Page last updated on February 23,

Location:
Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator, as well as the International Date Line; the capital Tarawa is about half way between Hawaii and Australia

Geographic coordinates:
1 25 N, 173 00 E

Map references:
Oceania

Area:
total: 811 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 187
land: 811 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 0 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands

Area - comparative:
four times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km
[see also: Land boundaries country ranks ]

Coastline:
1,143 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate:
tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds

Terrain:
mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - lowest point country ranks ]
highest point: unnamed elevation on Banaba 81 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - highest point country ranks ]

Natural resources:
phosphate (production discontinued in 1979)

Land use:
arable land: 2.74%
[see also: Land use - arable land country ranks ]
permanent crops: 47.95%
[see also: Land use - permanent crops country ranks ]
other: 49.31% (2005)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
NA
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Natural hazards:
typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them sensitive to changes in sea level

Environment - current issues:
heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
21 of the 33 islands are inhabited; Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru; Kiribati is the only country in the world to fall into all four hemispheres (northern, southern, eastern, and western)