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Papua New Guinea Facts and Figures from Encarta Go to article
Basic Facts
Official name Independent State of Papua New Guinea
Capital Port Moresby
Area 462,840 sq km
178,704 sq mi
Papua New Guinea: Flag and Anthem
Papua New Guinea: Flag and Anthem
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People
Population 5,921,144 (2008 estimate)
Population growth
Population growth rate 2.11 percent (2008 estimate)
Projected population in 2025 8,001,357 (2025 estimate)
Projected population in 2050 10,670,394 (2050 estimate)
Population density 13 persons per sq km (2008 estimate)
34 persons per sq mi (2008 estimate)
Urban/rural distribution
Share urban 13 percent (2003 estimate)
Share rural 87 percent (2003 estimate)
Largest cities, with population
Port Moresby 275,000 (2003 estimate)
Lae 78,038 (2000 estimate)
Arawa 36,443 (2000 estimate)
Mount Hagen 27,782 (2000 estimate)
Madang 27,394 (2000 estimate)
Ethnic groups
Melanesian, Papuan 98 percent
Micronesian, Polynesian, Chinese, Australian 2 percent
Languages
English (official), Melanesian Pidgin (Tok Pisin), Motu, Enga, other Melanesian and Papuan languages and dialects
NOTE: More than 700 indigenous languages and dialects
Religious affiliations*
Protestant 57 percent
Roman Catholic 30 percent
Indigenous beliefs 4 percent
Other 9 percent
*Many people who identify themselves as Christian also follow indigenous beliefs.
Health and Education
Life expectancy
Total 66 years (2008 estimate)
Female 68.3 years (2008 estimate)
Male 63.7 years (2008 estimate)
Infant mortality rate 47 deaths per 1,000 live births (2008 estimate)
Population per physician 19,395 people (2004)
Population per hospital bed 248 people (1990)
Literacy rate
Total 76 percent (2000)
Female 67.7 percent (2000)
Male 83.7 percent (2000)
Education expenditure as a share of gross national product (GNP) 2.4 percent (2000-2001)
Number of years of compulsory schooling 9 years (2001-2002)
Number of students per teacher, primary school 35 students per teacher (2002-2003)
Government
Form of government Parliamentary democracy
Voting qualifications Universal at age 18
Constitution 16 September 1975
Armed forces
Total number of military personnel 3,100 (2004)
Military expenditures as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) 0.5 percent (2003)
Economy
Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) $5.7 billion (2006)
GDP per capita (U.S.$) $911.70 (2006)
GDP by economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 41.8 percent (2004)
Industry 39.1 percent (2004)
Services 19 percent (2004)
Employment
Number of workers 2,712,408 (2006)
Workforce share of economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 72 percent (2000)
Industry 4 percent (2000)
Services 23 percent (2000)
Unemployment rate 2.8 percent (2000)
National budget (U.S.$)
Total revenue $661 million (2002)
Total expenditure $672 million (2002)
Monetary unit 1 kina (K), consisting of 100 toea
Major trade partners for exports
Australia, Japan, China, Germany, and South Korea
Major trade partners for imports
Australia, Singapore, Japan, New Zealand, and Indonesia
Energy, Communications, and Transportation
Electricity production
Electricity from thermal sources 41.21 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from hydroelectric sources 58.79 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from nuclear sources 0 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from geothermal, solar, and wind sources 0 percent (2003 estimate)
Number of radios per 1,000 people 91 (1997)
Number of telephones per 1,000 people 11 (2004)
Number of televisions per 1,000 people 17 (2000 estimate)
Number of Internet hosts per 10,000 people 0.69 (2003)
Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people 15 (1996)
Number of motor vehicles per 1,000 people 26 (1997)
Paved road as a share of total roads 4 percent (1999)
Sources
Basic Facts and People sections
Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org).
Health and Education section
Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org).
Government section
Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data is from Military Balance.
Economy section
Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the statistical bureaus of individual countries, latest Europa World Yearbook, and various United Nations and International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.
Energy, Communication, and Transportation section
Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org).
Note
Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding.
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