View source for Kiribati

{{short description|Country in the central Pacific Ocean}}
{{other uses}}
{{pp-move}}
{{EngvarB|date=June 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{More citations needed|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name   = Republic of Kiribati
| common_name              = Kiribati
| native_name              = {{native name|gil|Ribaberiki Kiribati}}
| image_flag               = Flag of Kiribati.svg.png
| image_coat               = Coat of arms of Kiribati.svg
| national_motto           = {{lang|gil|Te Mauri, te Raoi ao te Tabomoa}}<br />("Health, Peace and Prosperity")
| national_anthem          = {{lang|gil|[[Kunan Kiribati]]}}<br />("Song of Kiribati"){{parabr}}{{center|[[File:Kiribati Anthem Performed by US Navy Band.oga]]}}
| image_map                = Kiribati on the globe (Polynesia centered).svg
| image_map2               = 
| capital                  = [[Tarawa]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kiribatitourism.gov.ki/kiribati-pacific-ocean-location/|title=About Kiribati – Kiribati For Travellers – Kiribati National Tourism Office}}</ref>
| coordinates              = {{coord|1|28|N|173|2|E|type:city_region:KI}}
| largest_city             = [[South Tarawa]]
| official_languages       = {{unbulleted list|[[English language|English]]|[[Gilbertese language|Gilbertese]]}}
| ethnic_groups            = {{plainlist|
* 95.7% [[Demographics of Kiribati|Gilbertese]]
* 4.3% other<ref name="Census 2020"/>}}
| ethnic_groups_year       = 2020 census
| religion                 = {{ublist |item_style=white-space:nowrap;
  |96.2% [[Religion in Kiribati|Christianity]]
  |—58.9% [[Catholic Church in Kiribati|Catholic Church]]
  |—21.2% [[Kiribati Uniting Church|Uniting Church]]
  |—16.1% other [[List of Christian denominations|Christian]]
  |2.1% [[Baháʼí Faith in Kiribati|Baháʼí Faith]]
  |1.7% [[Religion in Kiribati|other]] / [[Irreligion|none]]<ref name="Census 2020">{{cite book |title=Kiribati Census 2020 |url=https://nso.gov.ki/download/146/2020-census/1965/population-and-housing-census-report-2020 |access-date=21 June 2022}}</ref>
}}
| religion_year            = 2020 census
| demonym                  = [[Micronesians#Kiribati people|I-Kiribati]]
| government_type          = Unitary [[List of countries by system of government#Parliamentary republics with an executive president|parliamentary republic with an executive presidency]]
| leader_title1            = [[President of Kiribati|President]]
| leader_name1             = [[Taneti Maamau]]
| leader_title2            = [[Vice-President of Kiribati|Vice-President]]
| leader_name2             = [[Teuea Toatu]]
| leader_title3            = [[Speaker of the House of Assembly (Kiribati)|Speaker of the House of Assembly]] 
| leader_name3             = [[Willie Tokataake]]
| legislature              = [[House of Assembly (Kiribati)|House of Assembly]]
| sovereignty_type         = Independence
| sovereignty_note         = from the [[United Kingdom]]
| established_event1       = Granted
| established_date1        = 12 July 1979
| established_event2       = [[Treaty of Tarawa]]
| established_date2        = 20 September 1979
| area_km2                 = 811.19<ref name="facts">{{cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |title=Kiribati profile – Facts |url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-16431215/ |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=23 May 2013 |access-date=23 July 2020}}</ref>
| area_rank                = 172nd<!-- Area rank should match [[List of countries and dependencies by area]] -->
| percent_water            = 
| population_estimate      = 121,388
| population_estimate_rank = 192nd
| population_estimate_year = 2021<ref>{{cite web |title=Kiribati {{!}} Data |url=https://data.worldbank.org/country/kiribati?view=chart |access-date=2022-11-25 |website=data.worldbank.org}}</ref>
| population_census_year   = 2020
| population_census        = 119,438<ref>{{cite web |title=2020 Census |url=https://nso.gov.ki/ |website=Kiribati National Statistics Office |publisher=Kiribati National Statistics Office – Ministry of Finance & Economic Development |access-date=17 August 2024}}</ref>
| population_density_km2   = 149.64
| population_density_rank  = 
| GDP_PPP                  = {{increase}} $297 million
| GDP_PPP_year             = 2023
| GDP_PPP_per_capita       = {{increase}} $2,381<ref name="autogenerated3">{{cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/April/weo-report?c=826,&s=NGDP_RPCH,NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,&sy=2022&ey=2024&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |title=World Economic Outlook database: April 2023 |date=April 2023 |accessdate=20 July 2023}}</ref>
| GDP_nominal              = {{increase}} $248 million
| GDP_nominal_year         = 2023
| GDP_nominal_per_capita   = {{increase}} $1,989<ref name="autogenerated3"/>
| Gini                     = 27.8<!--number only-->
| Gini_year                = 2019
| Gini_change              = <!--increase/decrease/steady-->
| Gini_ref                 = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/gini-index-coefficient-distribution-of-family-income/country-comparison/ |title=Gini Index coefficient|publisher=[[The World Factbook]]|access-date=24 September 2024}}</ref>
| HDI                      = 0.628 <!--number only-->
| HDI_year                 = 2022
| HDI_change               = increase<!--increase/decrease/steady-->
| HDI_ref                  = <ref>{{cite web |date=13 March 2024 |title=HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT 2023-24 |url=http://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2023-24reporten.pdf |publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]] |pages=274–277}}</ref>
| HDI_rank                 = 137th
| currency                 = [[Australian dollar]] ($)<ref>[[Kiribati dollar]] is not the official currency.</ref>
| currency_code            = AUD
| utc_offset               = [[UTC+12:00|+12]], [[UTC+13:00|+13]], [[UTC+14:00|+14]]
| utc_offset_DST           = 
| time_zone_DST            = 
| drives_on                = left
| calling_code             = [[Telephone numbers in Kiribati|+686]]
| cctld                    = [[.ki]]
| footnote_a               = <!--ORPHANED: Supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources.-->
| today                    = 
}}

'''Kiribati''',{{efn|{{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɪr|ᵻ|b|æ|s|audio=en-us-Kiribati.ogg}} {{respell|KIRR|i|bass}},<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Kiribati |title=Kiribati |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=27 July 2010}} {{cite web |url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/Kiribati |title=Kiribati: definition of Kiribati in Oxford dictionary (British & World English) |publisher=Oxford University Press |access-date=31 December 2014 |archive-date=27 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160527071902/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/kiribati |url-status=dead}}</ref> {{IPA|gil|kiɾibas|lang}}}} officially the '''Republic of Kiribati''',{{efn|{{langx|gil|Ribaberiki Kiribati}}<ref name=CIA>[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/kiribati/ Kiribati]. ''The World Factbook''.</ref><ref name=r1>[http://publications.europa.eu/code/en/en-5000500.htm#fn-md* Publications Office — Interinstitutional style guide — Annex A5 — List of countries, territories and currencies]. Europa (web portal). Retrieved 28 January 2016.</ref><ref name="facts"/>}} is an [[island country]] in the [[Micronesia]] subregion of [[Oceania]] in the central [[Pacific Ocean]]. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on [[Tarawa]] [[atoll]]. The state comprises [[list of islands of Kiribati|32 atolls]] and one remote [[raised coral atoll|raised coral island]], [[Banaba]]. Its total land area is {{convert|811|km2|abbr=on}}<ref name="IMF 2011">{{cite web |title = Kiribati: 2011 Article IV Consultation-Staff Report, Informational Annexes, Debt Sustainability Analysis, Public Information Notice on the Executive Board Discussion, and Statement by the Executive Director for Kiribati |url = https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.aspx?sk=24871.0 |publisher = International Monetary Fund Country Report No. 11/113 |date = 24 May 2011 |access-date = 4 October 2011 }}</ref> dispersed over {{convert|3441810|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}} of [[ocean]].

The islands' spread straddles the [[equator]] and the [[180th meridian]]. The [[International Date Line]] goes around Kiribati and swings far to the east, almost reaching [[150th meridian west|150°W]]. This brings Kiribati's easternmost islands, the southern [[Line Islands]] south of Hawaii, into the same day as the [[Gilbert Islands]] and places them in the most advanced time zone on Earth: [[UTC+14:00|UTC+14]].

Kiribati gained its independence from the United Kingdom, becoming a [[sovereign state]] in 1979.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://islandsbusiness.com/events-calendar/kiribati-independence-day/ |title=Kiribati Independence Day |website=islandsbuisness.com |date=19 March 2025}}</ref> The capital, [[South Tarawa]], now the most populated area, consists of a number of islets, connected by a series of [[causeway]]s. These comprise about half the area of [[Tarawa|Tarawa Atoll]]. Prior to its independence the country exported [[phosphate]], but those mines are no longer viable. [[Fisheries]] and the export of [[copra]] drive much of the economy. Kiribati is one of the [[least developed countries]] in the world and is highly dependent on international aid for its economy.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/least-developed-country-category-kiribati.html |title=Least Developed Country Category: Kiribati Profile |website=un.org |date=19 March 2025}}</ref>

Kiribati is a member of the [[Pacific Community]], [[Commonwealth of Nations]], the [[International Monetary Fund]], the [[World Bank]], and the [[Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States]], and became a full member of the [[United Nations]] in 1999.<ref>In February 2021, Kiribati announced it would be withdrawing from the [[Pacific Islands Forum]] in a joint statement with [[Marshall Islands]], [[Nauru]], and the [[Federated States of Micronesia]] after a dispute regarding [[Henry Puna]]'s election as the forum's secretary-general.</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite web|date=9 February 2021|title=Five Micronesian countries leave Pacific Islands Forum|url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/436039/five-micronesian-countries-leave-pacific-islands-forum|access-date=9 February 2021|publisher=[[RNZ]] }}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite web|date=8 February 2021|title=Pacific Islands Forum in crisis as one-third of member nations quit|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/09/pacific-islands-forum-in-crisis-as-one-third-of-member-nations-quit|access-date=9 February 2021|work=The Guardian}}</ref> As an island nation, the islands are [[Effects of climate change on small island countries|vulnerable to climate change]] and tsunamis. [[Climate change mitigation|Addressing climate change]] has been a central part of its international policy, as a member of the [[Alliance of Small Island States]].

==Etymology and pronunciation==
The name is pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɪr|ɪ|b|æ|s}} {{respell|KIRR|i|bass}}, as {{lang|gil|-ti}} in the [[Gilbertese language]] represents an {{IPAblink|s}} sound.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kiribati Country Profile |url=https://www.commonwealthofnations.org/country/kiribati/ |access-date=2023-10-06 |publisher=[[Commonwealth of Nations]] |language=en-GB }}</ref> Similarly, the name of its people, the I-Kiribati, is pronounced {{IPAc-en|iː|ˈ|k|ɪr|ɪ|b|æ|s}} {{respell|ee|KIRR|i|bass}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=i-Kiribati |url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/i-kiribati |work=[[Oxford Learner's Dictionaries]] }}</ref>

[[File:FMIB 53006 Gilbert or Kingsmill Islands.jpeg|thumb|Map of the Gilbert or Kingsmill Islands, 1890]]

