English (official and common language), Trukese, Pohnpeian, Yapese, Kosrean
Elevation:
highest point: Totolom 791 m
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
Natural hazards:
typhoons (June to December)
Climate:
tropical; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage
Agricultural:
black pepper, tropical fruits and vegetables, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, chickens.
Economy:
Economic activity consists primarily of subsistence farming and fishing. The islands have few mineral deposits worth exploiting, except for high-grade phosphate. The potential for a tourist industry exists, but the remoteness of the location and a lack of adequate facilities hinder development. In 1996, the country experienced a 20% reduction in revenues from the Compact of Free Association - the agreement between the US and Micronesia in which Micronesia receives $1.3 billion in financial and technical assistance over a 15-year period until 2001 - as a result of the second step-down under the agreement. Since these revenues accounted for 57% of consolidated government revenues, reduced Compact funding resulted in a severe depression. While Micronesia's economy appears to have bottomed out in 1999, the country's medium-term economic outlook remains fragile due to likely further reductions in external grants made under the US Compact funding. Geographical isolation and a poorly developed infrastructure remain major impediments to long-term growth.
Industry:
tourism, construction, fish processing, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls
Ethnicgroups:
nine ethnic Micronesian and Polynesian groups
Vaccination requirements:
No vaccination requirements for any international traveller.
