2 definitions found
From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]:
Kiribati
n : an island republic in the west central Pacific just S of the
equator [syn: {Kiribati}]
From The CIA World Factbook (1995) [world95]:
Kiribati
Kiribati:Geography
Location: Oceania, group of islands in the Pacific Ocean, straddling
the equator and the International Date Line about one-half of the way
from Hawaii to Australia
Map references: Oceania
Area:
total area: 717 sq km
land area: 717 sq km
comparative area: slightly more than four times the size of
Washington, DC
note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands,
Phoenix Islands
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 1,143 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: none
Climate: tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds
Terrain: mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs
Natural resources: phosphate (production discontinued in 1979)
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 51%
meadows and pastures: 0%
forest and woodland: 3%
other: 46%
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Environment:
current issues: NA
natural hazards: typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to
March; occasional tornadoes
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Endangered Species,
Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified -
Climate Change
Note: 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
Kiribati:People
Population: 79,386 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA
65 years and over: NA
Population growth rate: 1.95% (1995 est.)
Birth rate: 31.25 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate: 12.31 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 98.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 54.16 years
male: 52.56 years
female: 55.78 years (1995 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.73 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Nationality:
noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective: I-Kiribati
Ethnic divisions: Micronesian
Religions: Roman Catholic 52.6%, Protestant (Congregational) 40.9%,
Seventh-Day Adventist, Baha'i, Church of God, Mormon 6% (1985)
Languages: English (official), Gilbertese
Literacy: NA%
Labor force: 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence
farmers (1985 est.)
Kiribati:Government
Names:
conventional long form: Republic of Kiribati
conventional short form: Kiribati
former: Gilbert Islands
Digraph: KR
Type: republic
Capital: Tarawa
Administrative divisions: 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 (Abaiang, Abemama Aranuka Arorae, Banaba, Beru,
Butaritari Kanton, Kiritimati Kuria, Maiana, Makin, Marakei
Nikunau Nonouti Onotoa Tabiteuea Tabuaeran Tamana, Tarawa,
Teraina note - one council for each of the inhabited islands)
Independence: 12 July 1979 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day 12 July (1979)
Constitution: 12 July 1979
Legal system: NA
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: President Beretitenti
Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President
(Kauoman-ni-Beretitenti) Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994);
election last held on 30 September 1994 (next to be held by NA 1999)
cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the president from an elected
parliament
Legislative branch: unicameral
House of Assembly (Maneaba Ni Maungatabu): elections last held on 22
July 1994 (next to be held by NA 1999); results - percent of vote by
party NA seats - (40 total; 39 elected) Maneaban Te Mauri 13,
National Progressive Party 7, independents 19
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal, High Court
Political parties and leaders: National Progressive Party, Teatao
TEANNAKI Christian Democratic Party, Teburoro TITO; New Movement
Party, leader NA Liberal Party, Tewareka TENTOA Maneaba Party,
Roniti TEIWAKI Maneaban Te Mauri, leader NA
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
Member of: ACP, AsDB C, ESCAP, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU IDA, IFC, IFRCS
(associate), IMF, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, ITU,
SPARTECA SPC, SPF, UNESCO, UPU, WHO
Diplomatic representation in US: Kiribati has no mission in the US
US diplomatic representation: the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to
Kiribati
Flag: 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
Economy
Overview: A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has
few national resources. Commercially viable phosphate deposits were
exhausted at the time of independence in 1979. Copra and fish now
represent the bulk of production and exports. The economy has
fluctuated widely in recent years. Real GDP declined about 5% in 1987,
as the fish catch fell sharply to only one-fourth the level of 1986
and copra production was hampered by repeated rains. Output rebounded
strongly in 1988, with real GDP growing by 10%. The upturn in economic
growth came from an increase in copra production and a good fish
catch. GDP then fell by 2.2% in 1989 and by 2.9% in 1990, but has
risen by about 3% annually in 1991-93. Foreign financial aid, largely
from the UK and Japan, is a critical supplement to GDP, amounting to
25%-50% of GDP in recent years.
National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $62 million (1993
est.)
National product real growth rate: 2.9% (1993 est.)
National product per capita: $800 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.5% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate: 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $29.6 million
expenditures: $32.8 million, including capital expenditures of $14
million (1993 est.)
Exports: $4.2 million (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
commodities: copra 50%, seaweed 16%, fish 15%
partners: Denmark, Fiji, US
Imports: $33.1 million (c.i.f., 1992 est.)
commodities: foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous
manufactured goods, fuel
partners: Australia 40%, Japan 18%, Fiji 17%, NZ 6%, US 4% (1991)
External debt: $2 million (December 1989 est.)
Industrial production: growth rate 0.7% (1992 est.); accounts for less
than 4% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity: 5,000 kW
production: 13 million kWh
consumption per capita: 131 kWh (1993)
Industries: fishing, handicrafts
Agriculture: accounts for 23% of GDP (including fishing); copra and
fish contribute about 65% to exports; subsistence farming
predominates; food crops - taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes,
vegetables; not self-sufficient in food
Economic aid:
recipient: Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral
commitments (1970-89), $273 million
Currency: 1 Australian dollar ($A) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Australian dollars ($A) per US$1 - 1.3058 (January
1995), 1.3667 (1994), 1.4704 (1993), 1.3600 (1992), 1.2835 (1991),
1.2799 (1990)
Fiscal year: NA
Kiribati:Transportation
Railroads: 0 km
Highways:
total: 640 km
paved: NA
unpaved: NA
Inland waterways: small network of canals, totaling 5 km in Line
Islands
Ports: Banaba, Betio, English Harbor, Kanton
Merchant marine:
total: 1 passenger-cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,291
GRT/1,295 DWT
Airports:
total: 21
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 1
with paved runways under 914 m: 5
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 11
Kiribati:Communications
Telephone system: 1,400 telephones
local: NA
intercity: NA
international: 1 INTELSAT (Pacific Ocean) earth station
Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
radios: NA
Television:
broadcast stations: 0
televisions: NA
Kiribati:Defense Forces
Branches: Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and
paramilitary duties; there are small police posts on all islands); no
military force is maintained
Defense expenditures: $NA, NA% of GDP
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