The name ''Kiribati'' was adopted upon the country's independence in 1979. It is the Gilbertese rendition of Gilberts, the plural of the English name of the nation's main archipelago, the [[Gilbert Islands]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Reilly Ridgell |title=Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia |edition=3rd |location=[[Honolulu]] |publisher=[[Bess Press]] |year=1995 |page=95 }}</ref> It was named {{lang|fr|îles Gilbert}} ([[French language|French]] for 'Gilbert Islands') in about 1820 by Russian admiral [[Adam Johann von Krusenstern|Adam von Krusenstern]]<ref>In his authoritative pioneer {{lang|fr|Atlas de l'Océan pacifique}} (1824–27).</ref> and French captain [[Louis-Isidore Duperrey|Louis Duperrey]],<ref>{{lang|fr|Voyage autour du monde exécuté par ordre du roi, sur la corvette de Sa Majesté, {{noitalic|La Coquille}}, pendant les années 1822, 1823, 1824 et 1825, sous le ministère et conformément aux instructions de S.E.M. le Marquis de Clermont-Tonnerre... et publié sous les auspices de son Excellence {{abbr|Mgr|Monseigneur}} le Cte de Chabrol ..., Par M. L.I. Duperrey...}}, 8 volumes in 4° et 5 volumes in-folio, Paris, [[Arthus-Bertrand]], 1826–1830 (Imprimerie de [[Firmin Didot]]).</ref> after the British [[sea captain|captain]] [[Thomas Gilbert (sea captain)|Thomas Gilbert]]. Gilbert and captain [[John Marshall (Royal Navy officer, born 1748)|John Marshall]] sighted some of the islands in 1788, while crossing the "outer passage" route from [[Port Jackson]] to [[Guangzhou|Canton]].<ref name="jps.auckland.ac.nz">{{cite journal |url=http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_70_1961/Volume_70%2C_No._1/Post-Spanish_discoveries_in_the_central_Pacific%2C_by_H._E._Maude%2C_p_67-111/p1 |author-link=Henry Evans Maude |last=Maude |first=H. E. |title=Post-Spanish discoveries in the central Pacific |journal=The Journal of the Polynesian Society |date=1961 |volume=70 |number=1 |pages=67–111 |access-date=29 July 2020 |archive-date=27 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227235057/http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/Volume_70_1961/Volume_70,_No._1/Post-Spanish_discoveries_in_the_central_Pacific,_by_H._E._Maude,_p_67-111/p1 |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{sfn|Macdonald|1982}}<ref name=LifeMagazine1944-05-22>{{cite news |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bk8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA91 |title=The Gilberts & Marshalls: A distinguished historian recalls the past of two recently captured pacific groups |magazine=[[Life (magazine)|Life]] |date=22 May 1944 |author=Samuel Eliot Morison |access-date=14 October 2009 |author-link=Samuel Eliot Morison }}</ref> Both von Krusenstern's and Duperrey's maps, published in 1824, were written in French.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Douglas |first1=Bronwen |last2=Govor |first2=Elena |title=Eponymy, Encounters, and Local Knowledge in Russian Place Naming in the Pacific Islands, 1804–1830 |journal=The Historical Journal |date=September 2019 |volume=62 |issue=3 |pages=709–740 |doi=10.1017/S0018246X19000013 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0018246X19000013 |language=en |issn=0018-246X|hdl=1885/176991 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

In French, the Northern Islands were until then called {{lang|fr|îles Mulgrave}} and [[Nikunau|Byron Island]] was not part of them. In English, the archipelago, particularly the southern part, was often referred to as the ''Kingsmills'' in the 19th century, although the name ''Gilbert Islands'' was used increasingly, including in the [[British Western Pacific Territories|Western Pacific Order in Council]] of 1877 and in the Pacific Order of 1893.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Pacific Order, 1893 |url=http://www.paclii.org/sb/legis/sb-uk_act/po189395.rtf |publisher=Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute |access-date=23 July 2020 |year=1893}}</ref>

The name ''Gilbert'', already in the name of the British protectorate since 1892, was incorporated into the name of the entire [[Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony]] (GEIC) from 1916 and was retained after the Ellice Islands became the separate country of [[Tuvalu]] in 1976. The spelling of Gilberts in the Gilbertese language as {{lang|gil|Kiribati}} may be found in books in Gilbertese prepared by [[missionaries]], but with the meaning of Gilbertese ([[demonym]] and language) (see e.g., Hawaiian Board of Missionaries, 1895).{{sfn|HBM|1895}} The first mention as a dictionary entry of the word ''Kiribati'' as the native name of the country was written down in 1952 by [[Ernest Sabatier]] in his comprehensive {{lang|fr|Dictionnaire gilbertin–français}}.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}} <!-- I was unable to find any source for this claim. I couldn't find any publicly accessible version of this text, so I cannot confirm if it is true or false. -->

The indigenous name often suggested for the Gilbert Islands proper is {{lang|gil|Tungaru}} (see e.g., [[Ernest Sabatier]], 1952–1953, or [[Arthur Grimble]], 1989{{sfn|Grimble|1989}}). The rendition ''Kiribati'' for Gilberts was chosen as the official name of the new independent state by the chief minister, Sir [[Ieremia Tabai]] and his [[cabinet of Kiribati|cabinet]], on such grounds that it was modern,<ref name=cind/> and to comprehend the inclusion of outer islands (e.g., [[Phoenix Islands|the Phoenix Group]] and Line Islands), which were not considered part of the Tungaru (or Gilberts) chain.{{sfn|Sabatier|1954}}{{NoteTag|{{harvp|Sabatier|1954}} says that ''Kiribati'' is already the meaning for all the Gilberts District of GEIC.}}<ref name="auto1"/>

==History==
{{main|History of Kiribati}}
[[File:Tabiteuean warriors of the Gilberts Islands, about 1840.png|thumb|Gilbertese warriors of [[Tabiteuea]], with [[Leiomano|shark's teeth weapons]], {{circa|1841}}]]

=== Early history ===
The area now called Kiribati has been inhabited by [[Austronesian peoples]] speaking the same [[Oceanic languages|Oceanic language]], from north to south, including the southernmost [[Nui (atoll)|Nui]], since sometime between 3000&nbsp;BC<ref name=cind>Macdonald, Barrie (2001) ''Cinderellas of the Empire: towards a history of Kiribati and Tuvalu'', Institute of Pacific Studies, [[University of the South Pacific]], Suva, Fiji, {{ISBN|982-02-0335-X}}, p. 1</ref> and 1300&nbsp;AD.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=5}} The area was not completely isolated; later, voyagers from [[Samoa]], [[Tonga]], and [[Fiji]] introduced some [[Polynesia]]n and [[Melanesia]]n cultural aspects, respectively. Intermarriage and intense navigation between the islands tended to blur cultural differences and resulted in a significant degree of cultural homogenization.<ref name=brit/><ref>{{cite web |title=Background Note: Kiribati |url=http://www.mfep.gov.ki/Facts%20and%20Background.htm |website=Ministry of Finance and Economic Development |access-date=23 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091014051525/http://www.mfep.gov.ki/Facts%20and%20Background.htm |archive-date=14 October 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Local oral historians chiefly in the form of lore keepers suggest that the area was first inhabited by a group of seafaring people from [[Melanesia]], who were described as being dark-skinned, frizzy-haired, and short in stature. These [[indigenous peoples]] were then visited by early [[Austronesian peoples|Austronesian]] seafarers from the west, a place called Matang, orally described as being tall and fair-skinned. Eventually, both groups intermittently clashed and intermingled until they slowly became a uniform population.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}
[[Image:Makin Islander.jpg|thumb|Portrait of a native of the [[Makin (islands)|Makin]] Islands, drawn by [[Alfred Thomas Agate]] (1841)]]

Around AD 1300, a mass departure occurred from [[Samoa]] leading to the addition of Polynesian ancestry into the mix of most Gilbertese people. These Samoans later brought strong features of [[Polynesian languages]] and culture, creating clans based on their own Samoan traditions and slowly intertwining with the indigenous clans and powers already dominant in Kiribati. Around the 15th century, starkly contrasting systems of governance arose between the northern islands, primarily under chiefly rule (''uea''), and the central and southern islands, primarily under the rule of their council of elders (''unimwaane''). [[Tabiteuea]] could be an exception as the sole island that is known as maintaining a traditional [[Egalitarianism|egalitarian]] society. The name Tabiteuea stems from the root phrase ''Tabu-te-Uea'', meaning "chiefs are forbidden".<ref>But the organization of the political decisions was far more complex as described by Jean-Paul Latouche, in ''Qui veut prendre la parole ?'' (2003) by [[Marcel Detienne]].</ref> Civil war soon became a factor, with acquisition of land being the main form of conquest. Clans and chiefs began fighting over resources, stimulated by hatred and reignited blood feuds, which had their origins months, years, or even decades before.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

The turmoil lasted well into the European visitation and colonial era, which led to certain islands decimating their foes with the help of guns and cannon-equipped ships that Europeans provided to some I-Kiribati leaders.<ref name="jps.auckland.ac.nz"/> The typical military arms of the I-Kiribati at this time were shark tooth-embedded wooden spears, knives, and swords, and garbs of armour fashioned from dense coconut fibre. They chiefly used these instead of the gunpowder and weapons of steel available at the time, because of the strong sentimental value of the equipment handed down through generations. Ranged weapons, such as bows, slings, and javelins, were seldom used; [[Culture of Kiribati#Kiribati traditional martial arts|hand-to-hand combat]] was a prominent skill still practised today, though seldom mentioned because of various taboos associated with it, secrecy being the primary one. [[Abemama]]'s High Chief [[Tembinok']] was the last of the dozens of expansionist chiefs of Gilbert Islands of this period, despite Abemama historically conforming to the traditional southern islands' governance of their respective ''unimwaane''. He was immortalised in [[Robert Louis Stevenson]]'s book ''In the South Seas'', which delved into the high chief's character and method of rule during Stevenson's stay in Abemama. The 90th anniversary of his arrival in the Gilbert Islands was chosen to celebrate the independence of Kiribati on 12 July 1979.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/464/464-h/464-h.htm|title = In the South Seas, by Robert Louis Stevenson}}</ref>

===Colonial era===
{{Main|British Western Pacific Territories|Gilbert and Ellice Islands}}

Chance visits by European ships occurred in the 17th and 18th centuries,<ref>{{cite journal|last1= Maude|first1= H. E.|last2= Heyen|first2= G. H.|year= 1959|title= Spanish Discoveries in the Central Pacific: A Study in Identification|journal= The Journal of the Polynesian Society|volume= 68|issue= 4|pages= 285–326|url= http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_68_1959/Volume_68,_No._4/Spanish_discoveries_in_the_Pacific,_by_H._E._Maude,_p_285-326/p1|access-date= 27 February 2015|archive-date= 8 December 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20211208024508/http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/Volume_68_1959/Volume_68,_No._4/Spanish_discoveries_in_the_Pacific,_by_H._E._Maude,_p_285-326/p1|url-status= dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Maude|first=H. E.|year=1961|title=Post-Spanish Discoveries in the Central Pacific|journal=The Journal of the Polynesian Society|volume=70|issue=1|url=http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_70_1961/Volume_70,_No._1/Post-Spanish_discoveries_in_the_central_Pacific,_by_H._E._Maude,_p_67-111/p1|pages=67–111|access-date=27 February 2015|archive-date=27 December 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20211227235057/http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/Volume_70_1961/Volume_70,_No._1/Post-Spanish_discoveries_in_the_central_Pacific,_by_H._E._Maude,_p_67-111/p1|url-status=dead}}</ref> while those ships attempted circumnavigations of the world, or sought sailing routes from the south to north Pacific Ocean, a passing trade, whaling the On-The-Line grounds,<ref>{{Cite journal |author=Lever R.J.A.W. |date=April 1964 |journal=South Pacific Bulletin |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=33–36 |url=https://spccfpstore1.blob.core.windows.net/digitallibrary-docs/files/1a/1ac948972f523b26359f2d23693d2a69.pdf?sv=2015-12-11&sr=b&sig=e%2BiGKv891HWj4Rk6E2BEhTX4gfkUKDsOwIKeCJA%2FFXQ%3D&se=2021-01-25T00%3A32%3A52Z&sp=r&rscc=public%2C%20max-age%3D864000%2C%20max-stale%3D86400&rsct=application%2Fpdf&rscd=inline%3B%20filename%3D%22SPB14_2_Lever.pdf%22 |title=Whales and Whaling in the Western Pacific |access-date=30 March 2022 |archive-date=23 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923054026/https://spccfpstore1.blob.core.windows.net/digitallibrary-docs/files/1a/1ac948972f523b26359f2d23693d2a69.pdf?sv=2015-12-11&sr=b&sig=e%2BiGKv891HWj4Rk6E2BEhTX4gfkUKDsOwIKeCJA%2FFXQ%3D&se=2021-01-25T00%3A32%3A52Z&sp=r&rscc=public%2C%20max-age%3D864000%2C%20max-stale%3D86400&rsct=application%2Fpdf&rscd=inline%3B%20filename%3D%22SPB14_2_Lever.pdf%22 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Best |first= P. B. |year=1983|title=Sperm whale stock assessments and the relevance of historical whaling records|journal=Report of the International Whaling Commission |volume=Special Issue 5|pages= 41–55}}</ref> and labour ships associated with the coercive labour recruitment practices, known as [[blackbirding]]. This recruitment of [[Kanaka (Pacific Island worker)|Kanaka]] workers in large numbers during the 19th century, had social, economic, political, religious and cultural consequences. More than 9,000 workers were sent abroad from 1845 to 1895, most of them not returning.<ref name=cind/><ref>{{cite report |last1=Geddes |first1=W. H. |last2=Chambers |first2=A. |last3=Sewell |first3=B. |last4=Lawrence |first4=R. |last5=Watters |first5=R. |title=Islands on the line: team report |year=1982 |series=Atoll economy : social change in Kiribati and Tuvalu, no. 1 |publisher=Australian National University |location=Canberra }}</ref>

