west of Honolulu in the North
Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and American Samoa; maximum
elevation of about 1 meter makes this a navigational hazard; closed to
the public

_*_People
_#_Population: uninhabited

_*_Government
_#_Long-form name: none

_#_Type: unincorporated territory of the US administered by the
US Navy

_*_Economy
_#_Overview: no economic activity

_*_Communications
_#_Airports: lagoon was used as a halfway station between Hawaii and
American Samoa by Pan American Airways for flying boats in 1937 and 1938

_#_Ports: none; offshore anchorage only

_*_Defense Forces
_#_Note: defense is the responsibility of the US
_%_
_@_Kiribati
_*_Geography
_#_Total area: 717 km2; land area: 717 km2; includes three island
groups--Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands

_#_Comparative area: slightly more than four times the size of
Washington, DC

_#_Land boundaries: none

_#_Coastline: 1,143 km

_#_Maritime claims:

Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;

Territorial sea: 12 nm

_#_Climate: tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds

_#_Terrain: mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive
reefs

_#_Natural resources: phosphate (production discontinued in 1979)

_#_Land use: arable land NEGL%; permanent crops 51%; meadows and
pastures 0%; forest and woodland 3%; other 46%

_#_Environment: typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to
March; 20 of the 33 islands are inhabited

_#_Note: Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great
phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean--the others are Makatea
in French Polynesia and Nauru

_*_People
_#_Population: 71,137 (July 1991), growth rate 1.6% (1991)

_#_Birth rate: 33 births/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Death rate: 12 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Net migration rate: - 5 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Infant mortality rate: 63 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

_#_Life expectancy at birth: 52 years male, 58 years female (1991)

_#_Total fertility rate: 4.2 children born/woman (1991)

_#_Nationality: noun--I-Kiribati (sing., pl.); adjective--I-Kiribati

_#_Ethnic divisions: Micronesian

_#_Religion: Roman Catholic 52.6%, Protestant (Congregational) 40.9%,
Seventh-Day Adventist, Baha'i, Church of God, Mormon 6% (1985)

_#_Language: English (official), Gilbertese

_#_Literacy: NA% (male NA%, female NA%)