21 30 S, 165 30 E

Map references:

Oceania

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

Elevation 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

Land use:

arable land: 0.32% permanent crops: 0.22% other: 99.46% (2005)

Irrigated land:

100 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards:

cyclones, most frequent from November to March

Environment - current issues:

erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires

Geography - note:

consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls

People
New Caledonia

Population:

224,824 (July 2008 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 27.3% (male 31,376/female 30,064) 15-64 years: 65.6% (male 74,064/female 73,369) 65 years and over: 7.1% (male 7,377/female 8,574) (2008 est.)

Median age:

total: 28.4 years male: 28 years female: 28.8 years (2008 est.)

Population growth rate:

1.175% (2008 est.)

Birth rate:

17.39 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate:

5.64 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Net migration rate:

NA note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2008 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2008 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 7.19 deaths/1,000 live births male: 7.85 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 74.75 years male: 71.76 years female: 77.88 years (2008 est.)

Total fertility rate:

2.21 children born/woman (2008 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: