After almost four decades under
US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the
Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under
a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of
US nuclear testing on some of the atolls between 1947 and 1962. The
Marshall Islands hosts the US Army Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) Reagan Missile
Test Site, a key installation in the US missile defense network.
Geography
Marshall Islands
Location:
Oceania, two archipelagic
island chains of 29 atolls, each made up of many small islets, and five
single islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii
and Australia
Geographic coordinates:
9 00 N, 168 00 E
Map references:
Oceania
Area:
total: 181.3 sq km
land: 181.3 sq km water: 0 sq km note:
the archipelago includes 11,673 sq km of lagoon waters and includes the
atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik
inadequate supplies of potable
water; pollution of Majuro lagoon from household waste and discharges from
fishing vessels
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands,
Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements
Geography - note:
the Marshall Islands Bikini and
Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War
II battleground, is used as a US missile test range; island city of Ebeye
is the second largest settlement in the Marshall Islands, after the
capital of Majuro, and one of the most densely populated locations in the
Pacific
total: 21 years
male: 21 years female: 20.9 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.142% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:
31.52 births/1,000 population
(2008 est.)
Death rate:
4.57 deaths/1,000 population
(2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
-5.52 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05
male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64
years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.94
male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2008
est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 26.36
deaths/1,000 live births male: 29.58 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 22.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 70.9
years male: 68.88 years female: 73.03 years (2008
est.)
Total fertility rate:
3.68 children born/woman (2008
est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
Nationality:
noun: Marshallese
(singular and plural) adjective: Marshallese
Ethnic groups:
Micronesian
Religions:
Protestant 54.8%, Assembly of
God 25.8%, Roman Catholic 8.4%, Bukot nan Jesus 2.8%, Mormon 2.1%, other
Christian 3.6%, other 1%, none 1.5% (1999 census)
Languages:
Marshallese (official) 98.2%,
other languages 1.8% (1999 census) note: English (official),
widely spoken as a second language
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and
over can read and write total population: 93.7%
male: 93.6% female: 93.7% (1999)
Government
Marshall Islands
Country name:
conventional long form:
Republic of the Marshall Islands conventional short form:
Marshall Islands local long form: Republic of the Marshall
Islands local short form: Marshall Islands
abbreviation: RMI former: Trust Territory of the
Pacific Islands, Marshall Islands District
Government type:
constitutional government in
free association with the US; the Compact of Free Association entered into
force 21 October 1986 and the Amended Compact entered into force in May
2004
Capital:
name: Majuro
geographic coordinates: 7 06 N, 171 23 E time
difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard
Time)
21 October 1986 (from the
US-administered UN trusteeship)
National holiday:
Constitution Day, 1 May (1979)
Constitution:
1 May 1979
Legal system:
based on adapted Trust
Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary
laws
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Litokwa TOMEING (since 7 January 2008); note - the president is
both the chief of state and head of government head of
government: President Litokwa TOMEING (since 7 January 2008)
cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the
members of the legislature elections: president elected by
Parliament from among its members for a four-year term; election last held
7 January 2008 (next to be held in 2012) election results:
Litokwa TOMEING elected president; TOMEING received 18 votes to 15 for
incumbent NOTE
Legislative branch:
unicameral legislature or
Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year
terms) elections: last held 19 November 2007 (next to be held
by November 2011) election results: percent of vote by party -
NA; seats by party - independents 4 note: the Council of Chiefs
or Ironij is a 12-member body comprised of tribal chiefs that advises on
matters affecting customary law and practice
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court; High Court;
Traditional Rights Court
Political parties and leaders:
traditionally there have been
no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely
resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party
headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two
'groupings' have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Aelon
Kein Ad Party [Michael KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa
TOMEING]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation:
ACP, ADB, FAO, G-77, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, IDA, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW,
PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Banny DE BRUM chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414
FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general:
Honolulu
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Clyde BISHOP embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long
Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro,
Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692]
247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012
Flag description:
blue with two stripes radiating
from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a
white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above
the two stripes
Economy
Marshall Islands
Economy - overview:
US Government assistance is the
mainstay of this tiny island economy. The Marshall Islands received more
than $1 billion in aid from the US from 1986-2002. Agricultural
production, primarily subsistence, is concentrated on small farms; the
most important commercial crops are coconuts and breadfruit. Small-scale
industry is limited to handicrafts, tuna processing, and copra. The
tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less
than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added
income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed
exports. Under the terms of the Amended Compact of Free Association, the
US will provide millions of dollars per year to the Marshall Islands (RMI)
through 2023, at which time a Trust Fund made up of US and RMI
contributions will begin perpetual annual payouts. Government downsizing,
drought, a drop in construction, the decline in tourism, and less income
from the renewal of fishing vessel licenses have held GDP growth to an
average of 1% over the past decade.
general assessment:
digital switching equipment; modern services include telex, cellular,
Internet, international calling, caller ID, and leased data circuits
domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have
regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected
by high frequency radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) and
mini-satellite telephones international: country code - 692;
satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government
satellite communications system on Kwajalein (2001)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0
(additionally, the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Services (Central
Pacific Network) operate one FM and one AM station on Kwajalein) (2005)
Radios:
NA
Television broadcast stations:
2 (both are US military
stations; Marshalls Broadcasting Service, a cable company, operates on
Majuro) (2005)
Televisions:
NA
Internet country code:
.mh
Internet hosts:
3 (2007)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2002)
Internet users:
2,200 (2006)
Transportation
Marshall Islands
Airports:
15 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 4 1,524 to
2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 11 914 to
1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Roadways:
total: 64.5 km
paved: 64.5 km note: paved roads on major islands
(Majuro, Kwajalein), otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads
and tracks (2002)
Merchant marine:
total: 902 ships (1000
GRT or over) 33,260,440 GRT/55,644,008 DWT by type: barge
carrier 2, bulk carrier 215, cargo 61, carrier 1, chemical tanker 165,
combination ore/oil 6, container 171, liquefied gas 28, passenger 6,
petroleum tanker 228, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 10,
specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 5 foreign-owned: 857
(Australia 1, Belgium 1, Bermuda 5, Marshall Islands 4, Chile 4, China 3, Croatia 4,
Cyprus 39, Denmark 9, Finland 2, Germany 214, Greece 226, Hong Kong 4,
Italy 3, Japan 5, South Korea 3, Latvia 10, Malaysia 3, Monaco 7,
Netherlands 5, Norway 62, Romania 1, Russia 4, Saudi Arabia 4, Singapore
12, Slovenia 3, Spain 3, Sweden 1, Switzerland 14, Turkey 41, UAE 14, UK
17, US 129) (2007)
Ports and terminals:
Majuro
Military
Marshall Islands
Military branches:
no regular military forces;
under the 1983 Compact of Free Association, the US has full authority and
responsibility for security and defense of the Marshall Islands; Marshall
Islands Police (2008)
