Background: In 1974 ethnic differences within the British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands caused the Polynesians of the Ellice Islands to vote for separation from the Micronesians of the Gilbert Islands. The following year the Ellice Islands became the separate British colony of Tuvalu. Independence was granted in 1978. In 2000 Tuvalu negotiated a contract leasing its Internet domain name '.tv' for $50 million in royalties over a 12-year period.

Geographic coordinates: 8 00 S 178 00 E

Area
Rank: 238
Land: 26 km²
Water: 0 km²
Comparative: 0.1 times the size of Washington DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 24 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate: tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March)

Terrain: low-lying and narrow coral atolls

Elevation
Extremes highest point: unnamed location 5 m

Natural resources: fish

Land use
Permanent crops: 60%
Other: 40% (2011)

Irrigated land: NA

Natural hazards: severe tropical storms are usually rare but in 1997 there were three cyclones; low levels of islands make them sensitive to changes in sea level

Geography
Note: one of the smallest and most remote countries on Earth; six of the nine coral atolls - Nanumea Nui Vaitupu Nukufetau Funafuti and Nukulaelae - have lagoons open to the ocean; Nanumaya and Niutao have landlocked lagoons; Niulakita does not have a lagoon

Population: 10,698 (July 2013 est.)
Rank: 225
Growth rate: 0.77% (2013 est.)
Growth rate rank: 138
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Adjective: Tuvaluan

Ethnic groups: Polynesian 96% Micronesian 4%

Languages: Tuvaluan (official) English (official) Samoan Kiribati (on the island of Nui)

Religions: Protestant 98.4% (Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97% Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%) Baha'i 1% other 0.6%

Age structure
15-24 years: 20.9% (male 1197/female 1044)
25-54 years: 35.8% (male 1846/female 1985)
55-64 years: 8.1% (male 352/female 514)
65 years and over: 5.3% (male 238/female 330) (2013 est.)

Median age
Male: 23.4 years
Female: 26.3 years (2013 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.77% (2013 est.)
Rank: 138

Birth rate: 23.56 births/1000 population (2013 est.)
Rank: 71

Death rate: 8.97 deaths/1000 population (2013 est.)
Rank: 68

Net migration rate: -6.92 migrant(s)/1000 population (2013 est.)
Rank: 199

Urbanization
Rate of urbanization: 1.4% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Environment
Current issues: since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable most water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities (the Japanese Government has built one desalination plant and plans to build one other); beachhead erosion because of the use of sand for building materials; excessive clearance of forest undergrowth for use as fuel; damage to coral reefs from the spread of the Crown of Thorns starfish; Tuvalu is concerned about global increases in greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on rising sea levels which threaten the country's underground water table; in 2000 the government appealed to Australia and New Zealand to take in Tuvaluans if rising sea levels should make evacuation necessary
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.17 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.91 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.71 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2013 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Rank: 67
Male: 35.45 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 29.63 deaths/1000 live births (2013 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Rank: 171
Male: 63.36 years
Female: 67.67 years (2013 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.06 children born/woman (2013 est.)
Rank: 56

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 30.5% (2007)

Drinking water source:

Physicians density: 1.09 physicians/1000 population (2009)

Hospital bed density: 5.6 beds/1000 population (2001)

Sanitation facility access:

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: NA
People living with hivaids: NA
Deaths: NA

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 1.6% (2007)
Rank: 123

Education expenditures: NA

Literacy: NA

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Male: 10 years
Female: 11 years (2001)

Country name
Conventional short form: Tuvalu
Local long form: none
Local short form: Tuvalu
Former: Ellice Islands

Government type: parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Capital
Geographic coordinates: 8 31 S 179 13 E
Time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions: 7 island councils and 1 town council*; Funafuti* Nanumaga Nanumea Niutao Nui Nukufetau Nukulaelae Vaitupu

Independence: 1 October 1978 (from the UK)

National holiday: Independence Day 1 October (1978)

Constitution: previous 1978 (at independence); latest effective 1 October 1986; amended 2007 2010 (2010)

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

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

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Head of government: Prime Minister Enele SOPOAGA (since 5 August 2013)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister
Elections: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by and from the members of parliament following parliamentary elections
Election results: Willie TELAVI removed as prime minister by the governor-general on 1 August 2013; Enele SOPOAGA elected 4 August 2013 in a 8 to 5 vote by the House of Assembly

Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament or Fale I Fono also called House of Assembly (15 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
Elections: last held on 16 September 2010 (next to be held in 2014)
Election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 15; 10 members reelected