The passing trade gave rise to European, Indian, Chinese, Samoan, and other residents from the 1830s; they included [[beachcombing|beachcombers]], castaways,<ref name="maude">H. E. Maude, ''Beachcombers and castaways'', The Journal of the Polynesian Society 73: 3 (1964) 254–293</ref><ref name="ICC">{{cite book |last1= Campbell|first1= Ian C.|title=Gone Native in Polynesia: Captivity Narratives and Experiences from the South Pacific|year=2014|publisher= Praeger |isbn = 978-0313307874 }}</ref><ref name="BC">{{cite book |last1= Milcairns|first1= Susanne Williams |title=Native Strangers: Beachcombers, Renegades and Castaways in the South Seas |year=2006|publisher= Penguin Books |location= Auckland}}</ref><ref name="RC">{{cite book |last1= Ralston|first1= Caroline|title=Native Strangers: Grass Huts and Warehouses: Pacific Beach Communities of the Nineteenth Century |year=2014|publisher= University of Queensland Press|isbn = 9781921902321 }}</ref> traders, and missionaries. Dr [[Hiram Bingham II]] of the [[American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions]] (ABCFM) arrived on [[Abaiang]] in 1857. The Roman Catholic faith was introduced on [[Nonouti]] around 1880 by 2 Gilbert islanders, Betero and Tiroi, who had become Christians in Tahiti. Father Joseph Leray, Father Edward Bontemps and Brother Conrad Weber, Roman Catholic [[Missionaries of the Sacred Heart]] arrived on Nonouti in 1888.<ref name="MKT">{{cite web |last= |work=Mauri – Kiribati, Tawara and Gilberts |title=Tourism Authority of Kiribati |date=2019 |url=https://visitkiribati.travel/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/4Tarawa-Guide-2019-final.pdf|access-date=30 March 2024}}</ref> The Protestant missionaries of the [[London Missionary Society]] (LMS) were also active in the southern Gilberts. On 15 October 1870, Rev. Samuel James Whitmee of the LMS arrived at [[Arorae]], and later that month he visited [[Tamana, Kiribati|Tamana]], [[Onotoa]] and [[Beru (atoll)|Beru]].<ref name="SJM">{{cite book |last=Whitmee |first=Samuel James |title=A missionary cruise in the South Pacific being the report of a voyage amongst the Tokelau, Ellice and Gilbert islands, in the missionary barque "John Williams" during 1870 |year=1871 |publisher=J. Cook & Co. |location=Sydney}}</ref> In August 1872, [[George Pratt (missionary)|George Pratt]] of the LMS visited the islands.<ref name="LMS">{{cite book |last=Lovett |first=Richard |title=The history of the London Missionary Society, 1795-1895 |volume=1 |year=1899 |publisher=H. Frowde |location=London}}</ref>
[[File:Declaration of a protectorate on Abemama by Captain Davis, 27th May 1892.JPG|thumb| Declaration of a protectorate on [[Abemama]] by Captain [[Edward H.M. Davis|EHM Davis]], 27 May 1892]]

In 1886, an [[Anglo-German Declarations about the Western Pacific Ocean|Anglo-German agreement]] partitioned the "unclaimed" central Pacific, leaving [[Nauru]] in the German sphere of influence, while [[Banaba]] (known to Europeans as Ocean Island) and the future GEIC wound up in the [[British Empire|British sphere of influence]]. In 1892, local Gilbertese authorities (an ''uea'', a chief from the Northern Gilbert Group, and ''atun te boti'' or head of clan<ref name="maude2">{{cite journal | last = Maude | first = H. E. | year = 1963|title = The Evolution of the Gilbertese ''Boti''|url = http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/?wid=3260 | journal = The Journal of the Polynesian Society|volume = 72|issue = Supplement Memoir No. 35 |pages = 1–68|access-date = 23 March 2019|archive-date = 27 January 2019|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190127175542/http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/?wid=3260 | url-status = dead }}</ref>) on each of the Gilbert Islands agreed to Captain [[Edward H.M. Davis|Edward Davis]] commanding [[HMS Royalist (1883)|HMS ''Royalist'']] of the [[Royal Navy]] declaring them part of a [[British protectorate]], along with the nearby [[Ellice Islands]]. They were administered by a [[Governor of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands|resident commissioner]] based first on [[Butaritari|Makin Islands]] (1893–95), then in [[Betio]], [[Tarawa]] (1896–1908) and Banaba (1908–1942), protectorate who was under the [[High Commissioner for the Western Pacific|Western Pacific High Commission]] (WPHC) based in Fiji.<ref name=BBCtimeline>{{cite news |url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/country_profiles/2944816.stm |title = BBC Timeline: Kiribati |access-date = 29 July 2008 |publisher = BBC News|date = 15 May 2008 }}</ref> Banaba was added to the protectorate in 1900, because of the [[Phosphorite|phosphate rock]] of its soil (discovered in 1900). [[Phosphate mining in Banaba and Nauru|This discovery and the mining]] provided a significant amount of revenue, in the form of taxes and duties, to the WPHC.

The conduct of [[William Telfer Campbell]], the second resident commissioner of the Gilberts and Ellice Islands of 1896 to 1908, was criticised as to his legislative, judicial and administrative management (including allegations of forced labour exacted from islanders) and became the subject of the 1909 report by [[Arthur William Mahaffy|Arthur Mahaffy]].<ref>{{cite report |last=Mahaffy |first=Arthur |title=Report by Mr. Arthur Mahaffy on a visit to the Gilbert and Ellice Islands |access-date=26 July 2020 |year=1909 |publisher=His Majesty's Stationery Office |location=London |chapter=CO 225/86/26804 |chapter-url=http://www.wdl.org/en/item/2367/}}</ref> In 1913, an anonymous correspondent to ''[[The New Age]]'' newspaper described the maladministration of W. Telfer Campbell and challenged the impartiality of Arthur Mahaffy, because he was a former colonial official in the Gilberts.<ref name="AN">{{cite journal |title=Modern buccaneers in the West Pacific |url=http://dl.lib.brown.edu/pdfs/1140814207532014.pdf |journal=The New Age |location=South Africa |date=5 June 1913 |pages=136–140}}</ref> The anonymous correspondent also criticised the operations of the [[Pacific Phosphate Company]] on Banaba.<ref name="AN"/>
[[File:Boeing 314 Clipper in cruise.jpg|thumb|[[Boeing 314 Clipper]] in cruise, 1940]]

The islands became the [[crown colony]] of the [[Gilbert and Ellice Islands]] in 1916.<ref name=brit/> The Northern Line Islands, including Christmas Island ([[Kiritimati]]),<ref>[[Fanning Island]] (Tabuaeran) and [[Teraina]] (Washington Island) were previously incorporated in 1888 into the BWPT.</ref> were added to the colony in 1919, and the [[Phoenix Islands]] were added in 1937 with the purpose of a [[Phoenix Islands Settlement Scheme]]. On 12 July 1940, [[Pan Am]] Airways' ''[[Boeing 314 Clipper|American Clipper]]'' landed at [[Kanton Island|Canton Island]] for the first time during a flight from [[Honolulu]] to [[Auckland]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.panam.org/explorations/650-canton-critical-stopover|title = Canton: Critical Stopover}}</ref> Sir [[Arthur Grimble]] was a cadet administrative officer based at Tarawa (1913–1919) and became Resident Commissioner of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony in 1926.{{sfn|Grimble|1952}}

[[File:Stamp Gilbert Ellice Islands 1939 3p.jpg|thumb|Stamp with portrait of [[George VI|King George VI]], 1939]]
In 1902, the [[Pacific Cable Station|Pacific Cable Board]] laid the first trans-Pacific telegraph cable from [[Bamfield]], British Columbia, to [[Fanning Island]] (Tabuaeran) in the Line Islands, and from Fiji to Fanning Island, thus completing the [[All Red Line]], a series of telegraph lines circumnavigating the globe completely within the British Empire. The location of Fanning Island, one of the closest formations to Hawaii, led to its annexation by the British Empire in 1888. Nearby candidates including [[Palmyra Island]] were not favoured due to the lack of adequate landing sites.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

The United States eventually incorporated the Northern Line Islands into its territories, and did the same with the [[Phoenix Islands]], which lie between Gilberts and the Line Islands, including [[Howland Island|Howland]], [[Jarvis Island|Jarvis]], and [[Baker Island|Baker]] islands, thus causing a territorial dispute. That was eventually resolved and they finally became part of Kiribati under the [[Treaty of Tarawa]].<ref> That treaty was signed shortly after independence and ratified in 1983, with the United States relinquishing all claims to the sparsely-inhabited Phoenix Islands, and those of the Line Islands that are part of Kiribati territory.</ref>
[[File:Tarawa.jpg|thumb|right|American Marines assault a Japanese bunker during the [[Battle of Tarawa]], November 1943]]

After the [[attack on Pearl Harbor]], during [[World War II]], [[Butaritari]] and Tarawa, and others of the Northern Gilbert group, were [[Japanese occupation of the Gilbert Islands|occupied by Japan]] from 1941 to 1943. [[Betio]] became an airfield and supply base. The expulsion of the Japanese forces in late 1943 involved one of the bloodiest battles in [[US Marine Corps]] history. Marines landed in November 1943 and the [[Battle of Tarawa]] ensued. As the headquarters of the colony, Banaba was bombed, evacuated and occupied by Japan in 1942 and not freed until 1945, after the massacre of all but one of the Gilbertese on the island by the Japanese forces. [[Funafuti]] then hosted the provisional headquarters of the colony from 1942 to 1946, when Tarawa returned to host the headquarters.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

At the end of 1945, most of the remaining inhabitants of Banaba, repatriated from [[Kosrae]], [[Nauru]] and Tarawa, were relocated to [[Rabi Island]], an island of Fiji that the British government had acquired in 1942 for this purpose.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://journals.openedition.org/jso/7100|doi = 10.4000/jso.7100|title = Phosphate mining and the relocation of the Banabans to northern Fiji in 1945: Lessons for climate change-forced displacement|year = 2014|last1 = Edwards|first1 = Julia B.|journal = Journal de la Société des Océanistes|issue = 138–139|pages = 121–136|doi-access = free}}</ref>

On 1 January 1953, the [[List of resident commissioners and governors of the Solomon Islands|British Western Pacific High Commissioner]] of the colony was transferred from Fiji to the new capital of [[Honiara]], to the [[British Solomon Islands]], with the Gilberts' Resident Commissioner still located in Tarawa.<ref name="Macdonald, B. K. 1982">{{cite book |last= Macdonald |first= Barrie Keith|author-link= |date= 2001 |title= Cinderellas of the Empire: Towards a History of Kiribati and Tuvalu|url= |location= Canberra|publisher=([[Australian National University]] Press, (first published 1982)|pages=|isbn=982-02-0335-X}}</ref>

Further military operations in the colony occurred in the late 1950s and early 1960s when [[Kiritimati|Christmas Island]] was used by the United States and United Kingdom for [[nuclear weapons testing]] including [[thermonuclear weapon|hydrogen bombs]].<ref>[https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA136820.pdf] Operation Dominic I, United States Atmospheric Nuclear Weapons Test Personnel Review, Defense Nuclear Agency for the Department of Defense, 1962</ref>

Institutions of internal self-rule were established on Tarawa from about 1967. The Ellice Islands requested their separation from the rest of the colony in 1974 and were granted their own internal self-rule institutions. The separation entered into force on 1 January 1976. In 1978, the Ellice Islands became the independent state of [[Tuvalu]].<ref name="auto1">Ridgell, Reilly (1995) ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia''. 3rd Edition. Honolulu: Bess Press. {{ISBN|1573060011}}. p. 95.</ref>

===Independence===
[[File:KiribatiPresidential Residence.jpg|thumb|The Presidential residence, former [[Government House]], [[Bairiki]]]]
The Gilbert Islands gained independence as the Republic of Kiribati on 12 July 1979.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/oceania/ki.htm|title=Kiribati Map and Information, Map of Kiribati, Facts, Figures and Geography of Kiribati -Worldatlas.com |website=worldatlas.com|language=en|access-date=12 July 2017}}</ref> Then, in September, the United States relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited [[Phoenix Islands|Phoenix]] and Line Islands, in a 1979 treaty of friendship with Kiribati ([[Treaty of Tarawa|ratified in 1983]]).<ref>Kiribati was then granted sovereignty on [[Canton Island]], [[Enderbury Island]], Birnie Island, Mckean Island, Rawaki, Manra, Orona, and Nikumaroro from the Phoenix Islands; and [[Teraina]], [[Tabuaeran]], [[Kiritimati]], Malden Island, Starbuck Island, Caroline Islands, Vostok Islands and Flint Island from the Line Islands.</ref> Although the indigenous [[Gilbertese language|Gilbertese]] name for the Gilbert Islands proper is "Tungaru", the new state chose the name "Kiribati", the Gilbertese spelling of "Gilberts", because it was more modern and as an equivalent of the former colony to acknowledge the inclusion of Banaba, the Line Islands, and the [[Phoenix Islands]]. The last two archipelagoes were never initially occupied by Gilbertese until the British authorities, and later the republic's government, resettled Gilbertese there under resettlement schemes.<ref name="auto1"/><ref name="auto">{{cite journal |last= Maude |first= H. E. |year= 1952 |title= The colonisation of the Phoenix Islands |journal= Journal of the Polynesian Society |volume= 61 |issue= 1–2 |pages= 62–89 |url= http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_61_1952/Volume_61,_No._1_%2B_2/The_colonization_of_the_Phoenix_Islands,_by_H._E._Maude,_p_62-89/p1 |access-date= 27 February 2015 |archive-date= 14 November 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20221114130302/http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_61_1952/Volume_61,_No._1_+_2/The_colonization_of_the_Phoenix_Islands,_by_H._E._Maude,_p_62-89/p1 |url-status= dead }}</ref> In 1982, the first [[1982 Kiribati parliamentary election|elections since independence]] were held. A no-confidence vote provoked another [[1983 Kiribati parliamentary election|election in 1983]]. In the post-independence period, [[overcrowding]] has been an issue, at least in British and aid organisations' eyes. In 1988, an announcement was made that 4,700 residents of the main island group would be resettled onto less populated islands. In September 1994, [[Teburoro Tito]] from the opposition was elected president.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=East |first1=Roger |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5VO4AwAAQBAJ&dq=Teburoro+Tito+25+August+1953&pg=PA274 |title=Profiles of People in Power: The World's Government Leaders |last2=Thomas |first2=Richard J. |date=2014-06-03 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-63940-4 |language=en}}</ref>

In 1995, Kiribati unilaterally moved the [[International Date Line]] far to the east to encompass the Line Islands group, so that the country would no longer be divided by the date line. The move, which fulfilled one of President Tito's campaign promises, was intended to allow businesses across the expansive territory to keep the same business week. This also enabled Kiribati to become the first country to see the dawn of the [[third millennium]], an event of significance for tourism. Tito was re-elected in 1998. In 1999, Kiribati became a full member of the United Nations, 20 years after independence.<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.un.org/webcast/ga/58/statements/kirieng031001.htm |title = Kiribati |publisher = United Nations |date = 1 October 2003 |access-date = 14 May 2010 }}</ref> In 2002, Kiribati passed a controversial law that enabled the government to shut down newspaper publishers. The legislation followed the launching of Kiribati's first successful non-government-run newspaper. President Tito was re-elected in 2003 but was removed from office in March 2003 by a no-confidence vote and replaced by a Council of State. [[Anote Tong]] of the opposition party [[Boutokaan Te Koaua]] was elected to succeed Tito in July 2003. He was re-elected in 2007 and in 2011.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.electionguide.org/country.php?ID=113 |title = IFES Election Guide – Country Profile: Kiribati |publisher = Electionguide.org |access-date = 14 May 2010 }}</ref>

In June 2008, Kiribati officials asked Australia and New Zealand to accept Kiribati citizens as permanent refugees. Kiribati is expected to be the first country to lose all its land territory to [[climate change]]. In June 2008, Kiribati President Anote Tong said that the country had reached "the point of no return." He added, "To plan for the day when you no longer have a country is indeed painful but I think we have to do that."<ref>{{cite news |title=Leader of disappearing island nation says climate change an issue of survival, not economics |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/06/05/asia/AS-GEN-New-Zealand-World-Environment-Day.php |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=International Herald Tribune |agency=Associated Press|date=5 June 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080605183737/http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/06/05/asia/AS-GEN-New-Zealand-World-Environment-Day.php |archive-date=5 June 2008 |location=Wellington, New Zealand}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Kiribati's President: 'Our Lives Are at Stake' |url=https://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=3002001 |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=ABC News |publisher=American Broadcasting Company |date=7 May 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Marks |first1=Kathy |title=Paradise lost: climate change forces South Sea islanders to seek sanctuary abroad |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/paradise-lost-climate-change-forces-south-sea-islanders-to-seek-sanctuary-abroad-841409.html |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=The Independent|date=6 June 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Nair |first1=Suchit |title=Tiny atoll in Pacific cries out for help |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Tiny-atoll-in-Pacific-cries-out-for-help/articleshow/3104328.cms |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=The Times of India |date=6 June 2008 |location=Wellington/Christchurch}}</ref>

In January 2012, Anote Tong was re-elected for a third and last successive term. In early 2012, the government of Kiribati acquired the 2,200-hectare Natoavatu Estate on the second largest island of Fiji, [[Vanua Levu]]. At the time it was widely reported<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/kiribati/9127576/Entire-nation-of-Kiribati-to-be-relocated-over-rising-sea-level-threat.html |location = London |work = The Daily Telegraph |first = Paul |last = Chapman |title = Entire nation of Kiribati to be relocated over rising sea level threat |date = 7 March 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Spector |first1=Dina |last2=Lee |first2=Eloise |title=Rising Sea Levels Are Forcing This Entire Island Nation To Move To Another Island |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/kiribati-rising-sea-levels-climate-change-2012-3 |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=Business Insider |date=7 March 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=67431.html |location = Wellington |work = Radio NZ |title = Kiribati parliament to consider Fiji land purchase |date = 11 April 2012 }}</ref> that the government planned to evacuate the entire population of Kiribati to Fiji. In April 2013, President Tong began urging citizens to evacuate the islands and migrate elsewhere.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lagan |first1=Bernard |title=Kiribati: A Nation Going Under |url=http://www.theglobalmail.org/feature/kiribati-a-nation-going-under/590/ |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=The Global Mail |date=15 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130423023949/http://www.theglobalmail.org/feature/kiribati-a-nation-going-under/590/ |archive-date=23 April 2013}}</ref> In May 2014, the Office of the President confirmed the purchase of some 5,460 acres of land on Vanua Levu at a cost of 9.3&nbsp;million Australian dollars.<ref>{{cite press release |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Kiribati buys a piece of Fiji |url=http://www.climate.gov.ki/2014/05/30/kiribati-buys-a-piece-of-fiji/ |publisher=Republic of Kiribati |access-date=23 July 2020 |date=30 May 2014 |archive-date=14 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221114130320/http://www.climate.gov.ki/2014/05/30/kiribati-buys-a-piece-of-fiji/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In March 2016, [[Taneti Maamau]] was [[2016 Kiribati presidential election|elected]] and took office as the fifth President of Kiribati.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/298579/taneti-maamau-declared-new-president-of-kiribati |title=Taneti Maamau declared new president of Kiribati |work=rnz.co.au |date=10 March 2016 |access-date=20 August 2021 }}</ref> In June 2020, President Maamau won [[2020 Kiribati presidential election|re-election]] for a second four-year term. President Maamau was considered pro-China and he supported closer ties with Beijing.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dw.com/en/kiribati-pro-china-president-taneti-maamau-wins-reelection-bid/a-53903705 |title=Kiribati: Pro-China President Taneti Maamau wins reelection bid |work=DW.com |date=23 June 2020 |access-date=20 August 2021 }}</ref> On 16 November 2021, the Kiribati government announced it would expose the world's largest marine protected area to commercial fishing. The [[2022 Kiribati constitutional crisis]] started with the suspension of all 5 major Justices of the [[judiciary of Kiribati]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Legal body condemns Kiribati govt over judiciary moves |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/474413/legal-body-condemns-kiribati-govt-over-judiciary-moves |work=[[RNZ]] |date=8 September 2022 |language=en-nz}}</ref>

In 2020, [[COVID-19 pandemic in Kiribati|Kiribati’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic]], consistent with most of the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Oceania|COVID-19 responses of Oceania island nations]], was to impose strict limits on tourism and commercial travel. Kiribati reported that it remained essentially COVID-free (two cases) until January 2022 when the first commercial international flight in two years included 36 passengers who tested positive. In 2024, 5,085 Coronavirus Cases were reported which causes 24 deaths, while 2,703 were reported to have recovered.
<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/kiribati/|title=Kiribati COVID - Coronavirus Statistics|website=Worldometer}}</ref>
On 29 January 2023, Kiribati confirmed its intention to rejoin the [[Pacific Islands Forum]], ending a bitter two-year leadership split.

==Politics==
{{Main|Politics of Kiribati}}

[[File:KiribatiParliamentHouse.jpg|thumb|[[Maneaba]] ni Maungatabu, House of Assembly, 2000]]

The [[Constitution of Kiribati]], promulgated 12 July 1979, provides for free and open elections in a [[parliamentary system|parliamentary]] [[representative democracy|democratic]] republic.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.commonwealthgovernance.org/countries/pacific/kiribati/constitution/|title=Constitution of Kiribati|website=Commonwealth Governance}}</ref>

The executive branch consists of a [[President of Kiribati|president]] (''te Beretitenti''), a [[Vice-President of Kiribati|vice-president]] and a [[Cabinet of Kiribati|cabinet]]. The president, who is also chief of the cabinet, is directly elected by the citizens, after the legislature nominates three or four persons from among its members to be candidates in the ensuing presidential election. The president is limited to serving three four-year terms, and remains a member of the assembly. The cabinet is composed of the president, vice-president, and 13 ministers (appointed by the president) who are also [[House of Assembly (Kiribati)|members of parliament]].<ref name="US State Dept"/>

The legislative branch is the unicameral ''[[House of Assembly (Kiribati)|Maneaba ni Maungatabu]]'' (House of Assembly). Its members are elected, including by constitutional mandate, a nominated representative of the [[Banaban people]] in [[Rabi Island]], [[Fiji]] (Banaba, former Ocean Island), in addition to, until 2016, the attorney general, who served as an ''ex officio'' member from 1979 to 2016. Legislators serve for a four-year term.<ref name="Constitution"/>

The constitutional provisions governing administration of justice are similar to those in other former British colonies in that the judiciary is free from governmental interference. The judicial branch is made up of the High Court (in Betio) and the Court of Appeal.<ref name="US State Dept"/> The president appoints the presiding judges.<ref name="Constitution">"[https://constitutionnet.org/sites/default/files/Kiribati%20Constitution.pdf The Constitution of Kiribati]" (PDF). ''Constitutionne''. The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA). Retrieved 7 September 2022.</ref>

Local government is through island councils with elected members. Local affairs are handled in a manner similar to town meetings in colonial America. Island councils make their own estimates of revenue and expenditure<ref name="US State Dept"/> and generally are free from central government controls. There are a total of 21 inhabited islands in Kiribati. Each inhabited island has its own council. Kiribati is currently divided into 5 districts: Northern Kiribati, Central Kiribati, Southern Kiribati, South Tarawa, and Line & Phoenix.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Districts of Kiribati {{!}} Kiribati National Statistics Office |url=https://nso.gov.ki/kiribati-districts/ |access-date=2025-02-20 |language=en-US}}</ref>

Kiribati has formal political parties but their organisation is quite informal.<ref>Macdonald, B. (1996). Governance and political process in Kiribati (Economics Division, Working Paper 96/2). Canberra: Australian National University, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies.</ref> Ad&nbsp;hoc opposition groups tend to coalesce around specific issues. There is universal suffrage at age 18.<ref name="US State Dept"/> Today the main political parties are the [[Boutokaan Kiribati Moa Party]], former ''Boutokaan te Koaua'', and [[Tobwaan Kiribati Party]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Elections Hub {{!}} Jurisdiction Overview {{!}} Hogan Lovells |url=https://digital-client-solutions.hoganlovells.com/resources/elections-hub/jurisdiction/51 |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=digital-client-solutions.hoganlovells.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Kiribati government structure and political parties. {{!}} - CountryReports |url=https://www.countryreports.org/country/Kiribati/government.htm |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=www.countryreports.org}}</ref>

