West Bank (2001) | Tokelau (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
44.61% (male 478,232; female 454,439) 15-64 years: 51.8% (male 552,661; female 530,230) 65 years and over: 3.59% (male 32,629; female 42,522) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 42%
15-64 years: 53% 65 years and over: 5% (1996 est.) |
Agriculture - products | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products | coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | none; lagoon landings are possible by amphibious aircraft (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
5,860 sq km land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967 |
total: 10 sq km
land: 10 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | about 17 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external security and for internal security and public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Permanent status is to be determined through direct negotiations, which resumed in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus. An intifadah broke out in September 2000; the resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability in the Palestinian Authority are undermining progress toward a permanent settlement. | 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. |
Birth rate | 35.83 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues:
$1.6 billion expenditures: $1.73 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
revenues: $430,830
expenditures: $2.8 million, including capital expenditures of $37,300 |
Capital | - | none; each atoll has its own administrative center |
Climate | temperate, temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters | tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 101 km |
Constitution | - | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948, as amended in 1970 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: West Bank |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tokelau |
Currency | new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD) | New Zealand dollar (NZD) |
Death rate | 4.37 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) | $0 |
Dependency status | - | self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution, 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) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Disputes - international | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $121 million disbursed (includes Gaza Strip) (2000) | from New Zealand about $4 million annually |
Economy - overview | Economic output in the West Bank is governed by the Paris Economic Protocol of April 1994 between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Real per capita GDP for the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS) declined by 36.1% between 1992 and 1996 owing to the combined effect of falling aggregate incomes and rapid population growth. The downturn in economic activity was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted established labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS. The most serious social effect of this downturn was rising unemployment; unemployment in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Since 1997 Israel's use of comprehensive closures has decreased and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of Palestinian violence, which triggered tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and a severe disruption of trade and labor movements. | 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, 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. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | NA kWh |
Electricity - imports | NA kWh | - |
Electricity - production | NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; at the same time, some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
Environment - current issues | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment | very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand |
Ethnic groups | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% | Polynesian |
Exchange rates | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.0810 (December 2000), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997), 3.1917 (1996); Jordanian dinars per US dollar - fixed rate of 0.7090 (from 1996) | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.3535 (January 2002), 2.3776 (2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8632 (1998), 1.5083 (1997) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by Administrator Lindsay WATT (since NA March 1993)
head of government: Aliki Faipule Pio TUIA (since NA 2002) cabinet: the Council of Faipule, consisting of three elected leaders - one from each atoll - 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 |
Exports | $682 million (includes Gaza Strip) (f.o.b., 1998 est.) | $98,000 f.o.b. (1983) |
Exports - commodities | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone | stamps, copra, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip | NZ |
Fiscal year | calendar year (since 1 January 1992) | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | - | the flag of New Zealand is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.5 million (1993 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
9% industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (1993 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -7.5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 35 15 E | 9 00 S, 172 00 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 231 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank and 29 in East Jerusalem (August 1999 est.) | 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 |
Highways | total:
4,500 km paved: 2,700 km unpaved: 1,800 km (1997 est.) note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements |
total: NA km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $2.5 billion (includes Gaza Strip) (c.i.f., 1998 est.) | $323,000 c.i.f. (1983) |
Imports - commodities | food, consumer goods, construction materials | foodstuffs, building materials, fuel |
Imports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip | NZ |
Independence | - | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers | small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing |
Infant mortality rate | 21.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 38 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (includes Gaza Strip) (2000 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | - | SPC, UNESCO (associate), WHO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (1999) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
Labor force | NA | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
404 km border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
27% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 32% forests and woodland: 1% other: 40% |
arable land: 0% (soil is thin and infertile)
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) | Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English |
Legal system | - | New Zealand and local statutes |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral General Fono (48 seats; members chosen by each atoll's Council of Elders or Taupulega to serve three-year terms); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
72.28 years male: 70.58 years female: 74.07 years (2001 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: 68 years (2001) female: 70 years (2001) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
NA |
Location | Middle East, west of Jordan | Oceania, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Middle East | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand |
Military branches | NA | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
National holiday | - | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun:
NA adjective: NA |
noun: Tokelauan(s)
adjective: Tokelauan |
Natural hazards | droughts | lies in Pacific typhoon belt |
Natural resources | arable land | NEGL |
Net migration rate | 3.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population |
Political parties and leaders | - | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | none |
Population | 2,090,713 (July 2001 est.)
note: in addition, there are some 176,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and about 173,000 in East Jerusalem (August 1999 est.) |
1,431 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.48% (2001 est.) | -0.92% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | none; offshore anchorage only |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000) |
AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: each atoll has a radio broadcast station of unknown type that broadcasts shipping and weather reports (1998) |
Radios | NA; note - most Palestinian households have radios (1999) | 1,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% | 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 |
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: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
NA |
Suffrage | - | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: NA note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank |
general assessment: adequate
domestic: radiotelephone service between islands international: radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 95,729 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (1997) | NA |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 0 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | - |
Terrain | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east | low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons |
Total fertility rate | 4.9 children born/woman (2001 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | 40% (includes Gaza Strip) (yearend 2000) | NA% |
Waterways | none | none |