PROFILE
Geography
Area: 719 sq. km (266 sq. mi.) on 32 atolls and one island.
Cities: Capital--Tarawa (pop. 30,000).
Terrain: Archipelagos of low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs.
Climate: Maritime equatorial or tropical.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--I-Kiribati (for both singular and plural, pronounced "ee-keer-ah-bhass").
Population (2011 est.): 102,697.
Age structure (2011 est.): 34.9% under 15; 5.65% over 60.
Population growth rate (2011 est.): 1.8%.
Ethnic groups: Micronesian 99%.
Religion: Roman Catholic 55%, Kiribati Protestant 36%, other 9%.
Languages: English (official), Gilbertese/I-Kiribati (de facto).
Education (2005): Adult literacy--92%.
Health (2005): Life expectancy--61.0 years. Infant mortality rate (2007)--46/1,000.
Work force (2005): Labor force participation rate was 63.6%. Subsistence workers made up 37%, cash workers numbered 13,133.
Government
Type: Republic.
Independence (from United Kingdom): July 12, 1979.
Constitution: July 12, 1979.
Branches: Executive--president (head of state and government), vice president, cabinet. Legislative--unicameral House of Assembly. Judicial--Court of Appeal, High Court, Magistrates' Courts.
Major political parties: Parties are only very loosely organized--Boutokaan Te Kaua, Maneaban Te Mauri (Protect the Maneaba), Maurin Kiribati Pati.
Economy (all figures in U.S. $)
GDP (2011 est.): $163 million.
GDP per capita (2011 est.): $1,636.
GDP composition by sector (2009): Services 63.4%, agriculture 27.4%, industry 9.15%.
Industry: Types--tourism, copra, fish.
Trade (2009): Exports--$33.360 million: fish, seaweed, shark fins. Export markets--Ecuador, Thailand, Japan, United States, Australia. Imports--$74.542 million: food, manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment. Import sources--Australia, Fiji, Japan, New Zealand, United States, China, Taiwan.
Currency: Australian dollar (A$).
GEOGRAPHY AND PEOPLE
Kiribati (pronounced "keer-ah-bhass") consists of 32 low-lying atolls and one raised island scattered over an expanse of ocean equivalent in size to the continental United States. The islands straddle the Equator and lie roughly halfway between Hawaii and Australia. The three main groupings are the Gilbert Islands, Phoenix Islands, and Line Islands. In 1995 Kiribati unilaterally moved its date line to include its easternmost islands, putting the country in the same date and time zone.
Kiribati includes Kiritimati (Christmas Island), the largest coral atoll in the world, and Banaba (Ocean Island), one of the three great phosphate islands in the Pacific. Except on Banaba, very little land is more than three meters above sea level.
The original inhabitants of Kiribati are Gilbertese, a Micronesian people. Approximately 90% of the population of Kiribati lives on the atolls of the Gilbert Islands. Although the Line Islands are about 2,000 miles east of the Gilbert Islands, most inhabitants of the Line Islands are also Gilbertese. Owing to severe overcrowding in the capital on South Tarawa, in the 1990s a program of directed migration moved nearly 5,000 inhabitants to outlying atolls, mainly in the Line Islands. The Phoenix Islands have never had any significant permanent population. A British effort to settle Gilbertese there in the 1930s lasted until the 1960s when it was determined the inhabitants could not be self-sustaining.
HISTORY
The I-Kiribati people settled what would become known as the Gilbert Islands between 1000 and 1300 AD. Subsequent invasions by Fijians and Tongans introduced Melanesian and Polynesian elements to the Micronesian culture, but extensive intermarriage has produced a population reasonably homogeneous in appearance and traditions.
European contact began in the 16th century. Whalers, slave traders, and merchant vessels arrived in great numbers in the 1800s, fomenting local tribal conflicts and introducing often-fatal European diseases. In an effort to restore a measure of order, the Gilbert and Ellice Islands (the Ellice Islands are now the independent country of Tuvalu) consented to becoming British protectorates in 1892. Banaba (Ocean Island) was annexed in 1900 after the discovery of phosphate-rich guano deposits, and the entire group was made a British colony in 1916. The Line and Phoenix Islands were incorporated piecemeal over the next 20 years.
Japan seized some of the islands during World War II. In November 1943, U.S. forces assaulted heavily fortified Japanese positions on Tarawa Atoll in the Gilberts, resulting in some of the bloodiest fighting of the Pacific campaign. The battle was a turning point for the war in the Central Pacific.
Britain began expanding self-government in the islands during the 1960s. In 1975 the Ellice Islands separated from the colony and in 1978 declared their independence. The Gilberts obtained internal self-government in 1977, and became an independent nation on July 12, 1979, under the name of Kiribati.
Post-independence politics were initially dominated by Ieremia Tabai, Kiribati's first President, who served from 1979 to 1991, stepping down due to Kiribati's three-term limit for presidents. The tenure of Teburoro Tito, Kiribati's second-longest serving President, was from 1994 to 2003. His third term lasted only a matter of months before he lost a no confidence motion in Parliament. (See the next section for an explanation of Kiribati's unique presidential system.) In July 2003, Anote Tong defeated his elder brother, Harry Tong, who was backed by former President Tito and his allies. Tong was re-elected for a second term as president in October 2007, and most recently defeated candidates Tetaua Taitai and Rimeta Beniamina to win a third term as president in January 2012.
GOVERNMENT
The constitution promulgated at independence establishes Kiribati as a sovereign democratic republic and guarantees the fundamental rights of its citizens.
The unicameral House of Assembly (Maneaba) has 45 members: 43 elected representatives, one appointed member by the Banaban community on Rabi Island in Fiji, and the Attorney General on an ex officio basis. All of the members of the Maneaba serve 4-year terms; the Maneaba was most recently elected in October 2011. The speaker for the legislature is elected by the Maneaba from outside of its membership and is not a voting member of Parliament.
After each general election, the new Maneaba nominates at least three but not more than four of its members to stand as candidates for president. The voting public then elects the president from among these candidates. The president appoints a cabinet of up to 10 members from among the members of the Maneaba. Although popularly elected, the president can be deposed by a majority vote in Parliament. If a no confidence motion passes, a new election for President must be held. An individual can serve as president for only three terms, no matter how short each term is. As a result of this provision, former Presidents Tabai and Tito are constitutionally forbidden from serving as president again.
The judicial system consists of the Court of Appeal, the High Court, and Magistrates' Courts. The president makes all judicial appointments.
Principal Government Officials
Head of State/Government--President Anote Tong
Vice President--Teima Onorio
Minister of Health and Medical Services--Kautu Tenaua
Minister of Works and Energy--Kirabuke Teiaua
Minister of Education--Maere Tekanene
Minister of Commerce and Co-operatives--Pinto Katia
Minister of Environment and Agriculture--Tiarite Kwong
Minister of Communications, Transport, and Tourism--Taberannang Timeon
Minister of Fisheries and Natural Resources--Tinian Reiher
Minister of Finance--Tom Murdoch
Minister of the Line and Phoenix Group--Tawita Temoku
Attorney-General--Titabu Tabane
POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Political parties exist but are more similar to informal coalitions in behavior. Parties do not have official platforms or party structures. Most candidates formally present themselves as independents. Campaigning is by word of mouth and informal gatherings in traditional meetinghouses.
President Anote Tong won re-election by a comfortable margin in January 2012 and has enjoyed a comfortable majority in Parliament. The biggest political issues of the day are climate change and employment opportunities for a crowded and growing population.
ECONOMY
A least developed country, Kiribati's per capita GDP is about $1,600. Although 63.6% of Kiribati’s population above the age of 15 is economically active, only 23% participate in the formal wage economy and over 60% of all formal jobs are in South Tarawa. The monetary economy of Kiribati is dominated by the services sector, representing a GDP share of 63.4%, and the public sector which provides 80% of monetary remuneration.
The end of phosphate revenue from Banaba in 1979 had a devastating impact on the economy. Receipts from phosphates had accounted for roughly 80% of export earnings and 50% of government revenue. Per capita GDP declined by more than half between 1979 and 1981. The Revenue Equalization Reserve Fund (RERF), a trust fund financed by phosphate earnings over the years, is still an important part of the government's assets and contained more than U.S. $500 million in 2009. However, with the declining returns on offshore investments in the RERF, lower drawdowns from the fund to meet fiscal deficits is vital for the long-term welfare of the country.
In one form or another, Kiribati gets a large portion of its income from abroad. Examples include fishing licenses, development assistance, tourism, and worker remittances. External sources of financing are crucial to Kiribati, given the limited domestic production ability and the need to import nearly all essential foodstuffs and manufactured items. Historically, the I-Kiribati were notable seafarers, and today about 1,400 I-Kiribati are trained, certified, and active as seafarers. Remittances from seafarers are a major source of income for families in the country, and there is a steady annual uptake of young I-Kiribati men to the Kiribati Maritime Training Institute. Remittances from Kiribati workers living abroad provide more than $11 million annually.
Fishing fleets from South Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan, and the United States pay licensing fees to operate in Kiribati's territorial waters. These licenses produce revenue worth about U.S. $20 million to $35 million annually. Kiribati's exclusive economic zone comprises more than 3.55 million square kilometers (1.37 million square miles) and is very difficult to police given Kiribati's small land mass and limited means. Kiribati has only one police patrol boat. Kiribati probably loses millions of dollars per year from illegal, unlicensed, and unreported fishing in its exclusive economic zone.
The largest donors of development assistance to Kiribati are Japan, the European Union, Australia, New Zealand, and Taiwan. U.S. assistance is provided primarily through multilateral institutions.
Tourism is a relatively small, but important domestic sector. Attractions include World War II Tarawa battle sites, game fishing, and ecotourism. The majority of American tourists only visit Christmas Island in the Line Islands on fishing and diving vacations.
Most islanders engage in subsistence activities such as fishing and growing of food crops like bananas, breadfruit, and papaya. The leading export is the coconut product copra, which accounts for about two-thirds of export revenue. Other exports include pet fish, shark fins, and seaweed. Kiribati's principal trading partners are Australia and Japan.
Transportation and communications are a challenge for Kiribati. Air Pacific is currently the only airline providing international air links to Kiribati. Air Pacific operates a twice-weekly flight from Fiji to the capital of Tarawa and has a stop on Kiritimati Island during a flight between Fiji and Honolulu. As of early February 2012, domestic airlines had ceased regular scheduled flights, and most of the populated atolls in the Gilberts were only accessible by boat or charter aircraft flying from Tarawa. Small ships serve outlying islands, including in the Line Islands, with irregular schedules. Telecommunications are expensive, and service is mediocre.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Kiribati maintains friendly relations with most countries and has particularly close ties to its Pacific neighbors--Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji. Australia, Taiwan, New Zealand, and Cuba maintain resident diplomatic missions in Kiribati.
Kiribati became a member of the United Nations in 1999, and in September 2003, President Tong requested authority from Parliament to establish a UN mission. Currently, however, Kiribati does not maintain a resident ambassador in New York, and its vote is typically cast by New Zealand in a proxy arrangement. Kiribati also is a member of the Pacific Islands Forum, Asian Development Bank, the Commonwealth, International Monetary Fund, the Pacific Community, and the World Bank. Kiribati is particularly active in the Pacific Islands Forum. The only Kiribati diplomatic missions overseas are a high commission in Fiji and an honorary consulate in Honolulu.
U.S.-KIRIBATI RELATIONS
Relations between Kiribati and the United States are excellent. Kiribati signed a treaty of friendship with the United States after independence in 1979. In 2008, the United States and Kiribati signed a cooperative maritime enforcement agreement, or “ship rider agreement,” allowing I-Kiribati law enforcement officers to embark on select U.S. Coast Guard vessels and aircraft to patrol their waters. The United States has no consular or diplomatic facilities in the country. Officers of the American Embassy in Suva, Fiji, are concurrently accredited to Kiribati and make periodic visits. The U.S. Peace Corps maintained a program in Kiribati from 1967 until mid-2008.
Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Frankie Reed
Deputy Chief of Mission--Jeffery Robertson
Political/Economic Chief--Michael Via
Public Diplomacy Officer--Douglas A. Morris
Consul--Wayne Schmidt
Management Officer--Staci Ali-Ibrahim
Regional Environmental Officer--Norman H. Barth
Regional Security Officer--Bleu Lawless
Regional Labor Officer--Noah Geesaman
The U.S. Embassy responsible for Kiribati is located in Suva, Republic of the Fiji Islands. Its location is 158 Princes Road, Tamavua, Suva, Fiji. Mailing address: P.O. Box 218, Suva, Fiji. Tel: +679-331-4466, fax: +679-330-2267.
TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.
For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more. More travel-related information also is available at http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.
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The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to enroll in the State Department's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). A link to the registration page is also available through the Department's Smart Traveler app. U.S. citizens without internet access can enroll directly at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate. By enrolling, you make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and so you can receive up-to-date information on security conditions.
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Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.
Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.
More Electronic Information
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Geography
Area: 719 sq. km (266 sq. mi.) on 32 atolls and one island.
Cities: Capital--Tarawa (pop. 30,000).
Terrain: Archipelagos of low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs.
Climate: Maritime equatorial or tropical.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--I-Kiribati (for both singular and plural, pronounced "ee-keer-ah-bhass").
Population (2011 est.): 102,697.
Age structure (2011 est.): 34.9% under 15; 5.65% over 60.
Population growth rate (2011 est.): 1.8%.
Ethnic groups: Micronesian 99%.
Religion: Roman Catholic 55%, Kiribati Protestant 36%, other 9%.
Languages: English (official), Gilbertese/I-Kiribati (de facto).
Education (2005): Adult literacy--92%.
Health (2005): Life expectancy--61.0 years. Infant mortality rate (2007)--46/1,000.
Work force (2005): Labor force participation rate was 63.6%. Subsistence workers made up 37%, cash workers numbered 13,133.
Government
Type: Republic.
Independence (from United Kingdom): July 12, 1979.
Constitution: July 12, 1979.
Branches: Executive--president (head of state and government), vice president, cabinet. Legislative--unicameral House of Assembly. Judicial--Court of Appeal, High Court, Magistrates' Courts.
Major political parties: Parties are only very loosely organized--Boutokaan Te Kaua, Maneaban Te Mauri (Protect the Maneaba), Maurin Kiribati Pati.
Economy (all figures in U.S. $)
GDP (2011 est.): $163 million.
GDP per capita (2011 est.): $1,636.
GDP composition by sector (2009): Services 63.4%, agriculture 27.4%, industry 9.15%.
Industry: Types--tourism, copra, fish.
Trade (2009): Exports--$33.360 million: fish, seaweed, shark fins. Export markets--Ecuador, Thailand, Japan, United States, Australia. Imports--$74.542 million: food, manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment. Import sources--Australia, Fiji, Japan, New Zealand, United States, China, Taiwan.
Currency: Australian dollar (A$).
GEOGRAPHY AND PEOPLE
Kiribati (pronounced "keer-ah-bhass") consists of 32 low-lying atolls and one raised island scattered over an expanse of ocean equivalent in size to the continental United States. The islands straddle the Equator and lie roughly halfway between Hawaii and Australia. The three main groupings are the Gilbert Islands, Phoenix Islands, and Line Islands. In 1995 Kiribati unilaterally moved its date line to include its easternmost islands, putting the country in the same date and time zone.
Kiribati includes Kiritimati (Christmas Island), the largest coral atoll in the world, and Banaba (Ocean Island), one of the three great phosphate islands in the Pacific. Except on Banaba, very little land is more than three meters above sea level.
The original inhabitants of Kiribati are Gilbertese, a Micronesian people. Approximately 90% of the population of Kiribati lives on the atolls of the Gilbert Islands. Although the Line Islands are about 2,000 miles east of the Gilbert Islands, most inhabitants of the Line Islands are also Gilbertese. Owing to severe overcrowding in the capital on South Tarawa, in the 1990s a program of directed migration moved nearly 5,000 inhabitants to outlying atolls, mainly in the Line Islands. The Phoenix Islands have never had any significant permanent population. A British effort to settle Gilbertese there in the 1930s lasted until the 1960s when it was determined the inhabitants could not be self-sustaining.
HISTORY
The I-Kiribati people settled what would become known as the Gilbert Islands between 1000 and 1300 AD. Subsequent invasions by Fijians and Tongans introduced Melanesian and Polynesian elements to the Micronesian culture, but extensive intermarriage has produced a population reasonably homogeneous in appearance and traditions.
European contact began in the 16th century. Whalers, slave traders, and merchant vessels arrived in great numbers in the 1800s, fomenting local tribal conflicts and introducing often-fatal European diseases. In an effort to restore a measure of order, the Gilbert and Ellice Islands (the Ellice Islands are now the independent country of Tuvalu) consented to becoming British protectorates in 1892. Banaba (Ocean Island) was annexed in 1900 after the discovery of phosphate-rich guano deposits, and the entire group was made a British colony in 1916. The Line and Phoenix Islands were incorporated piecemeal over the next 20 years.
Japan seized some of the islands during World War II. In November 1943, U.S. forces assaulted heavily fortified Japanese positions on Tarawa Atoll in the Gilberts, resulting in some of the bloodiest fighting of the Pacific campaign. The battle was a turning point for the war in the Central Pacific.
Britain began expanding self-government in the islands during the 1960s. In 1975 the Ellice Islands separated from the colony and in 1978 declared their independence. The Gilberts obtained internal self-government in 1977, and became an independent nation on July 12, 1979, under the name of Kiribati.
Post-independence politics were initially dominated by Ieremia Tabai, Kiribati's first President, who served from 1979 to 1991, stepping down due to Kiribati's three-term limit for presidents. The tenure of Teburoro Tito, Kiribati's second-longest serving President, was from 1994 to 2003. His third term lasted only a matter of months before he lost a no confidence motion in Parliament. (See the next section for an explanation of Kiribati's unique presidential system.) In July 2003, Anote Tong defeated his elder brother, Harry Tong, who was backed by former President Tito and his allies. Tong was re-elected for a second term as president in October 2007, and most recently defeated candidates Tetaua Taitai and Rimeta Beniamina to win a third term as president in January 2012.
GOVERNMENT
The constitution promulgated at independence establishes Kiribati as a sovereign democratic republic and guarantees the fundamental rights of its citizens.
The unicameral House of Assembly (Maneaba) has 45 members: 43 elected representatives, one appointed member by the Banaban community on Rabi Island in Fiji, and the Attorney General on an ex officio basis. All of the members of the Maneaba serve 4-year terms; the Maneaba was most recently elected in October 2011. The speaker for the legislature is elected by the Maneaba from outside of its membership and is not a voting member of Parliament.
After each general election, the new Maneaba nominates at least three but not more than four of its members to stand as candidates for president. The voting public then elects the president from among these candidates. The president appoints a cabinet of up to 10 members from among the members of the Maneaba. Although popularly elected, the president can be deposed by a majority vote in Parliament. If a no confidence motion passes, a new election for President must be held. An individual can serve as president for only three terms, no matter how short each term is. As a result of this provision, former Presidents Tabai and Tito are constitutionally forbidden from serving as president again.
The judicial system consists of the Court of Appeal, the High Court, and Magistrates' Courts. The president makes all judicial appointments.
Principal Government Officials
Head of State/Government--President Anote Tong
Vice President--Teima Onorio
Minister of Health and Medical Services--Kautu Tenaua
Minister of Works and Energy--Kirabuke Teiaua
Minister of Education--Maere Tekanene
Minister of Commerce and Co-operatives--Pinto Katia
Minister of Environment and Agriculture--Tiarite Kwong
Minister of Communications, Transport, and Tourism--Taberannang Timeon
Minister of Fisheries and Natural Resources--Tinian Reiher
Minister of Finance--Tom Murdoch
Minister of the Line and Phoenix Group--Tawita Temoku
Attorney-General--Titabu Tabane
POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Political parties exist but are more similar to informal coalitions in behavior. Parties do not have official platforms or party structures. Most candidates formally present themselves as independents. Campaigning is by word of mouth and informal gatherings in traditional meetinghouses.
President Anote Tong won re-election by a comfortable margin in January 2012 and has enjoyed a comfortable majority in Parliament. The biggest political issues of the day are climate change and employment opportunities for a crowded and growing population.
ECONOMY
A least developed country, Kiribati's per capita GDP is about $1,600. Although 63.6% of Kiribati’s population above the age of 15 is economically active, only 23% participate in the formal wage economy and over 60% of all formal jobs are in South Tarawa. The monetary economy of Kiribati is dominated by the services sector, representing a GDP share of 63.4%, and the public sector which provides 80% of monetary remuneration.
The end of phosphate revenue from Banaba in 1979 had a devastating impact on the economy. Receipts from phosphates had accounted for roughly 80% of export earnings and 50% of government revenue. Per capita GDP declined by more than half between 1979 and 1981. The Revenue Equalization Reserve Fund (RERF), a trust fund financed by phosphate earnings over the years, is still an important part of the government's assets and contained more than U.S. $500 million in 2009. However, with the declining returns on offshore investments in the RERF, lower drawdowns from the fund to meet fiscal deficits is vital for the long-term welfare of the country.
In one form or another, Kiribati gets a large portion of its income from abroad. Examples include fishing licenses, development assistance, tourism, and worker remittances. External sources of financing are crucial to Kiribati, given the limited domestic production ability and the need to import nearly all essential foodstuffs and manufactured items. Historically, the I-Kiribati were notable seafarers, and today about 1,400 I-Kiribati are trained, certified, and active as seafarers. Remittances from seafarers are a major source of income for families in the country, and there is a steady annual uptake of young I-Kiribati men to the Kiribati Maritime Training Institute. Remittances from Kiribati workers living abroad provide more than $11 million annually.
Fishing fleets from South Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan, and the United States pay licensing fees to operate in Kiribati's territorial waters. These licenses produce revenue worth about U.S. $20 million to $35 million annually. Kiribati's exclusive economic zone comprises more than 3.55 million square kilometers (1.37 million square miles) and is very difficult to police given Kiribati's small land mass and limited means. Kiribati has only one police patrol boat. Kiribati probably loses millions of dollars per year from illegal, unlicensed, and unreported fishing in its exclusive economic zone.
The largest donors of development assistance to Kiribati are Japan, the European Union, Australia, New Zealand, and Taiwan. U.S. assistance is provided primarily through multilateral institutions.
Tourism is a relatively small, but important domestic sector. Attractions include World War II Tarawa battle sites, game fishing, and ecotourism. The majority of American tourists only visit Christmas Island in the Line Islands on fishing and diving vacations.
Most islanders engage in subsistence activities such as fishing and growing of food crops like bananas, breadfruit, and papaya. The leading export is the coconut product copra, which accounts for about two-thirds of export revenue. Other exports include pet fish, shark fins, and seaweed. Kiribati's principal trading partners are Australia and Japan.
Transportation and communications are a challenge for Kiribati. Air Pacific is currently the only airline providing international air links to Kiribati. Air Pacific operates a twice-weekly flight from Fiji to the capital of Tarawa and has a stop on Kiritimati Island during a flight between Fiji and Honolulu. As of early February 2012, domestic airlines had ceased regular scheduled flights, and most of the populated atolls in the Gilberts were only accessible by boat or charter aircraft flying from Tarawa. Small ships serve outlying islands, including in the Line Islands, with irregular schedules. Telecommunications are expensive, and service is mediocre.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Kiribati maintains friendly relations with most countries and has particularly close ties to its Pacific neighbors--Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji. Australia, Taiwan, New Zealand, and Cuba maintain resident diplomatic missions in Kiribati.
Kiribati became a member of the United Nations in 1999, and in September 2003, President Tong requested authority from Parliament to establish a UN mission. Currently, however, Kiribati does not maintain a resident ambassador in New York, and its vote is typically cast by New Zealand in a proxy arrangement. Kiribati also is a member of the Pacific Islands Forum, Asian Development Bank, the Commonwealth, International Monetary Fund, the Pacific Community, and the World Bank. Kiribati is particularly active in the Pacific Islands Forum. The only Kiribati diplomatic missions overseas are a high commission in Fiji and an honorary consulate in Honolulu.
U.S.-KIRIBATI RELATIONS
Relations between Kiribati and the United States are excellent. Kiribati signed a treaty of friendship with the United States after independence in 1979. In 2008, the United States and Kiribati signed a cooperative maritime enforcement agreement, or “ship rider agreement,” allowing I-Kiribati law enforcement officers to embark on select U.S. Coast Guard vessels and aircraft to patrol their waters. The United States has no consular or diplomatic facilities in the country. Officers of the American Embassy in Suva, Fiji, are concurrently accredited to Kiribati and make periodic visits. The U.S. Peace Corps maintained a program in Kiribati from 1967 until mid-2008.
Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Frankie Reed
Deputy Chief of Mission--Jeffery Robertson
Political/Economic Chief--Michael Via
Public Diplomacy Officer--Douglas A. Morris
Consul--Wayne Schmidt
Management Officer--Staci Ali-Ibrahim
Regional Environmental Officer--Norman H. Barth
Regional Security Officer--Bleu Lawless
Regional Labor Officer--Noah Geesaman
The U.S. Embassy responsible for Kiribati is located in Suva, Republic of the Fiji Islands. Its location is 158 Princes Road, Tamavua, Suva, Fiji. Mailing address: P.O. Box 218, Suva, Fiji. Tel: +679-331-4466, fax: +679-330-2267.
TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.
For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more. More travel-related information also is available at http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.
The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).
The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to enroll in the State Department's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). A link to the registration page is also available through the Department's Smart Traveler app. U.S. citizens without internet access can enroll directly at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate. By enrolling, you make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and so you can receive up-to-date information on security conditions.
Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.
Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.
Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.
More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov
Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.
Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.
In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.
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