Tonga

§1. Tonga Introduction

Background:
  The archipelago of "The Friendly Islands" was united into a Polynesian
  kingdom in 1845. It became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British
  protectorate in 1900. Tonga acquired its independence in 1970 and became a
  member of the Commonwealth of Nations. It remains the only monarchy in the
  Pacific.

§2. Tonga Geography

Location:
  Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the
  way from Hawaii to New Zealand

Geographic coordinates:
  20 00 S, 175 00 W

Map references:
  Oceania

Area:
  total: 748 km²
  land: 718 km²
  water: 30 km²

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

Land boundaries:
  0 km

Coastline:
  419 km

Maritime claims:
  territorial sea: 12 nm
  exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
  continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate:
  tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool
  season (May to December)

Terrain:
  most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation;
  others have limestone overlying volcanic base

Elevation extremes:
  lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
  highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m

Natural resources:
  fish, fertile soil

Land use:
  arable land: 20%
  permanent crops: 14.67%
  other: 65.33% (2005)

Irrigated land:
  NA

Natural hazards:
  cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on
  Fonuafo'ou

Environment - current issues:
  deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for
  agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and
  indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea
  turtle populations

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

Geography - note:
  archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited)

§3. Tonga People

Population:
  114,689 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
  0-14 years: 35.3% (male 20,679/female 19,843)
  15-64 years: 60.5% (male 34,399/female 34,964)
  65 years and over: 4.2% (male 2,059/female 2,745) (2006 est.)

Median age:
  total: 20.7 years
  male: 20.1 years
  female: 21.3 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
  2.01% (2006 est.)

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

Death rate:
  5.28 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: 0.98 male(s)/female
  65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female
  total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
  total: 12.3 deaths/1,000 live births
  male: 13.63 deaths/1,000 live births
  female: 10.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
  total population: 69.82 years
  male: 67.32 years
  female: 72.45 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
  3 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: Tongan(s)
  adjective: Tongan

Ethnic groups:
  Polynesian, Europeans

Religions:
  Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents)

Languages:
  Tongan, English

Literacy:
  definition: can read and write Tongan and/or English
  total population: 98.9%
  male: 98.8%
  female: 99% (1999 est.)

§4. Tonga Government

Country name:
  conventional long form: Kingdom of Tonga
  conventional short form: Tonga
  former: Friendly Islands

Government type:
  hereditary constitutional monarchy

Capital:
  Nuku'alofa

Administrative divisions:
  3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u

Independence:
  4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate)

National holiday:
  Emancipation Day, 4 June (1970)

Constitution:
  4 November 1875; revised 1 January 1967

Legal system:
  based on English law

Suffrage:
  21 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
  chief of state: King Taufa'ahau TUPOU IV (since 16 December 1965)
  head of government: Acting Prime Minister Feleti SEVELE (since 11 February
    2006); Deputy Prime Minister James C. COCKER (since January 2001)
  cabinet: Cabinet consists of 16 members, 12 appointed by the monarch for
    life; 4 appointed from among the elected members of the Legislative
    Assembly, including 2 each from the nobles and peoples representatives
    serving three year terms
  note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the
    cabinet, and two governors
  elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime
    minister appointed for life by the monarch

Legislative branch:
  unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (30 seats - 12 reserved for
  cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, 9 for nobles selected by the
  country's 33 nobles, and 9 elected by popular vote; members serve
  three-year terms)
  elections: last held 21 March 2005 (next to be held in 2008)
  election results: Peoples Representatives: percent of vote - HRDMT 70%;
    seats - HRDMT 7, independents 2

Judicial branch:
  Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal
  (consists of the Privy Council with the addition of the chief justice of
  the Supreme Court)

Political parties and leaders:
  there are no political parties

Political pressure groups and leaders:
  Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA,
  chairman]

International organization participation:
  ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
  IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD,
  UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
  chief of mission: Ambassador Fekitamoeloa 'UTOIKAMANU
  chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022
  telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025
  FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024
  consulate(s) general: San Francisco

