| GEOGRAPHY |
| Country name: |
conventional long form: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies
conventional short form: New Caledonia
local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances
local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie |
| Capital: |
Noumea |
| Location: |
Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
| Geographic
Coordinates: |
21 30 S, 165 30 E |
| 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 |
| Elavation
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 |
| GOVERNEMENT |
| Governement
Type: |
NA ( overseas territory of France since 1956 ) |
| Administratives
Divisions: |
none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Iles Loyaute, Nord, and Sud |
| Independence |
none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014 |
| National
Holiday: |
Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
| Constitution: |
28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
| Legal
System; |
the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law |
| Suffrage |
18 years of age; universal |
| Executive
Branch: |
chief of state: President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Daniel CONSTANTIN (since 3 July 2002)
head of government: President of the Government Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU (since 10 June 2004)
cabinet: Consultative Committee
elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress; note - last election held 29 June 2004 when Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU was elected on the third vote with 8 votes for and 3 abstentions |
| Legislative
Branch: |
unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (54 seats; members are members of the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 May 2004 (next to be held NA 2009)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPCR-UMP 16, AE 16, UNI-FLNKS 8, UC 7, FN 4, others 3
note: New Caledonia currently holds 1 seat in the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held not later than September 2007; between now and 2010 New Caledonia will gain a second seat in the French Senate); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; New Caledonia also elects 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 and 16 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP 2 |
| Judicial
Branch: |
Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court |
| Political
parties and Leaders: |
Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Caleonian Union or UC [leader NA]; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Francois BURCK]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS [leader NA] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independent) or RPCR-UMP [Jacques LAFLEUR]; The Future Together or AE [Harold MARTIN]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO] |
| PEOPLE |
| Population: |
216,494 (July 2005 est.) |
| Age structure: |
0-14 years: 29% (male 32,030/female 30,714)
15-64 years: 64.6% (male 70,294/female 69,506)
65 years and over: 6.4% (male 6,513/female 7,437) (2005 est.) |
| Median age: |
total: 27.5 years
male: 27.16 years
female: 27.84 years (2005 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
| Ethnic groups: |
Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% |
| Religions: |
Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% |
| Languages: |
French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects |
| COMUNICATIONS |
| Telephones - main
lines in use: |
52,000 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile
cellular: |
80,000 (2002) |
| Telephone system: |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
| Radio broadcast
stations: |
AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television broadcast
stations: |
6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
| Internet country
code: |
.nc |
| Internet hosts: |
4,449 (2003) |
| Internet users: |
0,000 (2003) |
| TRANSPORT |
| Railways: |
|
| Highways: |
total: 4,825 km
paved: 2,287 km
unpaved: 2,538 km (1999) |
| Waterways: |
|
| Pipelines: |
|
| Ports and harbors: |
Mueo, Noumea, Thio |
| Merchant marine: |
total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,261 GRT/1,600 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2005) |
| Airports: |
25 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
paved runways: |
total: 11
over 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 8
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
unpaved runways: |
total: 14
914 to 1,523 m: 8
under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.) |
| Heliports: |
6 (2004 est.) |