===Foreign relations===
{{Main|Foreign relations of Kiribati}}

Kiribati maintains close relations with its Pacific neighbours, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Fiji. The first three of these provide the bulk of the country's foreign aid. [[Taiwan]] and Japan also have specified-period licences to fish in Kiribati's waters.<ref name="US State Dept">{{citation-attribution|1={{cite web |title=Background Notes: Kiribati, May 1996|url=https://1997-2001.state.gov/background_notes/kiribati_0596_bgn.html|publisher=U.S. State Department|year=1996|access-date=6 February 2018}} }}</ref> There are three resident diplomatic missions headquartered in [[South Tarawa]]: the Embassies of the [[Republic of China]] (Taiwan) until 2019, replaced by [[China|People's Republic of China]] in 2020 and the High Commissions of [[List of Australian High Commissioners to Kiribati|Australia]] and [[New Zealand]]. Since 2022, there have been talks of opening a [[List of diplomatic missions of the United States|US Embassy]].<ref>{{cite web |date=2022-07-13 |title=Kamala Harris announces 2 new U.S. embassies in major Pacific push |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/kamala-harris-pacific-new-us-embassies-tonga-kiribati-rcna37971 |access-date=2024-04-30 |publisher=NBC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |agency=Reuters |date=2023-05-03 |title=US set to open Tonga embassy in May as Pacific push ramps up |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/03/us-set-to-open-tonga-embassy-in-may-as-pacific-push-ramps-up |access-date=2024-04-30 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> The current U.S. Embassy responsible for Kiribati is located in Suva, [[Fiji]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Homepage |url=https://fj.usembassy.gov/ |access-date=2024-04-30 |website=U.S. Embassy in Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Tonga, and Tuvalu |language=en-US}}</ref>

In November 1999, Kiribati agreed to allow Japan's [[National Space Development Agency]] to lease land on [[Kiritimati]] (formerly Christmas Island) for 20 years, on which to build a [[spaceport]].<ref name=SpaceDaily2000>{{cite news |title=Kiribati Gives Okay to Christmas Island Spaceport |url=http://www.spacedaily.com/news/japan-hopex-00d.html |newspaper=Space Daily News |date=11 May 2000 |access-date=28 April 2018}}</ref> The agreement stipulated that Japan was to pay US$840,000 per year and would also pay for any damage to roads and the environment.<ref name=SpaceDaily2000 /> A Japanese-built downrange [[tracking station]] operates on Kiritimati<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fdsn.org/station_book/IU/XMAS/xmas.html |title=FDSN Station Info – XMAS |publisher = Fdsn.org |date=22 August 1997 |access-date=14 May 2010}}</ref> and an abandoned airfield on the island was designated as the landing strip for a proposed reusable unmanned space shuttle called [[HOPE-X]]. HOPE-X, however, was eventually cancelled by Japan in 2003.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.spaceindustry.com.au/Documents/nb2016-06.pdf |title=Cancelled Projects: HOPE and HOPE-X |last=Herman |first=Jos |date=June 2016 |newspaper=Tiros Space Information News Bulletin |volume=41 |number=9 |page=2 |location=Australia |access-date=28 April 2018 |archive-date=12 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312084048/http://spaceindustry.com.au/Documents/nb2016-06.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[File:五月二十三日總統接見吉里巴斯總統馬茂(Taneti Maamau)伉儷乙行 (27208262585).jpg|thumb|Kiribati President [[Taneti Maamau]] meets with Taiwanese President [[Tsai Ing-wen]] on 23 May 2016.]]
As one of the world's most vulnerable nations to the [[effects of global warming]], Kiribati has been an active participant in international diplomatic efforts relating to climate change, most importantly the [[UNFCCC]] conferences of the parties (COP). Kiribati is a member of the [[Alliance of Small Island States]] (AOSIS), an intergovernmental organisation of low-lying coastal and small island countries.
Established in 1990, the main purpose of the alliance is to consolidate the voices of [[Small Island Developing States]] (SIDS) to address global warming. AOSIS has been very active from its inception, putting forward the first draft text in the [[Kyoto Protocol]] negotiations as early as 1994.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Depledge |first=Joanna |date=August 2000 |title=TRACING THE ORIGINS OF THE KYOTO PROTOCOL: AN ARTICLE-BY-ARTICLE TEXTUAL HISTORY |url=https://unfccc.int/resource/docs/tp/tp0200.htm |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change}}</ref>

In 2009, President Tong attended the [[Climate Vulnerable Forum]] ([[Climate Vulnerable Forum|V11]]) in the [[Maldives]], with 10 other countries that are [[Climate change vulnerability|vulnerable to climate change]], and signed the Bandos Island declaration on 10 November 2009, pledging to show moral leadership and commence greening their economies by voluntarily committing to achieving [[carbon neutrality]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

In November 2010, Kiribati hosted the [[Tarawa Climate Change Conference]] (TCCC) to support the president of Kiribati's initiative to hold a consultative forum between vulnerable states and their partners. The conference strove to create an enabling environment for multi-party negotiations under the auspices of the UNFCCC. The conference was a successor event to the Climate Vulnerable Forum.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.climate.gov.ki/tarawa_climate_change_conference.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120202030155/http://www.climate.gov.ki/tarawa_climate_change_conference.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2 February 2012 |title=Climate Change in Kiribati, Tarawa Climate Change Conference Issues Ambo Declaration |publisher=Office of the President of Kiribati |date=12 November 2010 |access-date=28 April 2018}}</ref> The ultimate objective of TCCC was to reduce the number and intensity of fault lines between parties to the COP process, explore elements of agreement between the parties and thereby to support Kiribati's and other parties' contribution to [[COP16]] held in [[Cancun]], Mexico, from 29 November to 10 December 2010.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

In 2013, President Tong spoke of climate-change induced [[sea level rise]] as "inevitable". "For our people to survive, then they will have to migrate. Either we can wait for the time when we have to move people en masse or we can prepare them—beginning from now ..."<ref>{{cite news |last = Lagan |first = Bernard |title = Australia urged to formally recognise climate change refugee status |url = https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/apr/16/australia-climate-change-refugee-status |access-date = 29 April 2013 |newspaper = The Guardian |date = 16 April 2013 }}</ref> In New York in 2014, per ''[[The New Yorker]]'', President Tong told ''[[The New York Times]]'' that "according to the projections, within this century, the water will be higher than the highest point in our lands".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/president-tong-and-his-disappearing-islands|title=President Tong and His Disappearing Islands|author=Betsy Morais|newspaper=The New Yorker|date=8 June 2014|access-date=22 August 2014}}</ref> In 2014, President Tong finalised the purchase of a {{cvt|20|km2}} stretch of land on [[Vanua Levu]], one of the larger Fiji islands, 2,000&nbsp;km away. A move described by Tong as an "absolute necessity" should the country's territory be completely submerged under water.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jul/01/kiribati-climate-change-fiji-vanua-levu|title=Besieged by the rising tides of climate change, Kiribati buys land in Fiji|last=Caramel|first=Laurence|date=30 June 2014|newspaper=The Guardian|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077|access-date=25 August 2016}}</ref>

In 2013, attention was drawn to a claim of a Kiribati man of being a [[Environmental migrant#Asia and the Pacific|"climate change refugee"]] under the [[Convention relating to the Status of Refugees]] (1951).<ref name=ABC>{{cite web| title= Pacific Islander Ioane Teitiota fails in bid to be first climate change refugee| work= ABC News|date=27 November 2013|url= http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-26/kiribati-ioane-teitoa-refugee-new-zealand-climate-change/5117848|access-date=11 February 2015}}</ref> However, this claim was determined by the New Zealand High Court to be untenable.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.vernonrive.co.nz/PointSource/Climate_refugees_revisited_a_closer_look_at_the_Tuvalu_deci.aspx |title='Climate refugees' revisited: a closer look at the Tuvalu decision |publisher=Point Source |date=14 August 2014 |author=Vernon Rive |access-date=11 February 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150211073607/http://www.vernonrive.co.nz/PointSource/Climate_refugees_revisited_a_closer_look_at_the_Tuvalu_deci.aspx |archive-date=11 February 2015 }}</ref> The New Zealand Court of Appeal also rejected the claim in a [[Teitiota v Chief Executive Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment|2014 decision]].
On further appeal, the New Zealand Supreme Court confirmed the earlier adverse rulings against the application for refugee status, but rejected the proposition "that environmental degradation resulting from climate change or other natural disasters could never create a pathway into the Refugee Convention or protected person jurisdiction".<ref name="TSC">{{cite web| work= NZLII |title= Teitiota v Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment [2015] NZSC 107 (20 July 2015) [13]|url= http://www.nzlii.org/nz/cases/NZSC/2015/107.html| access-date=20 July 2015}}</ref> In 2017, Kiribati signed the UN [[treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |title=Chapter XXVI: Disarmament&nbsp;– No. 9 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons |publisher=United Nations Treaty Collection |date=7 July 2017}}</ref>

On 20 September 2019, the government of Kiribati restored its diplomatic relationship with the People's Republic of China and simultaneously stopped its diplomatic relationship with Taiwan.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3780704 |title = Kiribati switches recognition to China, Taiwan loses second Pacific ally in one week|author= Teng Pei-ju|work = Taiwan News|date = 20 September 2019}}</ref> China offered a 737 aircraft and ferries to Kiribati for the decision, according to Taiwan's foreign minister, [[Joseph Wu]].<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN1W50DI |title= Taiwan says China lures Kiribati with airplanes after losing another ally |work=Reuters |date=20 September 2019}}</ref>

====Peace Corps====
From 1973 until 2008, a total of almost 500 [[Peace Corps|US Peace Corps]] volunteers were based on the Islands, as many as 45 in a given year. Activities included assisting in the planning, design and construction of wells, libraries, and other infrastructure, and agricultural, environmental, and community health education. In 2006, volunteer placement was significantly scaled down due to the reduction of consistent air transportation to the outer islands; it was later ended because the associated ability to provide medical care to volunteers could not be assured.<ref>{{cite web |title=Peace Crops reducing current program in Kiribati |url=https://peacecorpsonline.typepad.com/peacecorpsonline/kiribati/ |date=23 July 2007 |access-date=24 June 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Peace Corps to End Programs in Kiribati |url=http://www.pireport.org/articles/2008/07/04/peace-corps-end-programs-kiribati |date=4 July 2008 |access-date=24 June 2021}}</ref> <!--Since the Peace Corps is a program of the US State Dept, Foreign Relations seems to be the best section for it.--> In July 2022, US [[Vice President Harris]] announced plans to build a new embassy in Kiribati and Tonga and reestablish the Peace Corps presence in the region.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kamala Harris announces 2 new U.S. embassies in major Pacific push |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/kamala-harris-pacific-new-us-embassies-tonga-kiribati-rcna37971 |agency=Associated Press |publisher=NBC News |date=12 July 2022 |access-date=16 July 2022}}</ref>

===Law enforcement and military===
[[File:RKS Teanoai, during a joint exercise 2019-11-07.jpg|thumb|Police vessel RKS ''Teanoai'', in 2019]]
[[Law enforcement in Kiribati]] is carried out by the Kiribati Police Service, which is responsible for all law enforcement and paramilitary duties for the island nation. There are police posts located on all of the islands. The police have one patrol boat, the {{sclass2|Guardian|patrol boat}} [[RKS Teanoai II (301)|RKS ''Teanoai II'']].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.hazegray.org/worldnav/asiapac/asiapac.htm#5 |title = Pacific Forum class patrol boat |publisher = Hazegray.org |date = 25 March 2002 |access-date = 14 May 2010 }}</ref>

The main prison in Kiribati is located in [[Betio]], named the Walter Betio Prison. There is also a prison in [[London, Kiribati|London]] on [[Kiritimati]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

Male [[LGBT rights in Kiribati|homosexuality]] is illegal in Kiribati, with a penalty up to 14 years in prison, according to a historical British law. However, this law is not enforced. Kiribati has not yet followed the lead of the United Kingdom, following its [[Wolfenden report]], to decriminalise acts of male homosexuality, beginning with provisions in the UK's Sexual Offences Act 1957. Female homosexuality is legal, but lesbians may face violence and discrimination. However, employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is prohibited.<ref>{{cite news |title=Cooks bill puts spotlight on Pacific's anti-gay laws |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/337461/cooks-bill-puts-spotlight-on-pacific-s-anti-gay-laws |work=RNZ News |date=21 August 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Daniel |last=Avery |title=71 Countries Where Homosexuality is Illegal |url=https://www.newsweek.com/73-countries-where-its-illegal-be-gay-1385974 |work=Newsweek |date=4 April 2019}}</ref>

