Location:
Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator; the capital Tarawa is about halfway 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 ]
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, and Phoenix Islands - dispersed over about 3.5 million sq km (1.35 million sq mi)
country comparison to the world: 187

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

Land boundaries:
0 km

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

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - exclusive economic zone country ranks ]

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

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

Elevation:
mean elevation: 2 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed elevation on Banaba 81 m

Natural resources:
phosphate (production discontinued in 1979), coconuts (copra), fish

Land use:
agricultural land: 42% arable land 2.5%; permanent crops 39.5%; permanent pasture 0%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 15%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 43% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
0 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population - distribution:
consists of three achipelagos spread out over an area roughly the size of India; the eastern Line Islands and central Phoenix Islands are sparsely populated, but the western Gilbert Islands are some of the most densely settled places on earth, with the main island of South Tarawa boasting a population density similar to Tokyo or Hong Kong

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)