Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a Governor-General. Prime minister : Peter O'Neill
Population
737,284
6,310,129
Life Expectancy
62.740 years
66.460 years
Capital City
Moroni
Port Moresby
Largest city
Moroni (population: 42,872)
Port Moresby (population: 283,733)
Human Development Index
0.572
0.516
GDP per capita
$1,200 US
$2,600 US
Literacy Rate
56.5%
57.3%
Corruption Perception Index
2.5
2
Percentage of Women in Parliament
0%
0.9%
Wealthiest Citizens
Unemployment Rate
20.000%
1.900%
Death Penalty
Legal
Abolished in practice
Political System
republic
constitutional parliamentary democracy
Independence date
6 July 1975 (from France)
16 September 1975 (from the Australian-administered UN trusteeship)
Religions
Sunni Muslim 98%, Roman Catholic 2%
Roman Catholic 27%, Evangelical Lutheran 19.5%, United Church 11.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10%, Pentecostal 8.6%, Evangelical Alliance 5.2%, Anglican 3.2%, Baptist 2.5%, other Protestant 8.9%, Bahai 0.3%, indigenous beliefs and other 3.3% (2000 census)
Languages
Arabic (official), French (official), Shikomoro (a blend of Swahili and Arabic)
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)
Comoran francs (KMF) per US dollar - 361.4 (2007), 391.8 (2006), 395.6 (2005), 396.21 (2004), 435.9 (2003) note: the Comoran franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 491.9677 Comoran francs per euro
kina (PGK) per US dollar - 2.6956 (2008 est.), 3.03 (2007), 3.0643 (2006), 3.08 (2005), 3.2225 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
2.800%
1.400%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
Location
Southern Africa, group of islands at the northern mouth of the Mozambique Channel, about two-thirds of the way between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique
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
Area
2,235 km sq
462,840 km sq
Coastline
340 km
5,152 km
Climate
tropical marine; rainy season (November to May)
tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March), southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperature variation
