Independent State of Papua New Guinea

Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)

Governor-General: Paulias Matane (2004)

Prime Minister: Sir Michael Somare (2002)

Land area: 174,849 sq mi (452,860 sq km); total area: 178,704 sq mi (462,840 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 5,670,544 (growth rate: 2.2%); birth rate: 29.4/1000; infant mortality rate: 50.0/1000; life expectancy: 65.3; density per sq mi: 33

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Port Moresby, 324,900

Monetary unit: Kina

Languages: Tok Pisin (Melanesian Pidgin, the lingua franca), Hiri Motu (in Papua region), English 1%–2%; 715 indigenous languages

Ethnicity/race: Melanesian, Papuan, Negrito, Micronesian, Polynesian

Religions: Roman Catholic 22%, Lutheran 16%, Presbyterian/Methodist/London Missionary Society 8%, Anglican 5%, Evangelical Alliance 4%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1%, other Protestant 10%, indigenous beliefs 34%

Literacy rate: 66% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2005 est.): $13.35 billion; per capita $2,400. Real growth rate: 1.1%. Inflation: 1.7%. Unemployment: up to 80% in urban areas (2005). Arable land: 0.5%. Agriculture: coffee, cocoa, copra, palm kernels, tea, sugar, rubber, sweet potatoes, fruit, vegetables, vanilla; shell fish, poultry, pork. Labor force: 3.4 million; agriculture 85%, industry n.a., services n.a. Industries: copra crushing, palm oil processing, plywood production, wood-chip production; mining of gold, silver, and copper; crude oil production, petroleum refining; construction, tourism. Natural resources: gold, copper, silver, natural gas, timber, oil, fisheries. Exports: $2.833 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): oil, gold, copper ore, logs, palm oil, coffee, cocoa, crayfish, prawns. Imports: $1.651 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, fuels, chemicals. Major trading partners: Australia, Japan, Germany, China, Singapore, New Zealand (2004).

Member of Commonwealth of Nations

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 61,152 (1999); mobile cellular: 3,053 (1996). Radio broadcast stations: AM 8, FM 19, shortwave 28 (1998). Radios: 410,000 (1997). Television broadcast stations: 3 (2002). Televisions: 59,841 (1999). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 3 (2000). Internet users: 135,000 (2001).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 19,600 km; paved: 686 km; unpaved: 18,914 km (1996 est.). Waterways: 10,940 km. Ports and harbors: Kieta, Lae, Madang, Port Moresby, Rabaul. Airports: 491 (2002).

International disputes: Indonesian secessionists, squatters, and illegal migrants create repatriation problems for Papua New Guinea.


 

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