About Palau

Oceania, group of islands in the North Pacific Ocean, southeast of the Philippines

Tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November

Varying geologically from the high, mountainous main island of Babelthuap to low, coral islands usually fringed by large barrier reefs

lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Ngerchelchuus 242 m

Westernmost archipelago in the Caroline chain, consists of six island groups totaling more than 300 islands; includes World War II battleground of Beliliou (Peleliu) and world-famous rock islands

conventional long form: Republic of Palau
conventional short form: Palau
local long form: Beluu er a Belau
local short form: Belau
former: Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Palau District

name: Melekeok
geographic coordinates: 7 29 N, 134 38 E
time difference: UTC+9

16 states; Aimeliik, Airai, Angaur, Hatohobei, Kayangel, Koror, Melekeok, Ngaraard, Ngarchelong, Ngardmau, Ngatpang, Ngchesar, Ngeremlengui, Ngiwal, Peleliu, Sonsorol

Typhoons (June to December)

Inadequate facilities for disposal of solid waste; threats to the marine ecosystem from sand and coral dredging, illegal fishing practices, and overfishing

total population: 71.51 years
male: 68.36 years
female: 74.84 years (2010 est.)

at birth: 1.065 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.25 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.43 male(s)/female
total population: 1.13 male(s)/female (2010 est.)

Based on Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

general assessment: NA
domestic: fixed-line and mobile-cellular services available with a combined subscribership of roughly 100 per 100 persons
international: country code - 680; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2008)

No television broadcast stations; a cable television network covers the major islands and provides access to rebroadcasts, on a delayed basis, of a number of US stations as well as access to a number of real-time satellite TV channels; about a half dozen radio stations with 1 government-owned (2009)

total: 459 sq km
land: 459 sq km
water: 0 sq km

20,879 (July 2010 est.)

noun: Palauan(s)
adjective: Palauan

Palauan (Micronesian with Malayan and Melanesian admixtures) 69.9%, Filipino 15.3%, Chinese 4.9%, other Asian 2.4%, white 1.9%, Carolinian 1.4%, other Micronesian 1.1%, other or unspecified 3.2% (2000 census)

Palauan 64.7% official in all islands except Sonsoral (Sonsoralese and English are official), Tobi (Tobi and English are official), and Angaur (Angaur, Japanese, and English are official), Filipino 13.5%, English 9.4%, Chinese 5.7%, Carolinian 1.5%, Japanese 1.5%, other Asian 2.3%, other languages 1.5% (2000 census)

Roman Catholic 41.6%, Protestant 23.3%, Modekngei 8.8% (indigenous to Palau), Seventh-Day Adventist 5.3%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, Latter-Day Saints 0.6%, other 3.1%, unspecified or none 16.4% (2000 census)

NA

1 October 1994 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship)

Constitution Day, 9 July (1979)

Constitutional government in free association with the US; the Compact of Free Association entered into force on 1 October 1994

18 years of age; universal

3 (2010)

.pw

After three decades as part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific under US administration, this westernmost cluster of the Caroline Islands opted for independence in 1978 rather than join the Federated States of Micronesia. A Compact of Free Association with the US was approved in 1986 but not ratified until 1993. It entered into force the following year when the islands gained independence.

The economy consists primarily of tourism, subsistence agriculture, and fishing. The government is the major employer of the work force relying heavily on financial assistance from the US. The Compact of Free Association with the US, entered into after the end of the UN trusteeship on 1 October 1994, provided Palau with up to $700 million in US aid for the following 15 years in return for furnishing military facilities. Business and tourist arrivals numbered 85,000 in 2007. The population enjoys a per capita income roughly 50% higher than that of the Philippines and much of Micronesia. Long-run prospects for the key tourist sector have been greatly bolstered by the expansion of air travel in the Pacific, the rising prosperity of leading East Asian countries, and the willingness of foreigners to finance infrastructure development.

name: "Belau rekid" (Our Palau)
lyrics/music: multiple/Ymesei O. EZEKIEL
note: adopted 1980