




The climate is tropical, with a mean annual temperature for the entire group of 82° F (28° C82 °F (28 °C). Annual rainfall precipitation varies from 20 to 30 inches (500 to 800 millimetresmm) in the north to 160 inches in the southern atolls. The wettest months are October and November. Several of the northern atolls are uninhabited owing to insufficient rainfall. Most of the Marshall Islands are true atolls, consisting of an irregular, oval-shaped coral reef surrounding a lagoon; the islets lie along the coral reef. The islands and islets of the Ratak chain tend to be more heavily wooded than those of the Ralik. Coconut and pandanus palms and breadfruit trees are the principal vegetation. Soils are generally sandy and low in fertility.


The native people of the Marshalls are Micronesians. The most populous atolls are Majuro and Kwajalein, which offers employment at the U.S. missile testing range; together they have more than two-thirds almost three-fourths of the country’s total population. The remaining one-third rest of the population lives in traditional villages on the outer islands away from the two urban centres. The American missionary effort began missionaries arrived in the Marshalls in the 1850s and was exceedingly successfulhad notable success. The Marshallese today are predominantly Christian. The Marshallese and English languages are spoken, but only a minority are fluent in the latter.


Substantial The republic’s main sources of revenue are substantial U.S. subsidies to the Republic of the Marshall Islands under the under a Compact of Free Association (see below) and the leasing of land for the U.S. missile testing range on Kwajalein are the main sources of revenue for the nation. Employment and modern amenities at both Majuro and Kwajalein serve as magnets that draw people to the two urban centres.



Government and society


A hospital Hospitals on Majuro , a small sub-hospital on Ebeye island and Ebeye (part of Kwajalein Atoll) , and dispensaries on other islands provide health care. There are primary schools, both public and church-run, on the inhabited islands and islets. Majuro and Jaluit atolls each have a public secondary school. Majuro is also the site of a centre for continuing education operated by the Federated States of Micronesia’s College of MicronesiaCollege of the Marshall Islands (1993), which grants certificates and associate degrees in a variety of programs.