Western Sahara (2008) | Kiribati (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (under de facto control of Morocco) | 3 units; Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands; note - in addition, there are 6 districts (Banaba, Central Gilberts, Line Islands, Northern Gilberts, Southern Gilberts, Tarawa) and 21 island councils - one for each of the inhabited islands (Abaiang, Abemama, Aranuka, Arorae, Banaba, Beru, Butaritari, Kanton, Kiritimati, Kuria, Maiana, Makin, Marakei, Nikunau, Nonouti, Onotoa, Tabiteuea, Tabuaeran, Tamana, Tarawa, Teraina) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 45.4% (male 88,176/female 85,421)
15-64 years: 52.3% (male 98,345/female 101,895) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 3,705/female 5,075) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years:
40.53% (male 19,322; female 18,833) 15-64 years: 56.27% (male 26,136; female 26,841) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 1,291; female 1,726) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads); fish | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish |
Airports | 9 (2007) | 21 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2007) |
total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total:
17 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
717 sq km land: 717 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands |
Area - comparative | about the size of Colorado | four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | 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. In April 2007, Morocco presented an autonomy plan for the territory to the UN, which the U.S. considers serious and credible. The Polisario also presented a plan to the UN in 2007. Since August 2007, representatives from the Government of Morocco and the Polisario Front have met three times to negotiate the status of Western Sahara, with a fourth round of negotiations planned for March 2008. | The Gilbert Islands were granted self-rule by the UK in 1971 and complete independence in 1979 under the new name of Kiribati. The US relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited Phoenix and Line Island groups in a 1979 treaty of friendship with Kiribati. |
Birth rate | NA 39.95 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 31.98 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues:
$33.3 million expenditures: $47.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (1996 est.) |
Capital | none
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Tarawa |
Climate | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds |
Coastline | 1,110 km | 1,143 km |
Constitution | - | 12 July 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
conventional long form:
Republic of Kiribati conventional short form: Kiribati note: pronounced kir-ih-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
Currency | - | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | NA | 8.88 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $10 million (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none | the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to the Marshall Islands is accredited to Kiribati |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none | Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu |
Disputes - international | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved; UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991, administered by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals; several states have extended diplomatic relations to the "Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic" represented by the Polisario Front in exile in Algeria, while others recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara; most of the approximately 102,000 Sahrawi refugees are sheltered in camps in Tindouf, Algeria | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $15.5 million (1995), largely from UK and Japan |
Economy - overview | 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. Incomes in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. The Moroccan Government controls all trade and other economic activities in Western Sahara. Morocco and the EU signed a four-year agreement in July 2006 allowing European vessels to fish off the coast of Morocco, including the disputed waters off the coast of Western Sahara. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. However, in 2006 the Polisario awarded similar exploration licenses in the disputed territory, which would come into force if Morocco and the Polisario resolve their dispute over Western Sahara. | A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few national resources. Commercially viable phosphate deposits were exhausted at the time of independence from the UK in 1979. Copra and fish now represent the bulk of production and exports. The economy has fluctuated widely in recent years. Economic development is constrained by a shortage of skilled workers, weak infrastructure, and remoteness from international markets. Tourism provides more than one-fifth of GDP. The financial sector is at an early stage of development as is the expansion of private sector initiatives. Foreign financial aid, largely from the UK and Japan, is a critical supplement to GDP, equal to 25%-50% of GDP in recent years. Remittances from workers abroad account for more than $5 million each year. Performance in 2000 fell short of the 2.5% growth in 1999, which benefited from increased copra production and exceptionally large revenues from fishing licenses. |
Electricity - consumption | 79.05 million kWh (2005) | 6.5 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 85 million kWh (2005) | 7 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
Environment - current issues | sparse water and lack of arable land | heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk |
Environment - international agreements | party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Arab, Berber | predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.2827 (2007), 8.7722 (2006), 8.865 (2005), 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) |
Executive branch | none | chief of state:
President Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the House of Assembly, includes the president, vice president, attorney general, and up to eight other ministers elections: the House of Assembly chooses the presidential candidates from among their members and then those candidates compete in a general election; president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 27 November 1998 (next to be held by NA November 2002); vice president appointed by the president election results: Teburoro TITO reelected president; percent of vote - Teburoro TITO 52.3%, Dr. Harry TONG 45.8%, Amberoti NIKORA 1.9%, Taberannang TIMEON 0% |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $6 million (f.o.b., 1998) |
Exports - commodities | phosphates 62% | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish |
Exports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2006) | Bangladesh, Australia, US, Hong Kong (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | NA |
Flag description | - | the upper half is red with a yellow frigate bird flying over a yellow rising sun, and the lower half is blue with three horizontal wavy white stripes to represent the ocean |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $76 million (2000 est.), supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: 40% |
agriculture:
14% industry: 7% services: 79% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 1% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 24 30 N, 13 00 W | 1 25 N, 173 00 E |
Geography - note | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas | 20 of the 33 islands are inhabited; Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru |
Highways | - | total:
670 km (1996) 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 | 1,698 bbl/day (2004) | $44 million (c.i.f., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel |
Imports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2006) | Australia, Fiji, Japan, NZ, China (1999) |
Independence | - | 12 July 1979 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 0.7% (1992 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, handicrafts | fishing, handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
54 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 2% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | none | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president |
Labor force | 12,000 | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (1985 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 50%
industry and services: 50% |
- |
Land boundaries | total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2005) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 51% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 3% other: 46% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic | English (official), I-Kiribati |
Legal system | - | NA |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral House of Assembly or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (41 seats; 39 elected by popular vote, one ex officio member, and one nominated to represent Banaba; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 23 September 1998 (next to be held by NA September 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Maneaban Te Mauri Party 14, National Progressive Party 11, independents 14 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population:
60.16 years male: 57.25 years female: 63.22 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco | Oceania, group of islands in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the equator, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia; note - on 1 January 1995, Kiribati proclaimed that all of its territory lies in the same time zone as its Gilbert Islands group (GMT +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction lie on the other side of the International Date Line |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,291 GRT/1,295 DWT ships by type: passenger/cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ |
Military branches | - | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
noun:
I-Kiribati (singular and plural) adjective: I-Kiribati |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility | typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level |
Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) |
Net migration rate | - | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Maneaban Te Mauri Party [Teburoro TITO]; National Progressive Party [Teatao TEANNAKI]
note: there is no tradition of formally organized political parties in Kiribati; they more closely resemble factions or interest groups because they have no party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 382,617
note: estimate is based on projections by age, sex, fertility, mortality, and migration; fertility and mortality are based on data from neighboring countries (July 2007 est.) |
94,149 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | NA | 2.31% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Banaba, Betio, English Harbor, Kanton |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 17,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Muslim | Roman Catholic 54%, Protestant (Congregational) 30%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1996) |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | 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 |
general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) note: Kiribati is being linked to the Pacific Ocean Cooperative Telecommunications Network, which should improve telephone service |
Telephones - main lines in use | about 2,000 (1999 est.) | 2,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1999) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs |
Total fertility rate | NA | 4.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) |
Waterways | - | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) |