The Gilbert Islands became a British protectorate in 1892 and a colony in 1915; they were captured by the Japanese in the Pacific War in 1941. The islands of Makin and Tarawa were the sites of major US amphibious victories over entrenched Japanese garrisons in 1943. The Gilbert Islands were granted self-rule by the UK in 1971 and complete independence in 1979 under the new name of Kiribati. The US relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited Phoenix and Line Island groups in a 1979 treaty of friendship with Kiribati.

Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator, as well as the International Date Line; the capital Tarawa is about half way between Hawaii and Australia

four times the size of Washington, DC

tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds

mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs

phosphate (production discontinued in 1979)

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

heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk

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)

100,743 (July 2011 est.)

22.73 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

7.4 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

-2.85 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

TARAWA (capital) 43,000 (2009)

2.78 children born/woman (2011 est.)

urban: 77% of population

rural: 50% of population

total: 62% of population

urban: 23% of population

rural: 50% of population

total: 38% of population (2000)

urban: 47% of population

rural: 22% of population

total: 33% of population

urban: 53% of population

rural: 78% of population

total: 67% of population (2000)

Micronesian 98.8%, other 1.2% (2000 census)

Roman Catholic 55%, Protestant 36%, Mormon 3.1%, Baha'i 2.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.9%, other 1.8% (2005 census)

I-Kiribati, English (official)

3 units; Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands; note - in addition, 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)

12 July 1979 (from the UK)

Independence Day, 12 July (1979)

English common law supplemented by customary law

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

18 years of age; universal

unicameral House of Parliament or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (46 seats; 44 members elected by popular vote, 1 ex officio member - the attorney general, 1 nominated by the Rabi Council of Leaders (representing Banaba Island); members serve four-year terms)

Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president

Boutokaan Te Koaua Party or BTK [Taberannang TIMEON]; Maneaban Te Mauri Party or MTM [Teburoro TITO]; Maurin Kiribati Pati or MKP; National Progressive Party or NPP [Dr. Harry TONG]

ACP, ADB, AOSIS, C, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO

Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu

the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the US ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Kiribati

the upper half is red with a yellow frigate bird 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 frigate bird symbolizes authority and freedom

A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few natural resources and is one of the least developed Pacific Islands. Commercially viable phosphate deposits were exhausted at the time of independence from the UK in 1979. Copra and fish now represent the bulk of production and exports. The economy has fluctuated widely in recent years. Economic development is constrained by a shortage of skilled workers, weak infrastructure, and remoteness from international markets. Tourism provides more than one-fifth of GDP. Private sector initiatives and a financial sector are in the early stages of development. Foreign financial aid from the EU, UK, US, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, UN agencies, and Taiwan accounts for 20-25% of GDP. Remittances from seamen on merchant ships abroad account for more than $5 million each year. Kiribati receives around $15 million annually for the government budget from an Australian trust fund.

$618 million (2010 est.)

$606.7 million (2009 est.)

$611.3 million (2008 est.)

$147 million (2010 est.)

7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (2001 est.)

copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish

fishing, handicrafts

14 million kWh (2007 est.)

13.02 million kWh (2007 est.)

0 bbl/day (2009 est.)

0 bbl/day (2007 est.)

260.8 bbl/day (2007 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

$-21 million (2007 est.)

$17 million (2004 est.)

copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish

$62 million (2004 est.)

foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel

$10 million (1999 est.)

Australian dollars (AUD) per US dollar -

1 television broadcast station that provides about 1 hour of local programming Monday-Friday; multi-channel TV packages provide access to Australian and US stations; 1 government-operated radio station broadcasting on AM, FM, and shortwave (2009)

5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) (2007)

Betio (Tarawa Atoll), Canton Island, English Harbor

no regular military forces (establishment prevented by the constitution); Police Force (2011)

Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