SELECT EDITION
CATEGORIES
◆ COMMUNICATIONS(9 fields)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
NA
Internet country code
.pn
Internet users
NA
Radio broadcast stations
AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios
NA
Telephone system
general assessment: only party line telephone service is available for this small, closely related community domestic: party line service only international: radiotelephone
Telephones - main lines in use
1 (there are 17 telephones on one party line) (1997)
Television broadcast stations
0 (1997)
Televisions
NA
◆ ECONOMY(29 fields)
Agriculture - products
wide variety of fruits and vegetables, goats, chickens
Budget
revenues: $729,884 expenditures: $878,119, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY94/95 est.)
Currency
New Zealand dollar (NZD)
Currency code
NZD
Debt - external
$NA
Economic aid - recipient
$NA
Economy - overview
The inhabitants of this tiny economy exist on fishing, subsistence farming, handicrafts, and postage stamps. The fertile soil of the valleys produces a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, including citrus, sugarcane, watermelons, bananas, yams, and beans. Bartering is an important part of the economy. The major sources of revenue are the sale of postage stamps to collectors and the sale of handicrafts to passing ships.
Electricity - consumption
NA kWh
Electricity - production
NA kWh; note - electric power is provided by a small diesel-powered generator
Exchange rates
New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.2502 (January 2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8629 (1998), 1.5083 (1997), 1.4543 (1996)
Exports
$NA
Exports - commodities
fruits, vegetables, curios, stamps
Exports - partners
NA
Fiscal year
1 April - 31 March
GDP
purchasing power parity - $NA
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%
GDP - per capita
purchasing power parity - $NA
GDP - real growth rate
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Imports
$NA
Imports - commodities
fuel oil, machinery, building materials, flour, sugar, other foodstuffs
Imports - partners
NA
Industrial production growth rate
NA%
Industries
postage stamps, handicrafts
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
NA%
Labor force
12 able-bodied men (1997)
Labor force - by occupation
no business community in the usual sense; some public works; subsistence farming and fishing
Population below poverty line
NA%
Unemployment rate
NA%
◆ GEOGRAPHY(16 fields)
Area
total: 47 sq km land: 47 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative
about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC
Climate
tropical, hot, humid; modified by southeast trade winds; rainy season (November to March)
Coastline
51 km
Elevation extremes
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Pawala Valley Ridge 347 m
Environment - current issues
deforestation (only a small portion of the original forest remains because of burning and clearing for settlement)
Geographic coordinates
25 04 S, 130 06 W
Irrigated land
NA sq km
Land boundaries
0 km
Land use
arable land: NA% permanent crops: NA% permanent pastures: NA% forests and woodland: NA% other: NA%
Location
Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Peru to New Zealand
Map references
Oceania
Maritime claims
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 3 NM
Natural hazards
typhoons (especially November to March)
Natural resources
miro trees (used for handicrafts), fish note: manganese, iron, copper, gold, silver, and zinc have been discovered offshore
Terrain
rugged volcanic formation; rocky coastline with cliffs
◆ GOVERNMENT(19 fields)
Administrative divisions
none (overseas territory of the UK)
Capital
Adamstown
Constitution
1838; reformed 1904 with additional reforms in 1940; further refined by the Local Government Ordinance of 1964
Country name
conventional long form: Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno Islands conventional short form: Pitcairn Islands
Dependency status
overseas territory of the UK
Diplomatic representation from the US
none (overseas territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation in the US
none (overseas territory of the UK)
Executive branch
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by UK High Commissioner to New Zealand and Governor (nonresident) of the Pitcairn Islands Martin WILLIAMS (since NA May 1998); Commissioner (nonresident) Leon SALT (since NA; is the liaison person between the governor and the Island Council) head of government: Island Magistrate and Chairman of the Island Council Jay WARREN (since NA) cabinet: NA elections: the monarch is hereditary; high commissioner and commissioner appointed by the monarch; island magistrate elected every three years in December by popular vote for a three-year term; last election held NA December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2002) election results: Lea BROWN elected island magistrate; percent of vote - NA%
Flag description
blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Pitcairn Islander coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms is yellow, green, and light blue with a shield featuring a yellow anchor
Government type
NA
Independence
none (overseas territory of the UK)
International organization participation
SPC
Judicial branch
Island Court (island magistrate presides over the court and is elected every three years)
Legal system
local island by-laws
Legislative branch
unicameral Island Council (10 seats - 6 elected by popular vote, 1 appointed by the 6 elected members, 2 appointed by the governor, and 1 seat for the Island Secretary; members serve one-year terms) elections: take place each December; last held NA December 2000 (next to be held NA December 2001) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - all independents
National holiday
Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926)
Political parties and leaders
none
Political pressure groups and leaders
none
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal with three years residency
◆ INTRODUCTION(1 fields)
Background
Pitcairn Island was discovered in 1767 by the British and settled in 1790 by the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. Pitcairn was the first Pacific island to become a British colony (in 1838) and today remains the last vestige of that empire in the South Pacific. Outmigration, primarily to New Zealand, has thinned the population from a peak of 233 in 1937 to about 50 today.
◆ MILITARY(1 fields)
Military - note
defense is the responsibility of the UK
◆ PEOPLE(16 fields)
Age structure
0-14 years: NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA%
Birth rate
NA births/1,000 population
Death rate
NA deaths/1,000 population
Ethnic groups
descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian wives
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate
NA%
HIV/AIDS - deaths
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS
NA
Infant mortality rate
NA deaths/1,000 live births
Languages
English (official), Pitcairnese (mixture of an 18th century English dialect and a Tahitian dialect)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: NA years male: NA years female: NA years
Nationality
noun: Pitcairn Islander(s) adjective: Pitcairn Islander
Net migration rate
NA migrant(s)/1,000 population
Population
47 (July 2001 est.)
Population growth rate
-2.08% (2001 est.)
Religions
Seventh-Day Adventist 100%
Total fertility rate
NA children born/woman
◆ TRANSNATIONAL ISSUES(1 fields)
Disputes - international
none
◆ TRANSPORTATION(6 fields)
Airports
none
Highways
total: 6.4 km paved: 0 km unpaved: 6.4 km
Merchant marine
none (2000 est.)
Ports and harbors
Bounty Bay
Railways
0 km
Waterways
none