NA

Natural hazards:

tropical cyclones or typhoons (January to April); volcanic eruption on Aoba (Ambae) island began 27 November 2005, volcanism also causes minor earthquakes; tsunamis

Environment - current issues:

most of the population does not have access to a reliable supply of potable water; deforestation

Environment - international agreements:

party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94 signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:

a Y-shaped chain of four main islands and 80 smaller islands; several of the islands have active volcanoes

People
Vanuatu

Population:

215,446 (July 2008 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 31.3% (male 34,441/female 33,000) 15-64 years: 64.8% (male 71,159/female 68,435) 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 4,352/female 4,059) (2008 est.)

Median age:

total: 23.8 years male: 23.8 years female: 23.8 years (2008 est.)

Population growth rate:

1.434% (2008 est.)

Birth rate:

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

Death rate:

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

Net migration rate:

NA (2008 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.07 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2008 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 50.77 deaths/1,000 live births male: 53.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.09 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 63.61 years male: 62.04 years female: 65.27 years (2008 est.)

Total fertility rate:

2.57 children born/woman (2008 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: