Tuvalu is a country located in the South Pacific Ocean. It has an area of 26 square kilometers and a population of approximately 11,000 people. The ethnic composition of Tuvalu is largely Polynesian (97%), with minorities such as Europeans (3%) making up the remaining 3%. The majority of the population are adherents to Christianity, with around 97% following Protestantism and 3% practicing other religions. Education is compulsory for children up to the age of 15 and the literacy rate is estimated to be around 99%. The official language is Tuvaluan but there are also many other languages spoken throughout the country such as English, Samoan and Tokelauan. The capital city Funafuti has an estimated population of over 5,000 people making it one of the largest cities in Tuvalu. Check hyperrestaurant to learn more about Tuvalu in 2009.
Social conditions
In 1990, 2.7% of expenditure in the state budget was allocated to health care. In Tuvalu there were eight doctors in 1993, ie. 1 per 1 152 residents, one hospital, seven health centers and 30 sick beds, ie. 1 per 302 residents. Check to see Tuvalu population.
The most common causes of death are liver disease, meningitis and tuberculosis. In the mid-1990s, social insurance covered only retirement and disability pensions. There is a large shortage of educated labor in the country. In the mid-1990s, more than 1/10 of the country’s population were guest workers at the phosphate mines in the state of Nauru. Visit AbbreviationFinder to see the definitions of TUV and acronym for Tuvalu.
The Tuvalu are now facing increasing problems. 40% of the land on the main atoll Funafuti was destroyed when the United States built an airport there during the Second World War. The shortage of agricultural land is increasing every year. Despite the government’s propaganda for family planning, rapid population growth continues. The situation will be further aggravated as Naurus phosphate resources have run out and the Tuvaluans are returning. Tuvalu’s leaders have vainly appealed to Australia to authorize immigration from Tuvalu in order to alleviate population pressure. The flat islands of Tuvalu are severely exposed to floods in tropical hurricanes, and Tuvalu is one of the five island states in the world that are considered to be at greatest risk of disappearing if the world’s sea level rises in the coming centuries.