Map of French Polynesia | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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Background:


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Location: Oceania, five archipelagoes (Archipel des Tuamotu, Iles Gambier, Iles Marquises, Iles Tubuai, Society Islands) in the South Pacific Ocean about halfway between South America and Australia

Geographic coordinates: 15 00 S, 140 00 W

Map reference: Oceania

Area
Total: 4,167 km² (118 islands and atolls; 67 are inhabited)
Land: 3,827 km²
Water: 340 km²
Comparative: slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut

Land boundaries
Total: 0 km

Coastline: 2,525 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate: tropical, but moderate

Terrain: mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs

Elevation
Highest point: Mont Orohena 2,241 m
Lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m

Natural resources: timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower

Land use
Agricultural land: 12.5% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land arable land: 0.7% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land permanent crops: 6.3% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land permanent pasture: 5.5% (2018 est.)
Forest: 43.7% (2018 est.)
Other: 43.8% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land: 10 km² (2012)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: occasional cyclonic storms in January

Geography
Note: includes five archipelagoes: four volcanic (Iles Gambier, Iles Marquises, Iles Tubuai, Society Islands) and one coral (Archipel des Tuamotu); the Tuamotu Archipelago forms the largest group of atolls in the world - 78 in total, 48 inhabited; Makatea in the Tuamotu Archipelago is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru


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Population
Distribution: the majority of the population lives in the Society Islands, one of five archipelagos that includes the most populous island - Tahiti - with approximately 70% of the nation's population: 301,488 (2023 est.)
Growth rate: 0.7% (2023 est.)
Below poverty line: 19.7% (2009 est.)

Nationality
Noun: French Polynesian(s)
Adjective: French Polynesian

Ethnic groups: Polynesian 78%, Chinese 12%, local French 6%, metropolitan French 4%

Languages: French (official) 73.5%, Tahitian 20.1%, Marquesan 2.6%, Austral languages 1.2%, Paumotu 1%, other 1.6% (2017 est.)
Major-language samples:

Religions: Protestant 54%, Roman Catholic 30%, other 10%, no religion 6%

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 20.62% (male 31,923/female 30,250)
15-64 years: 68.79% (male 106,657/female 100,731)
65 years and over: 10.59% (2023 est.) (male 15,567/female 16,360)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 45.6
Youth dependency ratio: 31.6
Elderly dependency ratio: 14
Potential support ratio: 7.1 (2021 est.)

Median age
Total: 34.8 years (2023 est.)
Male: 34.6 years
Female: 35.1 years

Population growth rate: 0.7% (2023 est.)

Birth rate: 13.2 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Death rate: 5.7 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Population distribution: the majority of the population lives in the Society Islands, one of five archipelagos that includes the most populous island - Tahiti - with approximately 70% of the nation's population

Urbanization
Urban population: 62.3% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 0.65% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas
Population: 136,000 PAPEETE (capital) (2018)

Environment
Current issues: sea level rise; extreme weather events (cyclones, storms, and tsunamis producing floods, landslides, erosion, and reef damage); droughts; fresh water scarcity

Air pollutants
Carbon dioxide emissions: 0.77 megatons (2016 est.)

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female
Total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 4.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
Male: 5.2 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 3.4 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 78.7 years (2023 est.)
Male: 76.4 years
Female: 81.1 years

Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate: NA

Drinking water source
Improved urban: NA
Improved rural: NA
Improved total: 100% of population
Unimproved urban: NA
Unimproved rural: NA
Unimproved total: 0% of population (2020 est.)

Current health expenditure: NA

Physicians density: NA

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access
Improved urban:
Unimproved urban:

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: NA

Education expenditures: NA

Literacy
Total population: NA
Male: NA
Female: NA

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15 24 total: 38.9% (2021 est.)
Rate ages 15 24 male: 35.4%
Rate ages 15 24 female: 43.9%


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Country name
Conventional long form: Overseas Lands of French Polynesia
Conventional short form: French Polynesia
Local long form: Pays d'outre-mer de la Polynesie Francaise
Local short form: Polynesie Francaise
Former: Establishments in Oceania, French Establishments in Oceania
Etymology: the term "Polynesia" is an 18th-century construct composed of two Greek words, "poly" (many) and "nesoi" (islands), and refers to the more than 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean

Government type: parliamentary democracy (Assembly of French Polynesia); an overseas collectivity of France

Capital
Name: Papeete (located on Tahiti)
Geographic coordinates: 17 32 S, 149 34 W
Time difference: UTC-10 (5 hours behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Etymology: the name means "water basket" and refers to the fact that the islanders originally used calabashes enclosed in baskets to fetch water at a spring in the area

Administrative divisions: 5 administrative subdivisions (subdivisions administratives, singular - subdivision administrative): Iles Australes (Austral Islands), Iles du Vent (Windward Islands), Iles Marquises (Marquesas Islands), Iles Sous-le-Vent (Leeward Islands), Iles Tuamotu-Gambier; note - the Leeward Islands and the Windward Islands together make up the Society Islands (Iles de la Societe)

Dependent areas

Independence: none (overseas land of France)

National holiday: Fete de la Federation, 14 July (1790); note - the local holiday is Internal Autonomy Day, 29 June (1880)

Constitution
History: 4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
Amendments: French constitution amendment procedures apply

Legal system: the laws of France, where applicable, apply

International law organization participation

Citizenship: see France

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Emmanuel MACRON (since 14 May 2017), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Dominique SORAIN (since 10 July 2019)
Head of government: President of French Polynesia Moetai BROTHERSON (since 12 May 2023)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers approved by the Assembly from a list of its members submitted by the president
Elections/appointments: French president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; French Polynesia president indirectly elected by Assembly of French Polynesia for a 5-year term (no term limits)

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Assembly of French Polynesia or Assemblée de la Polynésie française (57 seats; elections held in 2 rounds; in the second round, 38 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by a closed-list proportional representation vote; the party receiving the most votes gets an additional 19 seats; members serve 5-year terms; French Polynesia indirectly elects 2 senators to the French Senate via an electoral college by absolute majority vote for 6-year terms with one-half the membership renewed every 3 years and directly elects 3 deputies to the French National Assembly by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed for 5-year terms
Elections:
Election results:

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel (composition NA); note - appeals beyond the French Polynesia Court of Appeal are heard by the Court of Cassation (in Paris)
Judge selection and term of office: judges assigned from France normally for 3 years
Subordinate courts: Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: ITUC (NGOs), PIF (associate member), SPC, UPU, WMO

Diplomatic representation
In the us: none (overseas lands of France)
From the us embassy: none (overseas lands of France)

Flag description: two red horizontal bands encase a wide white band in a 1:2:1 ratio; centered on the white band is a disk with a blue and white wave pattern depicting the sea on the lower half and a gold and white ray pattern depicting the sun on the upper half; a Polynesian canoe rides on the wave pattern; the canoe has a crew of five represented by five stars that symbolize the five island groups; red and white are traditional Polynesian colors
Note: identical to the red-white-red flag of Tahiti, the largest and most populous of the islands in French Polynesia, but which has no emblem in the white band; the flag of France is used for official occasions

National symbols: outrigger canoe, Tahitian gardenia (Gardenia taitensis) flower; national colors: red, white

National anthem
Name: "Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" (Long Live Tahiti Nui)
Lyrics/music: Maeva BOUGES, Irmine TEHEI, Angele TEROROTUA, Johanna NOUVEAU, Patrick AMARU, Louis MAMATUI, and Jean-Pierre CELESTIN (the compositional group created both the lyrics and music)
Note: adopted 1993; serves as a local anthem; as a territory of France, "La Marseillaise" is official (see France)

National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites: 1 (cultural); note - excerpted from the France entry
Selected World Heritage Site locales:


