PNG at a glance

  • 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

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