B ASIC D ATA

Tuvalu is a scattered group of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and Australia. Formerly a British colony, Tuvalu declared independence in 1978. The population is approximately 11,000, and the official languages are English and Tuvaluan. The chief of state is the British monarch, represented locally by a governor general. The head of state is a prime minister, who presides over a 12-seat House of Assembly. Tuvalu's economy centers around subsistence farming and fishing. The country's primary source of revenue comes from a trust fund established in 2000 with fees from the licensing of its Internet country code; this fund could triple the country's gross national product over the next decade.

Although the media community is small, media freedom is respected. The government publishes the fortnightly newspaper called Tuvalu Echoes (Sikuleo o Tuvalu) in two editions, one in Tuvaluan, the other in English. Its circulation is 260.

There is one AM radio station serving 4,000 radios. There are 800 televisions in Tuvalu but no local television station. There is one Internet service provider.

B IBLIOGRAPHY

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) "Tuvalu," World Factbook (2001). Available from http://www.cia.gov .

"Country Profile: Tuvalu," BBC News. (n.d.). Available from http://news.bbc.co.uk .

"CocoNET Wireless," The University of Queensland, Australia (1995). Available from http://www.uq.edu.au .

Jenny B. Davis