STATISTICS: PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Papua New Guinea Official name: Independent State of Papua New Guinea. Form of government: constitutional monarchy with one legislative house (National Parliament ). Chief of state: British Monarch represented by Governor-General. Head of government: Prime Minister. Capital: Port Moresby. Official language: English{1}. Official religion: none. Monetary unit: 1 Papua New Guinea kina (K) = 100 toea; valuation (Sept. 25, 1998) 1 U.S.$ = K 2.28; 1 = K 3.88. Demography Population (1998): 4,600,000. Density (1998): persons per sq mi 25.7, persons per sq km 9.9. Urban-rural (1997): urban 17.0%; rural 83.0%. Sex distribution (1990){2}: male 52.09%; female 47.91%. Age breakdown (1990): under 15, 40.4%; 15-29, 28.8%; 30-44, 16.9%; 45-59, 9.3%; 60-74, 4.3%; 75 and over, 0.3%. Population projection: (2000) 4,812,000; (2010) 5,925,000. Ethnic composition (1983): New Guinea Papuan 84.0%; New Guinea Melanesian 15.0%; other 1.0%. Religious affiliation (1990): non-Anglican Protestant c. 64.0%, of which Evangelical Lutheran 23.2%, Seventh-day Adventist 8.1%, Pentecostal 7.1%; Roman Catholic 28.3%; Anglican 3.9%; other (mostly traditional beliefs) c. 3.8%. Major cities (1990){2}: Port Moresby 193,242; Lae 80,655; Madang 27,057; Wewak 23,224; Goroka 17,855. Vital statistics Birth rate per 1,000 population (1997): 32.4 (world avg. 25.0). Death rate per 1,000 population (1997): 10.0 (world avg. 9.3). Natural increase rate per 1,000 population (1997): 22.4 (world avg. 15.7). Total fertility rate (avg. births per childbearing woman; 1997): 4.7. Life expectancy at birth (1997): male 57.0 years; female 59.0 years. Major causes of death per 100,000 population (1993): acute respiratory infections 34.6; pneumonia 27.8; meningitis 7.6; conditions originating from perinatal period 6.2; malaria 3.8. National economy Budget (1997). Revenue: K 1,882,000,000 (direct taxes 46.4%, indirect taxes 36.3%, nontax revenue 10.6%, foreign grants 6.7%). Expenditures: K 2,001,000,000 (current expenditure 57.7%, transfer to provincial governments 28.4%, economic and infrastructure 13.9%). Public debt (external, outstanding; 1996): U.S.$1,522,000,000. Production (metric tons except as noted). Agriculture, forestry, fishing (1996): coconuts 700,000, bananas 650,000, sweet potatoes 450,000, sugarcane 300,000, palm oil 250,000, yams 222,000, taro 220,000, cassava 115,000, copra (1994) 100,000, palm kernels 62,000, coffee 60,000, cacao 30,000, pineapples 14,000, tea 9,000; livestock (number of live animals) 1,030,000 pigs, 110,000 cattle, 3,250,000 chickens; roundwood (1995) 8,772,000 cu m; fish catch (1995) 26,000. Mining and quarrying (1996): copper 186,715; silver 59,037 kg; gold 51,573 kg. Manufacturing (value added, in K; 1985): food, beverages, and tobacco 162,558,000; metals, metal products, machinery, and equipment 47,493,000; wood products 29,807,000. Construction (value in K; 1994){3}: total 95,600,000. Energy production (consumption): electricity (kW-hr; 1994) 1,790,000,000 (1,790,000,000); coal (metric tons; 1994) none (1,000); petroleum products (metric tons; 1994) none (720,000). Household income and expenditure. Average household size (1980) 4.6; income per household (1975-76) K 2,771 (U.S.$3,483); sources of income (1970): wages and salaries 57.3%, transfer payments 1.1%, self-employment and other 41.6%; expenditure (1987){4}: food and beverages 40.9%, transportation and communications 13.0%, housing 12.5%, clothing and footwear 6.2%, heating and lighting 4.9%, services and other 22.5%. Gross national product (1996): U.S.$5,049,000,000 (U.S.$1,150 per capita). Land use (1994): forested 92.8%; agricultural and under permanent cultivation 0.9%; meadows and pastures 0.2%; other 6.1%. Population economically active (1980){5}: total 732,800; activity rate 24.6% (participation rates: over age 10, 35.2%; female 39.8%; unemployed 12.8%{6}). Tourism (1995): receipts U.S.$60,000,000; expenditures U.S.$75,000,000. Foreign trade{7} Imports (1996): K 1,996,000,000 (1990; machinery and transport equipment 38.7%; basic manufactures 20.4%; food and live animals 17.9%; chemicals 7.5%; mineral fuels, lubricants, and related materials 2.7%). Major import sources (1995): Australia 52.2%; U.S. 14.8%; Singapore 7.4%; Japan 5.6%; New Zealand 3.6%; Hong Kong 3.2%; U.K. 3.0%. Exports (1996): K 3,313,900,000 (crude oil 32.4%; gold 23.3%; copper ore and timber 14.0%; concentrates 11.7%; coffee 5.7%; palm oil 5.5%; cocoa beans 1.4%). Major export destinations (1995): Australia 30.0%; Japan 24.3%; Germany 10.0%; U.K. 8.2%; South Korea 7.1%; U.S. 4.0%. Transport Transport. Railroads: none. Roads (1986): total length 19,736 km (paved 6%). Vehicles (1994): passenger cars 13,000; trucks and buses 32,000. Merchant marine (1992): vessels (100 gross tons and over) 87; total deadweight tonnage 40,855. Air transport (1993): passenger-km 738,366,000; metric ton-km cargo 82,369,000; airports (1996) with scheduled flights 129. Education and health Educational attainment (1990). Percentage of population age 25 and over having: no formal schooling 82.6%; some primary education 8.2%; completed primary 5.0%; some secondary 4.2%. Literacy (1995 est.): total population age 15 and over literate 72.2%; males literate 81.0%; females literate 62.7%. Health: physicians (1993) 736 (1 per 5,584 persons); hospital beds (1989) 15,335 (1 per 234 persons); infant mortality rate (1997) 62.0. Food (1992): daily per capita caloric intake 2,613 (vegetable products 91%, animal products 9%); 115% of FAO minimum. Military Total active duty personnel (1997): 4,300 (army 88.4%, navy 9.3%, air force 2.3%). Military expenditure as percentage of GNP (1995): 1.4% (world 2.8%); per capita expenditure U.S.$25. {1} The national languages are English, Tok Pisin (English Creole), and Motu. {2} Preliminary results. {3} Construction starts. {4} Weights of retail price index components. {5} Citizens of Papua New Guinea over age 10 involved in "money-raising activities" only. {6} 1997; in six urban centres. {7} Import figures are f.o.b. in balance of trade and c.i.f. for commodities and trading partners.