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4 SOPAC country profile, Fiji is an archipelago of over 320 islands scattered over approximately 1.3 million sq km of the South Pacific Ocean. Its total land area is about18 333 sq km and the maximum height is 1 324 m above sea level.The population of Fiji was estimated at801 500 in 19991, with most people being located on the two main islands Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. The majority of the population is made up of two ethnic groups - indigenous Fijians and Indians. The remaining people who account for about 5% of the population are Rotumans, Chinese, Europeans, part-Europeans and others.

The Republic of Kiribati comprises 33low-lying coral atolls (except Banaba), which are divided into three main island groups; the Gilbert group,the Phoenix group and the Line islands. Its total land area is about811 sq km within an equatorial Economic Exclusive Zone (EEZ) of some 3.6 million sq km in the Central Pacific. The maximum height above sea-level for Kiribati is 87 m.The population of Kiribati was estimated at 88 600 in19991, of which over 90% live in the Gilbert group,mostly on Tarawa atoll, the capital and commercial centre of Kiribati.Situated in the dry belt of the equatorial oceanic climatic zone, rainfall varies from 1 000 mm to 3 000mm per year. Severe, prolonged droughts are common in the drier islands in the central and southern equatorial region (eg. Gilberts and on Banaba, the Phoenix Islands, and Kiritimati)

4 SOPAC country profile, TV Tuvalu comprises nine islands, which have a total land area of approximately26 sq km. The islands are dispersed in a n archipelago over the Pacific Ocean within Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)of about 1.3 million sq km.The low-lying atolls of Tuvalu, with a maximum elevation of about 5 m above sea-level, have an estimated population of 9 600 (1999)1. Funafuti, the capital,has the highest population and Niulakita, the smallest island, has the lowest.Lying within the trade wind belt, Tuvalu has variable rainfall with an average of 3 000 mm per annum and a mean temperature of 30°C. Because of its low elevation above sea level, Tuvalu is also extremely vulnerable to storm surges and sea-level variability.

The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), a young independent nation, comprises approximately 1 225 low lying islets which make up the twentynine atolls and five low-elevation islands. Its total land area is 181 sq km with a maximum height of 3 m above sea level. The archipelagic islands are spread over a vast area of ocean of 2 131 000 sq km in two roughly parallel island chains. The eastern group is the Ratak (Sunrise) Chain and the western is the Ralik (Sunset) Chain. The RMI has a fast-growing population which is estimated at 63 200 in 19991 . Its population is among the youngest in the world – about 50 per cent of the people are less than 15 years old. This implies that the working-age population is growing rapidly in the Republic. More than two-thirds of the total population live in the two urban centers, Majuro and Ebeye.

The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) is a young independent nation, which consists of over 600 islands, with a total land area of only 701 sq km. The islands are located in the western Pacific Ocean over an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of approximately 2.9 million sq km and a maximum height of 791 m above sea level. There are four states which comprise FSM. From west to east they are Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae. The population of these islands was estimated at 116 400 in 19991 , with Chuuk being the most populous state. FSM encompasses both mountainous islands with fertile volcanic soils and remarkably high rainfall, as well as low-lying atolls. It is endowed with abundant and varied marine resources and limited land-based resources. The economy of FSM is quite reliant on foreign aid. Other mainstays include fisheries, agriculture and tourism. Copra, fish and trochus shell contribute to the export earnings of the country.

The Solomon Islands is the third largest archipelago in the South Pacific. The country consists of a double chain of volcanic islands with six major island groups: New Georgia, Guadalcanal and Makira to the south; and Choiseul, Isabel and Malaita in the northern group.Guadalcanal is the major island and the location of Honiara, the capital.There are some 992 islands, atolls and cays that compose the Solomon Islands, the total land area of which is 28 370 sq km scattered in an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 600 000 sq km. The population of the Solomon Islands was estimated at408 400 in 19991 with the highest percentage located in the Malaita Province.The Solomon Islands has a tropical climate from Aprilto November followed by the wet season from December to March. Rainfall is variable, ranging from3 000 mm to 3 500 mm per annum and average temperature is 26°C

Papua New Guinea (PNG) comprises the eastern half of the New Guinea mainland, the world’s largest tropical island, along with an archipelago of additional three islands and 600-odd lesser islets and atolls. It lies in the Southwest Pacific Ocean within an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 3 120 000 sq km and has a total land area of 462 243 sq km. The islands are high islands of volcanic origin with a maximum height of 4 496 m above sea level. PNG has an extensive system of water bodies ranging from deltas, lagoons, rivers, marshes and over 5 000 lakes

New Caledonia is an overseas territory of France comprising one main island (Grande Terre) and the Loyalty Islands group (to the east). The total land area of New Caledonia is 18 576 sq km within an Economic Exclusive Zone (EEZ) of 1 740 000 sq km.Geographically, New Caledonia is a continental island with a maximum height of 1 628 m above sea-level.The population of New Caledonia was estimated at212 800 in 19991, with the capital, Nouméa, alone having 120 000 people. The indigenous people of the nation are Melanesians.New Caledonia has a tropical climate with an average annual temperature of 23°C. Rainfall varies from east to west, with an average of 2 000 mm and 1 000 mm respectively. December to March is the wet season and cyclones occur during this period.

The Kingdom of Tonga is an archipelago of about 150 islands (of which 36 are inhabited) within an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of over 700 000 sq km. Its total land area is approximately 649 sq km with a maximum height of 1 030 m above sea-level. There are three principal groups of islands that make up the coral line and volcanic islands of Tonga. To the south is the Tonga tapu group, named after the largest island in Tonga, on which the capital Nuku’alofa is located. The Ha’apai group is in the centre, the Vava’u group in the north and the small Niuas group in the far north. The total population of the country in 1999 stood at about 100 000

Samoa, a volcanic archipelago, consists of two large islands (Upolu and Savaii) and several small ones with a total land area of approximately 2 935 sq km. It lies in the southwest Pacific in an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 120 000 sq km, the smallest in the Pacific area. The country has a total population of 168 000, estimated in 1999 . More than half of the population lives on Upolu, where the capital Apia is located. Samoa has a tropical climate with a rainy season from October to April and a dry season from May to September. Rainfall varies from 5 000 mm to 7 000 mm on the windward side and 2 500 mm to 3 000 mm on the leeward side.