1989 Edition

Climate

the western Pacific is monsoonal — a rainy season occurs during the summer months, when moisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a dry season during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asian land mass back to the ocean

tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds

Coastline

135,663km

2,528 km

Comparative area

slightly less than 18 times the size of the US; the largest ocean (followed by the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Arctic Ocean); covers about one-third of the global surface; larger than the total land area of the world

slightly larger than Connecticut

Contiguous zone

24 nm

Continental shelf

edge of continental margin or 200 nm

Environment

endangered marine species include the dugong, sea lion, sea otter, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in Philippine Sea and South China Sea; dotted with low coral islands and rugged volcanic islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean; subject to tropical cyclones (typhoons) in southeast and east Asia from May to December (most frequent from July to October); tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico and strike Central America and Mexico from June to October (most common in August and September); southern shipping lanes subject to icebergs from Antarctica; occasional El Nifio phenomenon occurs off the coast of Peru when the trade winds slacken and the warm Equatorial Countercurrent moves south, which kills the plankton that is the primary food source for anchovies; consequently, the anchovies move to better feeding grounds, causing resident marine birds to starve by the thousands because of their lost food source

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

Extended economic zone

200 nm

Land boundary

none

Land use

1% arable land; 5% permanent crops; 2% meadows and pastures; 1% forest and woodland; 91% other

Maritime claims

(measured from claimed archipelagic baselines)

Natural resources

oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, fish

manganese, hardwood forests, fish

Note

the major choke points are the Bering Strait, Panama Canal, Luzon Strait, and the Singapore Strait; the Equator divides the Pacific Ocean into the North Pacific Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme north from October to May and in extreme south from May to October; persistent fog in the northern Pacific from June to December is a hazard to shipping; surrounded by a zone of violent volcanic and earthquake activity sometimes referred to as the Pacific Ring of Fire

located 5,750 km southwest of Honolulu in the South Pacific Ocean about three-quarters of the way between Hawaii and Australia

Terrain

surface in the northern Pacific dominated by a clockwise, warm water gyre (broad, circular system of currents) and in the southern Pacific by a counterclockwise, cool water gyre; sea ice occurs in the Bering Sea and Sea of Okhotsk during winter and reaches maximum northern extent from Antarctica in October; the ocean floor in the eastern Pacific is dominated by the East Pacific Rise, while the western Pacific is dissected by deep trenches; the world's greatest depth is 10,924 meters in the Marianas Trench

mostly mountains of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plains

Territorial sea

1 2 nm

Total area

165,384,000 km2; includes Arafura Sea, Banda Sea, Bellingshausen Sea, Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Makassar Strait, Philippine Sea, Ross Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, South China Sea, Tasman Sea, and other tributary water bodies

14,760 km2; land area: 14,760 km2; includes more than 80 islands

Birth rate

37 births/ 1,000 population (1990)

Death rate

5 deaths/ 1 ,000 population (1990)

Ethnic divisions

94% indigenous Melanesian, 4% French, remainder Vietnamese, Chinese, and various Pacific Islanders

Infant mortality rate

36 deaths/ 1 ,000 live births (1990)

Labor force

NA

Language

English and French (official); pidgin (known as Bislama or Bichelama)

Life expectancy at birth

67 years male, 72 years female (1990) Vanuatu (continued)

Literacy

10-20%(est.)

Nationality

noun — Vanuatuan(s); adjective— Vanuatuan

Net migration rate

0 migrants/ 1 ,000 population (1990)

Organized labor

7 registered trade unions — largest include Oil and Gas Workers' Union, Vanuatu Airline Workers' Union

Population

165,006 (July 1990), growth rate 3.2% (1990)

Religion

most at least nominally Christian

Total fertility rate

5.S children born/ woman (1990)

Administrative divisions

1 1 island councils; Ambrym, Aoba/Maewo, Banks/ Torres, Efate, Epi, Malakula, Paama, Pentecote, Santo/ Malo, Shepherd, Tafea

Capital

Port-Vila

Constitution

30 July 1980

Diplomatic representation

Vanuatu does not have a mission in Washington; US — the ambassador in Papua New Guinea is accredited to Vanuatu

