| GEOGRAPHY |
| Country name: |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tokelau |
| Capital: |
none; each atoll has its own administrative center |
| Location: |
Oceania, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
| Geographic
Coordinates: |
9 00 S, 172 00 W |
| Area: |
total: 10 sq km
land: 10 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
| Area
Comparative: |
about 17 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
| Land
Boundaries: |
0 km |
| Coastline: |
101 km |
| Maritime
Claims: |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Climate: |
tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) |
| Terrain: |
low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons |
| Elavation
Extremes: |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
| Natural
Resources: |
NEGL |
| GOVERNEMENT |
| Governement
Type: |
NA |
| Administratives
Divisions: |
none (territory of New Zealand) Dependency status:self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution and developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves toward free association with New Zealand |
| Independence |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
| National
Holiday: |
Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
| Constitution: |
administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948, as amended in 1970 |
| Legal
System; |
New Zealand and local statutes |
| Suffrage |
21 years of age; universal |
| Executive
Branch: |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General of New Zealand Dame Silvia CARTWRIGHT (since 4 April 2001); New Zealand is represented by Administrator Neil WALTER (since 1 March 2003)
head of government: Pio TUIA (since February 2005); note - position rotates annually among the three Faipule (village leaders)
cabinet: the Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau, consisting of three Faipule (village leaders) and three Pulenuku (village mayors) functions as a cabinet
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
| Legislative
Branch: |
unicameral General Fono (21 seats; based upon proportional representation from the three islands elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; Nukunonu has 6 seats, Fakaofo has 7 seats, Atafu has 8 seats); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono
elections: last held January 2002 (next to be held January 2005) |
| Judicial
Branch: |
Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
| Political
parties and Leaders: |
none |
| PEOPLE |
| Population: |
1,405 (July 2005 est.) |
| Age structure: |
0-14 years: 42%
15-64 years: 53%
65 years and over: 5% (2005 est.) |
| Median age: |
|
| Nationality: |
noun: Tokelauan(s)
adjective: Tokelauan |
| Ethnic groups: |
Polynesian |
| Religions: |
Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%
note: on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the Congregational Christian Church predominant |
| Languages: |
Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English |
| COMUNICATIONS |
| Telephones - main
lines in use: |
300 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile
cellular: |
0 (2001) |
| Telephone system: |
general assessment: modern satellite-based communications system;
domestic: radiotelephone service between islands
international: country code - 690; radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997 |
| Radio broadcast
stations: |
AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: 1 radio station provides service to all islands (2002) |
| Television broadcast
stations: |
|
| Internet country
code: |
.tk |
| Internet hosts: |
|
| Internet users: |
NA |
| TRANSPORT |
| Railways: |
|
| Highways: |
total: NA
paved: NA
unpaved: NA |
| Waterways: |
|
| Pipelines: |
|
| Ports and harbors: |
none; offshore anchorage only |
| Merchant marine: |
|
| Airports: |
none; lagoon landings are possible by amphibious aircraft (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
paved runways: |
|
| Airports - with
unpaved runways: |
|
| Heliports: |
|
