Tuvalu (2004) | Qatar (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | none | 9 municipalities (baladiyat, singular - baladiyah); Ad Dawhah, Al Ghuwayriyah, Al Jumayliyah, Al Khawr, Al Wakrah, Ar Rayyan, Jarayan al Batinah, Madinat ash Shamal, Umm Salal |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.3% (male 1,828; female 1,761)
15-64 years: 63.7% (male 3,530; female 3,770) 65 years and over: 5% (male 227; female 352) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 25.2% (male 102,110; female 98,053)
15-64 years: 72.1% (male 403,508; female 168,428) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 15,299; female 5,943) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts; fish | fruits, vegetables; poultry, dairy products, beef; fish |
Airports | 1 (2003 est.) | 4 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 2
over 3,047 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 26 sq km
land: 26 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 11,437 sq km
land: 11,437 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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. | Ruled by the Al Thani family since the mid-1800s, Qatar transformed itself from a poor British protectorate noted mainly for pearling into an independent state with significant oil and natural gas revenues. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Qatari economy was crippled by a continuous siphoning off of petroleum revenues by the amir who had ruled the country since 1972. He was overthrown by his son, the current Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani, in a bloodless coup in 1995. In 2001, Qatar resolved its longstanding border disputes with both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Oil and natural gas revenues enable Qatar to have a per capita income not far below the leading industrial countries of Western Europe. |
Birth rate | 21.63 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 15.78 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $22.5 million
expenditures: $11.2 million, including capital expenditures of $4.2 million (2000 est.) |
revenues: $5 billion
expenditures: $4.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $900 million (FY01/02 est. ) |
Capital | Funafuti; note - administrative offices are located in Vaiaku Village on Fongafale Islet | Doha |
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 | 563 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1978 | provisional constitution enacted 19 April 1972; in July 1999 Amir HAMAD issued a decree forming a committee to draft a permanent constitution |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tuvalu former: Ellice Islands note: "Tuvalu" means "group of eight," referring to the country's eight traditionally inhabited islands |
conventional long form: State of Qatar
conventional short form: Qatar local long form: Dawlat Qatar local short form: Qatar note: closest approximation of the native pronunciation falls between cutter and gutter, but not like guitar |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD); note - there is also a Tuvaluan dollar | Qatari rial (QAR) |
Death rate | 7.24 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 4.34 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $13.1 billion (2000 est.) |
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 Maureen E. QUINN
embassy: Al-Luqtas District, 22 February Road, Doha mailing address: P. O. Box 2399, Doha telephone: [974] 488 4101 FAX: [974] 488 4298 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Tuvalu does not have an embassy in the US - the country's only diplomatic post is in Fiji - Tuvalu does, however, have a UN office located at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400D, New York, New York 10017, telephone: [1] (212) 490-0534 | chief of mission: Ambassador Badr Umar al-DAFA
chancery: 4200 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 274-1600 FAX: [1] (202) 237-0061 consulate(s) general: Houston |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $13 million ; note - major donors are Australia, Japan, and the US (1999 est.) | $NA |
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. Fewer than 1,000 tourists, on average, visit Tuvalu annually. 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, because of payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries. 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 lease of its ".tv" Internet domain name. Royalties from these new technology sources could increase substantially over the next decade. With merchandise exports only a fraction of merchandise imports, continued reliance must be placed on fishing and telecommunications license fees, remittances from overseas workers, official transfers, and investment income from overseas assets. | Oil accounts for more than 30% of GDP, roughly 80% of export earnings, and 58% of government revenues. Proved oil reserves of 3.7 billion barrels should ensure continued output at current levels for 23 years. Oil has given Qatar a per capita GDP comparable to that of the leading West European industrial countries. Qatar's proved reserves of natural gas exceed 7 trillion cubic meters, more than 5% of the world total, third largest in the world. Production and export of natural gas are becoming increasingly important. Long-term goals feature the development of offshore natural gas reserves. In 2000, Qatar posted its highest ever trade surplus of $7 billion, due mainly to high oil prices and increased natural gas exports, and managed to maintain the surplus in 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 8.556 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | - | 9.2 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Qurayn Abu al Bawl 103 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; in 2000, the government appealed to Australia and New Zealand to take in Tuvaluans if rising sea levels should make evacuation necessary | limited natural fresh water resources are increasing dependence on large-scale desalination facilities |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian 96%, Micronesian 4% | Arab 40%, Pakistani 18%, Indian 18%, Iranian 10%, other 14% |
Exchange rates | Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.5419, (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999) | Qatari rials per US dollar - 3.6400 (fixed rate) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Faimalaga LUKA (since 9 September 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Maatia TOAFA (since 11 October 2004) 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 11 October 2004 (next to be held following parliamentary elections in 2006) election results: Saufatu SOPOANGA resigned parliamentary seat on 27 August 2004 following no-confidence vote on 25 August 2004; succeeded by Deputy Prime Minister Maatia TOAFA in an acting capacity on 27 August 2004; Maatia TOAFA confirmed Prime Minister in a Parliamentary election (8-7 vote) on 11 Ocotober 2004 |
chief of state: Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani (since 27 June 1995 when, as crown prince, he ousted his father, Amir KHALIFA bin Hamad Al Thani, in a bloodless coup); Crown Prince JASSIM bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, third son of the monarch (selected crown prince by the monarch 22 October 1996); note - Amir HAMAD also holds the positions of minister of defense and commander-in-chief of the armed forces
