Kiribati - Society

Population:100,000 (2006); the Phoenix Islands and central and southern Line Islands are mostly uninhabited; 44% lives in urban areas; growth 1.8% p.a. 1970–90 and 1.7% p.a. 1990–2006; birth rate (2005) 31 per 1,000 people (41 in 1970); life expectancy 62 years (49 in 1970).

The government’s resettlement programme, which began in 1989, aimed to transfer almost 5,000 people from the densely populated western atolls to the Line and Phoenix Islands. Five of the Phoenix Islands were designated for residential development in 1995, especially for people from the overcrowded island of South Tarawa.

The people are of mostly Micronesian stock. There are also Polynesian and European-descended minorities.

Religion:Christianity is the predominant religion, more than 50% of the people being Roman Catholic. Tamara and Arorae are mostly Protestant. There is a small Baha’i minority.

Language:I-Kiribati; English is the official language, but not much used outside the capital.

Media: Te Uekera, a weekly newspaper published by the Broadcasting and Publications Authority, is mainly in I-Kiribati, but with main news items also in English. Kiribati Newstar is an independent weekly. The Roman Catholic and Protestant churches publish newsletters. There is no national television service.

There are 44 TV sets (2003), 12 personal computers (2004) and 220 internet users (2006) per 1,000 people.

Education: There are ten years of compulsory education starting at age six. The net enrolment rate at secondary level is 68% (2005). The pupil–teacher ratio for primary is 25:1 and secondary, 17:1 (2005). The school year starts in January.

Tarawa Technical Institute offers courses in technical and vocational subjects. The Marine Training Centre runs 18-month courses in deck, engine-room and catering work on merchant-shipping lines; it trains about 200 students each year. There is a training college for primary teachers, and an extra-mural centre of the University of the South Pacific at Tarawa. Kiribati is a partner in the regional University of the South Pacific, which has its main campus in Suva, Fiji Islands.

Health:65% of the population uses an improved drinking water source and 33% have adequate sanitation facilities (2006). Infant mortality was 47 per 1,000 live births in 2006. Tuberculosis is a serious public health problem; there are regular outbreaks of dengue fever and occasional cases of leprosy and typhoid. The first AIDS case was reported in Tarawa in 1991.

Communications:Country code 686. Most international calls have to go through an operator. Radio telephone calls can be arranged to the outer islands. Kiribati uses a GSM 900 network, so visitors may be able to use their own mobile phones. The state-owned Telecom Services Kiribati Ltd (TSKL) is the sole national service provider.

Internet connections exist on some of the islands but can be slow; at present there are no internet cafes in Kiribati. The General Post Office is located at Bairiki, with local branches at Betio, Bikenibeu and the outer islands, including Kiritimati.

There are 43 main telephone lines and eight mobile phone subscriptions per 1,000 people (2007).

Public holidays: New Year’s Day, Women’s Day (8 March), Health Day (18 April), Independence Day (12 July), Youth Day (7 August), Christmas Day and Boxing Day. The Independence celebrations continue for three days.

Religious festivals whose dates vary from year to year include Good Friday and Easter Monday.