Disputes--international: none

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@Marshall Islands
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Geography

Location: Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific
Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Papua New Guinea

Geographic coordinates: 9 00 N, 168 00 E

Map references: Oceania

Area:
total: 181.3 sq km
land: 181.3 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, and Kwajalein

Area--comparative: about the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 370.4 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: wet season from May to November; hot and humid; islands
border typhoon belt

Terrain: low coral limestone and sand islands

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 m

Natural resources: phosphate deposits, marine products, deep
seabed minerals

Land use:
arable land: NA%
permanent crops: 60%
permanent pastures: NA%
forests and woodland: NA%
other: 40%

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: occasional typhoons

Environment--current issues: inadequate supplies of potable water

Environment--international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertication, Law of the
Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography--note: two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and
1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites;
Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US
missile test range

People

Population: 65,507 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 50% (male 16,622; female 15,957)
15-64 years: 48% (male 16,106; female 15,386)
65 years and over: 2% (male 677; female 759) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 3.86% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 45.31 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 6.73 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 43.38 deaths/1,000 live bi