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Compare Tuvalu (2005) - Western Sahara (2004)

Compare Tuvalu (2005) z Western Sahara (2004)

 Tuvalu (2005)Western Sahara (2004)
 TuvaluWestern Sahara
Administrative divisions none none (under de facto control of Morocco)
Age structure 0-14 years: 30.8% (male 1,823/female 1,756)


15-64 years: 64.2% (male 3,620/female 3,847)


65 years and over: 5.1% (male 229/female 361) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: NA


15-64 years: NA


65 years and over: NA
Agriculture - products coconuts; fish fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads)
Airports 1 (2004 est.) 11 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways - total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.)
total: 8


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)
Area total: 26 sq km


land: 26 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 266,000 sq km


land: 266,000 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC about the size of Colorado
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. Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed.
Birth rate 21.91 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) NA births/1,000 population
Budget revenues: $22.5 million


expenditures: $11.2 million, including capital expenditures of $4.2 million (2000 est.)
revenues: NA


expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA
Capital Funafuti; note - administrative offices are located in Vaiaku Village on Fongafale Islet none
Climate tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March) hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew
Coastline 24 km 1,110 km
Constitution 1 October 1978 -
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: none


conventional short form: Western Sahara


former: Spanish Sahara
Currency - Moroccan dirham (MAD)
Death rate 7.22 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) NA deaths/1,000 population
Debt - external NA NA
Diplomatic representation from the US the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tuvalu none
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 none
Disputes - international none Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991 but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals
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 income from overseas investments. Western Sahara depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, and most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. Incomes and standards of living in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level.
Electricity - consumption - 83.7 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports - 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports - 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production - 90 million kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: unnamed location 5 m
lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m


highest point: unnamed location 463 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 sparse water and lack of arable land
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: none of the selected agreements


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Polynesian 96%, Micronesian 4% Arab, Berber
Exchange rates Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 9.574 (2003), 11.584 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.626 (2000), 9.804 (1999)
Executive branch chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Filoimea TELITO (since 15 April 2005)


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 October 2004
none
Exports $1 million f.o.b. (2002) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities copra, fish phosphates 62%
Exports - partners Germany 56.5%, Fiji 14.3%, Italy 10.9%, UK 7.7%, Poland 4.9% (2004) Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts
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 -
GDP - purchasing power parity - NA
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: NA%


industry: NA%


services: NA%
agriculture: NA


industry: NA


services: 40% (1996 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - NA
GDP - real growth rate 3% (2000 est.) NA
Geographic coordinates 8 00 S, 178 00 E 24 30 N, 13 00 W
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 the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas
Highways total: 8 km


paved: 0 km


unpaved: 8 km (1999 est.)
total: 6,200 km


paved: 1,350 km


unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est)
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) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs
Imports - partners Fiji 50.2%, Japan 18.1%, Australia 9.6%, China 8%, New Zealand 5.5% (2004) Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2000)
Independence 1 October 1978 (from UK) -
Industrial production growth rate NA% NA
Industries fishing, tourism, copra phosphate mining, handicrafts
Infant mortality rate total: 20.03 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 22.9 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 17.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
total: NA


male: NA


female: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 5% (2000 est.) NA
International organization participation ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, IFRCS (observer), IMO, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO none
Irrigated land NA NA sq km
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) -
Labor force 7,000 (2001 est.) 12,000
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) animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50%
Land boundaries 0 km total: 2,046 km


border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km
Land use arable land: 0%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 100% (2001)
arable land: 0.02%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 99.98% (2001)
Languages Tuvaluan, English, Samoan, Kiribati (on the island of Nui) Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic
Legal system NA -
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
-
Life expectancy at birth total population: 68.01 years


male: 65.79 years


female: 70.33 years (2005 est.)
total population: NA years


male: NA years


female: NA years
Literacy definition: NA


total population: NA%


male: NA%


female: NA%
definition: NA


total population: NA


male: NA


female: NA
Location Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco
Map references Oceania Africa
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue
Merchant marine total: 23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 54,993 GRT/86,048 DWT


by type: cargo 20, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 2


foreign-owned: 16 (China 9, Germany 2, Hong Kong 4, Thailand 1) (2005)
-
Military branches no regular military forces; national police force -
Military expenditures - dollar figure NA NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA NA
National holiday Independence Day, 1 October (1978) -
Nationality noun: Tuvaluan(s)


adjective: Tuvaluan
noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)


adjective: Sahrawi,Sahrawian, Sahraouian
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 hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility
Natural resources fish phosphates, iron ore
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) -
Political parties and leaders there are no political parties but members of Parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings -
Political pressure groups and leaders none none
Population 11,636 (July 2005 est.) 267,405 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line NA NA
Population growth rate 1.47% (2005 est.) NA
Ports and harbors Funafuti Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun)
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (2004) AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998)
Religions Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6% Muslim
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female


total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
NA
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed
Telephone system general assessment: serves particular needs for internal communications


domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands


international: country code - 688; international calls can be made by satellite
general assessment: sparse and limited system


domestic: NA


international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco
Telephones - main lines in use 700 (2002) about 2,000 (1999 est.)
Telephones - mobile cellular 0 (2004) 0 (1999)
Television broadcast stations 0 (2004) NA
Terrain very low-lying and narrow coral atolls mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast
Total fertility rate 3 children born/woman (2005 est.) NA children born/woman
Unemployment rate NA% NA
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