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

Flag description:
  red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side
  corner

§5. Tonga Economy

Economy - overview:
  Tonga, a small, open, South Pacific island economy, has a narrow export
  base in agricultural goods. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans
  are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total
  exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from
  New Zealand. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances
  from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. Tourism is
  the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances.
  The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector,
  especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased
  funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic
  infrastructure and well-developed social services. High unemployment among
  the young, a continuing upturn in inflation, pressures for democratic
  reform, and rising civil service expenditures are major issues facing the
  government.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
  $244 million (2002 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
  NA

GDP - real growth rate:
  1.4% (FY03/04 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
  $2,300 (2002 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
  agriculture: 23%
  industry: 27%
  services: 50% (FY03/04 est.)

Labor force:
  33,910 (1996)

Labor force - by occupation:
  agriculture 65% (1997 est.)

Unemployment rate:
  13% (FY03/04 est.)

Population below poverty line:
  NA%

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  10.3% (2002 est.)

Budget:
  revenues: $39.9 million
  expenditures: $52.4 million; including capital expenditures of $1.9 million
    (FY99/00 est.)

Agriculture - products:
  squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger,
  black pepper; fish

Industries:
  tourism, fishing

Industrial production growth rate:
  8.6% (FY98/99)

Electricity - production:
  34 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - consumption:
  31.62 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:
  0 kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:
  0 kWh (2003)

Oil - production:
  0 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption:
  800 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
  NA bbl/day

Oil - imports:
  NA bbl/day

Natural gas - production:
  0 m³ (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
  0 m³ (2003 est.)

Exports:
  $34 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
  squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops

Exports - partners:
  Japan 37%, China 18.7%, US 17.7%, Taiwan 8.7%, New Zealand 7.4% (2004)

Imports:
  $122 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
  foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals

Imports - partners:
  New Zealand 37.1%, Fiji 24.3%, Australia 9.1%, China 8.9%, US 6.3% (2004)

Debt - external:
  $63.4 million (2001)

Economic aid - recipient:
  Australia $5.5 million, New Zealand $2.3 million (FY01/02)

Currency (code):
  pa'anga (TOP)

Exchange rates:
  pa'anga per US dollar - NA (2005), 1.9716 (2004), 2.142 (2003), 2.1952
  (2002), 2.1236 (2001)

Fiscal year:
  1 July - 30 June

§6. Tonga Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:
  11,200 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
  9,000 (2004)

Telephone system:
  general assessment: competition between Tonga Telecommunications
    Corporation (TCC) and Shoreline Communications Tonga (SCT) is
    accelerating expansion of telecommunications; SCT recently granted
    authority to develop high-speed digital service for telephone, Internet,
    and television
  domestic: fully automatic switched network
  international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat
    (Pacific Ocean) (2004)

Radio broadcast stations:
  AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2004)

Television broadcast stations:
  3 (2004)

Internet country code:
  .to

Internet hosts:
  18,910 (2005)

Internet users:
  3,000 (2004)

§7. Tonga Transportation

Airports:
  6 (2005)

Airports - with paved runways:
  total: 1
  2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2005)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
  total: 5
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
  914 to 1,523 m: 3
  under 914 m: 1 (2005)

Roadways:
  total: 680 km
  paved: 184 km
  unpaved: 496 km (1999)

Merchant marine:
  total: 20 ships (1000 GRT or over) 102,427 GRT/148,871 DWT
  by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 12, liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 1,
    petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1
  foreign-owned: 5 (Australia 1, Norway 1, Switzerland 1, UK 1, US 1) (2005)

Ports and terminals:
  Nuku'alofa

§8. Tonga Military

Military branches:
  Tonga Defense Services: Ground Forces (Royal Marines, Royal Guard),
    Maritime Force (includes Air Wing)

Military service age and obligation:
  18 years of age (est.) (2004)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
  NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
  NA

§9. Tonga Transnational Issues

Disputes - international:
  none


<Factbook 2006>
