- Full country name: The Independent State of Papua New Guinea
- Area: 462,840 sq km
- Population: 5.4 million (annual growth rate: 2.3%)
- Capital: Port Moresby (pop 259,000)
- People: Melanesian, Papuan, Negrito, Micronesian, Polynesian.
- Major languages: Melanesian Pidgin; English spoken by 1%–2%; 715 indigenous languages
- Religions: Roman Catholic (22%); Lutheran (16%); other Protestant (28%); indigenous beliefs.
- Government: constitutional monarchy with parliamentary democracy (8 major a parties) that gained its independence from an Australian-administered UN trusteeship on 16 September 1975.
- Prime Minister: Rt Hon Sir Michael Somare GCMG CH K StJ
- GDP: $US11.6 billion
- Currency: Kina
- Inflation rate: 14.7%
- Natural resources: petroleum, tin, natural gas, nickel, timber, bauxite, copper, fertile soils, coal, gold, silver.
- Agriculture: coffee, cocoa, coconuts, palm kernels, tea, rubber, sweet potatoes, fruit, vegetables, poultry.
- Industry: copra crushing, palm oil processing, plywood, wood chip; gold, silver, copper; tourism.
- Major trading partners: Australia, Japan, USA.
TO LEARN MORE about PNG have a look at the Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority website