Vanuatu

Geography

Location: Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, north-east of Queensland, Australia. Area: 12,200 sq. km. Principal cities: Port Vila, Luganville, and Isangel. Tourist attractions: National Museum of Vanuatu, Siri Falls, Undewater Post Office, and Yasur Volcano. Time zone: GMT+ I I hours.

People

Population: 211,971 (ju\y 2007 est.).Population growth rate: 1.46%
(2007 est.). Sex ratio: 1.044 male(s)/ female (2007 est.). Religions: Presby­terian, Anglican, Roman Catholic, indig­enous beliefs, Seventh-Day Adventist, Church of Christ, others. Languages: English, French, pidgin (known as Bislama or Bichelama). Literacy rate: Total 53%, Male 57%, Female 48% (1979 est.). Infant mortality rate: 52.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.). Life expectancy: Total 63.22 years, Male 61.67 years. Female 64.84 years (2007 est.).

Government

Capital: Port-Vila. Government type:
Parliamentary republic. Independence: 30 July 1980 (from France and UK).' Legal system: Unified system created from former dual French and British systems. Executive branch: Chief of state: President Kalkot Mataskelekele (since 16 August 2004). Head of gov­ernment: Prime Minister Ham Lini {since I I December 2004). Legislative branch: Vanuatu has a unicameral par­liament with 52 seats. Judicial branch: Supreme court.

Economy

Currency: Vatu. Currency conver­sion: Vatu per Indian rupee—2.5215  (June 2007 est.). GDP: Purchasing power parity—$276.3 million (2003 est.). GDP—real growth rate: 6.8% (2005 est.). GDP—per capita: Pur­chasing power parity—$2,900 (2003 est.). Inflation rate: -1.6% (2005 est.). Exports: $34.11 million f.o.b. (2004). Imports: $117.1 million c.t.f. (2004). External debt: $81.2 million (2004 est.).

Transport and Communications

Railways: None. Roads: 1,070 km. Airports: Bauerfield International Air­port. Telephones: 6,500 (2003). Mo­bile cellular: 12,700 (2005). Internet users: 7,500 (2003). Internet coun­try code: .vu. ISD code: 678.