Niue Online Business Education. Administration. Economy. Politics. Culture. Religion. Media

Niue
Online Business Education. Economy. Politics. Culture. Religion. Media

Visit Niue

Introduction

Niue

Background: Niue's remoteness, as well as cultural and linguistic
differences between its Polynesian inhabitants and those of the rest
of the Cook Islands, have caused it to be separately administered. The
population of the island continues to drop (from a peak of 5,200 in
1966 to about 2,100 in 2002) with substantial emigration to New Zealand,
2,400 km to the southwest.

Geography Niue

Location: Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Tonga

Geographic coordinates: 19 02 S, 169 52 W

Map references: Oceania

Area: total: 260 sq km water: 0 sq km land: 260 sq km

Area - comparative: 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 64 km

Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: tropical; modified by southeast trade winds

Terrain: steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point:
unnamed location near Mutalau settlement 68 m

Natural resources: fish, arable land

Land use: arable land: 19% permanent crops: 8% other: 73% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: typhoons

Environment - current issues: increasing attention to conservationist
practices to counter loss of soil fertility from traditional slash and
burn agriculture

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification signed, but not
ratified: Law of the Sea

Geography - note: one of world's largest coral islands

People Niue

Population: 2,134 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA%

Population growth rate: 0.5% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: NA births/1,000 population

Death rate: NA deaths/1,000 population

Net migration rate: NA migrant(s)/1,000 population

Sex ratio: NA

Infant mortality rate: NA deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: NA years male: NA years
female: NA years

Total fertility rate: NA children born/woman

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA%

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA

Nationality: noun: Niuean(s) adjective: Niuean

Ethnic groups: Polynesian (with some 200 Europeans, Samoans, and Tongans)

Religions: Ekalesia Niue (Niuean Church - a Protestant church closely
related to the London Missionary Society) 75%, Latter-Day Saints 10%,
other 15% (mostly Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day
Adventist)

Languages: Niuean, a Polynesian language closely related to Tongan and
Samoan; English

Literacy: definition: NA total population: 95% male: NA% female: NA%

Government Niue

Country name: Niue former: Dependency status: self-governing in
free association with New Zealand since 1974; Niue fully responsible
for internal affairs; New Zealand retains responsibility for external
affairs and defense; however, these responsibilities confer no rights
of control and are only exercised at the request of the Government of Niue

Government type: self-governing parliamentary democracy

Capital: Alofi

Administrative divisions: none; note - there are no first-order
administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are
14 villages at the second order

Independence: on 19 October 1974, Niue became a self-governing
parliamentary government in free association with New Zealand

National holiday: Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British
sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840)

Constitution: 19 October 1974 (Niue Constitution Act)

Legal system: English common law note: Niue is self-governing, with
the power to make its own laws

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February
1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by New Zealand High
Commissioner John BRYAN (since NA May 2000) election results: Sani
LAKATANI elected premier; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - NA%
elections: the monarch is hereditary; premier elected by the Legislative
Assembly for a three-year term; election last held 19 March 1999 (next
to be held NA March 2002)
Premier Sani LAKATANI (since 1 April 1999) cabinet:
Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Assembly (20 seats; members
elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; six elected from
a common roll and 14 are village representatives) election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 9, independents 11;
note - all 20 seats were reelected elections: last held 21 March 2002
(next to be held in March 2005)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court of New Zealand; High Court of Niue

Political parties and leaders: Niue People's Action Party or NPP
[Sani LAKATANI]

Political pressure groups and leaders: NA

International organization participation: ACP, ESCAP (associate), FAO,
Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UNESCO, WHO, WMO

Diplomatic representation in the US: none (self-governing territory in
free association with New Zealand)

Diplomatic representation from the US: none (self-governing territory
in free association with New Zealand)

Flag description: yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side
quadrant; the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars -
a large one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on each arm
of the bold red cross

Economy Niue

Economy - overview: The economy suffers from the typical Pacific
island problems of geographic isolation, few resources, and a small
population. Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, and the
shortfall is made up by critically needed grants from New Zealand that
are used to pay wages to public employees. Niue has cut government
expenditures by reducing the public service by almost half. The
agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening, although
some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists primarily of
small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil, honey, and coconut
cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign collectors is an important
source of revenue. The island in recent years has suffered a serious loss
of population because of migration of Niueans to New Zealand. Efforts to
increase GDP include the promotion of tourism and a financial services
industry, although Premier LAKATANI announced in February 2002 that
Niue will shut down the offshore banking industry. Economic aid from
New Zealand in 2002 will be about $2.6 million.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $7.6 million (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: -0.3% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $3,600 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: 55%

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1% (1995)

Labor force: NA

Labor force - by occupation: most work on family plantations; paid
work exists only in government service, small industry, and the Niue
Development Board

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget: revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures
of $NA

Industries: tourism, handicrafts, food processing

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Electricity - production: 3 million kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% other: 0%
(2000) nuclear: 0%

Electricity - consumption: 2.79 million kWh (2000)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2000)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: coconuts, passion fruit, honey, limes, taro,
yams, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, poultry, beef cattle

Exports: $137,200 (1999)

Exports - commodities: canned coconut cream, copra, honey, vanilla,
passion fruit products, pawpaws, root crops, limes, footballs, stamps,
handicrafts

Exports - partners: NZ mainly, Fiji, Cook Islands, Australia

Imports: $2.38 million (1999)

Imports - commodities: food, live animals, manufactured goods, machinery,
fuels, lubricants, chemicals, drugs

Imports - partners: NZ mainly, Fiji, Japan, Samoa, Australia, US

Debt - external: $NA

Economic aid - recipient: $2.6 million from New Zealand (2002)

Currency: New Zealand dollar (NZD)

Currency code: NZD

Exchange rates: New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.3535 (January
2002), 2.3776 (2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8629 (1998), 1.5082
(1997)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Communications Niue

Telephones - main lines in use: 376 (1991)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 0 (1991)

Telephone system: domestic: single-line telephone system connects all
villages on island international: NA

Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios: 1,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997)

Televisions: NA

Internet country code: .nu

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2000)

Internet users: NA

Transportation Niue

Railways: 0 km

Highways: total: 234 km paved: 86 km unpaved: 148 km (106 km of which
is access and plantation road) (2001)

Waterways: none

Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only

Merchant marine: none (2002 est.)

Airports: 1 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2001)

Military Niue

Military branches: no regular indigenous military forces; Police Force

Military - note: defense is the responsibility of New Zealand

Transnational Issues Niue

Disputes - international: none

This page was last updated on 1 January 2002