French Polynesia

total: 59,790 (2018) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 21.53 (2018 est.)

French public overseas broadcaster Reseau Outre-Mer provides 2 TV channels and 1 radio station; 1 government-owned TV station; a small number of privately owned radio stations (2019)

.pf

total: 204,800 (2021 est.) percent of population: 72.7% (2019 est.)

general assessment: French Polynesia has one of the most advanced telecom infrastructures in the Pacific islands; high penetration of mobile broadband coverage; almost half of mobile connections on 3G, growing subscribership to 4G LTE; universal mobile penetration; host of uplink systems for the Galileo satellite network, creating hub for communications in the region and vastly improving international connectivity; submarine cable connections increase international bandwidth; additional domestic submarine cable will connect remote islands (2020) domestic: fixed-line subscriptions 22 per 100 persons and mobile-cellular density is roughly 104 per 100 persons (2019) international: country code - 689; landing points for the NATITUA, Manatua, and Honotua submarine cables to other French Polynesian Islands, Cook Islands, Niue, Samoa and US; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2019) note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments

total subscriptions: 60,123 (2018) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 32.51 (2018 est.)

total subscriptions: 302,673 (2018) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 104.3 (2019 est.)

coconuts, fruit, roots/tubers nes, pineapples, cassava, sugar cane, eggs, tropical fruit, tomatoes

revenues: 1.891 billion (2012) expenditures: 1.833 billion (2011)

1.2% (of GDP) (2012)

$207.7 million (2014 est.) $158.8 million (2013 est.)

NA

Since 1962, when France stationed military personnel in the region, French Polynesia has changed from a subsistence agricultural economy to one in which a high proportion of the work force is either employed by the military or supports the tourist industry. With the halt of French nuclear testing in 1996, the military contribution to the economy fell sharply. After growing at an average yearly rate of 4.2% from 1997-2007, the economic and financial crisis in 2008 marked French Polynesia’s entry into recession. However, since 2014, French Polynesia has shown signs of recovery. Business turnover reached 1.8% year-on-year in September 2016, tourism increased 1.8% in 2015, and GDP grew 2.0% in 2015. French Polynesia’s tourism-dominated service sector accounted for 85% of total value added for the economy in 2012. Tourism employs 17% of the workforce. Pearl farming is the second biggest industry, accounting for 54% of exports in 2015; however, the output has decreased to 12.5 tons – the lowest level since 2008. A small manufacturing sector predominantly processes commodities from French Polynesia’s primary sector - 8% of total economy in 2012 - including agriculture and fishing. France has agreed to finance infrastructure, marine businesses, and cultural and ecological sites at roughly $80 million per year between 2015 and 2020. Japan, the US, and China are French Polynesia’s three largest trade partners.

Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 110.2 (2017 est.) 107.84 (2016 est.) 107.84 (2015 est.) 89.85 (2014 est.) 90.56 (2013 est.)

$1.245 billion (2014 est.) $1.168 billion (2013 est.)

cultured pearls, coconut products, mother-of-pearl, vanilla, shark meat

Japan 23.1%, Hong Kong 21.5%, Kyrgyzstan 15.9%, US 15.9%, France 12.4% (2017)

calendar year

$4.795 billion (2015 est.)

household consumption: 66.9% (2014 est.) government consumption: 33.6% (2014 est.) investment in fixed capital: 19.4% (2014 est.) investment in inventories: 0.1% (2014 est.) exports of goods and services: 17.5% (2014 est.) imports of goods and services: -37.5% (2014 est.)

agriculture: 2.5% (2009) industry: 13% (2009) services: 84.5% (2009)

lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA

$2.235 billion (2014 est.) $2.271 billion (2013 est.)

fuels, foodstuffs, machinery and equipment

France 27.9%, South Korea 12.1%, US 10.1%, China 7.3%, NZ 6.7%, Singapore 4.2% (2017)

NA

tourism, pearls, agricultural processing, handicrafts, phosphates

0% (2015 est.) 0.3% (2014 est.)

126,300 (2016 est.)

agriculture: 13% industry: 19% services: 68% (2013 est.)

19.7% (2009 est.)

$5.49 billion (2017 est.) $5.383 billion (2016 est.) $6.963 billion (2015 est.)

2% (2015 est.) -2.7% (2014 est.) -2.5% (2010 est.)

