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Background:
|
 Pitcairn
Island was discovered in 1767 by the British and settled in
1790 by the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions.
Pitcairn was the first Pacific island to become a British
colony (in 1838) and today remains the last vestige of that
empire in the South Pacific. Outmigration, primarily to New
Zealand, has thinned the population from a peak of 233 in 1937
to less than 50 today. |
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Location:
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Oceania, islands
in the South Pacific Ocean, about midway between Peru and New
Zealand |
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Geographic coordinates:
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25 04 S, 130 06 W |
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Map references:
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Oceania |
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Area:
|
total: 47
sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 47 sq km |
|
Area - comparative:
|
about 0.3 times
the size of Washington, DC |
|
Land boundaries:
|
0 km |
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Coastline:
|
51 km |
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Climate:
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tropical; hot and
humid; modified by southeast trade winds; rainy season
(November to March) |
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Terrain:
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rugged volcanic
formation; rocky coastline with cliffs |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pawala Valley Ridge 347 m |
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Natural resources:
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miro trees (used
for handicrafts), fish
note: manganese, iron, copper, gold, silver, and zinc
have been discovered offshore |
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Land use:
|
arable land:
NA%
permanent crops: NA%
other: NA% (1998 est.) |
|
Irrigated land:
|
NA sq km |
|
Natural hazards:
|
typhoons
(especially November to March) |
|
Environment - current issues:
|
deforestation
(only a small portion of the original forest remains because
of burning and clearing for settlement) |
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Geography - note:
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Britain's most
isolated dependency; only the larger island of Pitcairn is
inhabited but it has no port or natural harbor; supplies must
be transported by rowed longboat from larger ships stationed
offshore |
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Population:
|
46 (July 2004
est.) |
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Age structure:
|
0-14 years:
NA%
15-64 years: NA%
65 years and over: NA% (2004 est.) |
|
Population growth rate:
|
-0.01% NA% (2004
est.) |
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Birth rate:
|
NA births/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
|
Death rate:
|
NA deaths/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
|
Net migration rate:
|
NA migrant(s)/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
|
Sex ratio:
|
NA (2004 est.) |
|
Infant mortality rate:
|
total: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA% (2004 est.) |
|
Life expectancy at birth:
|
total
population: NA years
male: NA years
female: NA years (2004 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
|
NA% |
|
Nationality:
|
noun:
Pitcairn Islander(s)
adjective: Pitcairn Islander |
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Ethnic groups:
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descendants of
the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian wives |
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Religions:
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Seventh-Day
Adventist 100% |
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Languages:
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English
(official), Pitcairnese (mixture of an 18th century English
dialect and a Tahitian dialect) |
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Literacy:
|
NA |
|
Country name:
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conventional
long form: Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno Islands
conventional short form: Pitcairn Islands |
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Dependency status:
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overseas
territory of the UK |
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Government type:
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NA |
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Capital:
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Adamstown |
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Administrative divisions:
|
none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
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Independence:
|
none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
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National holiday:
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Birthday of Queen
ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
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Constitution:
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1838; reformed
1904 with additional reforms in 1940; further refined by the
Local Government Ordinance of 1964 |
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Legal system:
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local island
by-laws |
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Executive branch:
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chief of
state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by UK High Commissioner to New Zealand and
Governor (nonresident) of the Pitcairn Islands Richard FELL
(since NA December 2001); Commissioner (nonresident) Leslie
JACQUES (since November 2003); serves as liaison between the
governor and the Island Council
election results: Steve CHRISTIAN elected mayor;
percent of vote - NA%
elections: the monarchy is hereditary; high
commissioner and commissioner appointed by the monarch; island
mayor elected by popular vote for a three-year term; election
last held NA December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2005)
head of government: Mayor and Chairman of the Island
Council Steve CHRISTIAN (since 7 December 1999)
cabinet: NA |
|
Legislative branch:
|
unicameral Island
Council (10 seats - 5 elected by popular vote, 1 nominated by
the 5 elected members, 2 appointed by the governor including 1
seat for the Island Secretary, the Island Mayor, and a
commissioner liaising between the governor and council;
elected members serve one-year terms)
elections: last held 24 December 2003 (next to be held
24 December 2004)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - all
independents |
|
Judicial branch:
|
Island Court
(island magistrate, appointed by the governor, presides over
the court) |
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Political parties and leaders:
|
none |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
|
none |
|
Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
|
Diplomatic representation from the US:
|
none (overseas
territory of the UK) |
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Economy - overview:
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The inhabitants
of this tiny isolated economy exist on fishing, subsistence
farming, handicrafts, and postage stamps. The fertile soil of
the valleys produces a wide variety of fruits and vegetables,
including citrus, sugarcane, watermelons, bananas, yams, and
beans. Bartering is an important part of the economy. The
major sources of revenue are the sale of postage stamps to
collectors and the sale of handicrafts to passing ships. |
|
GDP:
|
purchasing power
parity - $NA |
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
NA% |
|
GDP - per capita:
|
purchasing power
parity - $NA |
|
GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture:
NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
|
Population below poverty line:
|
NA% |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
NA% |
|
Labor force:
|
12 able-bodied
men (1997) |
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
no business
community in the usual sense; some public works; subsistence
farming and fishing |
|
Unemployment rate:
|
NA% |
|
Budget:
|
revenues:
$729,884
expenditures: $878,119, including capital expenditures
of $NA (FY94/95 est.) |
|
Industries:
|
postage stamps,
handicrafts |
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Industrial production growth rate:
|
NA% |
|
Electricity - production:
|
NA kWh; note -
electric power is provided by a small diesel-powered generator |
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
NA kWh |
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Agriculture - products:
|
wide variety of
fruits and vegetables, goats, chickens |
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Exports:
|
$NA |
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Exports - commodities:
|
fruits,
vegetables, curios, stamps |
|
Exports - partners:
|
NA (2000) |
|
Imports:
|
$NA |
|
Imports - commodities:
|
fuel oil,
machinery, building materials, flour, sugar, other foodstuffs |
|
Imports - partners:
|
NA (2000) |
|
Debt - external:
|
$NA |
|
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$NA |
|
Currency:
|
New Zealand
dollar (NZD) |
|
Currency code:
|
NZD |
|
Exchange rates:
|
New Zealand
dollars per US dollar - 1.7229 (2003), 2.162 (2002), 2.3776
(2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999) |
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Fiscal year:
|
1 April - 31
March |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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1 (there are 17
telephones on one party line); (2004) |
|
Telephone system:
|
general
assessment: only party line telephone service is available
for this small, closely related community
domestic: party line service only
international: country code - 672; satellite earth
station (Inmarsat) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 1, FM 0,
shortwave 0 (1998) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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0 (1997) |
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Internet country code:
|
.pn |
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Internet users:
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NA |
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Railways:
|
0 km |
|
Highways:
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total: 6.4
km
paved: 0 km
unpaved: 6.4 km |
|
Waterways:
|
none |
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Ports and harbors:
|
Adamstown (on
Bounty Bay) |
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Merchant marine:
|
total: 1
ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,313 GRT/5,651 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2003 est.) |
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Airports:
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none (2003 est.) |
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Military - note:
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defense is the
responsibility of the UK |
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Disputes - international:
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none |
This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004
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