New Caledonia

Territory of New Caledonia and DependenciesTerritoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances

parliamentary representative democracyIndependence none (overseas territory of France)

New Caledonia as the 2012 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 131 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalNoumea, UTC+11

Position21 30 S, 165 30 E

Area18,575 sq km

LocationOceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia

Populationas each edition published it

260,166 people July 2012 est. · 153,215 in 1990

Population growth% a year

1.489% 2012 est. · 1.83% in 1993

Median ageyears

30.4 years 2012 est. · 26.9 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

76.94 years 2012 est. · 73.22 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

2.04 children per woman 2012 est. · 3 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

5.62 deaths per 1,000 live births 2012 est. · 39 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$15,000 2003 est. · $6,000 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

Not in this edition 2.4% in 1993

Introduction

1 field

Background

Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s ended in the 1998 Noumea Accord, which over a period of 15 to 20 years will transfer an increasing amount of governing responsibility from France to New Caledonia. The agreement also commits France to conduct a referendum between 2014 and 2018 to decide whether New Caledonia should assume full sovereignty and independence.

Geography

Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia

17 fields

Land useshare of 18,575 sq km

permanent crops 0.22%other 99.46% (2005)arable land 0.32% in all · irrigated 100 sq km (2003)

Area

18,575sq km

country comparison to the world: 156land: 18,275 sq kmwater: 300 sq kmslightly smaller than New Jersey

Coastline

2,254km

land boundaries: 0 kmterritorial sea: 12 nmexclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Highest point

1,628m

Mont Panielowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m

Location

Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia

Geographic coordinates

21 30 S, 165 30 E

Map references

Oceania

Climate

tropical;
modified by southeast trade winds;
hot, humid

Terrain

coastal plains with interior mountains

Natural resources

nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper

Natural hazards

cyclones, most frequent from November to March; volcanism: Matthew and Hunter Islands are historically active

Environment - current issues

erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires

Geography - note

consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls

People and Society

22 fields

Age structuremale left, female right · (2012 est.)

9,335

65 and over8%

11,505

88,485

15-6467.5%

87,213

32,515

0-1424.5%

31,113

MaleFemale

Population

260,166

(July 2012 est.)country comparison to the world: 182growth rate: 1.489% (2012 est.)country comparison to the world: 81

Per 1,000 population

Birth

16.05 (2012 est.)Death

5.34 (July 2012 est.)Net migration

4.18

Net migration: note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2012 est.)

Male · female

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years (2012 est.)76.94

72.88 · 81.2Infant mortality deaths/1,000 live births (2012 est.)5.62

6.64 · 4.56

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy (1996 census)96.2%

96.8% · 95.5%Median age years (2012 est.)30.4

29.8 · 31

MaleFemaleLife expectancy country comparison to the world: 71 · Infant mortality country comparison to the world: 177 · Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write

Ethnic groups(1996 census)

Melanesian 44.1%European 34.1%Wallisian & Futunian 9%Tahitian 2.6%Indonesian 2.5%Vietnamese 1.4%Ni-Vanuatu 1.1%other 5.2% (1996 census)

Religions

Roman Catholic 60%Protestant 30%other 10%

Urban population

57%of total population

(2010)rate of urbanization: 1.4% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)Major cities - population: NOUMEA (capital) 144,000 (2009)

Nationality

noun:: New Caledonian(s)
adjective:: New Caledonian

Languages

French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects

Net migration rate

4.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population country comparison to the world: 23 note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2012 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth:: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years:: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years:: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over:: 0.81 male(s)/female
total population:: 1 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.04 children born/woman (2012 est.) country comparison to the world: 127

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

HIV/AIDS - deaths

Education expenditures

Government

Parliamentary representative democracy; President Francois HOLLANDE (since 15 May 2012); President of the Government Harold MARTIN (since 3 March 2011)

21 fields

Territorial Congress or Congres du territoire, 54 seats, elected 9 May 2009one dot, one seat

UMP 13Caledonia Together 10UC 8UNI 8AE 6FLNKS 3Labor Party 3other 3

Country name

conventional long form:: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies
conventional short form:: New Caledonia
local long form:: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances
local short form:: Nouvelle-Caledonie

Dependency status

territorial collectivity (or a sui generis collectivity) of France since 1998

Government type

parliamentary representative democracy

Capital

name:: Noumea
geographic coordinates:: 22 16 S, 166 27 E
time difference:: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions

none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Province des Iles, Province Nord, and Province Sud

Independence

none (overseas territory of France);
note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass;
a new referendum is scheduled to take place between 2014 and 2018

National holiday

Bastille Day, 14 July (1789); note - the local holiday is New Caledonia Day, 24 September (1853)

Constitution

4 October 1958 (French Constitution)

Legal system

civil law system based on French law; the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state:: President Francois HOLLANDE (since 15 May 2012); represented by High Commissioner Albert DUPUY (since 6 October 2010)
head of government:: President of the Government Harold MARTIN (since 3 March 2011);
note - since 3 March 2011, three different governments of Harold MARTIN have collapsed over the choice of a flag that will be used while it is being decolonized;
President MARTIN is head of a caretaker government
cabinet:: Cabinet consisting of 11 members elected from and by the Territorial Congress; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)
elections:: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior;
president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress for a five-year term (no term limits);
note - last election held on 10 June 2011 (next to be held June 2016)

