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Background:
|
 Guam
was ceded to the US by Spain in 1898. Captured by the Japanese
in 1941, it was retaken by the US three years later. The
military installation on the island is one of the most
strategically important US bases in the Pacific. |
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Location:
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Oceania, island
in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way
from Hawaii to the Philippines |
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Geographic coordinates:
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13 28 N, 144 47 E |
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Map references:
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Oceania |
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Area:
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total: 549
sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 549 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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three times the
size of Washington, DC |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km |
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Coastline:
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125.5 km |
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Climate:
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tropical marine;
generally warm and humid, moderated by northeast trade winds;
dry season from January to June, rainy season from July to
December; little seasonal temperature variation |
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Terrain:
|
volcanic origin,
surrounded by coral reefs; relatively flat coralline limestone
plateau (source of most fresh water), with steep coastal
cliffs and narrow coastal plains in north, low hills in
center, mountains in south |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 m |
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Natural resources:
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fishing (largely
undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan) |
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Land use:
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arable land:
10.91%
permanent crops: 10.91%
other: 78.18% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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NA sq km |
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Natural hazards:
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frequent squalls
during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very
destructive typhoons (June - December) |
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Environment - current issues:
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extirpation of
native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown
tree snake, an exotic, invasive species |
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Geography - note:
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largest and
southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago;
strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean |
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Population:
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166,090 (July
2004 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years:
29.8% (male 25,577; female 23,850)
15-64 years: 64% (male 54,220; female 52,026)
65 years and over: 6.3% (male 4,912; female 5,505)
(2004 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
28.2 years
male: 28 years
female: 28.4 years (2004 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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1.5% (2004 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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19.31
births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Death rate:
|
4.35 deaths/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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0 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
7.15 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 6.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 78.12 years
male: 75.08 years
female: 81.34 years (2004 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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NA% |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Guamanian(s)
adjective: Guamanian |
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Ethnic groups:
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Chamorro 37%,
Filipino 26%, white 10%, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and other
27% |
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic
85%, other 15% (1999 est.) |
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Languages:
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English, Chamorro,
Japanese |
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Literacy:
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (1990 est.) |
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: Territory of Guam
conventional short form: Guam
local long form: Guahan |
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Dependency status:
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organized,
unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations
between Guam and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office
of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior |
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Government type:
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NA |
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Capital:
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Hagatna (Agana) |
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Administrative divisions:
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none (territory
of the US) |
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Independence:
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none (territory
of the US) |
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National holiday:
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Discovery Day,
first Monday in March (1521) |
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Constitution:
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Organic Act of 1
August 1950 |
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Legal system:
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modeled on US; US
federal laws apply |
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Executive branch:
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chief of
state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20
January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20
January 2001)
election results: Felix P. P. CAMACHO elected governor;
percent of vote - Felix P. P. CAMACHO (Republican Party)
55.4%, Robert A. UNDERWOOD (Democratic Party) 44.6%
elections: US president and vice president elected on
the same ticket for a four-year term; governor and lieutenant
governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for
four-year term; election last held 5 November 2002 (next to be
held NA November 2006)
head of government: Governor Felix P. P. CAMACHO (since
6 January 2003) and Lieutenant Governor Kaleo MOYLAN (since 6
January 2003)
cabinet: executive departments; heads appointed by the
governor with the consent of the Guam legislature |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral
Legislature (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to
serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held 2
November 2004)
note: Guam elects one nonvoting delegate to the US
House of Representatives; election last held 5 November 2002
(next to be held 2 November 2004); results - Madeleine
BORDALLO (Democratic Party) was elected as delegate; percent
of vote by party - Democratic Party 64.6%, Republican Party
35.4%; seats by party - Democratic Party 1
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats
by party - Democratic Party 9, Republican Party 6 |
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Judicial branch:
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Federal District
Court (judge is appointed by the president); Territorial
Superior Court (judges appointed for eight-year terms by the
governor) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Democratic Party
(controls the legislature) [speaker, Vicente (Ben) PANGELINAN];
Republican Party (party of Governor CAMACHO) [leader NA] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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NA |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
none (territory
of the US) |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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none (territory
of the US) |
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Economy - overview:
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The economy
depends on US military spending, tourism, and the export of
fish and handicrafts. Total US grants, wage payments, and
procurement outlays amounted to $1 billion in 1998. Over the
past 20 years, the tourist industry has grown rapidly,
creating a construction boom for new hotels and the expansion
of older ones. More than 1 million tourists visit Guam each
year. The industry has recently suffered setbacks because of
the continuing Japanese slowdown; the Japanese normally make
up almost 90% of the tourists. Most food and industrial goods
are imported. Guam faces the problem of building up the
civilian economic sector to offset the impact of military
downsizing. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power
parity - $3.2 billion (2000 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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NA% |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power
parity - $21,000 (2000 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture:
7%
industry: 15%
services: 78% (2002 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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23% (2001 est.) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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0% (1999 est.) |
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Labor force:
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60,000 (2000
est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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federal and
territorial government 26%, private 74% (trade 24%, other
services 40%, industry 10%) (2000 est.) |
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Unemployment rate:
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15% (2000 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$340 million
expenditures: $445 million, including capital
expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
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Industries:
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US military,
tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete
products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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NA% |
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Electricity - production:
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830 million kWh
(2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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771.9 million kWh
(2001) |
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day (2001
est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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20,000 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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fruits, copra,
vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef |
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Exports:
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$38 million
f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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mostly
transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction
materials, fish, food and beverage products |
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Exports - partners:
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Japan 81.6%,
South Korea 5.3%, Canada 2.6% (2002) |
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Imports:
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$462 million
f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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petroleum and
petroleum products, food, manufactured goods |
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Imports - partners:
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Singapore 39.2%,
South Korea 21%, Japan 20.8%, Hong Kong 7.8% (2002) |
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Debt - external:
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$NA (2003 est.) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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Guam receives
large transfer payments from the US Federal Treasury ($143
million in 1997) into which Guamanians pay no income or excise
taxes; under the provisions of a special law of Congress, the
Guam Treasury, rather than the US Treasury, receives federal
income taxes paid by military and civilian Federal employees
stationed in Guam (2001 est.) |
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Currency:
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US dollar (USD) |
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Currency code:
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USD |
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Exchange rates:
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the US dollar is
used |
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Fiscal year:
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1 October - 30
September |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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84,134 (2001) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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32,600 (2001) |
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Telephone system:
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general
assessment: modern system, integrated with US facilities
for direct dialing, including free use of 800 numbers
domestic: modern digital system, including cellular
mobile service and local access to the Internet
international: country code - 1-671; satellite earth
stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); submarine cables to US
and Japan (Guam is a trans-Pacific communications hub for MCI,
Sprint, AT&T, IT&E, and GTE, linking the US and Asia) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 4, FM 7,
shortwave 2 (2003) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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5 (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.gu |
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Internet users:
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50,000 (2002) |
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Railways:
|
0 km |
|
Highways:
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total: 885
km
paved: 675 km
unpaved: 210 km
note: there are also 685 km of roads classified
non-public, including roads located on federal government
installations |
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Waterways:
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none |
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Ports and harbors:
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Apra Harbor |
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Merchant marine:
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none |
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Airports:
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5 (2003 est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
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Military - note:
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defense is the
responsibility of the US |
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Disputes - international:
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none |
This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004
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