Nauru · page 2

From Wikipedia, «Nauru», revision of the 2026-09-01 dump, CC BY-SA 4.0. The trees and pragmatics of these pages, Mova's parse of that text, are CC BY-SA 4.0 too.

Coral cliffs surround Nauru's central plateau.92 The highest point of the plateau, Command Ridge, is 71 m above sea level.[82]93

The only fertile areas on Nauru are on the narrow coastal belt, where coconut palms flourish.94 The land around Buada Lagoon supports bananas, pineapples, vegetables, pandanus trees, and indigenous hardwoods, such as the tamanu tree.[6]95

Nauru was one of three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean, along with Banaba (Ocean Island), in Kiribati, and Makatea, in French Polynesia.96 The phosphate reserves on Nauru are now almost entirely depleted.97 Phosphate mining in the central plateau has left a barren terrain of jagged limestone pinnacles up to 15 m high.98 Mining has stripped and devastated about 80 per cent of Nauru's land area, leaving it uninhabitable,[76] and has also affected the surrounding exclusive economic zone; Forty per cent of marine life is estimated to have been killed by silt and phosphate runoff.[6][83]99

The island has no rivers.[84]100

Climate

Nauru's climate is hot and very humid year-round because of its proximity to the equator and the ocean.101 Nauru is hit by monsoon rains between November and February.102 Annual rainfall is highly variable and is influenced by the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, with several significant recorded droughts.[35][85]103 The temperature on Nauru ranges between 30 and 35 C during the day and is stable at about 25 C at night.[86]104

Streams and rivers do not exist in Nauru.105 Water is gathered from roof catchment systems or brought to Nauru as ballast on ships returning for loads of phosphate.[87]106

Ecology

Fauna is sparse on the island because of a lack of vegetation and the consequences of phosphate mining.107 Many indigenous birds have disappeared or become rare owing to the destruction of their habitat.[88]108 There are about 60 recorded vascular plant species native to the island, none of which are endemic.109 Coconut farming, mining, and introduced species have seriously disturbed the native vegetation.[35]110

Although it has no native land mammals, Nauru does have native insects, land crabs, and birds, including the endemic Nauru reed warbler.111 The Polynesian rat, cats, dogs, pigs, and chickens have been introduced to Nauru from ships.[89]112

Politics

Main article: Politics of Nauru, Elections in Nauru

Further information: Law of Nauru, List of political parties in Nauru, Crime in Nauru

The president of Nauru is David Adeang, who heads a 19-member unicameral parliament.113 The country is a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, and the Asian Development Bank.114 Nauru also participates in the Commonwealth and Olympic Games.115 Recently, Nauru became a member country of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).116 The Republic of Nauru became the 189th member of the International Monetary Fund in April 2016.117

Nauru is a republic with a parliamentary system of government.[74]118 The president is both head of state and head of government and is dependent on parliamentary confidence to remain president.119 All 19 parliament seats are elected every three years.[90]120

The parliament elects the president from its members, and the president appoints a cabinet of five to six members.[91]121 As a result of a referendum in 2021, naturalised citizens and their descendants are barred from becoming parliamentarians.[92]122

Nauru lacks any formal structure for political parties, and candidates typically stand for office as independents; 15 of the 19 members of the current parliament are independents.123 The four parties that have currently been active in Nauruan politics are the Nauru Party, the Democratic Party, the Nauru First party, and the Centre Party.124 Alliances within the government are often formed, however, based on extended family ties rather than party affiliation.[93]125

From 1992 to 1999, Nauru had a local government system known as the Nauru Island Council (NIC).[94]126 It was a successor to the Nauru Local Government Council, established in 1951.[95]127 This nine-member council was designed to provide municipal services.128 The NIC was dissolved in 1999 and all assets and liabilities became vested in the national government.[94]129 Land tenure on Nauru is unusual: all Nauruans have certain rights to all land on the island, which is owned by individuals and family groups.130 Government and corporate entities do not own any land, and they must enter into a lease arrangement with landowners to use land.131 Non-Nauruans cannot own land on the island.[35]132

Nauru's Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice, is paramount on constitutional issues.133 Other cases can be appealed to the two-judge Appellate Court.134 Parliament cannot overturn court decisions.135 Historically, Appellate Court rulings could be appealed to the High Court of Australia,[96][97] though this happened only rarely and the Australian court's appellate jurisdiction ended entirely on 12 March 2018 after the Government of Nauru unilaterally ended the arrangement.[98][99][100]136 Lower courts consist of the District Court and the Family Court, both of which are headed by a Resident Magistrate, who also is the Registrar of the Supreme Court.137 There are two other quasi-courts: the Public Service Appeal Board and the Police Appeal Board, both of which are presided over by the Chief Justice.[6]138

Foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of Nauru

Following independence in 1968, Nauru joined the Commonwealth of Nations as a Special Member; it became a full member in 1999.[101]139 The country was admitted to the Asian Development Bank in 1991 and the United Nations in 1999.[102]140 Nauru is a member of the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme, the Pacific Community, and the South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission.[103]141 In February 2021, Nauru announced it would be formally withdrawing from the Pacific Islands Forum in a joint statement with Marshall Islands, Kiribati, and the Federated States of Micronesia after a dispute regarding Henry Puna's election as the Forum's secretary-general.[104][105]142