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Economy overview: small, territorial-island tourism-based economy; large French financing; lower EU import duties; Pacific Islands Forum member; fairly resilient from COVID-19; oil-dependent infrastructure

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2015 dollars

Real gdp growth rate:

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2015 dollars

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 66.9% (2014 est.)
Government consumption: 33.6% (2014 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 19.4% (2014 est.)
Investment in inventories: 0.1% (2014 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 17.5% (2014 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -37.5% (2014 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 2.5% (2009)
Industry: 13% (2009)
Services: 84.5% (2009)

Agriculture products: coconuts, fruit, roots/tubers, pineapples, cassava, sugar cane, eggs, tropical fruit, tomatoes

Industries: tourism, pearls, agricultural processing, handicrafts, phosphates

Industrial production growth rate: NA

Labor force: 130,100 (2021 est.)

Unemployment rate:

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15 24 total: 38.9% (2021 est.)
Rate ages 15 24 male: 35.4%
Rate ages 15 24 female: 43.9%

Population below poverty line: 19.7% (2009 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10%: NA
Highest 10%: NA

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $1.891 billion (2012)
Expenditures: $1.833 billion (2011)
Surplus  or deficit: 1.2% (of GDP) (2012)

Taxes and other revenues: 39.4% (of GDP) (2012)

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance:

Exports:
Partners: United States 47%, Japan 17%, France 14%, Netherlands 4%, Poland 3% (2021)
Commodities: paintings, pearls, tuna, aircraft parts, coconut oil, vanilla, electrical panels (2021)

Imports:
Partners: France 43%, New Zealand 12%, China 8%, United States 6%, Singapore 5% (2021)
Commodities: refined petroleum, cars, packaged medicines, broadcasting equipment, passenger ships (2021)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: NA

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Access electrification-total population: 100% (2020)
Installed generating capacity: 272,000 kW (2020 est.)
Consumption: 639.7 million kWh (2019 est.)
Exports: 0 kWh (2019 est.)
Imports: 0 kWh (2019 est.)
Transmission/distribution losses: 41 million kWh (2019 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels: 66.5% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources solar: 6.1% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources wind: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 27.4% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources biomass and waste: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)

Coal
Production: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Consumption: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Exports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Imports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Proven reserves: 0 metric tons (2019 est.)

Petroleum
Total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2021 est.)
Refined petroleum consumption: 6,700 bbl/day (2019 est.)
Crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Crude oil and lease condensate imports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Crude oil estimated reserves: 0 barrels (2021 est.)

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products exports: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products imports: 6,785 bbl/day (2015 est.)

Natural gas
Production: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Consumption: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Exports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Imports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Proven reserves: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions: 1.03 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From coal and metallurgical coke: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From petroleum and other liquids: 1.03 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From consumed natural gas: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)

Energy consumption per capita: 0 Btu/person (2019 est.)


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 138,658 (2022 est.)
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 36 (2021 est.)
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 322,918 (2021 est.)
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 106 (2021 est.)

Telephone system

Broadcast media: French public overseas broadcaster Reseau Outre-Mer provides 2 TV channels and 1 radio station; 1 government-owned TV station; a small number of privately owned radio stations (2019)

Internet
Country code: .pf
Users total: 218,100 (2021 est.)
Users percent of population: 72.7% (2021 est.)

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 64,000 (2020 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 23 (2020 est.)


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Military expenditures

Military and security forces: no regular military forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 2 (2020) (registered in France)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 19 (registered in France)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: F-OH

Airports: 54 (2021)
With paved runways: 45
With paved runways note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)
With unpaved runways: 9
With unpaved runways note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control

Heliports: 1 (2021)

Pipelines

Railways

Roadways
Total: 2,590 km (1999)
Paved: 1,735 km (1999)
Unpaved: 855 km (1999)

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 25 (2022)
By type: general cargo 14, other 11

Ports and terminals
Major seaports: Papeete


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Disputes international: none identified

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs