Tuvalu

§1. Tuvalu Introduction

Background:
  In 1974, ethnic differences within the British colony of the Gilbert and
  Ellice Islands caused the Polynesians of the Ellice Islands to vote for
  separation from the Micronesians of the Gilbert Islands. The following
  year, the Ellice Islands became the separate British colony of Tuvalu.
  Independence was granted in 1978. In 2000, Tuvalu negotiated a contract
  leasing its Internet domain name ".tv" for $50 million in royalties over
  the next dozen years.

§2. Tuvalu Geography

Location:
  Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific
  Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia

Geographic coordinates:
  8 00 S, 178 00 E

Map references:
  Oceania

Area:
  total: 26 kmē
  land: 26 kmē
  water: 0 kmē

Area - comparative:
  0.1 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
  0 km

Coastline:
  24 km

Maritime claims:
  territorial sea: 12 nm
  contiguous zone: 24 nm
  exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate:
  tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly
  gales and heavy rain (November to March)

Terrain:
  very low-lying and narrow coral atolls

Elevation extremes:
  lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
  highest point: unnamed location 5 m

Natural resources:
  fish

Land use:
  arable land: 0%
  permanent crops: 66.67%
  other: 33.33% (2005)

Irrigated land:
  NA

Natural hazards:
  severe tropical storms are usually rare, but, in 1997, there were three
  cyclones; low level of islands make them sensitive to changes in sea level

Environment - current issues:
  since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable, most
  water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities (the
  Japanese Government has built one desalination plant and plans to build one
  other); beachhead erosion because of the use of sand for building
  materials; excessive clearance of forest undergrowth for use as fuel;
  damage to coral reefs from the spread of the Crown of Thorns starfish;
  Tuvalu is concerned about global increases in greenhouse gas emissions and
  their effect on rising sea levels, which threaten the country's underground
  water table; in 2000, the government appealed to Australia and New Zealand
  to take in Tuvaluans if rising sea levels should make evacuation necessary

Environment - international agreements:
  party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
    Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
  signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
  one of the smallest and most remote countries on Earth; six of the coral
  atolls - Nanumea, Nui, Vaitupu, Nukufetau, Funafuti, and Nukulaelae - have
  lagoons open to the ocean; Nanumaya and Niutao have landlocked lagoons;
  Niulakita does not have a lagoon

§3. Tuvalu People

Population:
  11,810 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
  0-14 years: 30.2% (male 1,819/female 1,752)
  15-64 years: 64.7% (male 3,715/female 3,923)
  65 years and over: 5.1% (male 228/female 373) (2006 est.)

Median age:
  total: 24.6 years
  male: 23.6 years
  female: 26 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
  1.51% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
  22.18 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
  7.11 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
  0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
  at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
  under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
  15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
  65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female
  total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
  total: 19.47 deaths/1,000 live births
  male: 22.27 deaths/1,000 live births
  female: 16.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
  total population: 68.32 years
  male: 66.08 years
  female: 70.66 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
  2.98 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
  NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
  NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
  NA

Nationality:
  noun: Tuvaluan(s)
  adjective: Tuvaluan

Ethnic groups:
  Polynesian 96%, Micronesian 4%

Religions:
  Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%,
  Baha'i 1%, other 0.6%

Languages:
  Tuvaluan, English, Samoan, Kiribati (on the island of Nui)

Literacy:
  NA

§4. Tuvalu Government

Country name:
  conventional long form: none
  conventional short form: Tuvalu
  former: Ellice Islands
  note: "Tuvalu" means "group of eight," referring to the country's eight
    traditionally inhabited islands

Government type:
  constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary democracy; began debating
  republic status in 1992

Capital:
  Funafuti; note - administrative offices are located in Vaiaku Village on
  Fongafale Islet

Administrative divisions:
  none

Independence:
  1 October 1978 (from UK)

National holiday:
  Independence Day, 1 October (1978)

Constitution:
  1 October 1978

Legal system:
  NA

Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
  chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by
    Governor General Filoimea TELITO (since 15 April 2005)
  head of government: Prime Minister Maatia TOAFA (since 11 October 2004)
  cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of
    the prime minister
  elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the
    monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and
    deputy prime minister elected by and from the members of Parliament;
    election last held 11 October 2004 (next to be held following
    parliamentary elections in 2006)
  election results: Saufatu SOPOANGA resigned parliamentary seat on 27 August
    2004 following no-confidence vote on 25 August 2004; succeeded by Deputy
    Prime Minister Maatia TOAFA in an acting capacity on 27 August 2004;
    Maatia TOAFA confirmed Prime Minister in a Parliamentary election (8-7
    vote) on 11 October 2004

