MARSHALL ISLANDS GEOGRAPHY Total area: 181.3 km2; land area: 181.3 km2; includes the atolls of Bikini, Eniwetak, and Kwajalein Comparative area: slightly larger than Washington, DC Land boundaries: none Coastline: 370.4 km Maritime claims: Contiguous zone: 24 nm; Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; Territorial sea: 12 nm Disputes: claims US territory of Wake Island Climate: wet season May to November; hot and humid; islands border typhoon belt Terrain: low coral limestone and sand islands Natural resources: phosphate deposits, marine products, deep seabed minerals Land use: arable land 0%; permanent crops 60%; meadows and pastures 0%; forest and woodland 0%; other 40% Environment: occasionally subject to typhoons; two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands Note: located 3,825 km southwest of Honolulu in the North Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way between Hawaii and Papua New Guinea; Bikini and Eniwetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US missile test range PEOPLE Population: 48,091 (July 1991), growth rate 3.9% (1991) Birth rate: 47 births/1,000 population (1991) Death rate: 8 deaths/1,000 population (1991) Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991) Infant mortality rate: 53 deaths/1,000 live births (1991) Life expectancy at birth: 61 years male, 64 years female (1991) Total fertility rate: 7.1 children born/woman (1991) Nationality: noun--Marshallese; adjective--Marshallese Ethnic divisions: almost entirely Micronesian Religion: predominantly Christian, mostly Protestant Language: English universally spoken and is the official language; two major Marshallese dialects from Malayo-Polynesian family; Japanese Literacy: 93% (male 100%, female 88%) age 15 and over can read and write (1980) Labor force: 4,800 (1986) Organized labor: none GOVERNMENT Long-form name: Republic of the Marshall Islands Type: constitutional government in free association with the US; the Compact of Free Association entered into force 21 October 1986 Capital: Majuro Administrative divisions: none Independence: 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship; formerly the Marshall Islands District of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) Constitution: 1 May 1979 Legal system: based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws National holiday: Proclamation of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, 1 May (1979) Executive branch: president, Cabinet Legislative branch: unicameral Nitijela Judicial branch: Supreme Court Leaders: Chief of State and Head of Government--President Amata KABUA (since 1979) Political parties and leaders: no formal parties; President KABUA is chief political (and traditional) leader Suffrage: universal at age 18 Elections: President--last held NA November 1987 (next to be held November 1991); results--President Amata KABUA was reelected; Parliament--last held NA November 1987 (next to be held November 1991); results--percent of vote NA; seats--(33 total) Communists: none Member of: ESCAP (associate), ICAO, SPC, SPF, UN Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Wilfred I. KENDALL; Chancery at 2433 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 234-5414; US--Ambassador William BODDE, Jr.; Embassy at NA address (mailing address is P. O. Box 680, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-4380); telephone 692-4011 Flag: 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 Overview: Agriculture and tourism are the mainstays of the economy. Agricultural production is concentrated on small farms, and the most important commercial crops are coconuts, tomatoes, melons, and breadfruit. A few cattle ranches supply the domestic meat market. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, fish processing, and copra. The tourist industry is the primary source of foreign exchange and employs about 10% of the labor force. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. In 1987 the US Government provided grants of $40 million out of the Marshallese budget of $55 million. GDP: $63 million, per capita $1,500; real growth rate NA% (1989 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.6% (1981) Unemployment rate: NA% Budget: revenues $55 million; expenditures NA, including capital expenditures of NA (1987 est.) Exports: $2.5 million (f.o.b., 1985); commodities--copra, copra oil, agricultural products, handicrafts; partners--NA Imports: $29.2 million (c.i.f., 1985); commodities--foodstuffs, beverages, building materials; partners--NA External debt: $NA Industrial production: growth rate NA% Electricity: 42,000 kW capacity; 80 million kWh produced, 1,840 kWh per capita (1990) Industries: copra, fish, tourism; craft items from shell, wood, and pearl; offshore banking (embryonic) Agriculture: coconuts, cacao, taro, breadfruit, fruits, copra; pigs, chickens Economic aid: under the terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US is to provide approximately $40 million in aid annually Currency: US currency is used Exchange rates: US currency is used Fiscal year: 1 October-30 September COMMUNICATIONS Highways: macadam and concrete roads on major islands (Majuro, Kwajalein), otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads and tracks Ports: Majuro Merchant marine: 23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,654,871 GRT/3,236,549 DWT; includes 2 cargo, 3 container, 7 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 11 bulk carrier; note--a flag of convenience registry Airports: 5 total, 5 usable; 4 with permanent-surface runways; 5 with runways 1,220-2,439 m Telecommunications: telephone network--570 lines (Majuro) and 186 (Ebeye); telex services; islands interconnected by shortwave radio (used mostly for government purposes); stations--1 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV, 1 shortwave; 2 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth stations; US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein DEFENSE FORCES Note: defense is the responsibility of the US