The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives.

Oceania, group of islands including the eastern half of the island of New Guinea between the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean, east of Indonesia
6 00 S, 147 00 E
Oceania
total: 462,840 sq km ; land: 452,860 sq km ; water: 9,980 sq km
slightly larger than California
total: 820 km ; border countries: Indonesia 820 km
5,152 km
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines ; territorial sea: 12 nm ; continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation ; exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March), southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperature variation
mostly mountains with coastal lowlands and rolling foothills
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m ; highest point: Mount Wilhelm 4,509 m
gold, copper, silver, natural gas, timber, oil, fisheries
arable land: 0.49% ; permanent crops: 1.4% ; other: 98.11% (2005)
NA
801 cu km (1987)
Total: 0.1 cu km/yr (56%/43%/1%) ; Per capita: 17 cu m/yr (1987)
active volcanism; situated along the Pacific "Ring of Fire"; the country is subject to frequent and sometimes severe earthquakes; mud slides; tsunamis
rain forest subject to deforestation as a result of growing commercial demand for tropical timber; pollution from mining projects; severe drought
party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands ; signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
shares island of New Guinea with Indonesia; one of world's largest swamps along southwest coast
5,795,887 (July 2007 est.)
0-14 years: 37.6% (male 1,107,568/female 1,070,594) ; 15-64 years: 58.5% (male 1,745,385/female 1,643,830) ; 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 106,487/female 122,023) (2007 est.)
total: 21.4 years ; male: 21.5 years ; female: 21.2 years (2007 est.)
2.163% (2007 est.)
28.76 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
7.14 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female ; under 15 years: 1.035 male(s)/female ; 15-64 years: 1.062 male(s)/female ; 65 years and over: 0.873 male(s)/female ; total population: 1.043 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
total: 48.46 deaths/1,000 live births ; male: 52.52 deaths/1,000 live births ; female: 44.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total population: 65.62 years ; male: 63.41 years ; female: 67.95 years (2007 est.)
3.79 children born/woman (2007 est.)
0.6% (2003 est.)
60,000 (2005 est.)
600 (2003 est.)
noun: Papua New Guinean(s) ; adjective: Papua New Guinean
Melanesian, Papuan, Negrito, Micronesian, Polynesian
Roman Catholic 22%, Lutheran 16%, Presbyterian/Methodist/London Missionary Society 8%, Anglican 5%, Evangelical Alliance 4%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1%, other Protestant 10%, indigenous beliefs 34%
Melanesian Pidgin serves as the lingua franca, English spoken by 1%-2%, Motu spoken in Papua region ; note: 820 indigenous languages spoken (over one-tenth of the world's total)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write ; total population: 57.3% ; male: 63.4% ; female: 50.9% (2000 census)
degree of risk: very high ; food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever ; vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria are high risks in some locations (2007)

conventional long form: Independent State of Papua New Guinea ; conventional short form: Papua New Guinea ; local short form: Papuaniugini ; former: Territory of Papua and New Guinea ; abbreviation: PNG
constitutional parliamentary democracy
name: Port Moresby ; geographic coordinates: 9 30 S, 147 10 E ; time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
20 provinces; Bougainville, Central, Chimbu, Eastern Highlands, East New Britain, East Sepik, Enga, Gulf, Madang, Manus, Milne Bay, Morobe, National Capital, New Ireland, Northern, Sandaun, Southern Highlands, Western, Western Highlands, West New Britain

16 September 1975 (from the Australian-administered UN trusteeship)
Independence Day, 16 September (1975)
16 September 1975
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
18 years of age; universal
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by governor general Sir Paulius MATANE (since 29 June 2004) ; head of government: Prime Minister Sir Michael SOMARE (since 2 August 2002); Deputy Prime Minister Puka TEMU (since 29 August 2007) ; cabinet: National Executive Council appointed by governor general on recommendation of prime minister ; elections: none; monarch is hereditary; governor general nominated by parliament and appointed by chief of state; following legislative elections, leader of majority party or leader of majority coalition usually is appointed prime minister by governor general
unicameral National Parliament (109 seats, 89 filled from open electorates and 20 from provinces and national capital distict; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); constitution allows up to 126 seats ; elections: last held from 30 June to 10 July 2007; next to be held in June 2012 ; election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - National Alliance 27, PNGP 8, PAP 6, URP 6, PANGU 5, PDM 5, independents 19, others 33; note - election to 1 seat was nullified ; note: 15 other parties won 4 or fewer seats; association with political parties is fluid
Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the proposal of the National Executive Council after consultation with the minister responsible for justice; other judges are appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission)
National Alliance Party or NA [Michael SOMARE]; Papua and Niugini Union Party or PANGU PATI [Andrew KUMBAKOR]; Papua New Guinea Party or PNGP [Sir Mekere MORAUTA]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Michael OGIO]; People's Action Party or PAP [Gabriel KAPRIS]; United Resources Party or URP [William DUMA] (2007)
NA
ACP, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (observer), C, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
divided diagonally from upper hoist-side corner; the upper triangle is red with a soaring yellow bird of paradise centered; the lower triangle is black with five, white, five-pointed stars of the Southern Cross constellation centered
chief of mission: Ambassador Evan Jeremy PAKI ; chancery: 1779 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Suite 805, Washington, DC 20036 ; telephone: [1] (202) 745-3680 ; FAX: [1] (202) 745-3679
chief of mission: Ambassador Leslie W. Rowe ; embassy: Douglas Street, Port Moresby, N.C.D. ; mailing address: 4240 Port Moresby PI, US Department of State, Washington DC 20521-4240 ; telephone: [675] 321-1455 ; FAX: [675] 321-3423





Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural resources, but exploitation has been hampered by rugged terrain and the high cost of developing infrastructure. Agriculture provides a subsistence livelihood for 85% of the population. Mineral deposits, including copper, gold, and oil, account for nearly two-thirds of export earnings. The government of Prime Minister SOMARE has expended much of its energy remaining in power. He was the first prime minister ever to serve a full five-year term. The government also brought stability to the national budget, largely through expenditure control; however, it relaxed spending constraints in 2006 and 2007 as elections approached. Numerous challenges still face the government including regaining investor confidence, restoring integrity to state institutions, promoting economic efficiency by privatizing moribund state institutions, and balancing relations with Australia, its former colonial ruler. Other socio-cultural challenges could upend the economy including a worsening HIV/AIDS epidemic and chronic law and order and land tenure issues. Australia will supply more than $300 million in aid in FY07/08, which accounts for nearly 20% of the national budget.
$16.56 billion (2007 est.)
$4.438 billion (2007 est.)
4% (2007 est.)
$2,900 (2007 est.)
agriculture: 35.5% ; industry: 37% ; services: 27.5% (2007 est.)
3.557 million (2007 est.)
agriculture: 85% ; industry: NA% ; services: NA%
1.9% up to 80% in urban areas (2004)
37% (2002 est.)
lowest 10%: 1.7% ; highest 10%: 40.5% (1996)
50.9 (1996)
1.8% (2007 est.)
20.4% of GDP (2007 est.)
revenues: $2.209 billion ; expenditures: $1.994 billion (2007 est.)
43.7% of GDP (2007 est.)
coffee, cocoa, copra, palm kernels, tea, sugar, rubber, sweet potatoes, fruit, vegetables, vanilla; shell fish, poultry, pork
copra crushing, palm oil processing, plywood production, wood chip production; mining of gold, silver, and copper; crude oil production, petroleum refining; construction, tourism
4.8% (2007 est.)
3.698 billion kWh (2005)
fossil fuel: 54.1% ; hydro: 45.9% ; nuclear: 0% ; other: 0% (2001)
3.439 billion kWh (2005)
0 kWh (2005)
0 kWh (2005)
50,000 bbl/day (January 2006 est.)
26,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)
44,580 bbl/day (2004)
24,020 bbl/day (2004)
240 million bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
95.91 million cu m (2005 est.)
95.91 million cu m (2005 est.)
0 cu m (2005 est.)
0 cu m (2005)
331.3 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
$314 million (2007 est.)
$4.553 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
oil, gold, copper ore, logs, palm oil, coffee, cocoa, crayfish, prawns
Australia 30.2%, Japan 8.2%, China 5.7% (2006)
$2.269 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Australia 52%, Singapore 12.6%, China 5.9%, Japan 4.3% (2006)

$1.664 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
$1.814 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
$NA
$NA
$4.863 billion (2005)
kina (PGK)
PGK
kina per US dollar - 3.03 (2007), 3.0643 (2006), 3.08 (2005), 3.2225 (2004), 3.5635 (2003)
calendar year
$266.1 million (2005)
63,700 (2005)
75,000 (2005)
general assessment: services are minimal; facilities provide radiotelephone and telegraph, coastal radio, aeronautical radio, and international radio communication services ; domestic: access to telephone services is not widely available; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular telephone density is less than 3 telephones per 100 persons ; international: country code - 675; submarine cables to Australia and Guam; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); international radio communication service
AM 8, FM 19, shortwave 28 (1998)
410,000 (1997)
3 (all in the Port Moresby area; stations at Mt. Hagen, Goroka, Lae, and Rabaul are planned) (2004)
59,841 (1999)
.pg
2,436 (2007)
3 (2000)
110,000 (2006)

578 (2007)
total: 21 ; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 ; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 ; 914 to 1,523 m: 4 ; under 914 m: 1 (2007)
total: 557 ; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 ; 914 to 1,523 m: 58 ; under 914 m: 489 (2007)
2 (2007)
oil 264 km (2006)

total: 19,600 km ; paved: 686 km ; unpaved: 18,914 km (1999)
11,000 km (2006)
total: 24 ships (1000 GRT or over) 56,157 GRT/72,821 DWT ; by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 20, petroleum tanker 1 ; foreign-owned: 6 (UK 6) (2007)
Kimbe, Lae, Madang, Rabaul, Wewak

Papua New Guinea Defense Force (PNGDF; includes Maritime Operations Element, Air Operations Element) (2007)
18 years of age (est.); no conscription (2001)
males age 18-49: 1,264,728 ; females age 18-49: 1,167,188 (2005 est.)
males age 18-49: 902,432 ; females age 18-49: 894,759 (2005 est.)

1.4% (2005 est.)

relies on assistance from Australia to keep out illegal cross-border activities from primarily Indonesia, including goods smuggling, illegal narcotics trafficking, and squatters and secessionists
refugees (country of origin): 9,991 (Indonesia) (2006)
major consumer of cannabis