Judicial branch
Judge selection and term of office: chief justice appointed by the president of Fiji on the advice of the prime minister following consultation with the parliamentary leader of the opposition; justices of the Court of Appeal and puisne judges of the High Court are appointed by the president of Fiji upon the nomination of the Judicial Service Commission after consulting with the Cabinet Minister and the committee of the House of Representatives responsible for the administration of justice; the chief justice and justices of Appeal generally required to retire at age 70; puisine judges appointed for not less than 4 years nor more than 7 years with mandatory retirement at age 65
Subordinate courts: magistrates' courts; island courts; lands courts

Political parties and leaders: there are no political parties but members of parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings

International organization participation: ACP ADB AOSIS C FAO IBRD IDA IFRCS (observer) ILO IMF IMO IOC ITU OPCW PIF Sparteca SPC UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WHO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chancery: Note - Tuvalu does not have an embassy in Washington D.C.; UN office located at 800 2nd Avenue Suite 400D New York NY 10,017
In the us telephone: [1] (212) 490-0534
In the us FAX: [1] (212) 937-0692
From the us: the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji currently Ambassador Frankie A. REED is accredited to Tuvalu

Flag description: light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the outer half of the flag represents a map of the country with nine yellow five-pointed stars on a blue field symbolizing the nine atolls in the ocean

National anthem
Lyrics and music: Afaese MANOA

Economy overview: Tuvalu consists of a densely populated scattered group of nine coral atolls with poor soil. Only eight of the atolls are inhabited. The country has no known mineral resources and few exports and is almost entirely dependent upon imported food and fuel. Subsistence farming and fishing are the primary economic activities. Fewer than 1000 tourists on average visit Tuvalu annually. Job opportunities are scarce and public sector workers make up most of those employed. About 15% of the adult male population work as seamen on merchant ships abroad and remittances are a vital source of income contributing around $2 million in 2007. Substantial income is received annually from the Tuvalu Trust Fund (TTF) an international trust fund established in 1987 by Australia NZ and the UK and supported also by Japan and South Korea. Thanks to wise investments and conservative withdrawals this fund grew from an initial $17 million to an estimated value of $77 million in 2006. The TTF contributed nearly $9 million towards the government budget in 2006 and is an important cushion for meeting shortfalls in the government's budget. The US Government is also a major revenue source for Tuvalu because of payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries. In an effort to ensure financial stability and sustainability the government is pursuing public sector reforms including privatization of some government functions and personnel cuts. Tuvalu also derives royalties from the lease of its '.tv' Internet domain name with revenue of more than $2 million in 2006. A minor source of government revenue comes from the sale of stamps and coins. With merchandise exports only a fraction of merchandise imports continued reliance must be placed on fishing and telecommunications license fees remittances from overseas workers official transfers and income from overseas investments. Growing income disparities and the vulnerability of the country to climatic change are among leading concerns for the nation.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 226

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 176

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 172

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Industry: 27.2%
Services: 56.2% (2002)

Agriculture products: coconuts; fish

Industries: fishing tourism copra

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Labor force: 3,615 (2004 est.)
Rank: 224

Unemployment rate: NA%

Population below poverty line: NA%

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

Budget
Expenditures: $23.05 million (2006)
Surplus or deficit: -3.8% of GDP (2006)
Surplus or deficit rank: 141

Taxes and other revenues: 54.6% of GDP (2006)
Rank: 9

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 3.8% (2006 est.)
Rank: 116

Current account balance: $-11.68 million (2003)
Rank: 59

Exports: $1 million (2004 est.)
Rank: 218
Commodities: copra fish

Imports: $12.91 million (2005)
Rank: 221
Commodities: food animals mineral fuels machinery manufactured goods

Debt external: $N/A

Exchange rates:

Telephones
Main lines in use: 1450 (2012)
Main lines in use rank: 220
Mobile cellular: 2,800 (2012)
Mobile cellular rank: 217

Telephone system
Domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands
International: country code - 688; international calls can be made by satellite (2007)

Broadcast media: no TV stations; many households use satellite dishes to watch foreign TV stations; 1 government-owned radio station Radio Tuvalu includes relays of programming from international broadcasters (2009)

Internet
Country code: .tv
Hosts: 145,158 (2012)
Hosts rank: 80
Users: 4,200 (2008)
Users rank: 206

Military expenditures: NA

Airports: 1 (2013)
Rank: 235
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1 (2013)

Roadways
Rank: 222
Paved: 8 km (2011)

Merchant marine
Rank: 67
By type: bulk carrier 4 cargo 24 chemical tanker 15 container 1 passenger 2 passenger/cargo 1 petroleum tanker 10 refrigerated cargo 1
Foreign owned: 33 (China 4 Indonesia 1 Maldives 1 Singapore 19 South Korea 1 Turkey 1 Vietnam 6) (2010)

Ports and terminals: Funafuti

Disputes international: none