=== Administrative divisions ===
{{main|List of islands of Kiribati}}
[[File:CarolinePic-Kepler-Long.JPG|thumb|[[Line Islands]]: [[Millennium Island]] channel between west side of Long Island and Nake Island]]
[[File:Marakei Atoll.jpg|thumb|[[Marakei]], North Gilbert Islands]]
There are 21 inhabited islands in Kiribati. Kiribati can be geographically divided into three [[archipelago]]es or groups of islands, which have no administrative functions. They are:
* [[Gilbert Islands]]
* [[Phoenix Islands]], in one of the [[List of largest protected areas in the world|largest marine protected areas]] on Earth (was the largest from 2008 to 2010)<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSSP231103 |title = Kiribati creates world's largest marine reserve |publisher = Reuters |date = 14 February 2008 |access-date = 14 May 2010 }}</ref>
* [[Line Islands]]

The original [[Districts of Kiribati|districts]] before independence were:
* [[Banaba]] (Ocean Island)
* [[Tarawa Atoll]]
* [[Northern Gilbert Islands]]
* [[Central Gilbert Island]]
* [[South Gilbert Islands|Southern Gilbert Islands]]
* [[Line Islands]]

Four of the former districts (including Tarawa) lie in the Gilbert Islands, where most of the country's population lives. Five of the Line Islands are uninhabited ([[Malden Island]], [[Starbuck Island]], [[Millennium Island]], [[Vostok Island]] and [[Flint Island]]). The Phoenix Islands are uninhabited except for [[Kanton Island|Kanton]], and have no representation. Banaba itself is sparsely inhabited now. There is also a non-elected representative of the Banabans on [[Rabi Island]] in Fiji.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McAdam |first=Jane |title=How a small Pacific community sparked constitutional innovation on citizenship |url=https://www.kaldorcentre.unsw.edu.au/news/how-small-pacific-community-sparked-70-years-constitutional-innovation-citizenship |access-date=2023-11-13 |website=www.kaldorcentre.unsw.edu.au}}</ref>

Each of the 21 inhabited islands<ref name=CIA/> has its own local council that takes care of daily affairs. There is one council for each inhabited island, with two exceptions: Tarawa Atoll has three councils: [[Betio]] Town Council, {{ill|Teinainano Urban Council|it}} (TUC) (for the rest of [[South Tarawa]]) and Eutan Tarawa Council (ETC) (for [[North Tarawa]]); and [[Tabiteuea]] has two councils.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kiribati |url=https://dlab.epfl.ch/wikispeedia/wpcd/wp/k/Kiribati.htm |access-date=2024-05-29 |website=dlab.epfl.ch}}</ref>

== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of Kiribati}}
[[File:Map of the Territorial Waters of the Pacific Ocean.png|thumb|upright=1.8|Kiribati with its surrounding EEZs in dark gray, noting the three non-contiguous territories]]
[[File:Kiribati map LOC.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Map of Kiribati]]
[[File:Kiribati Inseln.png|thumb|Provinces of Kiribati]]
[[File:Abaiang top view.jpg|thumb|Coconut palms in Abaiang]]

Kiribati consists of [[List of islands of Kiribati|32]] atolls and one solitary island ([[Banaba]]), extending into the eastern and western [[Hemispheres of Earth|hemispheres]], as well as the northern and southern hemispheres. Its extensive [[exclusive economic zone]] (EEZ) covers three, non-contiguous, traditional geographic subregions: Banaba ([[Melanesia]]n-Micronesian area), the Gilbert Islands (Micronesia) and the [[Line Islands|Line]] and Phoenix Islands ([[Polynesia]]).<ref name=CIA/> The groups of islands are:
* Banaba: an isolated island between [[Nauru]] and the Gilbert Islands
* Gilbert Islands: sixteen atolls located approximately {{convert|1500|km|mi|0}} north of [[Fiji]]
* Phoenix Islands: eight atolls and coral islands located approximately {{convert|1800|km|mi|0}} southeast of the Gilberts
* Line Islands: eight atolls and one reef, located approximately {{convert|3300|km|mi|0}} east of the Gilberts

Banaba (or Ocean Island) is a [[Raised coral atoll|raised-coral island]]. It was once a rich source of [[phosphate]]s, but was exhausted in mining before independence.{{sfn|Williams|Macdonald|1985}}{{sfn|Ellis|1935}} The rest of the land in Kiribati consists of the sand and reef rock islets of atolls or coral islands, which rise only one or two meters above sea level.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

The soil is thin and [[calcareous]]. It has a low water-holding capacity and low organic matter and nutrient content—except for calcium, sodium, and magnesium. Banaba is one of the least suitable places for agriculture in the world.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=3}}

[[Kiritimati]] (previously Christmas Island) in the Line Islands has the largest land area of any atoll in the world. Based on a 1995 realignment of the [[International Date Line]], the Line Islands were the first area to enter into a new year, including the year 2000. For that reason, Caroline Island was renamed [[Millennium Island]] in 1997.<ref>{{cite web |last=Harris |first=Aimee |title=Millennium: Date Line Politics |url=http://www.trussel.com/kir/dateline.htm |work=Honolulu Magazine |date=April 1999 |access-date=14 June 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060628045504/http://trussel.com/kir/dateline.htm |archive-date=28 June 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== Environmental issues ===
{{see also|Coral reefs of Kiribati|Protected areas of Kiribati}}
According to the [[Pacific Regional Environment Programme]] (previously South Pacific Regional Environment Programme), two small uninhabited Kiribati islets, [[Tebua Tarawa]] and [[Abanuea]], disappeared underwater in 1999.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/368892.stm |title = Islands disappear under rising seas |publisher = BBC News |date = 14 June 1999 |access-date = 14 May 2010 }}</ref> The sea level at [[Kiritimati|Christmas Island]], in the 50 years between 1972 and 2022, has risen {{convert|5|cm|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/sltrends/sltrends_station.shtml?id=770-022 | title=Sea Level Trends - NOAA Tides & Currents }}</ref> The United Nations [[Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change]] predicts that sea levels will rise by approximately {{convert|50|cm|abbr=on}} by 2100 due to [[global warming]] and a further rise would be inevitable. It is thus likely that within a century the nation's arable land will become subject to increased [[soil salination]] and will be largely submerged.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/28/AR2006012801021.html |newspaper = The Washington Post |title = Debate on Climate Shifts to Issue of Irreparable Change |first = Juliet |last = Eilperin |date = 29 January 2006 |access-date = 7 May 2010 }}</ref>

The exposure of Kiribati to changes in sea levels is exacerbated by the [[Pacific decadal oscillation]], which is a climate switch phenomenon that results in changes from periods of [[La Niña]] to periods of [[El Niño]]. This has an effect on sea levels. For example, in 2000, there was a switch from periods of downward pressure of El Niño on sea levels to an upward pressure of La Niña on sea levels, which upward pressure causes more frequent and higher high tide levels. The [[Perigean spring tide]] (often called a [[king tide]]) can result in seawater flooding low-lying areas of the islands of Kiribati.<ref>{{cite web| last =Packard | first =Aaron | title= The Unfolding Crisis in Kiribati and the Urgency of Response| publisher= HuffPostGreen|date=12 March 2015 |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/aaron-packard/the-unfolding-crisis-in-kiribati-and-the-urgency-of-response_b_6854386.html |access-date=14 March 2015}}</ref>

[[File:Onotoa.png|thumb|South of [[Onotoa]] Atoll]]
[[File:South Tarawa from the air.jpg|thumb|[[Tarawa Atoll]]]]

The [[atolls]] and [[reef]] islands can respond to changes in sea-level. Paul Kench at the [[University of Auckland]] in New Zealand and Arthur Webb at the [[South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission]] in Fiji released a study in 2010 on the dynamic response of atolls and reef islands in the central Pacific. Kiribati was mentioned in the study, and Webb and Kench found that the three major urbanised islands in Kiribati—Betio, Bairiki and Nanikai—increased by 30% (36 hectares), 16.3% (5.8 hectares) and 12.5% (0.8 hectares), respectively.<ref name="WZ">{{cite magazine |last=Zukerman |first= Wendy |title=Shape-shifting islands defy sea-level rise |date=2 June 2010 |magazine=New Scientist Magazine |issue=2763 |url = https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20627633.700-shapeshifting-islands-defy-sealevel-rise.html }}</ref><ref name="Elsevier">{{cite journal |last1 = Webb |first1 = A.P. |last2 = Kench |first2 = P.S. |year = 2010 |title = The dynamic response of reef islands to sea-level rise: Evidence from multi-decadal analysis of island change in the Central Pacific |journal = Global and Planetary Change |volume = 72 |issue = 3 |pages = 234–246 |doi = 10.1016/j.gloplacha.2010.05.003 |url = http://www.pacificdisaster.net/pdnadmin/data/original/SOPAC_2010_The_dynamic_response.pdf |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121222070018/http://www.pacificdisaster.net/pdnadmin/data/original/SOPAC_2010_The_dynamic_response.pdf |url-status = dead |archive-date = 22 December 2012 |access-date = 22 July 2013 |bibcode = 2010GPC....72..234W }}</ref><ref name="PSK2014">{{cite news| last = Kench | first =Paul |title= Dynamic atolls give hope that Pacific Islands can defy sea rise | work= The Conversation|url= http://theconversation.com/dynamic-atolls-give-hope-that-pacific-islands-can-defy-sea-rise-25436 | access-date=16 April 2014}}</ref><ref name="AWPK">{{cite journal|last= Arthur P. Webb & Paul S. Kench |title = The dynamic response of reef islands to sea-level rise: Evidence from multi-decadal analysis of island change in the Central Pacific |year=2010|volume=72 |issue=3|journal= Global and Planetary Change|pages=234–246 |doi=10.1016/j.gloplacha.2010.05.003|bibcode=2010GPC....72..234W}}</ref><ref name="NG15">{{cite web| last = Warne | first = Kennedy | work= National Geographic |title= Will Pacific Island Nations Disappear as Seas Rise? Maybe Not – Reef islands can grow and change shape as sediments shift, studies show |date =13 February 2015|url= http://news-beta.nationalgeographic.com/2015/02/150213-tuvalu-sopoaga-kench-kiribati-maldives-cyclone-marshall-islands/|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150214031223/http://news-beta.nationalgeographic.com/2015/02/150213-tuvalu-sopoaga-kench-kiribati-maldives-cyclone-marshall-islands/|url-status= dead|archive-date= 14 February 2015| access-date=14 February 2015}}</ref>

The study by Paul Kench and Arthur Webb recognises that the islands are extremely vulnerable to sea level rise, and concluded that: "This study did not measure vertical growth of the island surface nor does it suggest there is any change in the height of the islands. Since land height has not changed the vulnerability of the greater part of the land area of each island to submergence due to sea level rise is also unchanged and these low-lying atolls remain immediately and extremely vulnerable to inundation or sea water flooding."<ref name="Elsevier"/>

The Climate Change in the Pacific Report of 2011 describes Kiribati as having a low risk of [[cyclones]].<ref>{{cite report |title=Climate Variability, Extremes and Change in the Western Tropical Pacific: New Science and Updated Country Reports 2014 |year=2014 |publisher=Pacific Climate Change Science Program |series=Climate Change in the Pacific: Scientific Assessment and New Research |volume=1 & 2 |chapter=Chapter 6: Kiribati |chapter-url=http://www.pacificclimatechangescience.org/publications/reports/climate-variability-extremes-and-change-in-the-western-tropical-pacific-2014/}}</ref> In March 2015 Kiribati experienced flooding and destruction of seawalls and coastal infrastructure as the result of [[Cyclone Pam]], a Category 5 cyclone that devastated [[Vanuatu]].<ref name="SBS15">{{cite web| work= SBS Australia |title= Flooding in Vanuatu, Kiribati and Tuvalu as Cyclone Pam strengthens |date =13 March 2015|url= http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/03/13/flooding-vanuatu-kiribati-and-tuvalu-cyclone-pam-strengthens | access-date=15 March 2015}}</ref> Kiribati remains exposed to the risk that cyclones can strip the low-lying islands of their vegetation and soil.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

