Kiribati

• Oceania, group of 32 coral atolls and one raised coral island in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator;
• the capital Tarawa is about halfway between Hawaii and Australia

• consists of three achipelagos spread out over an area roughly the size of India;
• the eastern Line Islands and central Phoenix Islands are sparsely populated, but the western Gilbert Islands are some of the most densely settled places on earth, with the main island of South Tarawa boasting a population density similar to Tokyo or Hong Kong

• typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March;
• occasional tornadoes;
• low level of some of the islands make them sensitive to changes in sea level

• 21 of the 33 islands are inhabited;
• Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean -- the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru;
• Kiribati is the only country in the world to fall into all four hemispheres (northern, southern, eastern, and western)

noun:

I-Kiribati (singular and plural)

adjective:

Kiribati

total:

27.3 years (2024 est.)

male:

26.4 years

female:

28.2 years

• consists of three achipelagos spread out over an area roughly the size of India;
• the eastern Line Islands and central Phoenix Islands are sparsely populated, but the western Gilbert Islands are some of the most densely settled places on earth, with the main island of South Tarawa boasting a population density similar to Tokyo or Hong Kong

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.93 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.63 male(s)/female

total population:

0.94 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

total:

31.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)

male:

33.5 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

29.4 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

68.5 years (2024 est.)

male:

65.9 years

female:

71.3 years

total:

0.43 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer:

0.26 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine:

0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits:

0.17 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols:

0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

total:

40.6% (2020 est.)

male:

53.9% (2020 est.)

female:

27.3% (2020 est.)

women married by age 15:

2.4%

women married by age 18:

18.4%

men married by age 18:

8.6% (2019 est.)

total population:

NA

male:

NA

female:

NA

• heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to overcrowding mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping;
• ground water at risk;
• potential for water shortages, disease;
• coastal erosion

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

urban population:

57.8% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization:

2.77% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

particulate matter emissions:

7.62 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions:

0.07 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions:

0.02 megatons (2020 est.)

conventional long form:

Republic of Kiribati

conventional short form:

Kiribati

local long form:

Republic of Kiribati

local short form:

Kiribati

former:

Gilbert Islands

etymology:

• the name is the local pronunciation of "Gilberts," the former designation of the islands;
• originally named after explorer Thomas GILBERT, who mapped many of the islands in 1788

note: pronounced keer-ree-bahss

3 geographical units: Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands; note - there are no first-order administrative divisions, but there are 6 districts (Banaba, Central Gilberts, Line Islands, Northern Gilberts, Southern Gilberts, Tarawa) and 21 island councils - one for each of the inhabited islands (Abaiang, Abemama, Aranuka, Arorae, Banaba, Beru, Butaritari, Kanton, Kiritimati, Kuria, Maiana, Makin, Marakei, Nikunau, Nonouti, Onotoa, Tabiteuea, Tabuaeran, Tamana, Tarawa, Teraina)

history:

• The Gilbert and Ellice Islands Order in Council 1915, The Gilbert Islands Order in Council 1975 (preindependence);
• latest promulgated 12 July 1979 (at independence)

amendments:

• proposed by the House of Assembly;
• passage requires two-thirds majority vote by the Assembly membership;
• passage of amendments affecting the constitutional section on amendment procedures and parts of the constitutional chapter on citizenship requires deferral of the proposal to the next Assembly meeting where approval is required by at least two-thirds majority vote of the Assembly membership and support of the nominated or elected Banaban member of the Assembly;
• amendments affecting the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms also requires approval by at least two-thirds majority in a referendum;
• amended several times, last in 2018

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a native-born citizen of Kiribati

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

7 years

chief of state:

President Taneti MAAMAU (since 11 March 2016)

head of government:

President Taneti MAAMAU (since 11 March 2016)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the president from among House of Assembly members

elections/appointments:

• president directly elected by simple majority popular vote following nomination of candidates from among House of Assembly members for a 4-year term (eligible for 2 additional terms);
• election last held on 22 June 2020 (next to be held in 2024);
• vice president appointed by the president

election results:

2020: Taneti MAAMAU reelected president; percent of vote - Taneti MAAMAU (TKB) 59.3%, Banuera BERINA (BKM) 40.7%

note: the president is both chief of state and head of government

description:

unicameral House of Assembly or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (45 seats; 44 members directly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote in two rounds if needed, and 1 member appointed by the Rabi Council of Leaders - representing Banaba Island; members serve 4-year terms)

elections:

first round held on 14 August 2024; second round held on 19 August 2024 (next to be held in 2028)

election results:

• percent of vote by party - NA;
• seats by party - 33 TKP, 8 BKM, 4 Independents;
• composition - 40 men, 5 women;
• percentage women 11% (as of September 2024)

highest court(s):

High Court (consists of a chief justice and other judges as prescribed by the president); note - the High Court has jurisdiction on constitutional issues

judge selection and term of office:

• chief justice appointed by the president on the advice of the cabinet in consultation with the Public Service Commission (PSC);
• other judges appointed by the president on the advice of the chief justice along with the PSC

subordinate courts:

Court of Appeal; magistrates' courts

chief of mission:

Ambassador Teburoro TITO (since 24 January 2018); note - also Permanent Representative to the UN

chancery:

685 Third Avenue, Suite 1109, New York, NY 10017

telephone:

[1] (212) 867-3310

FAX:

[1] (212) 867-3320

email address and website:

[email protected]

chief of mission:

• Ambassador Marie DAMOUR (since 6 December 2022);
• note - Ambassador DAMOUR is based in the US Embassy in the Republic of Fiji and is accredited to Kiribati as well as Nauru, Tonga, and Tuvalu

Note : the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati but has announced its intention to open an embassy

• the upper half is red with a yellow frigatebird flying over a yellow rising sun, and the lower half is blue with three horizontal wavy white stripes to represent the Pacific ocean;
• the white stripes represent the three island groups - the Gilbert, Line, and Phoenix Islands;
• the 17 rays of the sun represent the 16 Gilbert Islands and Banaba (formerly Ocean Island);
• the frigatebird symbolizes authority and freedom

name:

"Teirake kaini Kiribati" (Stand Up, Kiribati)

lyrics/music:

Urium Tamuera IOTEBA

note: adopted 1979

total World Heritage Sites:

1 (natural)

selected World Heritage Site locales:

Phoenix Islands Protected Area

• lower-middle income, Pacific island economy;
• environmentally fragile;
• sizable remittances;
• key phosphate mining fund;
• tourism and fishing industries;
• public sector-dominated economy;
• recent withdrawal from Pacific Islands Forum;
• ongoing constitutional crisis

total:

22.5% (2019 est.)

male:

21.2%

female:

24.6%

lowest 10%:

4% (2019 est.)

highest 10%:

22.9% (2019 est.)

note: % share of income accruing to lowest and highest 10% of population

total subscriptions:

0 (2022 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants:

(2022 est.) less than 1

general assessment:

• generally good national and international service;
• wireline service available on Tarawa and Kiritimati (Christmas Island);
• connections to outer islands by HF/VHF radiotelephone;
• recently formed (mobile network operator) MNO is implementing the first phase of improvements with 3G and 4G upgrades on some islands;
• islands are connected to each other and the rest of the world via satellite;
• launch of Kacific-1 in December 2019 will improve telecommunication for Kiribati (2020)

domestic:

fixed-line less than 1 per 100 and mobile-cellular approximately 42 per 100 subscriptions (2021)

international:

• country code - 686;
• landing point for the Southern Cross NEXT submarine cable system from Australia, 7 Pacific Ocean island countries to the US;
• satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2019)

number of registered air carriers:

2 (2020); inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 8

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

66,567 (2018)

total ports:

3 (2024)

large:

0

medium:

0

small:

0

very small:

3

ports with oil terminals:

0

key ports:

Canton Island, English Harbor, Tarawa Atoll

• Australia, NZ, and the US have provided security assistance;
• Kiribati has a "ship rider" agreement with the US, which allows local maritime law enforcement officers to embark on US Coast Guard (USCG) and US Navy (USN) vessels, including to board and search vessels suspected of violating laws or regulations within Kiribati's designated exclusive economic zone (EEZ) or on the high seas;
• ship rider agreements also enable USCG personnel and USN vessels with embarked USCG law enforcement personnel to work with host nations to protect critical regional resources (2024)