Elections

Parliament — last held 30 November 1987 (next to be held NA); byelections were held NA December 1988 to fill vacancies resulting from the expulsion of opposition members for boycotting sessions; results — percent of vote by party NA; seats— (46 total) National Party 26, Union of Moderate Parties 19, independent 1

Executive branch

president, prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet)

Flag

two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green (bottom) 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

Independence

30 July 1980 (from France and UK; formerly New Hebrides)

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Leaders

Chief of State — President Frederick TIMAKATA (since 30 January 1989); Head of Government — Prime Minister Father Walter Hadye LIN I (since 30 July 1 980); Deputy Prime Minister (vacant) Political parties and leaders: National Party (Vanua'aku Pali), Walter Lini; Union of Moderate Parties, Maxine Carlot; Melanesian Progressive Party, Barak Sope

Legal system

unified system being created from former dual French and British systems

Legislative branch

unicameral Parliament; note — the National Council of Chiefs advises on matters of custom and land

Long-form name

Republic of Vanuatu

Member of

ACP, ADB, Commonwealth, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, ITU, NAM, SPF, UN, WHO, WMO

National holiday

Independence Day, 30 July (1980)

Suffrage

universal at age 1 8

Type

republic

Agriculture

export crops — copra, cocoa, coffee, and fish; subsistence crops — copra, taro, yams, coconuts, fruits, and vegetables

Aid

Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (197087), $541 million

Budget

revenues $80.1 million; expenditures $86.6 million, including capital expenditures of $27.1 million (1988 est.)

Currency

vatu (plural — vatu); 1 vatu (VT) = 100 centimes

Electricity

10,000 kW capacity; 20 million kWh produced, 1 25 kWh per capita (1989)

Exchange rates

vatu (VT) per US$1 — 107. 17 (January 1990), 116.04(1989), 104.43 (1988), 109.85 (1987), 106.08 (1986), 106.03(1985)

Exports

$16 million (f.o.b., 1988 est.); commodities — copra 37%, cocoa 1 1%, meat 9%, fish 8%, timber 4%; partners — Netherlands 34%, France 27%, Japan 17%, Belgium 4%, New Caledonia 3%, Singapore 2% (1987)

External debt

$57 million (1988)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

$120 million, per capita $820; real growth rate 0.7% (1987 est.)

Imports

$58 million (f.o.b., 1988 est.); commodities — machines and vehicles 25%, food and beverages 23%, basic manufactures 18%, raw materials and fuels 1 1%, chemicals 6%; partners — Australia 36%, Japan 13%, NZ 10%, France 8%, Fiji 5% (1987)

Industrial production

growth rate NA%

Industries

fishing, oil and gas production

food and fish freezing, forestry processing, meat canning

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

8.0% (1988 est.)

Overview

The Pacific Ocean is a major contributor to the world economy and particularly to those nations its waters directly touch. It provides cheap sea transportation between East and West, extensive fishing grounds, offshore oil and gas fields, minerals, and sand and gravel for the construction industry. In 1985 over half (54%) of the world's total fish catch came from the Pacific Ocean, wh;ch is the only ocean where the fish catch has increased every year since 1978. Exploitation of offshore oil and gas reserves is playing an ever increasing role in the energy supplies of Australia, New Zealand, China, US, and Peru. The high cost of recovering offshore oil and gas, combined with the lower world prices for oil since 1985, has slowed but not stopped new drillings.

The economy is based primarily on subsistence farming that provides a living for about 80% of the population. Fishing and tourism are the 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.

Unemployment rate

NA%

Airports

33 total, 28 usable; 2 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 2,439 m; 2 with runways 1, 220-2,439 m

Branches

a paramilitary force is responsible for internal and external security; no military forces

Defense expenditures

NA

Highways

1,027 km total; at least 240 km sealed or all-weather roads

Merchant marine

65 ships (1,000 CRT or over) totaling 885,668 CRT/ 1,473,443 DWT; includes 26 cargo, 4 refrigerated cargo, 5 container, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 1 vehicle carrier, 3 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 2 liquefied gas, 21 bulk, 1 combination bulk; note — a flag of convenience registry Civil air no major transport aircraft

Military manpower

NA

Ports

Port-Vila, Luganville, Palikoulo, Santu

Railroads

none

Telecommunications

stations — 2 AM, no FM, no TV; 3,000 telephones; 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth station Defense Forces