Gradual sea-level rise also allows for coral [[polyp (zoology)|polyp]] activity to raise the atolls with the sea level. However, if the increase in sea level occurs at a rate faster than coral growth, or if polyp activity is damaged by [[ocean acidification]], then the resilience of the atolls and reef islands is less certain.<ref name="PK14">{{cite news| last = Kench | first =Paul |title= Dynamic atolls give hope that Pacific Islands can defy sea rise (Comments) | work= The Conversation|url= http://theconversation.com/dynamic-atolls-give-hope-that-pacific-islands-can-defy-sea-rise-25436 | access-date=16 April 2014}}</ref>

The Human Rights Measurement Initiative<ref>{{Cite web |title=Human Rights Measurement Initiative – The first global initiative to track the human rights performance of countries |url=https://humanrightsmeasurement.org/ |access-date=2023-05-01 |website=humanrightsmeasurement.org}}</ref> finds that the climate crisis has worsened human rights conditions moderately (4.8 out of 6) in Kiribati.<ref name="Kiribati - HRMI Rights Tracker">{{Cite web |title=Kiribati - HRMI Rights Tracker |url=https://rightstracker.org/en/country/KIR?subregion=pacific&tab=pacific-region-data |access-date=2023-05-01 |website=rightstracker.org |language=en}}</ref> Human rights experts reported that the climate crisis has compromised access to food and clean water, as well as women's rights, housing security and cultural integrity.<ref name="Kiribati - HRMI Rights Tracker"/>

The [[Kiribati Adaptation Program]] (KAP), started in 2003, is a US$5.5&nbsp;million initiative that was originally enacted by the national government of Kiribati with the support of the [[Global Environment Facility]] (GEF), the [[World Bank]], the [[United Nations Development Program]], and the Japanese government. Australia later joined the coalition, donating US$1.5&nbsp;million to the effort. The program aims to take place over six years, supporting measures that reduce Kiribati's vulnerability to the effects of [[climate change]] and sea level rise by raising awareness of climate change, assessing and protecting available water resources, and managing inundation.
At the start of the Adaptation Program, representatives from each of the inhabited atolls identified key climatic changes that had taken place over the past 20–40 years and proposed coping mechanisms to deal with these changes under four categories of urgency of need. The program is now focusing on the country's most vulnerable sectors in the most highly populated areas.
Initiatives include improving water supply management in and around Tarawa; [[coastal management]] protection measures such as mangrove re-plantation and protection of public infrastructure; strengthening laws to reduce coastal erosion; and population settlement planning to reduce personal risks.<ref>{{cite web |title=Adapting to climate change |url=http://www.climate.gov.ki/Kiribati_climate_change_strategies.html |website=Climate change in Kiribati |publisher=Office of the President of Kiribati |access-date=23 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120202020502/http://www.climate.gov.ki/Kiribati_climate_change_strategies.html |archive-date=2 February 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The government has taken specific action to ensure [[food security]], as sea level rise, drought, and overfishing have created food and water shortages. This has involved diversifying food sources and ensuring existing resources are managed sustainably.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://undp-climate.exposure.co/locallysourced |title=Locally-Sourced How Kiribati is shoring up food security and community resilience in the face of global climate change |publisher=United Nations Development Programme |date=21 February 2023 |access-date=3 March 2023}}</ref>

The issue of [[plastic pollution]] has also been a key challenge for Kiribati as it hurts both its marine biodiversity and its economy that relies primarily on tourism and fishery.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web |last=United Nations Environment Program |date=2019-09-24 |title=Kiribati to carry out considerable efforts in sound management of chemicals and waste |url=http://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/kiribati-carry-out-considerable-efforts-sound-management-chemicals-and-waste |access-date=2023-05-28 |website=UNEP |language=en}}</ref> As a result, the government of Kiribati, more specifically the Environment and Conservation Division (ECD) which forms part of the Kiribati Government's Ministry of Environment, Lands and Agricultural Development, has made efforts to tackle this issue nationally through environment acts and state policy papers.<ref name="auto2"/> To a further extent, it has also recognized the global nature of plastic pollution, and consequently, has promoted international cooperation and multilateral solutions.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kiribati calls for the special circumstances of Small Islands Developing States to be factored in new global agreement on plastic pollution {{!}} Pacific Environment |url=https://www.sprep.org/news/kiribati-calls-for-the-special-circumstances-of-small-islands-developing-states-to-be-factored-in-new-global-agreement-on-plastic-pollution |access-date=2023-05-28 |website=www.sprep.org}}</ref> This is notably observable during the current negotiations of the [[Global plastic pollution treaty|Global Plastic Pollution Treaty]] planned to be finally drafted by the end of 2024.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bundela |first1=Amit Kumar |last2=Pandey |first2=Krishna Kumar |date=2022-07-01 |title=The United Nations General Assembly Passes Historic Resolution to Beat Plastic Pollution |journal=Anthropocene Science |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=332–336 |doi=10.1007/s44177-022-00021-5 |s2cid=258700697 |issn=2731-3980|doi-access=free |bibcode=2022AnthS...1..332B}}</ref>

===Climate===
[[File:Line5304 - Flickr - NOAA Photo Library.jpg|thumb|A tropical islet with palm fronds oriented in the direction of the prevailing winds]]
Kiribati has a [[tropical rainforest climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Af]]). From April to October, there are predominant northeastern winds and stable temperatures close to {{convert|30|C}}. From November to April, western gales bring rain.

The Kiribati wet season (''te Auu-Meang''), also known as the [[tropical cyclone]] (TC) (''te Angibuaka'') season, starts from November to April every year. Kiribati therefore typically experiences more extreme weather events associated with [[tropical disturbance]]s or tropical cyclones during ''te Auu-Meang''. Tropical cyclones rarely develop or pass along the equator where Kiribati is located, but Kiribati has historically been impacted by distant tropical cyclones. The impacts were observed while the systems were still in their development stages (Tropical Low/disturbance) or even before they reached Tropical cyclone category.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

The fair season starts when ''Ten Rimwimata'' ([[Antares]]) appears in the sky after sunset, from May to November, when more gentle winds and currents and less rain. Then towards December, when ''Nei Auti'' ([[Pleiades]]) replaces Antares, the season of sudden westerly winds and more heavy rain discourages any far travel from island to island.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://journals.openedition.org/pm/269|title = La navigation océanienne : Un savoir trop longtemps méconnu|journal = Préhistoires Méditerranéennes|date = September 2002|issue = 10–11|pages = 183–190|last1 = Di Piazza|first1 = Anne| doi=10.4000/pm.269 | s2cid=248019590 |doi-access = free}}</ref>

Kiribati does not experience cyclones but effects may occasionally be experienced during cyclone seasons affecting nearby Pacific Island countries such as Fiji.<ref name=CIA/><ref name=brit/>{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=3}}

Precipitation varies significantly between islands. For example, the annual average is 3,000&nbsp;mm (120&nbsp;in) in the north and 500&nbsp;mm (20&nbsp;in) in the south of the Gilbert Islands.<ref name=brit/> Most of these islands are in the dry belt of the equatorial oceanic climatic zone and experience prolonged droughts.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=3}}

{{Weather box
|location = [[Tarawa]] (Köppen Af)
|metric first = Yes
|single line = Yes
|collapsed = Yes
|width = auto
|Jan record high C = 35.0
|Feb record high C = 33.0
|Mar record high C = 35.0
|Apr record high C = 34.5
|May record high C = 34.5
|Jun record high C = 33.5
|Jul record high C = 34.5
|Aug record high C = 34.5
|Sep record high C = 34.5
|Oct record high C = 35.0
|Nov record high C = 35.0
|Dec record high C = 35.0
|year record high C = 35.0
|Jan high C = 30.7
|Feb high C = 30.6
|Mar high C = 30.7
|Apr high C = 30.7
|May high C = 30.8
|Jun high C = 30.8
|Jul high C = 30.9
|Aug high C = 31.0
|Sep high C = 31.1
|Oct high C = 31.2
|Nov high C = 31.3
|Dec high C = 30.9
|year high C = 30.9
|Jan mean C = 28.2
|Feb mean C = 28.1
|Mar mean C = 28.1
|Apr mean C = 28.2
|May mean C = 28.4
|Jun mean C = 28.3
|Jul mean C = 28.2
|Aug mean C = 28.3
|Sep mean C = 28.4
|Oct mean C = 28.6
|Nov mean C = 28.5
|Dec mean C = 28.2
|year mean C = 28.3
|Jan low C = 25.3
|Feb low C = 25.3
|Mar low C = 25.2
|Apr low C = 25.3
|May low C = 25.5
|Jun low C = 25.3
|Jul low C = 25.1
|Aug low C = 25.2
|Sep low C = 25.3
|Oct low C = 25.4
|Nov low C = 25.4
|Dec low C = 25.3
|year low C = 25.3
|Jan record low C = 21.5
|Feb record low C = 22.5
|Mar record low C = 22.5
|Apr record low C = 22.5
|May record low C = 21.0
|Jun record low C = 21.0
|Jul record low C = 21.0
|Aug record low C = 21.5
|Sep record low C = 22.5
|Oct record low C = 22.0
|Nov record low C = 22.5
|Dec record low C = 22.0
|year record low C = 21.0
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 271
|Feb precipitation mm = 218
|Mar precipitation mm = 204
|Apr precipitation mm = 184
|May precipitation mm = 158
|Jun precipitation mm = 155
|Jul precipitation mm = 168
|Aug precipitation mm = 138
|Sep precipitation mm = 120
|Oct precipitation mm = 110
|Nov precipitation mm = 115
|Dec precipitation mm = 212
|year precipitation mm = 2052
|unit precipitation days = 0.3 mm
|Jan precipitation days = 15
|Feb precipitation days = 12
|Mar precipitation days = 14
|Apr precipitation days = 15
|May precipitation days = 15
|Jun precipitation days = 14
|Jul precipitation days = 16
|Aug precipitation days = 18
|Sep precipitation days = 15
|Oct precipitation days = 11
|Nov precipitation days = 10
|Dec precipitation days = 17
|year precipitation days = 172
|Jan humidity = 81
|Feb humidity = 80
|Mar humidity = 81
|Apr humidity = 82
|May humidity = 81
|Jun humidity = 81
|Jul humidity = 80
|Aug humidity = 79
|Sep humidity = 77
|Oct humidity = 77
|Nov humidity = 79
|Dec humidity = 81
|year humidity = 80
|Jan sun = 220.1
|Feb sun = 192.1
|Mar sun = 207.7
|Apr sun = 201.0
|May sun = 229.4
|Jun sun = 219.0
|Jul sun = 229.4
|Aug sun = 257.3
|Sep sun = 243.0
|Oct sun = 260.4
|Nov sun = 240.0
|Dec sun = 189.1
|year sun =
|Jand sun = 7.1
|Febd sun = 6.8
|Mard sun = 6.7
|Aprd sun = 6.7
|Mayd sun = 7.4
|Jund sun = 7.3
|Juld sun = 7.4
|Augd sun = 8.3
|Sepd sun = 8.1
|Octd sun = 8.4
|Novd sun = 8.0
|Decd sun = 6.1
|yeard sun = 7.4
|source 1 = [[Deutscher Wetterdienst]]<ref name = DWDTarawa>
{{cite web
| url = https://www.dwd.de/DWD/klima/beratung/ak/ak_916100_kt.pdf
| title = Klimatafel von Tarawa, Int. Flugh. Bonriki / Kiribati (Gilbert-Inseln)
| work = Baseline climate means (1961–1990) from stations all over the world
| publisher = Deutscher Wetterdienst
| language = de
| access-date = 30 November 2020}}</ref>
}}