Nauru has no armed forces, although a small police force operates under civilian control.[5]143 Australia is responsible for Nauru's defence under an informal agreement between the two countries.[5]144 The September 2005 memorandum of understanding between Australia and Nauru provides the latter with financial aid and technical assistance, including a Secretary of Finance to prepare the budget, and advisers on health and education.145 This aid is in return for Nauru's housing of asylum seekers while their applications for entry into Australia are processed.[106]146 Nauru uses the Australian dollar as its official currency.[6]147

Nauru has used its position as a member of the United Nations to gain financial support from both Taiwan corpus (officially the Republic of China corpus or ROC) and China (officially the People's Republic of China or PRC) by changing its recognition from one to the other under the One-China policy.148 On 21 July 2002, Nauru signed an agreement to establish diplomatic relations with the PRC, accepting US$130 million from the PRC for this action[107] (US$ in).149 In response, the ROC severed diplomatic relations with Nauru two days later.150 Nauru later re-established links with the ROC on 14 May 2005,[108] and diplomatic ties with the PRC were officially severed on 31 May 2005.[109]151 On 15 January 2024, Nauru severed ties with the ROC and re-established diplomatic ties with the PRC.[110]152

In 2008, Nauru recognised Kosovo as an independent country, and in 2009 Nauru became the fourth country, after Russia corpus, Nicaragua corpus, and Venezuela corpus, to recognise Abkhazia corpus and South Ossetia corpus, two breakaway autonomous republics of Georgia.153 Russia was reported to be giving Nauru US$50 million in humanitarian aid as a result of this recognition[107] (US$ in).154 On 15 July 2008, the Nauruan government announced a port refurbishment programme, financed with US$9 million of development aid received from Russia (US$ in).155 The Nauru government claimed this aid is not related to its recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.[111]156 On 30 July 2026, however, the government of Naoero (as Nauru had become) withdrew its recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.[112]157

The US Atmospheric Radiation Measurement program operates a climate-monitoring facility on the island.[113]158

A significant portion of Nauru's income has been in the form of aid from Australia.159 In 2001, the MV Tampa, a Norwegian corpus ship that had rescued 438 refugees from a stranded boat, was seeking to dock in Australia.160 In what became known as the Tampa affair, the ship was refused entry and boarded by Australian troops.161 The refugees were eventually taken to Nauru to be held in detention facilities which later became part of the Howard government's Pacific Solution.162 Nauru operated two detention centres known as State House and Topside for these refugees in exchange for Australian aid.[114]163 By November 2005, only two refugees remained on Nauru from those first sent there in 2001.[115]164 The Australian government sent further groups of asylum-seekers to Nauru in late 2006 and early 2007.[116]165 The refugee centre was closed in 2008,[6] but, following the Australian government's re-adoption of the Pacific Solution in August 2012, it has re-opened it.[117]166 Amnesty International has since described the conditions of the refugees of war living in Nauru as a "horror",[118][119] with reports of children as young as eight attempting suicide and engaging in acts of self-harm.[120]167 In 2018, the situation gained attention as a "mental health crisis", with an estimated thirty children suffering from traumatic withdrawal syndrome, also known as resignation syndrome.[120][121]168 A few dozen refugees were being held there as of 2024.[122]169

Administrative divisions

Economy

Main article: Economy of Nauru, Telecommunications in Nauru

Before a resurgence in the 2010s, the Nauruan economy was strongest in the 1970s, with GDP peaking in 1981.[123][124]190 This trend came from phosphate mining, which accounted for a majority of its economic output.191 Mining declined starting in the early 1980s.[125][126]192 There are few other resources, and most necessities are imported.[6][127]193 Small-scale mining is still conducted by RONPhos, formerly known as the Nauru Phosphate Corporation.[6]194 The government places a percentage of RONPhos's earnings into the Nauru Phosphate Royalties Trust.195 The trust manages long-term investments, which were intended to support the citizens after the phosphate reserves were exhausted.[128]196

Because of mismanagement, the trust's fixed and current assets were reduced considerably and may never fully recover.197 The failed investments included financing Leonardo the Musical in 1993.[129]198 The Mercure Hotel in Sydney, Australia,[130] and Nauru House in Melbourne, Australia, were sold in 2004 to finance debts and Air Nauru's only Boeing 737 was repossessed in December 2005.199 Normal air service resumed after the aircraft was replaced with a Boeing 737-300 airliner in June 2006.[131]200 In 2005, the corporation sold its remaining real estate in Melbourne, the vacant Savoy Tavern site, for A$7.5 million (US$ in).[132]201

The value of the trust is estimated to have shrunk from A$1.3 billion in 1991 to A$138 million in 2002 (A$ to A$ in dollars).[133]202 Through the 2000s, Nauru lacked money to perform many of the basic functions of government; for example, the National Bank of Nauru became insolvent and was closed in 2006.[27]203 The CIA World Factbook estimated a GDP per capita of US$5,000 in 2005.[5]204 The Asian Development Bank 2007 economic report on Nauru estimated GDP per capita at US$2,400 to US$2,715.[125]205

Nauru does not levy any personal taxes.206 The unemployment rate is estimated to be 23% and the government employs 95% of those who have jobs.[5][134]207 The Asian Development Bank notes that, although the administration has a strong public mandate to implement economic reforms, in the absence of an alternative to phosphate mining, the medium-term outlook is for continued dependence on external assistance.[133]208 Tourism is not a major contributor to the economy.[135]209

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