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| Geography |
| 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. |
| Location: | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands |
| Geographic coordinates: | 0 32 S, 166 55 E |
| Area: | total: 21 sq km
land: 21 sq km
water: 0 sq kmSize comparison: about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
| Land Boundaries: | 0 km |
| Coastline: | 30 km |
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Climate: | tropical with a monsoonal pattern; rainy season (November to February) |
| Terrain: | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
| Natural resources: | phosphates, fish |
| Land use: | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: | NA |
| Natural hazards: | periodic droughts |
| Current Environment Issues: | limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater, but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant; intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central 90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land resources |
| International Environment Agreements: | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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| People |
| Population: | 13,528 (July 2007 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 36.4% (male 2,508/female 2,410)
15-64 years: 61.6% (male 4,111/female 4,224)
65 years and over: 2% (male 144/female 131) (2007 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 21 years
male: 20.4 years
female: 21.5 years (2007 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 1.781% (2007 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 24.47 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Death rate: | 6.65 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.041 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.973 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.099 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 9.6 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 12.07 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 7.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 63.44 years
male: 59.85 years
female: 67.21 years (2007 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 3.02 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | NA |
| Nationality: | noun: Nauruan(s)
adjective: Nauruan |
| Ethnic groups: | 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: | definition: NA
total population: NA
male: NA
female: NA |
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| Government |
| Country name: | conventional long form: Republic of Nauru
conventional short form: Nauru
local long form: Republic of Nauru
local short form: Nauru
former: Pleasant Island |
| Government type: | republic |
| Capital: | no official capital; government offices in Yaren District
time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| 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-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
| National holiday: | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) |
| Constitution: | 29 January 1968; amended 17 May 1968 (Constitution Day) |
| Legal system: | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
| Suffrage: | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: President Ludwig SCOTTY (since 22 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ludwig SCOTTY (since 22 June 2004)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament
elections: president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 28 August 2007 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: Ludwig SCOTTY 14, Marcos STEVEN 3 |
| Legislative branch: | unicameral Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 25 August 2007 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 18; note - 15 of 18 incumbents reelected |
| Judicial branch: | Supreme Court |
| Political parties and leaders: | Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal); Nauru First (Naoero Amo) Party; note - loose multiparty system |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | NA |
| International organization participation: | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, ICAO, ICCt, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Vinci Niel CLODUMAR
chancery: 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, NY 10017
telephone: [1] (212) 937-0074
FAX: [1] (212) 937-0079
consulate(s): Agana (Guam) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: President Ludwig SCOTTY (since 22 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ludwig SCOTTY (since 22 June 2004)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament
elections: president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 28 August 2007 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: Ludwig SCOTTY 14, Marcos STEVEN 3 |
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| Economy |
| Revenues of this tiny island have traditionally come from exports of phosphates, now significantly depleted. An Australian company in 2005 entered into an agreement intended to exploit remaining supplies. Few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, mainly from Australia, its former occupier and later major source of support. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of phosphate income were invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic future. As a result of heavy spending from the trust funds, the government faces virtual bankruptcy. To cut costs the government has frozen wages and reduced overstaffed public service departments. In 2005, the deterioration in housing, hospitals, and other capital plant continued, and the cost to Australia of keeping the government and economy afloat continued to climb. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's GDP varying widely. |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | $60 million (2005 est.) |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | $NA |
| GDP - real growth rate: | NA% |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | $5,000 (2005 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
| Labor force: | |
| Labor force - by occupation: | note: employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation (1992) |
| Unemployment rate: | 90% (2004 est.) |
| Population below poverty line: | NA% |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | -3.6% (1993) |
| Budget: | revenues: $13.5 million
expenditures: $13.5 million (2005) |
| Public debt: | |
| Agriculture - products: | coconuts |
| Industries: | phosphate mining, offshore banking, coconut products |
| Industrial production growth rate: | NA% |
| Electricity - production: | 30 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - consumption: | 27.9 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports: | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Oil - production: | 0 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
| Oil - consumption: | 1,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
| Oil - exports: | NA bbl/day |
| Oil - imports: | NA bbl/day |
| Oil - proved reserves: | 0 bbl (1 January 2006) |
| Natural gas - production: | 0 cu m (2005 est.) |
| Natural gas - consumption: | 0 cu m (2005 est.) |
| Exports: | $64,000 f.o.b. (2005 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | phosphates |
| Exports - partners: | South Africa 63.7%, South Korea 7.6%, Canada 6.6% (2006) |
| Imports: | $20 million c.i.f. (2004 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery |
| Imports - partners: | South Korea 43.8%, Australia 36.2%, US 5.9%, Germany 4.3% (2006) |
| Debt - external: | $33.3 million (2002) |
| Currency (code): | Australian dollar (AUD) |
| Exchange rates: | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002) |
| Fiscal year: | 1 July - 30 June |
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| Communications |
| Telephones - main lines in use: | 1,900 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular: | 1,500 (2002) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: adequate local and international radiotelephone communication provided via Australian facilities
domestic: NA
international: country code - 674; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
| Radio broadcast stations: | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television broadcast stations: | 1 (1997) |
| Internet country code: | .nr |
| Internet hosts: | 53 (2007) |
| Internet users: | 300 (2002) |
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| Transportation |
| Airports: | 1 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways: | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
| Roadways: | total: 30 km
paved: 24 km
unpaved: 6 km (1999 est.) |
| Ports and terminals: | Nauru |
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| Military |
| Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia |
| Military branches: | no regular military forces; Nauru Police Force (2007) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 18-49: 2,874 (2005 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | NA |
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