$17,000 (2015 est.) $20,100 (2014 est.) $22,700 (2010)

39.4% (of GDP) (2012)

21.8% (2012) 11.7% (2010)

total: 56.7% male: 54.5% female: 59.7% (2012 est.)

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)

0 bbl/day (2018 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2018 est.)

629.9 million kWh (2016 est.)

0 kWh (2016 est.)

70% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)

19% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

11% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

0 kWh (2016 est.)

253,000 kW (2016 est.)

677.3 million kWh (2016 est.)

electrification - total population: 100% (2020)

0 cu m (2017 est.)

0 cu m (2017 est.)

0 cu m (2017 est.)

0 cu m (2017 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2014 est.)

6,600 bbl/day (2016 est.)

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)

6,785 bbl/day (2015 est.)

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 0.77 megatons (2016 est.)

tropical, but moderate

sea level rise; extreme weather events (cyclones, storms, and tsunamis producing floods, landslides, erosion, and reef damage); droughts; fresh water scarcity

agricultural land: 12.5% (2018 est.) arable land: 0.7% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 6.3% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 5.5% (2018 est.) forest: 43.7% (2018 est.) other: 43.8% (2018 est.)

degree of risk: high (2020) food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea vectorborne diseases: malaria

urban population: 62.1% of total population (2021) rate of urbanization: 0.65% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

municipal solid waste generated annually: 147,000 tons (2013 est.) municipal solid waste recycled annually: 57,330 tons (2013 est.) percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 39% (2013 est.)

total: 4,167 sq km (118 islands and atolls; 67 are inhabited) land: 3,827 sq km water: 340 sq km

slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut

tropical, but moderate

2,525 km

highest point: Mont Orohena 2,241 m lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m

15 00 S, 140 00 W

includes five archipelagoes: four volcanic (Iles Gambier, Iles Marquises, Iles Tubuai, Society Islands) and one coral (Archipel des Tuamotu); the Tuamotu Archipelago forms the largest group of atolls in the world - 78 in total, 48 inhabited; Makatea in the Tuamotu Archipelago is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru

10 sq km (2012)

total: 0 km

agricultural land: 12.5% (2018 est.) arable land: 0.7% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 6.3% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 5.5% (2018 est.) forest: 43.7% (2018 est.) other: 43.8% (2018 est.)

Oceania, five archipelagoes (Archipel des Tuamotu, Iles Gambier, Iles Marquises, Iles Tubuai, Society Islands) in the South Pacific Ocean about halfway between South America and Australia

Oceania

territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

occasional cyclonic storms in January

timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower

the majority of the population lives in the Society Islands, one of five archipelagos that includes the most populous island - Tahiti - with approximately 70% of the nation's population

mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs

5 administrative subdivisions (subdivisions administratives, singular - subdivision administrative): Iles Australes (Austral Islands), Iles du Vent (Windward Islands), Iles Marquises (Marquesas Islands), Iles Sous-le-Vent (Leeward Islands), Iles Tuamotu-Gambier; note - the Leeward Islands and the Windward Islands together make up the Society Islands (Iles de la Societe)

name: Papeete (located on Tahiti) geographic coordinates: 17 32 S, 149 34 W time difference: UTC-10 (5 hours behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the name means "water basket" and refers to the fact that the islanders originally used calabashes enclosed in baskets to fetch water at a spring in the area

see France

history: 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) amendments: French constitution amendment procedures apply

conventional long form: Overseas Lands of French Polynesia conventional short form: French Polynesia local long form: Pays d'outre-mer de la Polynesie Francaise local short form: Polynesie Francaise former: Establishments in Oceania, French Establishments in Oceania etymology: the term "Polynesia" is an 18th-century construct composed of two Greek words, "poly" (many) and "nesoi" (islands), and refers to the more than 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean

overseas country of France; note - overseas territory of France from 1946-2003; overseas collectivity of France since 2003, though it is often referred to as an overseas country due to its degree of autonomy

embassy: none (overseas lands of France)

none (overseas lands of France)

chief of state: President Emmanuel MACRON (since 14 May 2017), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Dominique SORAIN (since 10 July 2019) head of government: President of French Polynesia Edouard FRITCH (since 12 September 2014) cabinet: Council of Ministers approved by the Assembly from a list of its members submitted by the president elections/appointments: French president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; French Polynesia president indirectly elected by Assembly of French Polynesia for a 5-year term (no term limits)

