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| Tonga |

Introduction | Tonga

Background: | Tonga - unique among Pacific nations - never completely lost its indigenous governance. The archipelagos of "The Friendly Islands" were united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. Tonga became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900; it withdrew from the protectorate and joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970. Tonga remains the only monarchy in the Pacific.

Geography | Tonga

Location: | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand
Geographic coordinates: | 20 00 S, 175 00 W
Map references: | Oceania
Area: | total: 748 sq km land: 718 sq km water: 30 sq km
Area - comparative: | four times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: | 0 km
Coastline: | 419 km
Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate: | tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December)
Terrain: | most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base
Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m
Natural resources: | fish, fertile soil
Land use: | arable land: 20% permanent crops: 14.67% other: 65.33% (2005)
Irrigated land: | NA
Natural hazards: | cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou
Environment - current issues: | deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations
Environment - international agreements: | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: | archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited)

People | Tonga

Population: | 119,009 (July 2008 est.)
Age structure: | 0-14 years: 33.7% (male 20,484/female 19,633) 15-64 years: 62% (male 36,699/female 37,108) 65 years and over: 4.3% (male 2,135/female 2,950) (2008 est.)
Median age: | total: 21.8 years male: 21.3 years female: 22.3 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate: | 1.669% (2008 est.)
Birth rate: | 21.81 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate: | 5.12 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate: | NA (2008 est.)
Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate: | total: 11.88 deaths/1,000 live births male: 13.07 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 70.44 years male: 67.9 years female: 73.1 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate: | 2.5 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: Tongan(s) adjective: Tongan
Ethnic groups: | Polynesian, Europeans
Religions: | Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents)
Languages: | Tongan, English
Literacy: | definition: can read and write Tongan and/or English total population: 98.9% male: 98.8% female: 99% (1999 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education): | total: 13 years male: 13 years female: 13 years (2004)
Education expenditures: | 5% of GDP (2004)

Government | Tonga

Country name: | conventional long form: Kingdom of Tonga conventional short form: Tonga local long form: Pule'anga Tonga local short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands
Government type: | constitutional monarchy
Capital: | name: Nuku'alofa geographic coordinates: 21 08 S, 175 12 W time difference: UTC+13 (18 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions: | 3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u
Independence: | 4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate)
National holiday: | Emancipation Day, 4 June (1970)
Constitution: | 4 November 1875; revised 1 January 1967
Legal system: | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: | 21 years of age; universal
Executive branch: | chief of state: King George TUPOU V (since 11 September 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Feleti SEVELE (since 11 February 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Viliami TANGI (since 16 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet consists of 14 members, 10 appointed by the monarch for life; four appointed from among the elected members of the Legislative Assembly, including two each from the nobles' and peoples' representatives serving three-year terms note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the cabinet, and two governors elections: the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the monarch
Legislative branch: | unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (32 seats - 14 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, nine for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and nine elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms) elections: last held on 23-24 April 2008 (next to be held in 2011) election results: Peoples Representatives: percent of vote - independents 54%, THRDM 28%, PDP 14%; seats - THRDM 4, independents 3, PDP 2
Judicial branch: | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (Chief Justice and high court justices from overseas chosen and approved by Privy Council)
Political parties and leaders: | Tonga Human Rights and Democracy Movement or THRDM [Uliti UATA]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Tesina FUKO]
Political pressure groups and leaders: | Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA, chairman]; Public Servant's Association [Finau TUTONE]
International organization participation: | ACP, ADB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Fekitamoeloa 'UTOIKAMANU chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025 FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024 consulate(s) general: San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US: | the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga
Flag description: | red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner

Economy | Tonga

Economy - overview: | Tonga has a small, open, South Pacific island economy. It has a narrow export base in agricultural goods. Squash, vanilla beans, and yams are the main crops, and agricultural exports, including fish, make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic infrastructure and well-developed social services. High unemployment among the young, a continuing upturn in inflation, pressures for democratic reform, and rising civil service expenditures are major issues facing the government.
GDP (purchasing power parity): | $526 million (2007 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): | $219 million (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: | -3.5% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): | $5,100 (2007 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 25% industry: 17% services: 57% (FY05/06 est.)
Labor force: | 33,910 (2003)
Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: 65% industry and services: 35% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: | 13% (FY03/04 est.)
Population below poverty line: | 24% (FY03/04)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Budget: | revenues: $80.48 million expenditures: $109.8 million (FY07/08)
Fiscal year: | 1 July - 30 June
Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 5.9% (2007 est.)
Commercial bank prime lending rate: | 12.16% (31 December 2007)
Stock of money: | $46.38 million (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money: | $106.8 million (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit: | $163.1 million (31 December 2007)
Agriculture - products: | squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish
Industries: | tourism, construction, fishing
Industrial production growth rate: | 1% (2003 est.)
Electricity - production: | 43 million kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - consumption: | 39.99 million kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2007)
Electricity - imports: | 0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source: | fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Oil - production: | 0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption: | 870 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports: | 0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - imports: | 1,035 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves: | 0 bbl (1 January 2007 est.)
Natural gas - production: | 0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: | 0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports: | 0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports: | 0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: | 0 cu m (1 January 2007 est.)
Current account balance: | -$23 million (2007 est.)
Exports: | $22 million f.o.b. (2006)
Exports - commodities: | squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops
Exports - partners: | US 36.7%, Japan 21.6%, NZ 10.1%, Fiji 5.8%, Samoa 4.9% (2007)
Imports: | $139 million f.o.b. (2006)
Imports - commodities: | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners: | Fiji 32.5%, NZ 27.5%, US 9%, Australia 7.4%, China 5% (2007)
Economic aid - recipient: | $31.75 million (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $40.83 million (yearend, FY04/05)
Debt - external: | $80.7 million (2004)
Market value of publicly traded shares: | $NA
Currency (code): | pa'anga (TOP)
Currency code: | TOP
Exchange rates: | pa'anga (TOP) per US dollar - NA (2007), 2.0277 (2006), 1.96 (2005), 1.9716 (2004), 2.142 (2003)

Communications | Tonga

Telephones - main lines in use: | 21,000 (2007)
Telephones - mobile cellular: | 46,500 (2007)
Telephone system: | general assessment: competition between Tonga Telecommunications Corporation (TCC) and Shoreline Communications Tonga (SCT) is accelerating expansion of telecommunications; SCT recently granted authority to develop high-speed digital service for telephone, Internet, and television domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 40 telephones per 100 persons; fully automatic switched network international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2004)
Radio broadcast stations: | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)
Radios: | 61,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: | 3 (2004)
Televisions: | 2,000 (1997)
Internet country code: | .to
Internet hosts: | 19,231 (2008)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 2 (2000)
Internet users: | 8,400 (2007)

Transportation | Tonga

Airports: | 6 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways: | total: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Roadways: | total: 680 km paved: 184 km unpaved: 496 km (2000)
Merchant marine: | total: 13 by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 8, carrier 1, liquefied gas 1, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 4 (Australia 1, Cyprus 1, Switzerland 1, UK 1) (2008)
Ports and terminals: | Nuku'alofa

Military | Tonga

Military branches: | Tonga Defense Services (TDS): Land Force (Royal Guard), Naval Force (includes Royal Marines, Air Wing) (2008)
Military service age and obligation: | 18 years of age (est.); no conscription (2008)
Manpower available for military service: | males age 16-49: 32,053 females age 16-49: 30,981 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: | males age 16-49: 25,520 females age 16-49: 26,893 (2008 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually: | male: 1,464 female: 1,412 (2008 est.)
Military expenditures: | 0.9% of GDP (2006 est.)

Transnational Issues | Tonga

Disputes - international: | none

This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008