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Background:
|
 Nauru's
phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century
by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by
Australian forces in World War I. Nauru achieved independence
in 1968 and joined the UN in 1999. Nauru is the world's
smallest independent republic. |
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Location:
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Oceania, island
in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands |
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Geographic coordinates:
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0 32 S, 166 55 E |
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Map references:
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Oceania |
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Area:
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total: 21
sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 21 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
|
about 0.1 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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30 km |
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Climate:
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tropical with a
monsoonal pattern; rainy season (November to February) |
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Terrain:
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sandy beach rises
to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate
plateau in center |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
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Natural resources:
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phosphates, fish |
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Land use:
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arable land:
0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (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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periodic droughts |
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Environment - current issues:
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limited natural
fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater,
but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant;
intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly
by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central
90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land
resources |
|
Environment - international agreements:
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party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
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Geography - note:
|
Nauru is one of
the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean -
the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea
in French Polynesia; only 53 km south of Equator |
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Population:
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12,809 (July 2004
est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years:
38.2% (male 2,516; female 2,372)
15-64 years: 60% (male 3,782; female 3,898)
65 years and over: 1.9% (male 128; female 113) (2004
est.) |
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Median age:
|
total:
19.9 years
male: 19.5 years
female: 20.4 years (2004 est.) |
|
Population growth rate:
|
1.87% (2004 est.) |
|
Birth rate:
|
25.61
births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Death rate:
|
6.95 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:
|
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
10.14 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 7.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 12.76 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
|
total
population: 62.33 years
male: 58.78 years
female: 66.06 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:
Nauruan(s)
adjective: Nauruan |
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Ethnic groups:
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Nauruan 58%,
other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% |
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Religions:
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Christian
(two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) |
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Languages:
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Nauruan
(official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely
understood, spoken, and used for most government and
commercial purposes |
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Literacy:
|
definition:
NA
total population: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA% |
|
Country name:
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conventional
long form: Republic of Nauru
conventional short form: Nauru
former: Pleasant Island |
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Government type:
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republic |
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Capital:
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no official
capital; government offices in Yaren District |
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Administrative divisions:
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14 districts;
Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu,
Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren |
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Independence:
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31 January 1968
(from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day,
31 January (1968) |
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Constitution:
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29 January 1968 |
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Legal system:
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acts of the Nauru
Parliament and British common law |
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Executive branch:
|
chief of
state: President Rene R. HARRIS (since 8 August 2003) note
- the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
elections: president elected by Parliament for a
three-year term; election last held 8 August 2003 (next to be
held NA 2006)
election results: Ludwig SCOTTY was removed from the
presidency in a 9 to 8 no-confidence vote 8 August 2003; Rene
HARRIS became president
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among
the members of Parliament
head of government: President Rene R. HARRIS (since 8
August 2003) note - the president is both the chief of state
and head of government |
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Legislative branch:
|
unicameral
Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve
three-year terms)
elections: last held 3 May 2003 (next to be held not
later than May 2006)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - Nauru
First Party 3, independents 15 |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Court |
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Political parties and leaders:
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loose multiparty
system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party
(informal) [leader NA]; Naoero Amo (Nauru First) Party [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:
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Nauru does not
have an embassy in the US, but does have a UN office at 800
2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, New York 10017; telephone:
(212) 937-0074
consulate(s): Hagatna (Guam) |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
|
the US does not
have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is
accredited to Nauru |
|
Economy - overview:
|
Revenues of this
tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves
are expected to be exhausted within a few years. Phosphate
production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen in
traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the
remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally
competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the
highest per capita incomes in the Third World, few other
resources exist with most necessities being imported,
including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of
mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are
serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion
of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of
phosphate income have been invested in trust funds to help
cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic
future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the
trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government
has called for a freeze on wages, a reduction of over-staffed
public service departments, privatization of numerous
government agencies, and closure of some overseas consulates.
In recent years Nauru has encouraged the registration of
offshore banks and corporations. Tens of billions of dollars
have been channeled through their accounts. Few comprehensive
statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of
Nauru's GDP varying widely. |
|
GDP:
|
purchasing power
parity - $60 million (2001 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
NA% |
|
GDP - per capita:
|
purchasing power
parity - $5,000 (2001 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture:
NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
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Population below poverty line:
|
NA% |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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-3.6% (1993) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
|
employed in
mining phosphates, public administration, education, and
transportation |
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Unemployment rate:
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0% (2002 est.) |
|
Budget:
|
revenues:
$23.4 million
expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital
expenditures of $NA (FY95/96) |
|
Industries:
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phosphate mining,
offshore banking, coconut products |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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NA% |
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Electricity - production:
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30 million kWh
(2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
|
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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27.9 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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1,000 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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coconuts |
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Exports:
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$18 million
f.o.b. (2002) |
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Exports - commodities:
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phosphates |
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Exports - partners:
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India 44.4%,
South Korea 16.7%, Australia 11.1%, Netherlands 5.6%, New
Zealand 5.6%, US 5.6% (2002) |
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Imports:
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$31 million
c.i.f. (2002) |
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Imports - commodities:
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food, fuel,
manufactures, building materials, machinery |
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Imports - partners:
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Australia 61.3%,
US 9.7%, Ireland 6.5%, Malaysia 6.5% (2002) |
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Debt - external:
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$33.3 million
(2002) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
|
$2.25 million
from Australia (FY96/97 est.) (2000 est.) |
|
Currency:
|
Australian dollar
(AUD) |
|
Currency code:
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AUD |
|
Exchange rates:
|
Australian
dollars per US dollar - 1.5419 (2003), 1.2641 (2002) 1.9320
(2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999) |
|
Fiscal year:
|
1 July - 30 June |
|
Telephones - main lines in use:
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1,900 (2002) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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1,500 (2002) |
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Telephone system:
|
general
assessment: adequate local and international
radiotelephone communication provided via Australian
facilities
domestic: NA
international: country code - 674; satellite earth
station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
|
Radio broadcast stations:
|
AM 1, FM 0,
shortwave 0 (1998) |
|
Television broadcast stations:
|
1 (1997) |
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Internet country code:
|
.nr |
|
Internet users:
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300 (2002) |
|
Railways:
|
total: 5
km
note: gauge unknown; used to haul phosphates from the
center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest
coast (2001) |
|
Highways:
|
total: 30
km
paved: 24 km
unpaved: 6 km (1999 est.) |
|
Waterways:
|
none |
|
Ports and harbors:
|
Nauru |
|
Merchant marine:
|
none |
|
Airports:
|
1 (2003 est.) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
|
Military branches:
|
no regular
military forces; Nauru Police Force |
|
Military manpower - availability:
|
males age
15-49: 3,275 (2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - fit for military service:
|
males age
15-49: 1,810 (2004 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
|
NA |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
NA |
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Military - note:
|
Nauru maintains
no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the
responsibility of Australia |
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Disputes - international:
|
none |
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Illicit drugs:
|
offshore banking
recently stopped, remains on Financial Action Task Force
Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories List for continued
failure to address deficiencies in money-laundering control
regime |
This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004
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