Independent State of Papua New Guinea

Capital: Port Moresby

Total Area: 178,703.52 sq mi,462,840.00 sq km,(slightly larger than California)

Population: 5,049,055 (July 2001 est.)

Estimated Population in 2050: 10,670,394

Languages: English spoken by 1%-2%, pidgin English widespread, Motu spoken in Papua region,note: 715 indigenous languages

Literacy: 72.2% total, 81.0% male, 62.7% female (1995 est.)

Religions: Roman Catholic 22%, Lutheran 16%, Presbyterian/Methodist/London Missionary Society 8%, Anglican 5%, Evangelical Alliance 4%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1%, other Protestant 10%, indigenous beliefs 34%

Life Expectancy: 61.39 male, 65.64 female (2001 est.)

Government Type: constitutional monarchy with parliamentary democracy

Currency: 1 kina (K) = 100 toea

GDP (per capita): $2,500 (2000 est.)

Industry: copra crushing, palm oil processing, plywood production, wood chip production; mining of gold, silver, and copper; crude oil production; construction, tourism

Agriculture: coffee, cocoa, coconuts, palm kernels, tea, rubber, sweet potatoes, fruit, vegetables; poultry, pork

Arable Land: 0.1%

Natural Resources: gold, copper, silver, natural gas, timber, oil, fisheries

Where is Papua New Guinea?