Legislative branch:
  unicameral Parliament or Fale I Fono, also called House of Assembly (15
  seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
  elections: last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held in 2006)
  election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15

Judicial branch:
  High Court (a chief justice visits twice a year to preside over its
  sessions; its rulings can be appealed to the Court of Appeal in Fiji);
  eight Island Courts (with limited jurisdiction)

Political parties and leaders:
  there are no political parties but members of Parliament usually align
  themselves in informal groupings

Political pressure groups and leaders:
  none

International organization participation:
  ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, IFRCS (observer), IMO, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC,
  UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
  Tuvalu does not have an embassy in the US - the country's only diplomatic
  post is in Fiji - Tuvalu does, however, have
  a UN office located at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400D, New York, NY 10017,
    telephone: [1] (212) 490-0534

Diplomatic representation from the US:
  the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji is
  accredited to Tuvalu

Flag description:
  light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the
  outer half of the flag represents a map of the country with nine yellow
  five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands

§5. Tuvalu Economy

Economy - overview:
  Tuvalu consists of a densely populated, scattered group of nine coral
  atolls with poor soil. The country has no known mineral resources and few
  exports. Subsistence farming and fishing are the primary economic
  activities. Fewer than 1,000 tourists, on average, visit Tuvalu annually.
  Government revenues largely come from the sale of stamps and coins and
  remittances from seamen on merchant ships abroad. About 1,000 Tuvaluans are
  being repatriated from Nauru, with the decline of phosphate resources
  there. Substantial income is received annually from an international trust
  fund established in 1987 by Australia, NZ, and the UK and supported also by
  Japan and South Korea. Thanks to wise investments and conservative
  withdrawals, this fund has grown from an initial $17 million to over $35
  million in 1999. The US Government is also a major revenue source for
  Tuvalu because of payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries. In an effort to
  reduce its dependence on foreign aid, the government is pursuing public
  sector reforms, including privatization of some government functions and
  personnel cuts of up to 7%. Tuvalu derives around $1.5 million per year
  from the lease of its ".tv" Internet domain name. With merchandise exports
  only a fraction of merchandise imports, continued reliance must be placed
  on fishing and telecommunications license fees, remittances from overseas
  workers, official transfers, and income from overseas investments.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
  $12.2 million (2000 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
  NA

GDP - real growth rate:
  3% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
  $1,100 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
  agriculture: NA%
  industry: NA%
  services: NA%

Labor force:
  7,000 (2001 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
  people make a living mainly through exploitation of the sea, reefs, and
  atolls and from wages sent home by those abroad (mostly workers in the
  phosphate industry and sailors)

Unemployment rate:
  NA%

Population below poverty line:
  NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
  lowest 10%: NA%
  highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  5% (2000 est.)

Budget:
  revenues: $22.5 million
  expenditures: $11.2 million; including capital expenditures of $4.2 million
    (2000 est.)

Agriculture - products:
  coconuts; fish

Industries:
  fishing, tourism, copra

Industrial production growth rate:
  NA%

Exports:
  $1 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
  copra, fish

Exports - partners:
  Germany 56.5%, Fiji 14.3%, Italy 10.9%, UK 7.7%, Poland 4.9% (2004)

Imports:
  $31 million c.i.f. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
  food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods

Imports - partners:
  Fiji 50.2%, Japan 18.1%, Australia 9.6%, China 8%, New Zealand 5.5% (2004)

Debt - external:
  $NA

Economic aid - recipient:
  $13 million; note - major donors are Australia, Japan, and the US (1999
  est.)

Currency (code):
  Australian dollar (AUD); note - there is also a Tuvaluan dollar

Exchange rates:
  Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005),
  1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001)

Fiscal year:
  calendar year

§6. Tuvalu Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:
  700 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
  0 (2004)

Telephone system:
  general assessment: serves particular needs for internal communications
  domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands
  international: country code - 688; international calls can be made by
    satellite

Radio broadcast stations:
  AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (2004)

Television broadcast stations:
  0 (2004)

Internet country code:
  .tv

Internet users:
  1,300 (2002)

§7. Tuvalu Transportation

Airports:
  1 (2005)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
  total: 1
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2005)

Roadways:
  total: 8 km
  paved: 8 km (2002)

Merchant marine:
  total: 42 ships (1000 GRT or over) 165,607 GRT/257,474 DWT
  by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 36, container 2, passenger/cargo 2,
    petroleum tanker 1
  foreign-owned: 25 (China 13, Germany 2, Hong Kong 7, Singapore 2, Thailand
    1) (2005)

Ports and terminals:
  Funafuti

§8. Tuvalu Military

Military branches:
  no regular military forces; national police force

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
  NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
  NA

§9. Tuvalu Transnational Issues

Disputes - international:
  none


<Factbook 2006>
