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Papua New Guinea Country Guide
Explore Papua New Guinea in Oceania
Papua New Guinea with the capital city Port Moresby is located in Oceania (Oceania, group of islands including the eastern half of the island of New Guinea between the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean). It covers some 462,840 square kilometres (slightly larger than California) with 5,921,000 citizens.
The landscape offers mostly mountains with coastal lowlands and rolling foothills. The average density of population is approximately 13 per km². The notable climate conditions in Papua New Guinea can be described as tropical with northwest monsoon (December to March), southeast monsoon (May to October) and slight seasonal temperature variation. Potential threats by nature are active volcanism or situated along the Pacific ", Ring of Fire", , the country is subject to frequent and sometimes severe earthquakes, mud slides or tsunamis.
To reach someone in Papua New Guinea dial +675 prior to a number. There are 60,000 installed telephones. And there are 900,000 registered mobile phones. The cellular networks commonly support frequencies of 900 MHz. Websites registered in this country end with the top level domain ".pg". If you want to bring electric equipment on your trip (e.g. laptop power supply), note the local power outlet of 240V - 50Hz.
About the flag and history of Papua New Guinea
Divided diagonally from upper hoist-side corner; the upper triangle is red with a soaring yellow bird of paradise centered; the lower triangle is black with five, white, five-pointed stars of the Southern Cross constellation centered; red, black, and yellow are traditional colors of Papua New Guinea; the bird of paradise - endemic to the island of New Guinea - is an emblem of regional tribal culture and represents the emergence of Papua New Guinea as a nation; the Southern Cross, visible in the night sky, symbolizes Papua New Guinea's connection with Australia and several other countries in the South Pacific.
The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives.
Geography Quick-Facts
| Summary | Continent: Oceania Neighbours: Indonesia Capital: Port Moresby |
| Size | 462,840 square kilometers (km² or sqkm) or 178,703 square miles (mi² or sqmi) slightly larger than California |
| Population | 5,921,000 |
| Currency | Name Kina, Currency Code:PGK |
| Country Top Level Domain (cTLD) | .pg |
| Telephone Country Prefix | +675 |
| Mobile Phone Connections | 900,000 |
| Landline Phone Connections | 60,000 |
Country Position in World Rankings
Information about single country attributes and how these compare against the rest of the world. The information below is compiled with data from 2013. As such, it may differ a bit to the Information above in the text (which is from 2010).
Geography
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 462,840 (sq km) | 55 |
People and Society
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 6,431,902 | 105 |
| Population growth rate | 1.89 (%) | 61 |
| Birth rate | 25.40 (births/1,000 population) | 56 |
| Death rate | 6.54 (deaths/1,000 population) | 148 |
| Maternal mortality rate | 230.00 (deaths/100,000 live births) | 50 |
| Infant mortality rate | 40.84 (deaths/1,000 live births) | 54 |
| Life expectancy at birth | 66.66 (years) | 168 |
| Total fertility rate | 3.31 (children born/woman) | 51 |
| Health expenditures | 3.60 (% of GDP) | 173 |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 0.90 (%) | 52 |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 34,000 | 66 |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | 1,300 | 62 |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 16.20 (%) | 115 |
| Children under the age of 5 years underweight | 18.10 (%) | 40 |
Economy
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| GDP (purchasing power parity) | 19,410,000,000 | 134 |
| GDP - real growth rate | 9.10 (%) | 13 |
| GDP - per capita (PPP) | 2,800 | 179 |
| Labor force | 3,986,000 | 92 |
| Unemployment rate | 1.90 (%) | 11 |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 50.90 | 18 |
| Investment (gross fixed) | 20.60 (% of GDP) | 86 |
| Taxes and other revenues | 31.40 (% of GDP) | 86 |
| Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) | 0.10 (% of GDP) | 40 |
| Public debt | 23.30 (% of GDP) | 123 |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.20 (%) | 165 |
| Central bank discount rate | 6.92 (%) | 44 |
| Commercial bank prime lending rate | 10.81 (%) | 79 |
| Stock of narrow money | 5,685,000,000 | 96 |
| Stock of broad money | 8,624,000,000 | 111 |
| Stock of domestic credit | 3,585,000,000 | 127 |
| Market value of publicly traded shares | 9,742,000,000 | 73 |
| Industrial production growth rate | 10.00 (%) | 12 |
| Current account balance | -4,381,000,000 | 161 |
| Exports | 7,362,000,000 | 102 |
| Imports | 5,269,000,000 | 125 |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | 5,207,000,000 | 90 |
| Debt - external | 4,860,000,000 | 118 |
Energy
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Electricity - production | 3,331,000,000 (kWh) | 128 |
| Electricity - consumption | 3,098,000,000 (kWh) | 133 |
| Electricity - installed generating capacity | 700,000 (kW) | 130 |
| Electricity - from fossil fuels | 61.10 (% of total installed capacity) | 136 |
| Electricity - from hydroelectric plants | 30.90 (% of total installed capacity) | 75 |
| Electricity - from other renewable sources | 8.00 (% of total installed capacity) | 25 |
| Crude oil - production | 30,000 (bbl/day) | 66 |
| Crude oil - imports | 15,100 (bbl/day) | 74 |
| Crude oil - proved reserves | 170,000,000 (bbl) | 66 |
| Refined petroleum products - production | 16,080 (bbl/day) | 101 |
| Refined petroleum products - consumption | 36,320 (bbl/day) | 112 |
| Refined petroleum products - exports | 3,536 (bbl/day) | 100 |
| Refined petroleum products - imports | 7,201 (bbl/day) | 141 |
| Natural gas - production | 110,000,000 (cu m) | 80 |
| Natural gas - consumption | 110,000,000 (cu m) | 105 |
| Natural gas - proved reserves | 155,300,000,000 (cu m) | 49 |
| Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy | 5,306,000 (Mt) | 121 |
Communications
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Telephones - main lines in use | 130,000 | 141 |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,400,000 | 133 |
| Internet hosts | 5,006 | 145 |
| Internet users | 125,000 | 152 |
Transportation
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Airports | 562 | 12 |
| Roadways | 9,349 (km) | 136 |
| Waterways | 11,000 (km) | 12 |
| Merchant marine | 31 | 83 |
Military
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Military expenditures | 0.50 (% of GDP) | 160 |
Data based on CIA facts book 2010 & 2013, wikipedia, national statistical offices and their census releases
List of current world heritage sites
| Name | Since |
|---|---|
| Kuk Early Agricultural Site Kuk Early Agricultural Site consists of 116 ha of swamps in the western highlands of New Guinea 1,500 metres above sea-level. Archaeological excavation has revealed the landscape to be one of wetland reclamation worked almost continuously for 7,000, ... | 2008 |