Profile
Background and figures as recorded in the CIA World Factbook.
Papua New Guinea (PNG) occupies the eastern half of the island of New Guinea; the western half is part of Indonesia. PNG was first settled between 50,000 and 60,000 years ago. Its harsh geography of mountains, jungles, and numerous river valleys kept many of the arriving groups isolated, giving rise to PNG’s ethnic and linguistic diversity. Around 500 B.C., Austronesian voyagers settled along the coast. Spanish and Portuguese explorers periodically visited the island starting in the 1500s, but none made it into the country’s interior.
- Capital
- Port Moresby
- Government
- parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm
- Population
- 10,273,996
- Area
- 462,840 sq km
- Location
- Oceania, group of islands including the eastern half of the island of New Guinea between the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean, east of Indonesia
- Climate
- tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March), southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperature variation
- Natural resources
- gold; copper; silver; natural gas; timber; oil…
- Languages
- Tok Pisin (official); English (official); Hiri Motu (official); some 839 living indigenous languages are spoken (about 12% of the world's total)
- Religions
- Protestant 64.3% (Evangelical Lutheran 18.4%; Seventh Day Adventist 12.9%; Pentecostal 10.4%; United Church 10.3%…
- Independence
- 16 September 1975 (from the Australia-administered UN trusteeship)
- Administrative divisions
- 20 provinces, 1 autonomous region*, and 1 district**; Bougainville*, Central, Chimbu, Eastern Highlands, East New Britai…
- Currency
- kina (PGK)
- Export partners
- China 28%; Japan 25%; Australia 17%; Taiwan 8%…
- Import partners
- Australia 27%; China 24%; Singapore 15%; Malaysia 9%…
Source: CIA World Factbook — a work of the US government, in the public domain