head of government: Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Khalifa Al Thani, brother of the monarch (since 30 October 1996); Deputy Prime Minister MUHAMMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani, brother of the monarch (since 20 January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary note: in March 1999, Qatar held nationwide elections for a 29-member Central Municipal Council, which has consultative powers aimed at improving the provision of municipal services |
Exports | $1 million f.o.b. (2002) | $11 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | copra, fish | petroleum products 80%, fertilizers, steel |
Exports - partners | UK 37.5%, Poland 19.1%, Philippines 9.2%, Australia 9.1%, Fiji 6.2% (2003) | Japan 43%, Singapore 8%, South Korea 6%, US 4%, UAE 2% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | maroon with a broad white serrated band (nine white points) on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $12.2 million NA (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $16.3 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 49% services: 50% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $21,200 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 5.6% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 S, 178 00 E | 25 30 N, 51 15 E |
Geography - note | one of the smallest and most remote countries on Earth; six of the coral atolls - Nanumea, Nui, Vaitupu, Nukufetau, Funafuti, and Nukulaelae - have lagoons open to the ocean; Nanumaya and Niutao have landlocked lagoons; Niulakita does not have a lagoon | strategic location in central Persian Gulf near major petroleum deposits |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 8 km
paved: 0 km unpaved: 8 km (1999 est.) |
total: 1,230 km
paved: 1,107 km unpaved: 123 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $79 million c.i.f. (2002) | $3.5 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods | machinery and transport equipment, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Fiji 47.3%, Australia 13.9%, Poland 10.8%, Germany 10.2%, Japan 8%, New Zealand 6.2% (2003) | UK 10%, Japan 8%, Germany 6%, Italy 6%, US 6% (1998) |
Independence | 1 October 1978 (from UK) | 3 September 1971 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Industries | fishing, tourism, copra | crude oil production and refining, fertilizers, petrochemicals, steel reinforcing bars, cement |
Infant mortality rate | total: 20.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.63 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
20.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (2000 est.) | 2% (2001) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, IFRCS (observer), IMO, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDB, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 130 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) | Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 7,000 (2001 est.) | 280,122 (1997 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 abroad (mostly workers in the phosphate industry and sailors) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 60 km
border countries: Saudi Arabia 60 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 1.27%
permanent crops: 0.27% other: 98.46% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Tuvaluan, English, Samoan, Kiribati (on the island of Nui) | Arabic (official), English commonly used as a second language |
Legal system | NA | discretionary system of law controlled by the amir, although civil codes are being implemented; Islamic law dominates family and personal matters |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Fale I Fono, also called House of Assembly (15 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 15 |
unicameral Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura (35 seats; members appointed)
note: the constitution calls for elections for part of this consultative body, but no elections have been held since 1970, when there were partial elections to the body; Council members have had their terms extended every four years since |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 67.66 years
male: 65.47 years female: 69.96 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 72.88 years
male: 70.4 years female: 75.48 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 79% male: 79% female: 80% (1995 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, peninsula bordering the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Oceania | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: as determined by bilateral agreements or the median line territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 54,993 GRT/86,048 DWT
by type: cargo 3, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: Germany 4, Singapore 1, Thailand 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 25 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 679,081 GRT/1,051,088 DWT
ships by type: cargo 10, combination ore/oil 2, container 7, petroleum tanker 6 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Kuwait 1, United Arab Emirates 3 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Police Force (includes Maritime Surveillance Unit for search and rescue missions and surveillance operations) | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $723 million (FY00/01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 10% (FY00/01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 316,885
note: includes non-nationals (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 166,214 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 6,797 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 October (1978) | Independence Day, 3 September (1971) |
Nationality | noun: Tuvaluan(s)
adjective: Tuvaluan |
noun: Qatari(s)
adjective: Qatari |
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 | haze, dust storms, sandstorms common |
Natural resources | fish | petroleum, natural gas, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 18.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 235 km; natural gas 400 km |
Political parties and leaders | there are no political parties but members of Parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | none |
Population | 11,468 (July 2004 est.) | 793,341 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.44% (2004 est.) | 3.02% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Funafuti, Nukufetau | Doha, Halul Island, Umm Sa'id (Musay'id) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1999) | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 256,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6% | Muslim 95% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 2.4 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 2.57 male(s)/female total population: 1.91 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | suffrage is limited to municipal elections |
Telephone system | general assessment: serves particular needs for internal communications
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands international: country code - 688 |
general assessment: modern system centered in Doha
domestic: NA international: tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and UAE; submarine cable to Bahrain and UAE; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 700 (2002) | 142,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1994) | 43,476 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (1997) | 1 (plus three repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | very low-lying and narrow coral atolls | mostly flat and barren desert covered with loose sand and gravel |
Total fertility rate | 3.02 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 3.1 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 2.7% (2001) |
Waterways | - | none |