two red horizontal bands encase a wide white band in a 1:2:1 ratio; centered on the white band is a disk with a blue and white wave pattern depicting the sea on the lower half and a gold and white ray pattern depicting the sun on the upper half; a Polynesian canoe rides on the wave pattern; the canoe has a crew of five represented by five stars that symbolize the five island groups; red and white are traditional Polynesian colors note: identical to the red-white-red flag of Tahiti, the largest and most populous of the islands in French Polynesia, but which has no emblem in the white band; the flag of France is used for official occasions

under certain acts of France, French Polynesia has acquired autonomy in all areas except those relating to police, monetary policy, tertiary education, immigration, and defense and foreign affairs; the duties of its president are fashioned after those of the French prime minister

parliamentary democracy (Assembly of French Polynesia); an overseas collectivity of France

none (overseas lands of France)

ITUC (NGOs), PIF (associate member), SPC, UPU, WMO

highest courts: Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel (composition NA); note - appeals beyond the French Polynesia Court of Appeal are heard by the Court of Cassation (in Paris) judge selection and term of office: judges assigned from France normally for 3 years subordinate courts: Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif

the laws of France, where applicable, apply

description: unicameral Assembly of French Polynesia or Assembl e de la Polyn sie fran aise (57 seats; elections held in 2 rounds; in the second round, 38 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by a closed-list proportional representation vote; the party receiving the most votes gets an additional 19 seats; members serve 5-year terms; French Polynesia indirectly elects 2 senators to the French Senate via an electoral college by absolute majority vote for 6-year terms with one-half the membership renewed every 3 years and directly elects 3 deputies to the French National Assembly by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed for 5-year terms French Polynesia indirectly elects 2 senators to the French Senate via an electoral college by absolute majority vote for 6-year terms with one-half the membership renewed every 3 years and directly elects 3 deputies to the French National Assembly by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed for 5-year terms elections: Assembly of French Polynesia - last held on 22 April 2018 and 6 May 2018 (next to be held in 2023) French Senate - last held on 28 September 2020 (next to be held on 30 September 2023) French National Assembly - last held in 2 rounds on 3 and 17 June 2017 (next to be held in 2022) election results: Assembly of French Polynesia - percent of vote by party - Tapura Huiraatira 45.1%, Popular Rally 29.3%, Tavini Huiraatira 25.6%; seats by party - Tapura Huiraatira 38, Popular Rally 11, Tavini Huiraatira 8; composition - men 27, women 30, percent of women 52.6% French Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Popular Rally 1, People's Servant Party 1; composition - NA French National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Tapura Huiractura 2, Tavini Huiraatura 1; composition - NA

name: "Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" (Long Live Tahiti Nui) lyrics/music: Maeva BOUGES, Irmine TEHEI, Angele TEROROTUA, Johanna NOUVEAU, Patrick AMARU, Louis MAMATUI, and Jean-Pierre CELESTIN (the compositional group created both the lyrics and music) note: adopted 1993; serves as a local anthem; as a territory of France, "La Marseillaise" is official (see France)

Fete de la Federation, 14 July (1790); note - the local holiday is Internal Autonomy Day, 29 June (1880)

outrigger canoe, Tahitian gardenia (Gardenia taitensis) flower; national colors: red, white

A Tia Porinetia [Teva ROHFRITSCH] Alliance for a New Democracy or ADN (includes The New Star [Philip SCHYLE], This Country is Yours [Nicole BOUTEAU]) New Fatherland Party (Ai'a Api) [Emile VERNAUDON] Our Home alliance People's Servant Party (Tavini Huiraatira) [Oscar TEMARU] Popular Rally (Tahoeraa Huiraatira) [Gaston FLOSSE] Tapura Huiraatira [Edouard FRITICH] Tavini Huiraatira [James CHANCELOR] Union for Democracy alliance or UPD [Oscar TEMARU]

18 years of age; universal

French Polynesia consists of five archipelagos - the Austral Islands, the Gambier Islands, the Marquesas Islands, the Society Islands, and the Tuamotu Archipelago. The Marquesas were first settled around 200 B.C. and the Society Islands around A.D. 300. Raiatea in the Society Islands became a center for religion and culture. Exploration of the other islands emanated from Raiatea and by 1000, there were small permanent settlements in all the island groups. Ferdinand MAGELLAN was the first European to see the islands of French Polynesia in 1520, and successive European voyagers traveled through them over the next two centuries. In 1767, British explorer Samuel WALLIS was the first European to visit Tahiti, followed by French navigator Louis Antoine de BOUGAINVILLE in 1768, and British explorer James COOK in 1769. King POMARE I united Tahiti and surrounding islands into the Kingdom of Tahiti in 1788. Protestant missionaries arrived in 1797 and Pomare I s successor converted in the 1810s, along with most Tahitians. In the 1830s, Queen POMARE IV refused to allow French Catholic missionaries to operate, leading France to declare a protectorate over Tahiti and fight the French-Tahitian War of the 1840s in an attempt to annex the islands. POMARE IV requested British assistance to fight France, and while the UK did not provide material support, it did diplomatically pressure France to simply maintain its protectorate status. In 1880, King POMARE V ceded Tahiti and its possessions to France, changing its status into a colony. France then claimed the Gambier Islands and Tuamotu Archipelago and by 1901 had incorporated all five island groups into its establishments in Oceania. A Tahitian nationalist movement formed in 1940, leading France to grant French citizenship to the islanders in 1946 and change it to an overseas territory. In 1957, the islands name was changed to French Polynesia and the following year, 64% of voters chose to stay part of France when they approved a new constitution. Uninhabited Mururoa Atoll was established as a French nuclear test site in 1962 and tests were conducted between 1966 and 1992 (underground beginning in 1975). France also conducted tests at Fangataufa Atoll, including its last nuclear test in 1996. France granted French Polynesia partial internal autonomy in 1977 and expanded autonomy in 1984. French Polynesia was converted into an overseas collectivity in 2003 and renamed an overseas country inside the Republic in 2004. Proindependence politicians won a surprise majority in local elections that same year but in subsequent elections have been relegated to a vocal minority. In 2013, French Polynesia was relisted on the UN List of Non-Self Governing Territories.

defense is the responsibility of France; France maintains forces in French Polynesia

no regular military forces

0-14 years: 21.69% (male 32,920/female 31,100) 15-24 years: 14.72% (male 22,640/female 20,793) 25-54 years: 44.24% (male 66,921/female 63,636) 55-64 years: 10.31% (male 15,610/female 14,823) 65 years and over: 9.04% (male 12,854/female 13,824) (2020 est.)

13.69 births/1,000 population (2021 est.)

NA

NA

NA

5.51 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.)

total dependency ratio: 45.5 youth dependency ratio: 32.3 elderly dependency ratio: 13.2 potential support ratio: 7.6 (2020 est.)

improved: total: 100% of population unimproved: total: 0% of population (2017 est.)

NA

Polynesian 78%, Chinese 12%, local French 6%, metropolitan French 4%

NA

NA

NA

total: 4.46 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.37 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)

French (official) 73.5%, Tahitian 20.1%, Marquesan 2.6%, Austral languages 1.2%, Paumotu 1%, other 1.6% (2017 est.) major-language sample(s): The World Factbook, une source indispensable d'informations de base. (French) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

total population: 78.19 years male: 75.86 years female: 80.63 years (2021 est.)

degree of risk: high (2020) food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea vectorborne diseases: malaria

136,000 PAPEETE (capital) (2018)

total: 33.3 years male: 33 years female: 33.5 years (2020 est.)

noun: French Polynesian(s) adjective: French Polynesian

-0.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

2.13 physicians/1,000 population (2009)

297,154 (July 2021 est.)

the majority of the population lives in the Society Islands, one of five archipelagos that includes the most populous island - Tahiti - with approximately 70% of the nation's population

0.75% (2021 est.)

Protestant 54%, Roman Catholic 30%, other 10%, no religion 6%

improved: total: 96.9% of population unimproved: total: 3.1% of population (2017 est.)

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

1.82 children born/woman (2021 est.)

total: 56.7% male: 54.5% female: 59.7% (2012 est.)

urban population: 62.1% of total population (2021) rate of urbanization: 0.65% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

none

total: 54 (2013)

total: 45 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 33 under 914 m: 5 (2017)

total: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2013)

F-OH

1 (2013)

total: 24 by type: general cargo 14, other 10 (2021)

number of registered air carriers: 2 (registered in France) (2020) inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 19 (registered in France)

major seaport(s): Papeete

total: 2,590 km (1999) paved: 1,735 km (1999) unpaved: 855 km (1999)