Fiji

Fiji 

 
Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Oceania, island group in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand

Area

Land Boundaries

0 km

Coastline

1,129 km

Maritime Claims

Measured from claimed archipelagic baselines

International Disputes

None

Climate

Tropical marine; only slight seasonal temperature variation

Terrain

Mostly mountains of volcanic origin
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Tomanivi 1,324 m

Natural Resources

Land Use

Irrigated Land

10 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment

Note: Includes 332 islands of which approximately 110 are inhabited

PEOPLE

Population

782,381 (July 1996 est.)
772,891 (July 1995 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 Years

35% (male 141,652; female 135,829) (July 1996 est.)
36% (male 142,581; female 136,570) (July 1995 est.)

15-64 Years

62% (male 240,621; female 240,620) (July 1996 est.)
61% (male 235,411; female 235,491) (July 1995 est.)

65 Years and Over

3% (male 11,235; female 12,424) (July 1996 est.)
3% (male 10,895; female 11,943) (July 1995 est.)

Population Growth Rate

1.28% (1996 est.)
1.16% (1995 est.)

Birth Rate

23.37 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
23.69 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death Rate

6.35 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
6.42 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net Migration Rate

-4.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
-5.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female
all ages: 1.01 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

17.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
17.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total Fertility Rate

2.83 children born/woman (1996 est.)
2.87 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic Divisions

Religions

Note: Fijians are mainly Christian, Indians are Hindu, and there is a Muslim minority (1986)

Languages

English (official), Fijian, Hindustani

Literacy

Age 15 and over that can read and write (1995 est.)

Labor Force

235,000

By occupation:

GOVERNMENT

Names

Digraph

FJ

Type

Republic

Note: Military coup leader Maj. Gen. Sitiveni RABUKA formally declared Fiji a republic on 6 October 1987

Capital

Suva

Administrative Divisions

4 divisions and 1 dependency*; Central, Eastern, Northern, Rotuma*, Western

Independence

10 October 1970 (from U.K.)

National Holiday

Independence Day, 10 October (1970)

Constitution

10 October 1970 (suspended 1 October 1987); a new Constitution was proposed on 23 September 1988 and promulgated on 25 July 1990; the 1990 Constitution is under review; the review is scheduled to be complete by 1997

Legal System

Based on British system

Suffrage

21 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Presidential Council

Advises the president on matters of national importance

Great Council of Chiefs

Highest ranking members of the traditional chiefly system

Legislative Branch

Bicameral Parliament

Senate

Nonelective body, members are appointed by the president and serve five-year terms; seats - (34 total, 24 reserved for ethnic Fijians, 9 for Indians and others, and 1 for the island of Rotuma)

House of Representatives

Members serve five-year terms; elections last held 18-25 February 1994 (next to be held NA 1999); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (70 total, with ethnic Fijians allocated 37 seats, ethnic Indians 27 seats, and independents and other 6 seats) SVT 31, NFP 20, FLP 7, FAP 5, GVP 4, independents 2, ANC 1

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court

Political Parties and Leaders

Fijian Political Party (SVT - primarily Fijian), leader Maj. Gen. Sitivini RABUKA; National Federation Party (NFP; primarily Indian), Jai Ram REDDY; Fijian Nationalist Party (FNP), Sakeasi BUTADROKA; Fiji Labor Party (FLP), Mahendra CHAUDHRY; General Voters Party (GVP), Leo SMITH; Fiji Conservative Party (FCP), leader NA; Conservative Party of Fiji (CPF), leader NA; Fiji Indian Liberal Party, leader NA; Fiji Indian Congress Party, leader NA; Fiji Independent Labor (Muslim), leader NA; Four Corners Party, leader NA; Fijian Association Party (FAP), Josevata KAMIKAMICA; General Electors' Association, leader NA

Note: in early 1995, ethnic Fijian members of the All National Congress (ANC) merged with the Fijian Association (FA); the remaining members of the ANC have renamed their party the General Electors' Association

Member of

ACP, AsDB, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNAMIR, UNAVEM III, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO

National Anthem

Flag

Light blue with the flag of the U.K. in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Fijian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield depicts a yellow lion above a white field quartered by the cross of Saint George featuring stalks of sugarcane, a palm tree, bananas, and a white dove

ECONOMY

Overview

Fiji, richly endowed with forest, mineral, and fish resources, is one of the most developed of the Pacific island economies, though still with a large subsistence sector. Sugar exports and tourism are the major sources of foreign exchange. Industry contributes 17% to GDP; sugar processing makes up one-third of industrial activity. Roughly 250,000 tourists visit each year. Political uncertainty and drought, however, contribute to substantial fluctuations in earnings from tourism and sugar and to the emigration of skilled workers. In 1992, growth was approximately 3%, based on growth in tourism and a lessening of labor-management disputes in the sugar and gold-mining sectors. In 1993, the government's budgeted growth rate of 3% was not achieved because of a decline in non-sugar agricultural output and damage from Cyclone Kina. Growth in 1994 of 5% was largely attributable to increased tourism and expansion in the manufacturing sector.

National Product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $4.7 billion (1995 est.); $4.3 billion (1994 est.)

National Product Real Growth Rate

2.2% (1995 est.)
5% (1994 est.)

National Product Per Capita

$6,100 (1995 est.)
$5,650 (1994 est.)

Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

2% (1995)
1.5% (1994)

Unemployment Rate

5.4% (1992)

Budget

Exports

$571.8 million (f.o.b., 1995)
$405 million (f.o.b., 1993)

Commodities:

Partners:

Imports

$864.3 million (c.i.f., 1995)
$634 million (c.i.f., 1993)

Commodities:

Partners:

External Debt

$670 million (1994 est.)

Industrial Production

Growth rate 0% (1993 est.); accounts for 13% of GDP

Electricity

Industries

Agriculture

Accounts for 23% of GDP; principal cash crop is sugarcane; coconuts, cassava, rice, sweet potatoes, bananas; small livestock sector includes cattle, pigs, horses, and goats; fish catch nearly 33,000 tons (1989)

Economic Aid

Currency

1 Fijian dollar (F$) = 100 cents

Exchange Rates

Fijian dollars (F$) per US$1 - 1.4347 (January 1996), 1.4063 (1995), 1.4641 (1994), 1.5418 (1993), 1.5030 (1992), 1.4756 (1991), 1.4809 (1990)

Fiscal Year

Calendar year

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads

Highways

Inland Waterways

203 km; 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges

Ports

Labasa, Lautoka, Levuka, Savusavu, Suva

Merchant Marine

Airports

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone System

60,017 telephones (1987 est.); modern local, interisland, and international (wire/radio integrated) public and special-purpose telephone, telegraph, and teleprinter facilities; regional radio center

Radio

Television

DEFENSE FORCES

Branches

Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF; includes army, navy, and air elements)

Manpower Availability

Males age 15-49 205,616; males fit for military service 113,339; males reach military age (18) annually 8,746 (1996 est.)

Defense Expenditures

Exchange rate conversion - $28 million, 2.5% of GDP (1995); $22.4 million, about 2% of GDP (FY91/92)

History
World Atlas
Last modified: 8 december 1997