Tuvalu (2001) | Bahrain (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | none | 12 municipalities (manatiq, singular - mintaqah); Al Hadd, Al Manamah, Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Al Mintaqah al Wusta, Al Mintaqah ash Shamaliyah, Al Muharraq, Ar Rifa' wa al Mintaqah al Janubiyah, Jidd Hafs, Madinat Hamad, Madinat 'Isa, Juzur Hawar, Sitrah
note: all municipalities administered from Manama |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
33.28% (male 1,862; female 1,796) 15-64 years: 61.6% (male 3,241; female 3,529) 65 years and over: 5.12% (male 236; female 327) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 28.4% (male 97,179; female 95,043)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 271,015; female 192,342) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 11,426; female 10,881) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts; fish | fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish |
Airports | 1 (2000 est.) | 4 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 2 1524 to 2437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
26 sq km land: 26 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 665 sq km
land: 665 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | In 1974, ethnic differences within the British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands caused the Polynesians of the Ellice Islands to vote for separation from the Micronesians of the Gilbert Islands. The following year, the Ellice Islands became the separate British colony of Tuvalu. Independence was granted in 1978. In 2000, Tuvalu negotiated a contract leasing its Internet domain name ".tv" for $50 million in royalties over the next dozen years. | Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Facing declining oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining and has transformed itself into an international banking center. The new amir, installed in 1999, has pushed economic and political reforms and has worked to improve relations with the Shi'a community. In February 2001, Bahraini voters approved a referendum on the National Action Charter - the centerpiece of the amir's political liberalization program. In February 2002, Amir HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa proclaimed himself king. In October 2002, Bahrainis elected members of the lower house of Bahrain's reconstituted bicameral legislature, the National Assembly. |
Birth rate | 21.56 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.54 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$6.2 million expenditures: $6.1 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
revenues: $2.981 billion
expenditures: $3.019 billion, including capital expenditures of $700 million (2003 est.) |
Capital | Funafuti | Manama |
Climate | tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March) | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers |
Coastline | 24 km | 161 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1978 | adopted late December 2000; Bahrani voters approved on 13-14 February 2001 a referendum on legislative changes (revised constitution calls for a partially elected legislature, a constitutional monarchy, and an independent judiciary) |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Tuvalu former: Ellice Islands |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Bahrain
conventional short form: Bahrain local long form: Mamlakat al Bahrayn local short form: Al Bahrayn former: Dilmun |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD); note - there is also a Tuvaluan dollar | Bahraini dinar (BHD) |
Death rate | 7.55 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.03 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $4.682 billion (2003) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tuvalu | chief of mission: Ambassador William T. MONROE
embassy: Building #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 331, Zinj District, Manama mailing address: American Embassy Manama, PSC 451, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama telephone: [973] 1724-2700 FAX: [973] 1725-6242 (consular) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Tuvalu does not have an embassy in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador KHALIFA bin ALI bin Rashid Al Khalifa
chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-1111 FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $13 million (1999 est.); note - major donors are Japan and Australia | $150 million; note - $50 million annually since 1992 from each of Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Kuwait (2002) |
Economy - overview | Tuvalu consists of a densely populated, scattered group of nine coral atolls with poor soil. The country has no known mineral resources and few exports. Subsistence farming and fishing are the primary economic activities. Government revenues largely come from the sale of stamps and coins and worker remittances. About 1,000 Tuvaluans work in Nauru in the phosphate mining industry. Nauru has begun repatriating Tuvaluans, however, as phosphate resources decline. Substantial income is received annually from an international trust fund established in 1987 by Australia, NZ, and the UK and supported also by Japan and South Korea. Thanks to wise investments and conservative withdrawals, this Fund has grown from an initial $17 million to over $35 million in 1999. The US government is also a major revenue source for Tuvalu, with 1999 payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries at about $9 million, a total which is expected to rise annually. In an effort to reduce its dependence on foreign aid, the government is pursuing public sector reforms, including privatization of some government functions and personnel cuts of up to 7%. In 1998, Tuvalu began deriving revenue from use of its area code for "900" lines and in 2000, from the sale of its ".tv" Internet domain name. Royalties from these new technology sources could raise GDP three or more times over the next decade. In 1999, with merchandise exports falling and financing reaching less than 5% of imports, continued reliance was placed on fishing and telecommunications license fees, remittances from overseas workers, official transfers, and investment income from overseas assets to cover the trade deficit. | In well-to-do Bahrain, petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. Bahrain is dependent on Saudi Arabia for oil granted as aid. A large share of exports consist of petroleum products made from refining imported crude. Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of oil and underground water resources are major long-term economic problems. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 5.819 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | - | 6.257 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
Environment - current issues | since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable, most water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities (the Japanese Government has built one desalination plant and plans to build one other); beachhead erosion because of the use of sand for building materials; excessive clearance of forest undergrowth for use as fuel; damage to coral reefs from the spread of the Crown of Thorns starfish; Tuvalu is very concerned about global increases in greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on rising sea levels, which threaten the country's underground water table | desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; lack of freshwater resources, groundwater and seawater are the only sources for all water needs |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian 96% | Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8% |
Exchange rates | Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) | Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.376 (2003), 0.376 (2002), 0.376 (2001), 0.376 (2000), 0.376 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Tomasi PUAPUA (since 26 June 1998) head of government: Acting Prime Minister Lagitupu (of Nanumea) TUILIMU (since 8 December 2000); note - TUILIMU took over after Prime Minister Ionatana IONATANA died suddenly of a heart attack on 8 December 2000 cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by and from the members of Parliament; election last held 27 April 1999 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: results of the last election for prime minister - Ionatana IONATANA elected prime minister; percent of Parliament vote - NA%; Lagitupu (of Nanumea) TUILIMU elected deputy prime minister; percent of Parliament vote - NA%; note - Deputy Prime Minister Lagitupu (of Nanumea) TUILIMU became acting prime minister following the death of Prime Minister Ionatana IONATANA on 8 December 2000 |
chief of state: King HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa (since 6 March 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad (son of the monarch, born 21 October 1969)
head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman Al Khalifa (since NA 1971) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $165,000 (f.o.b., 1989) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | copra | petroleum and petroleum products, aluminum, textiles |
Exports - partners | Fiji, Australia, NZ | US 3.5%, India 3.3%, South Korea 2.2% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the outer half of the flag represents a map of the country with nine yellow five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands | red, the traditional color for flags of Persian Gulf states, with a white serrated band (five white points) on the hoist side; the five points represent the five pillars of Islam |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $11.6 million (1999 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11.29 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 0.7%
industry: 42.1% services: 57.2% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (1999 est.) | purchasing power parity - $16,900 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (1999 est.) | 4.9% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 S, 178 00 E | 26 00 N, 50 33 E |
Geography - note | - | close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf, through which much of the Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean |
Heliports | - | 1 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total:
8 km paved: 0 km unpaved: 8 km (1996) |
total: 3,261 km
paved: 2,531 km unpaved: 730 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | $4.4 million (c.i.f., 1989) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods | crude oil, machinery, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Fiji, Australia, NZ | Saudi Arabia 30.7%, US 11.4%, Japan 7.8%, UK 5.7%, Germany 5.4% (2003) |
Independence | 1 October 1978 (from UK) | 15 August 1971 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | fishing, tourism, copra | petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, offshore banking, ship repairing; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 22.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 17.91 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7% (1999 est.) | -0.2% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, IFRCS (associate), Intelsat (nonsignatory user), ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 50 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court (a chief justice visits twice a year to preside over its sessions; its rulings can be appealed to the Court of Appeal in Fiji); eight Island Courts (with limited jurisdiction) | High Civil Appeals Court |
Labor force | NA | 350,000
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | people make a living mainly through exploitation of the sea, reefs, and atolls and from wages sent home by those working abroad (mostly workers in the phosphate industry and sailors) | agriculture 1%, industry, commerce, and services 79%, government 20% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 2.82%
permanent crops: 5.63% other: 91.55% (2001) |
Languages | Tuvaluan, English | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu |
Legal system | NA | based on Islamic law and English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Fale I Fono, also called House of Assembly (12 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 26-27 March 1998 (next to be held by NA 2002) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 12 |
bicameral Parliament consists of Shura Council (40 members appointed by the King) and House of Deputies (40 members directly elected to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Deputies - last held 31 October 2002 (next election to be held NA 2006) election results: House of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - independents 21, Sunni Islamists 9, other 10 note: first elections since 7 December 1973; unicameral National Assembly dissolved 26 August 1975; National Action Charter created bicameral legislature on 23 December 2000; approved by referendum 14 February 2001; first legislative session of Parliament held on 25 December 2002 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
66.65 years male: 64.52 years female: 68.88 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 73.98 years
male: 71.52 years female: 76.51 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89.1% male: 91.9% female: 85% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia | Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Oceania | Middle East |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined |
Merchant marine | total:
9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 52,135 GRT/68,300 DWT ships by type: cargo 5, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 219,083 GRT/312,638 DWT
by type: bulk 3, container 2, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: Hong Kong 1, Kuwait 1 registered in other countries: 2 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Police Force includes Maritime Surveillance Unit for search and rescue missions and surveillance operations | Bahrain Defense Forces (BDF): Ground Force (includes Air Defense), Navy, Air Force, National Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $618.1 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 7.5% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 221,661 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 121,484 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 6,396 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 October (1978) | National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 is the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 is the date of independence from British protection |
Nationality | noun:
Tuvaluan(s) adjective: Tuvaluan |
noun: Bahraini(s)
adjective: Bahraini |
Natural hazards | severe tropical storms are usually rare, but, in 1997, there were three cyclones; low level of islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level | periodic droughts; dust storms |
Natural resources | fish | oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 1.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 20 km; oil 53 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | there are no political parties but members of Parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings | political parties prohibited but politically oriented societies are allowed |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically in 1994-97, demanding the return of an elected National Assembly and an end to unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active |
Population | 10,991 (July 2001 est.) | 677,886
note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.4% (2001 est.) | 1.56% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Funafuti, Nukufetau | Manama, Mina' Salman, Sitrah |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 4,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6% | Shi'a Muslim 70%, Sunni Muslim 30% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.41 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.05 male(s)/female total population: 1.27 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
serves particular needs for internal communications domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands international: NA |
general assessment: modern system
domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones international: country code - 973; tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; submarine cable to Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1,000 (1997) | 185,800 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1994) | 443,100 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (1997) | 4 (1997) |
Terrain | very low-lying and narrow coral atolls | mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment |
Total fertility rate | 3.09 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.67 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 15% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |