Introduction

Vanuatu

Background:

The British and French, who settled the New Hebrides in the 19th century, agreed in 1906 to an Anglo-French Condominium, which administered the islands until independence in 1980.

Geography

Vanuatu

Location:

Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Australia

Geographic coordinates:

16 00 S, 167 00 E

Map references:

Oceania

Area:

total: 12,200 sq km
land: 12,200 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes more than 80 islands, about 65 of which are inhabited

Area - comparative:

slightly larger than Connecticut

Land boundaries:

0 km

Coastline:

2,528 km

Maritime claims:

measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate:

tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds from May to October; moderate rainfall from November to April; may be affected by cyclones from December to April

Terrain:

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% (2001)

Irrigated land:

NA

Natural hazards:

tropical cyclones or typhoons (January to April); volcanism causes minor earthquakes; tsunamis

Environment - current issues:

a majority of the population does not have access to a reliable supply of potable water; deforestation

Environment - international agreements:

party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:

a Y-shaped chain of four main islands and 80 smaller islands; several of the islands have active volcanoes

People

Vanuatu

Population:

205,754 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 33.3% (male 35,039/female 33,553)
15-64 years: 63.1% (male 66,311/female 63,502)
65 years and over: 3.6% (male 3,878/female 3,471) (2005 est.)

Median age:

total: 22.64 years
male: 22.68 years
female: 22.59 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:

1.52% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:

23.06 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:

7.9 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.12 male(s)/female
total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 55.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 57.73 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 52.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 62.49 years
male: 61 years
female: 64.05 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:

2.77 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

NA

Nationality:

noun: Ni-Vanuatu (singular and plural)
adjective: Ni-Vanuatu

Ethnic groups:

Ni-Vanuatu 98.5%, other 1.5% (1999 Census)

Religions:

Presbyterian 31.4%, Anglican 13.4%, Roman Catholic 13.1%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10.8%, other Christian 13.8%, indigenous beliefs 5.6% (including Jon Frum cargo cult), other 9.6%, none 1%, unspecified 1.3% (1999 Census)

Languages:

local languages (more than 100) 72.6%, pidgin (known as Bislama or Bichelama) 23.1%, English 1.9%, French 1.4%, other 0.3%, unspecified 0.7% (1999 Census)

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 74%
male: NA%
female: NA% (1999 est.)

Government

Vanuatu

Country name:

conventional long form: Republic of Vanuatu
conventional short form: Vanuatu
former: New Hebrides

Government type:

parliamentary republic

Capital:

Port-Vila (Efate)

Administrative divisions:

6 provinces; Malampa, Penama, Sanma, Shefa, Tafea, Torba

Independence:

30 July 1980 (from France and UK)

National holiday:

Independence Day, 30 July (1980)

Constitution:

30 July 1980

Legal system:

unified system being created from former dual French and British systems

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Kalkot Matas KELEKELE (since 16 August 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Ham LINI (since 11 December 2004); Deputy Prime Minister Sato KILMAN (since 11 December 2004); Prime Minister Serge VOHOR ousted in no-confidence vote on 11 December 2004
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, responsible to Parliament
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 16 August 2004 (next to be held in 2009); 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 29 July 2004 (next to be held following general elections in 2008)
election results: Kalkot Matas KELEKELE elected president, with 49 votes out of 56, after several ballots on 16 August 2004

Legislative branch:

unicameral Parliament (52 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 6 July 2004 (next to be held 2008)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP 8, VP 8, NUP 10, VRP 4, MPP 3, VGP 3, other and independent 16; note - political party associations are fluid
note: the National Council of Chiefs advises on matters of culture and language

Judicial branch:

Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the president after consultation with the prime minister and the leader of the opposition, three other justices are appointed by the president on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission)

Political parties and leaders:

Jon Frum Movement [Song KEASPAI]; Melanesian Progressive Party or MPP [Barak SOPE]; National United Party or NUP [leader NA]; Union of Moderate Parties or UMP [Serge VOHOR]; Vanua'aku Pati (Our Land Party) or VP [Edward NATAPEI]; Vanuatu Republican Party or VRP [Maxime Carlot KORMAN]; Vanuatu Greens Party or VGP [Moana CARCASSES]