Legislative branch

unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres du territoire (54 seats; members belong to the three Provincial Assemblies, or Assemblees Provinciales, elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections:: last held on 9 May 2009 (next to be held on 10 May 2014)
election results:: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 13, Caledonia Together 10, UC 8, UNI 8, AE 6, FLNKS 3, Labor Party 3, other 3

note: the Customary Senate is the assembly of the various traditional councils of the Kanaks, the indigenous population, which rules on laws affecting the indigenous population; New Caledonia holds two seats in the French Senate; elections last held on 21 September 2008 (next to be held not later than September 2014);

results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 2; New Caledonia also elects two seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held on 17 June 2012 (next to be held by June 2017); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 2

Judicial branch

Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel;
County Courts;
Joint Commerce Tribunal Court;
Children's Court

Political parties and leaders

Caledonia My Country;
Caledonia Together [Philippe GOMES];
Caledonian Union or UC [Nicholas ABOUT];
Communist Republican and Left Party or CRC-SPG [Nichole BORVO COHEN-SEAT];
Democratic and European Social Rally or R.D.S.E. [Yvon COLLIN];
Front National or FN [Jean-Marie LE PEN];
Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM);
Labor Party [Louis Kotra UREGEI];
National Union for Independence (Union Nationale pour l'Independance) or UNI;
Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE];
Renewed Caledonian Union;
Socialist Group [Jean Pierre BEL];
Socialist Kanak Liberation or LKS [Nidoish NAISSELINE];
The Future Together or AE [Didier LEROUX];
The Rally or UMP [Gerard LONGUET];
Union of Pro-Independence Co-operation Committees [Francois BURCK]

Political pressure groups and leaders

International organization participation

PIF (associate member), SPC, UPU, WFTU (NGOs)

Diplomatic representation in the US

none (overseas territory of France)

Diplomatic representation from the US

none (overseas territory of France)

Flag description

the flag of France is used

National symbol(s)

kagu bird

National anthem

name:: "Soyons unis, devenons freres" (Let Us Be United, Let Us Become Brothers)
lyrics/music:: Chorale Melodia (a local choir)

note: adopted 2008; the anthem contains a mixture of lyrics in both French and Nengone (an indigenous language); as a self-governing territory of France,

in addition to the local anthem, "La Marseillaise" is official (see France)

Economy

New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources.

26 fields

GDP, purchasing power parity

$3.158billion

(2003 est.)country comparison to the world: 177official exchange rate: $3.3 billion (2003 est.)

GDP per capita, PPP

$15,000

(2003 est.)country comparison to the world: 88

Inflation, consumer prices

1.7%

(2012 est.)country comparison to the world: 242.4% (2011 est.)

Unemployment rate

17.1%

(2004)country comparison to the world: 154

GDP - composition by sector(2012 est.)

agriculture 2.1%industry 28.3%services 69.6% (2012 est.)

Trading partnersexports left, imports right

18.4%

France

33.8%

19.5%

Japan

Singapore

19.2%

12.9%

Australia

11.9%

10.5%

South Korea

5.1%

Belgium

4.8%

4.7%

4.3%

China

4.4%

4.1%

Spain

Exports $969.4 million (2009 est.)Imports $3.313 billion (2010 est.)(2011)

Budget

Revenues

$996 millionExpenditures

$1.072 billion (2001 est.)

Economy - overview

New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, substantial financial support from France - equal to more than 15% of GDP - and tourism are keys to the health of the economy;

during 2009-10, France sent more development assistance to New Caledonia than to any of its other overseas territories. Substantial new investment in the nickel industry, combined with the recovery of global nickel prices, brightens the economic outlook for the next several years.

GDP - real growth rate

NA%

Labor force

102,600 (2007) country comparison to the world: 183

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture:: 20%
industry:: 20%
services:: 60% (2002)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Taxes and other revenues

30.2% of GDP (2001 est.) country comparison to the world: 98

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)

-2.3% of GDP (2001 est.) country comparison to the world: 80

Market value of publicly traded shares

$NA

Agriculture - products

vegetables;
beef, deer, other livestock products;
fish

Exports

$969.4 million (2009 est.) · $1.272 billion (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 159

Exports - commodities

ferronickels, nickel ore, fish

Imports

$3.313 billion (2010 est.) · $3.313 billion (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 143

Imports - commodities

machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs

Debt - external

$79 million (1998 est.) country comparison to the world: 191

Exchange rates

Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 85.85 (2011 est.) · 90.01 (2010 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Energy

23 fields

Installed generating capacity, 421,000 kW(2009 est.)

Fossil fuels 79.1% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)Hydroelectric plants 18.5% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)Other renewable sources 2.4% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)Nuclear fuels 0%

Electricity production

1.675 billion (2009 est.)Electricity consumption

1.558 billion (2009 est.)Refined petroleum imports

14,550 (2008 est.)Refined petroleum consumption

13,640 (2011 est.)Refined petroleum exports

730 (2008 est.)

Communications

7 fields

Mobile cellular

227,300

(2011)

Internet users

34,231

(2012)

Fixed lines

76,200

(2011) · country code .nc

Telephone system

general assessment:: a submarine cable network connection between New Caledonia and Australia, completed in 2007, is expected to significantly increase network capacity and improve high-speed connectivity and access to international networks
domestic:: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular telephone subscribership exceeds 100 per 100 persons
international:: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)

Broadcast media

the publicly-owned French Overseas Network (RFO), which operates in France's overseas departments and territories, broadcasts over the RFO Nouvelle Caledonie TV and radio stations;
a small number of privately-owned radio stations also broadcast (2008)