Nauru

Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands

Area

Total area: 21 sq km
Land area: 21 sq km
Comparative area: about one-tenth the size of Washington, DC

Land Boundaries

0 km

Coastline

30 km

Maritime Claims

Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

International Disputes

None

Climate

Tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February)

Terrain

Sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m

Natural Resources

Phosphates

Land Use

Arable land: 0%
Permanent crops: 0%
Meadows and pastures: 0%
Forest and woodland: 0%
Other: 100%

Irrigated Land

Environment

Current issues: limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater; phosphate mining threatens limited remaining land resources
Natural hazards: periodic droughts
International agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Marine Dumping; signed, but not ratified - Law of the Sea

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

PEOPLE

Population

10,273 (July 1996 est.)
10,149 (July 1995 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 Years

15-64 Years

65 Years and Over

Population Growth Rate

1.33% (1996 est.)

Birth Rate

18.03 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death Rate

5.1 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net Migration Rate

0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

40.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total population: 66.68 years
Male: 64.3 years
Female: 69.18 years (1996 est.)

Total Fertility Rate

2.08 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Nationality

Noun: Nauruan(s)
Adjective: Nauruan

Ethnic Divisions

Nauruan 58%
Other Pacific Islander 26%
Chinese 8%
European 8%

Religions

Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic)

Languages

Nauruan (official; a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes

Literacy

Labor Force

By occupation:

GOVERNMENT

Names

Conventional long form: Republic of Nauru
Conventional short form: Nauru
Former: Pleasant Island

Digraph

Type

Republic

Capital

No official capital; government offices in Yaren District

Administrative Divisions

14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren

Independence

31 January 1968 (from the Australia, New Zealand, and UK-administered UN trusteeship)

National Holiday

Independence Day, 31 January (1968)

Constitution

29 January 1968

Legal System

Own Acts of Parliament and British common law

Suffrage

20 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive Branch

Chief of state and head of government: President Lagumot HARRIS (since 22 November 1995) was elected by Parliament; election last held 18 November 1995 (next to be held NA November 1998)
12 December 1989 - 22 November 1995: President Bernard DOWIYOGO
Cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the president from the parliament

Legislative Branch

Unicameral

Parliament

Elections last held 18 November 1995 (next to be held NA November 1998); results - percent of vote NA; seats - (18 total) independents 18

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court

Political Parties and Leaders

None

Member of

AsDB, C (special), ESCAP, ICAO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UPU, WHO

National Anthem

Flag

Blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across the center and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on the hoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation to the Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12 original tribes of Nauru

ECONOMY

Overview

Revenues come from the export of phosphates, the reserves of which are expected to be exhausted by the year 2000. Phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest per capita incomes in the Third World. Few other resources exist, so most necessities must be imported, including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. Substantial amounts of phosphate income are invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition. However, dividends from the trusts have declined sharply since 1990 and the government has been borrowing from the trusts to finance fiscal deficits.

National Product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $100 million (1993 est.)

National Product Real Growth Rate

National Product Per Capita

$10,000 (1993 est.)

Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

-3.6% (1993)

Unemployment Rate

Budget

Revenues: $23.8 million (FY92/93); $69.7 million (1986)
Expenditures: $69.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY92/93); $51.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1986)

Exports

$25.3 million (f.o.b., 1991)
$93 million (f.o.b., 1984)

Commodities:

Phosphates

Partners:

Australia
NZ

Imports

$21.1 million (c.i.f., 1991)
$73 million (c.i.f., 1984)

Commodities:

Food
Fuel
Manufactures
Building materials
Machinery

Partners:

Australia
U.K.
NZ
Japan

External Debt

$33.3 million

Industrial Production

Growth rate NA

Electricity

Capacity: 14,000 kW
Production: 30 million kWh
Consumption per capita: 3,036 kWh (1993)

Industries

Phosphate mining
Financial services
Coconut products

Agriculture

Coconuts; other agricultural activity negligible; almost completely dependent on imports for food and water

Economic Aid

Recipient: Western (non-US) countries (1970-89), $2 million

Currency

1 Australian dollar ($A) = 100 cents

Exchange Rates

Australian dollars ($A) per US$1 - 1.3477 (January 1996), 1.3486 (1995), 1.3667 (1994), 1.4704 (1993), 1.3600 (1992), 1.2834 (1991), 1.2799 (1990)

Fiscal Year

1 July - 30 June

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads

Total: 3.9 km; note - used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast

Highways

Total: 27 km
Paved: 21 km
Unpaved: improved earth 6 km

Ports

Nauru

Merchant Marine

None

Airports

Total: 1
With paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone System

2,000 telephones; adequate local and international radio communications provided via Australian facilities

Local: NA
Intercity: NA
International: 1 INTELSAT (Pacific Ocean) earth station

Radio

Broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
Radios: 4,000

Television

Broadcast stations: 0
Televisions: NA

DEFENSE FORCES

Branches

No regular armed forces; Directorate of the Nauru Police Force

Defense Expenditures

NA; note - no formal defense structure

History
World Atlas

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