Political pressure groups and leaders:

NA

International organization participation:

ACCT, ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO (observer)

Diplomatic representation in the US:

Vanuatu does not have an embassy in the US; it does, however, have a Permanent Mission to the UN

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:

two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a black isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) all separated by a black-edged yellow stripe in the shape of a horizontal Y (the two points of the Y face the hoist side and enclose the triangle); centered in the triangle is a boar's tusk encircling two crossed namele leaves, all in yellow

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 2004, 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. 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.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

$580 million (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:

1.1% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita:

purchasing power parity - $2,900 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: 26%
industry: 12%
services: 62% (2000 est.)

Labor force:

NA

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture 65%, industry 5%, services 30% (2000 est.)

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):

3.1% (2003 est.)

Budget:

revenues: $52.6 million
expenditures: $54.3 million, including capital expenditures of $700,000 (2003 est.)

Agriculture - products:

copra, coconuts, cocoa, coffee, taro, yams, coconuts, fruits, vegetables; fish, beef

Industries:

food and fish freezing, wood processing, meat canning

Industrial production growth rate:

1% (1997 est.)

Electricity - production:

48.42 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:

fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:

45.03 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:

0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:

0 kWh (2002)

Oil - production:

0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:

600 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:

NA

Oil - imports:

NA

Exports:

$26.6 million f.o.b. (2003)

Exports - commodities:

copra, beef, cocoa, timber, kava, coffee

Exports - partners:

Thailand 47%, Malaysia 18.4%, Japan 7.5%, Belgium 5.4%, China 4.9% (2004)

Imports:

$138 million c.i.f. (2002)

Imports - commodities:

machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, fuels

Imports - partners:

Taiwan 24%, Australia 16.5%, Japan 11.4%, Singapore 8.5%, New Zealand 7.2%, Fiji 6.3%, US 4.4% (2004)

Debt - external:

$83.7 million (2002)

Economic aid - recipient:

$27.5 million (2002)

Currency (code):

vatu (VUV)

Currency code:

VUV

Exchange rates:

vatu per US dollar - 111.79 (2004), 122.19 (2003), 139.2 (2002), 145.31 (2001), 137.64 (2000)

Fiscal year:

calendar year

Communications

Vanuatu

Telephones - main lines in use:

6,500 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

7,800 (2003)

Telephone system:

general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: country code - 678; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2004)

Radios:

67,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:

1 (2004)

Televisions:

2,300 (1999)

Internet country code:

.vu

Internet hosts:

512 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):

1 (2000)

Internet users:

7,500 (2003)

Transportation

Vanuatu

Highways:

total: 1,070 km
paved: 256 km
unpaved: 814 km (1999 est.)

Ports and harbors:

Forari, Port-Vila, Santo (Espiritu Santo)

Merchant marine:

total: 52 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,192,474 GRT/1,560,828 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 22, cargo 16, container 1, liquefied gas 2, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 2, vehicle carrier 5
foreign-owned: 52 (Australia 2, Canada 5, Estonia 1, Greece 1, Israel 1, Japan 25, New Zealand 1, Poland 11, Russia 1, Switzerland 2, Thailand 1, United States 1)
registered in other countries: 1 (2005)

Airports:

30 (2004 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 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:

total: 27
914 to 1,523 m: 10
under 914 m: 17 (2004 est.)

Military

Vanuatu

Military branches:

no regular military forces; security forces comprise the Vanuatu Police Force (VPF) and paramilitary Vanuatu Mobile Force (VMF), which includes Vanuatu's naval force, known as the Police Maritime Wing (PMW); border security in Vanuatu is the joint responsibility of the Customs and Inland Revenue Service, VPF, VMF, and PMW (2003)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:

NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:

NA

Transnational Issues

Vanuatu

Disputes - international:

Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by Vanuatu and France