Country's Backgrounds and Profiles... |
|
|
||||
|
||||
Mystery Shoppers Needed Now... Get paid to shop and eat for free!
Find out how to join our hugely popular UK Mystery Shopping Club (now almost 14 years old!). Please click here now. Choose a page below...
|
The Transatlantic Education Mega-Site...We invite you to add ed-u.com to your list of favorites/bookmarks. Internet Explorer users please click here, and others, right click here -> ed-u.com. Also, you can learn how to make any ed-u.com page your start page by clicking here.
US Shopping Guides, travel resources, accommodations, airlines, cruise lines, rentals, reviews, education, churches...
Click for your free quote wherever you are in the World.
You've taken the time to learn French, German, Italian or Spanish! You've spent money on various self study tape courses! You've attended a language course abroad! Why risk loosing the language by not keeping it up to date? Why not join the thousands of intermediate and advanced language students on six continents who use Champs-Elysées, Schau ins Land, Puerta Sol, and Acquerello italiano to stay in touch with the languages and cultures they love.
American Samoa
Background: Settled as early as 1000 B. C., Samoa was "discovered" by European explorers in the 18th century. International rivalries in the latter half of the 19th century were settled by an 1899 treaty in which Germany and the US divided the Samoan archipelago. The US formally occupied its portion - a smaller group of eastern islands with the excellent harbor of Pago Pago - the following year.
Location: Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand Geographic coordinates: 14 20 S, 170 00 W Map references: Oceania Area:
Area - comparative: slightly larger than Washington, DC Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 116 km Maritime claims:
Climate: tropical marine, moderated by southeast trade winds; annual rainfall averages about 3 m; rainy season from November to April, dry season from May to October; little seasonal temperature variation Terrain: five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island) Elevation extremes:
Natural resources: pumice, pumicite Land use:
Irrigated land: NA sq km Natural hazards: typhoons common from December to March Environment - current issues: limited natural fresh water resources; the water division of the government has spent substantial funds in the past few years to improve water catchments and pipelines Geography - note: Pago Pago has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered by shape from rough seas and protected by peripheral mountains from high winds; strategic location in the South Pacific Ocean
Population: 65,446 (July 2000 est.) Age structure:
Population growth rate: 2.53% (2000 est.) Birth rate: 25.81 births/1,000 population (2000 est.) Death rate: 4.26 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.) Net migration rate: 3.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.) Sex ratio:
Infant mortality rate: 10.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.) Life expectancy at birth:
Total fertility rate: 3.6 children born/woman (2000 est.) Nationality:
Ethnic groups: Samoan (Polynesian) 89%, Caucasian 2%, Tongan 4%, other 5% Religions: Christian Congregationalist 50%, Roman Catholic 20%, Protestant and other 30% Languages:
Samoan (closely related to Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages), English
Literacy:
Country name:
Data code: AQ Dependency status: unincorporated and unorganized territory of the US; administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior Government type: NA Capital: Pago Pago Administrative divisions: none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three districts and two islands* at the second order; Eastern, Manu'a, Rose Island*, Swains Island*, Western Independence: none (territory of the US) National holiday: Territorial Flag Day, 17 April (1900) Constitution: ratified 1966, in effect 1967 Legal system: NA Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal Executive branch:
Legislative branch:
bicameral Fono or Legislative Assembly consists of the House of Representatives (21 seats - 20 of which are elected by popular vote and 1 is an appointed, nonvoting delegate from Swains Island; members serve two-year terms) and the Senate (18 seats; members are elected from local chiefs and serve four-year terms)
Judicial branch: High Court (chief justice and associate justices are appointed by the US Secretary of the Interior) Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party [leader NA]; Republican Party [leader NA] International organization participation: ESCAP (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, SPC Diplomatic representation in the US: none (territory of the US) Diplomatic representation from the US: none (territory of the US) Flag description: blue, with a white triangle edged in red that is based on the outer side and extends to the hoist side; a brown and white American bald eagle flying toward the hoist side is carrying two traditional Samoan symbols of authority, a staff and a war club
Economy - overview: This is a traditional Polynesian economy in which more than 90% of the land is communally owned. Economic activity is strongly linked to the US, with which American Samoa conducts the great bulk of its foreign trade. Tuna fishing and tuna processing plants are the backbone of the private sector, with canned tuna the primary export. Transfers from the US Government add substantially to American Samoa's economic well-being. Attempts by the government to develop a larger and broader economy are restrained by Samoa's remote location, its limited transportation, and its devastating hurricanes. Tourism, a developing sector, may be held back by the current financial difficulties in East Asia. GDP: purchasing power parity - $150 million (1995 est.) GDP - real growth rate: NA% GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,600 (1995 est.) GDP - composition by sector:
Population below poverty line: NA% Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA% Labor force: 13,949 (1996) Labor force - by occupation: government 33%, tuna canneries 34%, other 33% (1990) Unemployment rate: 12% (1991) Budget:
Industries: tuna canneries (largely dependent on foreign fishing vessels), handicrafts Industrial production growth rate: NA% Electricity - production: 125 million kWh (1998) Electricity - production by source:
Electricity - consumption: 116 million kWh (1998) Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998) Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998) Agriculture - products: bananas, coconuts, vegetables, taro, breadfruit, yams, copra, pineapples, papayas; dairy products, livestock Exports: $313 million (1996) Exports - commodities: canned tuna 93% Exports - partners: US 99.6% Imports: $471 million (1996) Imports - commodities: materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum products 7%, machinery and parts 6% Imports - partners: US 62%, Japan 9%, NZ 7%, Australia 11%, Fiji 4%, other 7% Debt - external: $NA Economic aid - recipient: $NA; note - important financial support from the US Currency: 1 US dollar (US$) = 100 cents Exchange rates: US currency is used Fiscal year: 1 October - 30 September
Telephones - main lines in use: 10,000 (1994) Telephones - mobile cellular: 1,200 (1994) Telephone system:
Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) Radios: 57,000 (1997) Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997) Televisions: 14,000 (1997) Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
Railways: 0 km Highways:
Ports and harbors: Aunu'u (new construction), Auasi, Faleosao, Ofu, Pago Pago, Ta'u Merchant marine: none (1999 est.) Airports: 4 (1999 est.) Airports - with paved runways:
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the US
Disputes - international: none Please click here for a guide to the country profiles Click here for all other countries
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
