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Geography Vanuatu
Geographic coordinates:
16 00 S, 167 00 E
Map references:
total: 12,200 sq km
land: 12,200 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Connecticut
Land boundaries:
0 km
2,528 km
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
contiguous zone: 24 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
mostly mountainous islands of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plains
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Tabwemasana 1,877 m
Natural resources:
manganese, hardwood forests, fish
Land use:
arable land: 2.46%
permanent crops: 7.38%
other: 90.16% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Natural hazards:
Environment - current issues:
Environment - international agreements:
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
People Vanuatu
202,609 (July 2004 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 34.1% (male 35,281; female 33,785)
15-64 years: 62.4% (male 64,669; female 61,829)
65 years and over: 3.5% (male 3,740; female 3,305) (2004 est.)
Median age:
total: 22.3 years
male: 22.3 years
female: 22.2 years (2004 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.57% (2004 est.)
Birth rate:
23.67 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Death rate:
8.02 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Net migration rate:
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female
Infant mortality rate:
total: 56.63 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 53.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 59.25 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 62.1 years
male: 60.64 years
female: 63.63 years (2004 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.87 children born/woman (2004 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
noun: Ni-Vanuatu (singular and plural)
adjective: Ni-Vanuatu
Ethnic groups:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 53%
male: 57%
female: 48% (1979 est.)
Government Vanuatu
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Vanuatu
conventional short form: Vanuatu
former: New Hebrides
Government type:
parliamentary republic
Port-Vila (Efate)
Administrative divisions:
30 July 1980 (from France and UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 30 July (1980)
30 July 1980
Legal system:
unified system being created from former dual French and British systems
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Father John BANI (since 25 March 1999)
elections: president elected for a five-year term by an electoral college consisting of Parliament and the presidents of the regional councils; election for president last held 25 March 1999 (next to be held NA April 2004); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament from among its members; election for prime minister last held 2 August 2002 (next to be held NA May 2006)
election results: Father John BANI elected president on second ballot (24 March 1999) after the first ballot (17 March 1999) did not have any candidate with the required two-thirds majority; percent of electoral college vote - NA%
head of government: Prime Minister Edward Nipake NATAPEI (since 13 April 2001, reelected NA June 2002); Deputy Prime Minister Ham LINI (since NA November 2003)
Legislative branch:
elections: last held 2 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2006)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP 15, VP 14, NUP 8, VRP 3, MPP 3, VGP 3, other and independent 6; note - political party associations are fluid
Judicial branch:
Political parties and leaders:
Jon Frum Movement [Song KEASPAI]; Melanesian Progressive Party or MPP [Barak SOPE]; National United Party or NUP [NA]; Union of Moderate Parties or UMP [Serge VOHOR]; Vanuaaku Party (Our Land Party) or VP [Edward NATAPEI]; Vanuatu Republican Party or VRP [Maxime Carlot KORMAN]; Greens (Vanuatu) [NA]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
International organization participation:
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Diplomatic representation from the US:
the US does not have an embassy in Vanuatu; the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to Vanuatu
Flag description:
Economy Vanuatu
Economy - overview:
This South Pacific island economy is based primarily on small-scale agriculture, which provides a living for 65% of the population. Fishing, offshore financial services, and tourism, with about 50,000 visitors in 1997, are other mainstays of the economy. Mineral deposits are negligible; the country has no known petroleum deposits. A small light industry sector caters to the local market. Tax revenues come mainly from import duties. Economic development is hindered by dependence on relatively few commodity exports, vulnerability to natural disasters, and long distances from main markets and between constituent islands. A severe earthquake in November 1999 followed by a tsunami, caused extensive damage to the northern island of Pentecote and left thousands homeless. Another powerful earthquake in January 2002 caused extensive damage in the capital, Port-Vila, and surrounding areas, and also was followed by a tsunami. GDP growth rose less than 3% on average in the 1990s. In response to foreign concerns, the government has promised to tighten regulation of its offshore financial center. In mid-2002 the government stepped up efforts to boost tourism. Agriculture, especially livestock farming, is a second target for growth. Australia and New Zealand are the main suppliers of tourists and foreign aid. Growth expanded moderately in 2003.
purchasing power parity - $563 million (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
-0.3% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $2,900 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 26%
industry: 12%
services: 62% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA% (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 65%, services 30%, industry 5% (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA% (2003 est.)
revenues: $94.4 million
expenditures: $99.8 million, including capital expenditures of $30.4 million (1996 est.)
food and fish freezing, wood processing, meat canning
Industrial production growth rate:
1% (1997 est.)
Electricity - production:
43.46 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
40.42 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
600 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
Oil - imports:
Agriculture - products:
$79 million f.o.b. (2002)
Exports - commodities:
copra, beef, cocoa, timber, kava, coffee
Exports - partners:
India 32.9%, Thailand 22.8%, South Korea 10.1%, Indonesia 6.3%, Japan 5.1% (2002)
$138 million c.i.f. (2002)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, fuels
Imports - partners:
Australia 21%, Japan 18.8%, New Zealand 9.4%, Singapore 8%, Fiji 6.5%, India 5.1% (2002)
Debt - external:
$65.8 million (2001 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$45.8 million (1995)
vatu (VUV)
Currency code:
Exchange rates:
vatu per US dollar - 122.19 (2003), 139.2 (2002), 145.31 (2001), 137.64 (2000), 129.08 (1999)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Vanuatu
Telephones - main lines in use:
6,600 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
4,900 (2002)
Telephone system:
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 2, FM 2, shortwave 1 (2002)
67,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
1 (2002)
2,300 (1999)
Internet country code:
Internet hosts:
551 (2002)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2000)
Internet users:
7,000 (2002)
Transportation Vanuatu
0 km
total: 1,070 km
paved: 256 km
unpaved: 814 km (1999 est.)
Ports and harbors:
Forari, Port-Vila, Santo (Espiritu Santo)
Merchant marine:
total: 51 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,192,474 GRT/1,560,828 DWT
by type: bulk 28, cargo 2, combination bulk 3, container 2, liquefied gas 2, multi-functional large load carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 2, vehicle carrier 5
registered in other countries: 1 (2003 est.)
foreign-owned: Australia 2, Canada 1, Estonia 1, Germany 1, Japan 25, Monaco 4, New Zealand 2, Panama 1, Poland 7, Switzerland 3, United Kingdom 5, United States 2
30 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1524 to 2437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2003 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 27
914 to 1,523 m: 10
under 914 m: 17 (2003 est.)
Military Vanuatu
Military branches:
no regular military forces; Vanuatu Police Force (VPF; including the paramilitary Mobile Force or VMF)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
Transnational Issues Vanuatu
Disputes - international: