Map of Papua New Guinea | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902 which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives.


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Location: Oceania group of islands including the eastern half of the island of New Guinea between the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean east of Indonesia

Geographic coordinates: 6 00 S 147 00 E

Map reference: Oceania

Area
Total: 462,840 km²
Rank: 55
Land: 452,860 km²
Water: 9,980 km²
Comparative: slightly larger than California

Land boundaries
Total: 820 km
Border countries: (1) Indonesia 820 km

Coastline: 5,152 km

Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm

Climate: tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March) southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperature variation

Terrain: mostly mountains with coastal lowlands and rolling foothills

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Mount Wilhelm 4,509 m

Natural resources: gold copper silver natural gas timber oil fisheries

Land use
Arable land: 0.49%
Permanent crops: 1.4%
Other: 98.11% (2005)

Irrigated land: NA

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources: 801 km³ (1987)

Natural hazards: active volcanism; situated along the Pacific 'Ring of Fire'; the country is subject to frequent and sometimes severe earthquakes; mud slides; tsunamis
Volcanism: Papua New Guinea experiences severe volcanic activity; Ulawun (elev. 2,334 m) one of Papua New Guinea's potentially most dangerous volcanoes has been deemed a 'Decade Volcano' by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; Rabaul (elev. 688 m) destroyed the city of Rabaul in 1937 and 1994; Lamington erupted in 1951 killing 3,000 people; Manam's 2004 eruption forced the island's abandonment; other historically active volcanoes include Bam Bagana Garbuna Karkar Langila Lolobau Long Island Pago St. Andrew Strait Victory and Waiowa

Geography
Note: shares island of New Guinea with Indonesia; one of world's largest swamps along southwest coast


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Population: 6,187,591 (July 2011 est.)
Rank: 106
Growth rate: 1.985% (2011 est.)
Growth rate rank: 55
Below poverty line: 37% (2002 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Papua New Guinean
Adjective: Papua New Guinean

Ethnic groups: Melanesian Papuan Negrito Micronesian Polynesian

Languages: Tok Pisin (official) English (official) Hiri Motu (official) some 860 indigenous languages spoken (over one-tenth of the world's total)
Note: Tok Pisin a creole language is widely used and understood; English is spoken by 1%-2%; Hiri Motu is spoken by less than 2%

Religions: Roman Catholic 27% Protestant 69.4% (Evangelical Lutheran 19.5% United Church 11.5% Seventh-Day Adventist 10% Pentecostal 8.6% Evangelical Alliance 5.2% Anglican 3.2% Baptist 2.5% other Protestant 8.9%) Baha'i 0.3% indigenous beliefs and other 3.3% (2000 census)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 36.4%
15-64 years: 60% (male 1,907,787/female 1,802,144)
65 years and over: 3.6% (male 121,207/female 103,802) (2011 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age
Total: 21.8 years
Male: 22.1 years
Female: 21.5 years (2011 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.985% (2011 est.)
Rank: 55

Birth rate: 26.44 births/1000 population (2011 est.)
Rank: 52

Death rate: 6.58 deaths/1000 population (July 2011 est.)
Rank: 147

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2011 est.)
Rank: 103

Population distribution

Urbanization
Urban population: 13% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 2.9% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: rain forest subject to deforestation as a result of growing commercial demand for tropical timber; pollution from mining projects; severe drought
International agreements party to: Antarctic Treaty Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Endangered Species Environmental Modification Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Marine Dumping Ozone Layer Protection Ship Pollution Tropical Timber 83 Tropical Timber 94 Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.2 male(s)/female
Total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 43.29 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 57
Male: 47.12 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 39.28 deaths/1000 live births (2011 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 66.24 years
Rank: 162
Male: 64.02 years
Female: 68.56 years (2011 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.46 children born/woman (2011 est.)
Rank: 47

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source:

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 0.053 physicians/1000 population (2008)
Rank: 174

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access:

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.9% (2009 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 50
People living with hivaids: 34,000 (2009 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 66
Deaths: 1300 (2009 est.)
Deaths rank: 62

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea hepatitis A and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria (2009)

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 18.1% (2005)
Rank: 40

Education expenditures: NA

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 57.3%
Male: 63.4%
Female: 50.9% (2000 census)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education: NA

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Independent State of Papua New Guinea
Conventional short form: Papua New Guinea
Local short form: Papuaniugini
Former: Territory of Papua and New Guinea
Abbreviation: PNG

Government type: constitutional parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Capital
Name: Port Moresby
Geographic coordinates: 9 30 S 147 10 E
Time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions: 18 provinces 1 autonomous region* and 1 district**; Bougainville* Central Chimbu Eastern Highlands East New Britain East Sepik Enga Gulf Madang Manus Milne Bay Morobe National Capital** New Ireland Northern Sandaun Southern Highlands Western Western Highlands West New Britain

Dependent areas

Independence: 16 September 1975 (from the Australian-administered UN trusteeship)

National holiday: Independence Day 16 September (1975)

Constitution: 16 September 1975

Legal system: mixed legal system of English common law and customary law

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II ; represented by Governor Michael OGIO (since 25 February 2011)
Head of government: Prime Minister Peter Paire O'NEILL (since 2 August 2011); Deputy Prime Minister Belden NAMAH (since 9 August 2011)
Cabinet: National Executive Council appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister
Elections: the monarchy is hereditary; the governor general nominated by parliament and appointed by the chief of state; following legislative elections the leader of the majority party or leader of the majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the governor general acting in accordance with a decision of the parliament

Legislative branch: unicameral National Parliament (109 seats 89 filled from open electorates and 20 from provinces and national capital district; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); constitution allows up to 126 seats
Elections: last held from 30 June to 10 July 2007; next to be held in June 2012
Election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA 27 PNGP 8 PAP 6 URP 6 PANGU PATI 5 PDM 5 independents 19 others 33; note - election to 1 seat was nullified
Note: 15 other parties won 4 or fewer seats; association with political parties is fluid

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the proposal of the National Executive Council after consultation with the minister responsible for justice; other judges are appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission)

Political parties and leaders: National Alliance Party or NA [Don POLYE]; Papua and Niugini Union Party or PANGU PATI [Andrew KUMBAKOR]; Papua New Guinea Party or PNGP [Beldan NEMAH]; People's Action Party or PAP [Gabriel KAPRIS]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM; United Resources Party or URP [William DUMA]
Note: as of December 2011 33 political parties are registered

International organization participation: ACP ADB AOSIS APEC ARF ASEAN (observer) C CP FAO G-77 IBRD ICAO ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM (observer) IPU ISO (correspondent) ITSO ITU MIGA NAM OPCW PIF Sparteca SPC UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UNWTO UPU WCO WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Evan Jeremy PAKI
In the us chancery: 1779 Massachusetts Avenue NW Suite 805 Washington DC 20,036
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 745-3,680
In the us fax: [1] (202) 745-3,679
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Teddy B. TAYLOR
From the us embassy: Douglas Street Port Moresby N.C.D.
From the us mailing address: 4,240 Port Moresby PI US Department of State Washington DC 20,521-4,240
From the us telephone: [675] 321-1455
From the us fax: [675] 321-3,423

Flag description: divided diagonally from upper hoist-side corner; the upper triangle is red with a soaring yellow bird of paradise centered; the lower triangle is black with five white five-pointed stars of the Southern Cross constellation centered; red black and yellow are traditional colors of Papua New Guinea; the bird of paradise - endemic to the island of New Guinea - is an emblem of regional tribal culture and represents the emergence of Papua New Guinea as a nation; the Southern Cross visible in the night sky symbolizes Papua New Guinea's connection with Australia and several other countries in the South Pacific

National symbols: bird of paradise

National anthem
Name: 'O Arise All You Sons'
Lyricsmusic: Thomas SHACKLADY
Note: adopted 1975

National heritage


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Economy overview: Papua New Guinea (PNG) is richly endowed with natural resources but exploitation has been hampered by rugged terrain land tenure issues and the high cost of developing infrastructure. The economy has a small formal sector focused mainly on the export of those natural resources and an informal sector employing the majority of the population. Agriculture provides a subsistence livelihood for 85% of the people. Mineral deposits including copper gold and oil account for nearly two-thirds of export earnings. Natural gas reserves amount to an estimated 227 billion cubic meters. A consortium led by a major American oil company is constructing a liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facility that could begin exporting in 2014. As the largest investment project in the country's history it has the potential to double GDP in the near-term and triple Papua New Guinea's export revenue. An American-owned firm also opened PNG's first oil refinery in 2004 and is building a second LNG production facility. The government faces the challenge of ensuring transparency and accountability for revenues flowing from this and other large LNG projects. The government of Prime Minister SOMARE has expended much of its energy remaining in power. He was the first prime minister ever to serve a full five-year term. The government has brought stability to the national budget largely through expenditure control; however it relaxed spending constraints in 2006 and 2007 as elections approached. In recent years the government has opened up markets in telecommunications and air transport making both more affordable to the people. Numerous challenges still face the government including providing physical security for foreign investors regaining investor confidence restoring integrity to state institutions promoting economic efficiency by privatizing moribund state institutions and balancing relations with Australia its former colonial ruler. Other socio-cultural challenges could upend the economy including an HIV/AIDS epidemic with the second highest infection rate in all of East Asia and the Pacific and chronic law and order and land tenure issues. The global financial crisis had little impact because of continued foreign demand for PNG's commodities.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 136
Note: data are in 2010 US dollars

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 37

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 177
Note: data are in 2010 US dollars

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 31.9%
Industry: 35.5%
Services: 32.6% (2010 est.)

Agriculture products: coffee cocoa copra palm kernels tea sugar rubber sweet potatoes fruit vegetables vanilla; shell fish; poultry pork

Industries: copra crushing palm oil processing plywood production wood chip production; mining of gold silver and copper; crude oil production petroleum refining; construction tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 10% (2010 est.)
Rank: 26

Labor force: 3.809 million (2010 est.)
Rank: 89
By occupation agriculture: 85%
By occupation industry: NA%
By occupation services: NA% (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate: 1.8% (2004)
Rank: 12

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 37% (2002 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 1.7%
Highest 10: 40.5% (1996)

Distribution of family income gini index: 50.9 (1996)
Rank: 20

Budget
Revenues: $3.045 billion
Expenditures: $2.976 billion (2010 est.)
Surplus or deficit: 0.7% of GDP (2010 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 35

Taxes and other revenues: 31.5% of GDP (2010 est.)
Rank: 87

Public debt: 32.8% of GDP (2009 est.)
Rank: 98

Revenue

Fiscal year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 6.9% (2009 est.)
Rank: 165

Central bank discount rate: 6.92% (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 49

Commercial bank prime lending rate: 10.09% (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 104

Stock of narrow money: $2.306 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 112

Stock of broad money: $4.374 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 125

Stock of domestic credit: $2.466 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 124

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 75

Current account balance: -$671.7 million (2009 est.)
Rank: 120

Exports: $4.392 billion (2009 est.)
Rank: 105
Commodities: oil gold copper ore logs palm oil coffee cocoa crayfish prawns
Partners: Australia 27.9% Japan 9.1% China 7.1% (2010)

Imports: $2.871 billion (2009 est.)
Rank: 132
Commodities: machinery and transport equipment manufactured goods food fuels chemicals
Partners: Australia 42.1% Singapore 13.1% China 7.9% Japan 6.6% US 4.3% (2010)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $2.607 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 100

Debt external: $1.543 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 144

Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $NA

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad: $NA

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Production: 2.965 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Production rank: 126
Consumption: 2.757 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Consumption rank: 130
Exports: 0 kWh (2009 est.)
Imports: 0 kWh (2009 est.)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas
Production: 130 million m³ (2009 est.)
Production rank: 78
Consumption: 130 million m³ (2009 est.)
Consumption rank: 102
Exports: 0 m³ (2009 est.)
Exports rank: 162
Imports: 0 m³ (2009 est.)
Imports rank: 172
Proven reserves: 226.5 billion m³ (1 January 2011 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 43

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 121,200 (2010)
Main lines in use rank: 143
Mobile cellular: 1.909 million (2010)
Mobile cellular rank: 138

Telephone system
General assessment: services are minimal; facilities provide radiotelephone and telegraph coastal radio aeronautical radio and international radio communication services
Domestic: access to telephone services is not widely available; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity is about 15 per 100 persons
International: country code - 675; submarine cables to Australia and Guam; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); international radio communication service (2009)

Broadcast media: 2 television stations 1 commercial station operating since the late 1980s and 1 state-run station launched in 2008; satellite and cable TV services are available; state-run National Broadcasting Corporation operates 3 radio networks with multiple repeaters and about 20 provincial stations; several commercial radio stations with multiple transmission points as well as several community stations; transmissions of several international broadcasters are accessible (2009)

Internet
Country code: .pg
Hosts: 4,285 (2010)
Hosts rank: 139
Users: 125,000 (2009)
Users rank: 152

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures: 1.4% of GDP (2005 est.)
Rank: 107

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 16 years of age for voluntary military service (with parental consent); no conscription (2010)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 562 (2010)
Rank: 12
With paved runways total: 21
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 14
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 4
With paved runways under 914 m: 1 (2010)
With unpaved runways total: 541
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 9
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 63
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 469 (2010)

Heliports: 2 (2010)

Pipelines: oil 195 km (2010)

Railways

Roadways
Total: 9,349 km
Rank: 136
Paved: 3,000 km
Unpaved: 6,349 km (2011)

Waterways: 11,000 km (2011)
Rank: 11

Merchant marine
Total: 28
Rank: 87
By type: bulk carrier 2 cargo 24 petroleum tanker 2
Foreign owned: 7 (Malaysia 1 UAE 6) (2010)

Ports and terminals: Kimbe Lae Madang Rabaul Wewak


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Disputes international: relies on assistance from Australia to keep out illegal cross-border activities from primarily Indonesia including goods smuggling illegal narcotics trafficking and squatters and secessionists

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: 10,177 (Indonesia) (2007)

Illicit drugs: major consumer of cannabis