; members elected by popular vote to serve
four-year terms) elections: last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held NA
2006) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15

Judicial branch: High Court (a chief justice visits twice a year to
preside over its sessions; its rulings can be appealed to the Court of
Appeal in Fiji); eight Island Courts (with limited jurisdiction)

Political parties and leaders: there are no political parties but
members of Parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings

Political pressure groups and leaders: none

International organization participation: ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, IFRCS
(associate), ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO
(applicant)

Diplomatic representation in the US: Tuvalu does not have an embassy
in the US - the country's only diplomatic post is in Fiji - Tuvalu does,
however, have a UN office located at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400D, New York,
New York 10017, telephone: [1] (212) 490-0534

Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an embassy
in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tuvalu

Flag description: light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper
hoist-side quadrant; the outer half of the flag represents a map of the
country with nine yellow five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands

Economy Tuvalu

Economy - overview: Tuvalu consists of a densely populated, scattered
group of nine coral atolls with poor soil. The country has no known
mineral resources and few exports. Subsistence farming and fishing are
the primary economic activities. Fewer than 1,000 tourists, on average,
visit Tuvalu annually. Government revenues largely come from the sale
of stamps and coins and worker remittances. About 1,000 Tuvaluans work
in Nauru in the phosphate mining industry. Nauru has begun repatriating
Tuvaluans, however, as phosphate resources decline. Substantial income
is received annually from an international trust fund established
in 1987 by Australia, NZ, and the UK and supported also by Japan and
South Korea. Thanks to wise investments and conservative withdrawals,
this Fund has grown from an initial $17 million to over $35 million
in 1999. The US government is also a major revenue source for Tuvalu,
with 1999 payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries at about $9 million,
a total which is expected to rise annually. In an effort to reduce its
dependence on foreign aid, the government