dinates:
21 30 S, 165 30 E

Map references:
Oceania

Area:
total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km
water: 485 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than New Jersey

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
2,254 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate:
tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid

Terrain:
coastal plains with interior mountains

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m

Natural resources:
nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper

Land use:
arable land: 0.32%
permanent crops: 0.22%
other: 99.46% (2005)

Irrigated land:
100 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards:
cyclones, most frequent from November to March

Environment - current issues:
erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires

Geography - note:
consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in
the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous
small, sparsely populated islands and atolls

People New Caledonia

Population:
219,246 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 28.4% (male 31,818/female 30,503)
15-64 years: 64.9% (male 71,565/female 70,815)
65 years and over: 6.6% (male 6,773/female 7,772) (2006 est.)

Median age:
total: 27.8 years
male: 27.4 years
female: 28.2 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
1.24% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
18.11 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
5.69 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New
Caledonia (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 7.57 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.27 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 6.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.27 years
male: 71.29 years
female: 77.39 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
2.28 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Nationality:
noun: N