Tuvalu

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

agricultural land:

60%;

• arable land 0%;
• permanent crops 60%;
• permanent pasture 0%

forest:

33.3%

other:

6.7% (2011 est.)

• since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable, most water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities;
• 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 increasing ocean temperatures and acidification;
• 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

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

• 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

noun:

Tuvaluan(s)

adjective:

Tuvaluan

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.1 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

0.99 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.69 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.69 male(s)/female

total population:

0.98 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

conventional long form:

none

conventional short form:

Tuvalu

local long form:

none

local short form:

Tuvalu

former:

Ellice Islands

note: "tuvalu" means "group of eight" referring to the country's eight traditionally inhabited islands

name:

• Funafuti;
• note - the capital is an atoll of some 29 islets;
• administrative offices are in Vaiaku Village on Fongafale Islet

geographic coordinates:

8 31 S, 179 13 E

time difference:

UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

• previous 1978 (at independence);
• latest effective 1 October 1986;
• amended 2007, 2010, 2013 (2016)

citizenship by birth:

yes

citizenship by descent:

yes; for a child born abroad, at least one parent must be a citizen of Tuvalu

dual citizenship recognized:

yes

residency requirement for naturalization:

na

chief of state:

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Iakoba TAEIA Italeli (since 16 April 2010)

head of government:

Prime Minister Enele SOPOAGA (since 5 August 2013)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the governor general on recommendation of the prime minister

elections/appointments:

• the monarchy is hereditary;
• governor general appointed by the monarch on recommendation of the prime minister;
• prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by and from members of House of Assembly following parliamentary elections

election results:

• Enele SOPOAGA elected prime minister by House of Assembly;
• House of Assembly vote count on 4 August 2013 - 8 to 5;
• note - Willie TELAVI removed as prime minister by the governor general on 1 August 2013

description:

unicameral House of Assembly or Fale I Fono (15 seats; members directly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 4-year terms)

elections:

last held on 31 March 2015 (next to be held in 2019)

election results:

• percent of vote - NA;
• seats - independent 15;
• 12 members reelected

highest court(s):

• Court of Appeal is the Fiji Court of Appeal on Fiji Island (consists of the chief justice who visits twice a year);
• High Court, located on Fiji, consists of the chief justice of Fiji who presides over its sessions

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

chief of mission:

Ambassador Aunese Makoi SIMATI (since 11 January 2013)

chancery:

note - Tuvalu does not have an embassy in Washington, D.C.; UN office located at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400D, New York, NY 10017

telephone:

[1] (212) 490-0534

FAX:

[1] (212) 937-0692

• 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

name:

"Tuvalu mo te Atua" (Tuvalu for the Almighty)

lyrics/music:

Afaese MANOA

note: adopted 1978; the anthem's name is also the nation's motto

lowest 10%:

NA%

highest 10%:

NA%

general assessment:

serves particular needs for internal communications

domestic:

radiotelephone communications between islands

international:

country code - 688; international calls can be made by satellite (2015)

• 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)

total:

8 km

paved:

8 km (2011)

country comparison to the world: 223