221 (2003), 2.1622 (2002), 2.3788 (2001), 2.2012 (2000) | Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 93.383 (January 2002), 89.383 (2001), 77.005 (2000), 70.635 (1999), 64.450 (1998), 58.995 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General of New Zealand Dame Silvia CARTWRIGHT (since 4 April 2001); New Zealand is represented by Administrator Neil WALTER (since 1 March 2003)
head of government: Pio TUIA (since February 2005); note - position rotates annually among the three Faipule (village leaders) cabinet: the Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau, consisting of three Faipule (village leaders) and three Pulenuku (village mayors) functions as a cabinet elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
chief of state: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 9 December 2001) is the prime minister; in Sri Lanka the president is considered both the chief of state and head of government, in contrast to the more common practice of dividing the roles between the president and the prime minister when both offices exist
head of government: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 9 December 2001) is the prime minister; in Sri Lanka the president is considered both the chief of state and head of government, in contrast to the more common practice of dividing the roles between the president and the prime minister when both offices exist cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 21 December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2005) election results: Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA reelected president; percent of vote - Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (PA) 51%, Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (UNP) 42%, other 7% |
Exports | $98,000 f.o.b. (1983) | $4.9 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
Exports - commodities | stamps, copra, handicrafts | textiles and apparel 15%, tea, diamonds, coconut products, petroleum products |
Exports - partners | New Zealand (2000) | US 39%, UK 13%, Middle East 8%, Germany 4%, Japan 4% (2000) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of New Zealand is used | yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $62.7 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 21%
industry: 27% services: 52% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (1993 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,250 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | -1% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 9 00 S, 172 00 W | 7 00 N, 81 00 E |
Geography - note | consists of three atolls, each with a lagoon surrounded by a number of reef-bound islets of varying length and rising to over three meters above sea level | strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes |
Highways | total: NA
paved: NA unpaved: NA |
total: 11,285 km
paved: 10,721 km unpaved: 564 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 28% (1995) |
Imports | $323,000 c.i.f. (1983) | $6 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, building materials, fuel | machinery and equipment, textiles, petroleum, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | New Zealand (2000) | Japan 9%, India 8%, Hong Kong 7%, Singapore 7%, South Korea 5% (2000) |
Independence | none (territory of New Zealand) | 4 February 1948 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1.4% (2001) |
Industries | small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing | rubber processing, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
15.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 14.2% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | UNESCO (associate), UPU | AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 5 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 6,510 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau | Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president |
Labor force | NA | 6.6 million (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | services 45%, agriculture 38%, industry 17% (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0% (soil is thin and infertile)
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 13.43%
permanent crops: 15.78% other: 70.79% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English | Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8%
note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken competently by about 10% of the population |
Legal system | New Zealand and local statutes | a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral General Fono (21 seats; based upon proportional representation from the three islands elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; Nukunonu has 6 seats, Fakaofo has 7 seats, Atafu has 8 seats); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono
elections: last held January 2002 (next to be held January 2005) |
unicameral Parliament (225 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of a modified proportional representation system by district to serve six-year terms)
elections: last held 7 December 2001 (next to be held NA December 2007) election results: percent of vote by party or electoral alliance - UNP, SLMC and CWC 46.8%, PA and EPDP 38%, JVP 9.1%, Tamil National Alliance 3.89%, PLOTE 0.19%; seats by party or electoral alliance - UNP, SLMC and CWC 114, PA and EPDP 79, JVP 16, Tamil National Alliance 15, PLOTE 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: -9 years female: -9 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 72.35 years
male: 69.83 years female: 75 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90.2% male: 93.4% female: 87.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand | Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India |
Map references | Oceania | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 137,321 GRT/233,367 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 15, container 1, petroleum tanker 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 9, Hong Kong 1, United Arab Emirates 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $719 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 4.2% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 5,347,153 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 4,148,825 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 193,522 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) | Independence Day, 4 February (1948) |
Nationality | noun: Tokelauan(s)
adjective: Tokelauan |
noun: Sri Lankan(s)
adjective: Sri Lankan |
Natural hazards | lies in Pacific typhoon belt | occasional cyclones and tornadoes |
Natural resources | NEGL | limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower |
Net migration rate | NA | -1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil and petroleum products 62 km (1987) |
Political parties and leaders | none | All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [KUMARGURUPARAM]; Ceylon Workers Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN]; Communist Party or CP [D. GUNASEKERA]; Democratic United National (Lalith) Front or DUNLF [Shrimani ATULATHMUDALI]; Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA]; Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN]; Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP [Tilvan SILVA]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; People's Alliance or PA [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [leader NA]; Sihala Urumaya or SU [Tilak KARUNARATNE]; Sri Lanka Freedom Party or SLFP [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; Sri Lanka Muslim Congress or SLMC [Rauff HAKEEM]; Sri Lanka Progressive Front or SLPF [P. Nelson PERERA]; Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization or TELO [SABARATNAM]; Tamil National Alliance or TNA [Nadarajah RAVIRAJ]; Tamil United Liberation Front or TULF [R. SAMPATHAN]; United National Party or UNP [Ranil WICKREMASINGHE]; Upcountry People's Front or UPF [P. CHANDRASEKARAN]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either Parliament or provincial councils |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | Buddhist clergy; labor unions; Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or LTTE [Velupillai PRABHAKARAN](insurgent group fighting for a separate state); radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups such as the National Movement Against Terrorism; Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups |
Population | 1,405 (July 2005 est.) | 19,576,783
note: since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island; as of mid-1999, approximately 66,000 were housed in 133 refugee camps in south India, another 40,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 22% (1997 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.01% (2005 est.) | 0.85% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only | Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee |
Radio broadcast stations | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: 1 radio station provides service to all islands (2002) |
AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3.85 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total: 1,463 km
broad gauge: 1,404 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2001) |
Religions | Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%
note: on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the Congregational Christian Church predominant |
Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999) |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern satellite-based communications system;
domestic: radiotelephone service between islands international: country code - 690; radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997 |
general assessment: very inadequate domestic service, particularly in rural areas; likely improvement with privatization of national telephone company and encouragement to private investment; good international service (1999)
domestic: national trunk network consists mostly of digital microwave radio relay; fiber-optic links now in use in Colombo area and two fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition is strong in mobile cellular systems; telephone density remains low at 2.6 main lines per 100 persons (1999) international: submarine cables to Indonesia and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 300 (2002) | 494,509 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (2001) | 228,604 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 21 (1997) |
Terrain | low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons | mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior |
Total fertility rate | NA | 1.93 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 7.7% (2001) |
Waterways | - | 430 km (navigable by shallow-draft craft) |