=== Ecology ===
{{Further|Wildlife of Kiribati}}

[[File:AcrocephalusPistorKeulemans.jpg|thumb|upright|The [[bokikokiko]] (''Acrocephalus aequinoctialis'') is the only land wildlife species endemic to Kiribati.]]
Kiribati contains three ecosystems: [[Central Polynesian tropical moist forests]], [[Eastern Micronesia tropical moist forests]], and [[Western Polynesian tropical moist forests]].<ref name="DinersteinOlson2017">{{cite journal|last1=Dinerstein|first1=Eric|last2=Olson|first2=David|last3=Joshi|first3=Anup|last4=Vynne|first4=Carly|last5=Burgess|first5=Neil D.|last6=Wikramanayake|first6=Eric|last7=Hahn|first7=Nathan|last8=Palminteri|first8=Suzanne|last9=Hedao|first9=Prashant|last10=Noss|first10=Reed|last11=Hansen|first11=Matt|last12=Locke|first12=Harvey|last13=Ellis|first13=Erle C|last14=Jones|first14=Benjamin|last15=Barber|first15=Charles Victor|last16=Hayes|first16=Randy|last17=Kormos|first17=Cyril|last18=Martin|first18=Vance|last19=Crist|first19=Eileen|last20=Sechrest|first20=Wes|last21=Price|first21=Lori|last22=Baillie|first22=Jonathan E. M.|last23=Weeden|first23=Don|last24=Suckling|first24=Kierán|last25=Davis|first25=Crystal|last26=Sizer|first26=Nigel|last27=Moore|first27=Rebecca|last28=Thau|first28=David|last29=Birch|first29=Tanya|last30=Potapov|first30=Peter|last31=Turubanova|first31=Svetlana|last32=Tyukavina|first32=Alexandra|last33=de Souza|first33=Nadia|last34=Pintea|first34=Lilian|last35=Brito|first35=José C.|last36=Llewellyn|first36=Othman A.|last37=Miller|first37=Anthony G.|last38=Patzelt|first38=Annette|last39=Ghazanfar|first39=Shahina A.|last40=Timberlake|first40=Jonathan|last41=Klöser|first41=Heinz|last42=Shennan-Farpón|first42=Yara|last43=Kindt|first43=Roeland|last44=Lillesø|first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow|last45=van Breugel|first45=Paulo|last46=Graudal|first46=Lars|last47=Voge|first47=Maianna|last48=Al-Shammari|first48=Khalaf F.|last49=Saleem|first49=Muhammad|display-authors=1|title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm|journal=BioScience|volume=67|issue=6|year=2017|pages=534–545|issn=0006-3568|doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014|pmid=28608869|pmc=5451287|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Because of the relatively young geological age of the islands and atolls and the high level of [[soil salination]], the flora of Kiribati is somewhat unhealthy. The Gilbert Islands contain about 83 indigenous and 306 introduced plants, whereas the corresponding numbers for Line and Phoenix Islands are 67 and 283. None of these species are [[Endemism|endemic]], and about half of the indigenous ones have a limited distribution and have become endangered or nearly extinct due to human activities such as phosphate mining.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=22}}

[[Coconut]], [[Pandanus tectorius|pandanus]] palms and [[breadfruit]] trees are the most common ''wild'' plants,<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Kiribati|title=Kiribati {{!}} Culture, History, & People|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=12 July 2017|language=en}}</ref><ref name=brit>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/319111/Kiribati Kiribati]. ''Encyclopædia Britannica''</ref> whereas the five most cultivated crops but the traditional ''Babai'', ''[[Cyrtosperma merkusii]]'',<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/jatba_0183-5173_1999_num_41_1_3703|doi = 10.3406/jatba.1999.3703|title = Migration d'une plante et migration de ses représentations. Le taro de marécage (Cyrtosperma chamissonis) sur Nikunau et Tabuaeran (République de Kiribati)|year = 1999|last1 = Di Piazza|first1 = Anne|journal = Journal d'Agriculture Traditionnelle et de Botanique Appliquée|volume = 41|pages = 93–108}}</ref> are imported [[Chinese cabbage]], pumpkin, tomato, watermelon and cucumber.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=14}} Over eighty percent of the population participates in either farming or fishing.{{sfn|Moseley|2014|page=191}}

[[Seaweed farming]] is an important part of the economy {{why|date=February 2017}}, with two major species ''Eucheuma alvarezii'' and ''Eucheuma spinosium'' introduced to the local lagoons from the Philippines in 1977. It competes with a collection of the black-lipped pearl oyster (''[[Pinctada margaritifera]]'') and shellfish,{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=17}} which are dominated by the strombid gastropod (''[[Strombus luhuanus]]'') and Anadara cockles (''[[Anadara]] uropigimelana''), whereas the stocks of the giant clam (''[[Tridacna gigas]]'') have been largely exhausted.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|pp=17–19}}

Kiribati has a few land mammals, none being indigenous or endemic. They include the Polynesian rat (''[[Rattus exulans]]''), dogs, cats and pigs. Among the 75 bird species, the [[Bokikokiko]] (''Acrocephalus aequinoctialis'') is endemic to [[Kiritimati]].{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=22}}

There are 600–800 species of inshore and pelagic finfish, some 200 species of corals and about 1000 species of shellfish.<ref name="LPS">{{cite journal |last=Lobel |first= P.S. |url= https://micronesica.org/sites/default/files/gilbertese_and_ellice_islander_name_of_fishes_and_other_organisms_micronesica_vo_14_no._2_dec.1978-4.pdf |title= Gilbertese and Ellice Islander names for fishes and other organisms |journal= Micronesica |volume= 14|issue= 2 |year= 1978}}</ref>{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=23}} Fishing mostly targets the family [[Scombridae]], particularly the [[skipjack tuna]] and [[yellowfin tuna]] as well as [[flying fish]] (''Cypselurus'' spp.).{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=15}}

Dogs were already accompanying the first inhabitants but were re-introduced by European settlers: they have continued to grow in numbers and are roaming in traditional packs,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bowers |first1=Mike |title=Kiribati: life on a tiny island threatened by the rising sea – in pictures |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2014/may/30/kiribati-line-in-sand-pictures |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=The Guardian |date=29 May 2014}}</ref> particularly around South Tarawa.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

==Economy==
{{Main|Economy of Kiribati}}
{{See also|Tourism in Kiribati}}
[[File:Kiribatisupermarket.jpg|thumb|A Bosj's warehouse in Kiribati]]
Kiribati has few natural resources. Commercially viable [[phosphate]] deposits on [[Banaba]] were exhausted at the time of independence. [[Copra]] and fish now represent the bulk of production and exports. Kiribati has the lowest GDP out of any sovereign state in [[Oceania]], and is considered one of the [[Least developed country|least developed countries]] in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.gfmag.com/global-data/economic-data/the-poorest-countries-in-the-world|title = Global Finance Magazine - Poorest Countries in the World 2021| date=November 2023 }}</ref>

In one form or another, Kiribati gets a large portion of its income from abroad. Examples include fishing licences, development assistance, workers' [[remittance]]s, especially the seafarers issued from [[Marine Training Centre]], and a few tourists. Given Kiribati's limited domestic production ability, it must import nearly all of its essential foodstuffs and manufactured items; it depends on these external sources of income for financing.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

The economy of Kiribati benefits from international development assistance programs. The multilateral donors providing development assistance in 2009 were the [[European Union]] (A$9&nbsp;million), the [[United Nations Development Programme]] (A$3.7&nbsp;million), UNICEF, and the [[World Health Organization]] (A$100,000).<ref name="IMF 2011 SA"/> The bilateral donors providing development assistance in 2009 were Australia (A$11&nbsp;million), Japan (A$2&nbsp;million), New Zealand (A$6.6&nbsp;million), [[Taiwan]] (A$10.6&nbsp;million), and other donors providing A$16.2&nbsp;million, including technical assistance grants from the [[Asian Development Bank]].<ref name="IMF 2011 SA">{{cite web |title = Kiribati: Statistical Appendix |url = https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.aspx?sk=24872.0 |publisher = International Monetary Fund Country Report No. 11/114 |date = 24 May 2011 |access-date = 10 September 2011 }}</ref><ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web |title = Kiribati: 2011 Article IV Consultation-Staff Report, Informational Annexes, Debt Sustainability Analysis, Public Information Notice on the Executive Board Discussion, and Statement by the Executive Director for Kiribati |url = https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.aspx?sk=24871.0 |publisher = International Monetary Fund Country Report No. 11/113 |date = 24 May 2011 |access-date = 10 September 2011 }}</ref>

The major donors in 2010/2011 were Australia (A$15&nbsp;million), Taiwan (A$11&nbsp;million); New Zealand (A$6&nbsp;million), the [[World Bank]] (A$4&nbsp;million) and the [[Asian Development Bank]].<ref name=mfat>{{cite web |url = http://www.mfat.govt.nz/Countries/Pacific/Kiribati.php |title = New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) |access-date = 10 September 2010 |archive-date = 29 July 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150729234235/http://www.mfat.govt.nz/Countries/Pacific/Kiribati.php |url-status = dead }}</ref>

In 1956, [[Gilbert and Ellice Islands]] established a [[sovereign wealth fund]] to act as a store of wealth for the country's earnings from [[phosphate]] mining.
In 2008, the [[Revenue Equalization Reserve Fund]] was valued at US$400&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Government of Kiribati Revenue Equalisation Reserve Fund (Revenue Equalization Reserve Fund) |url=https://www.swfinstitute.org/profile/598cdaa50124e9fd2d05b5a5 |publisher=Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute |access-date=23 July 2020}}</ref> The RERF assets declined from A$637&nbsp;million (420% of GDP) in 2007 to A$570.5&nbsp;million (350% of GDP) in 2009<ref name="IMF 2011 SA" /> as the result of the [[2008 financial crisis]] and exposure to failed Icelandic banks. In addition, draw-downs were made by the government of Kiribati to finance budgetary shortfalls during this period.<ref name="IMF 2011"/>

In May 2011, the IMF country report assessment of the economy of Kiribati is that "After two years of contraction, the economy recovered in the second half of 2010 and inflation pressure dissipated. It is estimated to have grown by 1.75% for the year. Despite a weather-related drop in copra production, private sector activity appears to have picked up, especially in retail. Tourist arrivals rebounded by 20% compared to 2009, although from a very low base.
Despite the rise in world food and fuel prices, inflation has bounced from 2008 crisis-highs into negative territory, reflecting the strong appreciation of the Australian dollar, which is used as the domestic currency, and a decline in the world price of rice. Credit growth in the overall economy declined in 2009 as economic activity stalled. But it started to pick up in the second half of 2010 as the recovery gained traction".<ref name="IMF 2011"/>

A major Australian bank, [[Australia and New Zealand Banking Group|ANZ]], maintains a presence on Kiribati<ref>{{cite web |title=ANZ in Kiribati |url=https://www.anz.com/kiribati/en/about-us/anz-kiribati/ |website=ANZ |access-date=23 July 2020}}</ref> with a number of branches and [[Automated teller machine|ATM]] units.

===Ornamental fish===
Kiribati is a major exporter of hand-caught [[ornamental fish]]. There are eight licensed operators based on [[Kiritimati]] (Christmas Island). At the end of 2005, the number of pet fish exported was 110,000. All operators have a land-based facility but fish are kept in containers on the reef until the day before the shipment. This is to reduce the running cost and the mortality of pet fish to be exported. The [[flame angelfish]] (''Centropyge loriculus'') is the major species exported.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://spccfpstore1.blob.core.windows.net/digitallibrary-docs/files/46/467948d8f50c02f44218b1f4e49ddd32.pdf?sv=2015-12-11&sr=b&sig=UFiDwxriv1nH2lJH4B3iN5XWjpUlc19%2BLN8UX%2Fyu0mg%3D&se=2022-06-05T17%3A51%3A07Z&sp=r&rscc=public%2C%20max-age%3D864000%2C%20max-stale%3D86400&rsct=application%2Fpdf&rscd=inline%3B%20filename%3D%22King_18_01_Kiribati_Teachers_Kit_InfoSheet10.pdf%22 |title=Teacherss Resource Sheet on Aquarium species |publisher=New Zealand Foreign Affairs Trade & Aid Program and Pacific Community |access-date=23 March 2022 |archive-date=5 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805065949/https://spccfpstore1.blob.core.windows.net/digitallibrary-docs/files/46/467948d8f50c02f44218b1f4e49ddd32.pdf?sv=2015-12-11&sr=b&sig=UFiDwxriv1nH2lJH4B3iN5XWjpUlc19+LN8UX%2Fyu0mg%3D&se=2022-06-05T17%3A51%3A07Z&sp=r&rscc=public%2C%20max-age%3D864000%2C%20max-stale%3D86400&rsct=application%2Fpdf&rscd=inline%3B%20filename%3D%22King_18_01_Kiribati_Teachers_Kit_InfoSheet10.pdf%22 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Transport===
{{main|Transport in Kiribati}}
[[File:Bonriki International Airport2.jpg|thumb|[[Bonriki International Airport]]]]
Kiribati has had two domestic airlines: [[Air Kiribati]] and [[Coral Sun Airways]]. Both airlines are based in Tarawa's [[Bonriki International Airport]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.businessairnews.com/hb_charterpage.html?recnum=147640|title=Coral Sun Airways|website=Business Air News}}</ref> and serve destinations across the Gilbert Islands and Line Islands only: [[Banaba]] and the [[Phoenix Islands]] are not served by the domestic carriers. The Coral Sun Airways airline flies from Bonriki international airport to the islands of Abaing, Abermama, Aranuka, Arorae, Beru, Butaritari, Kuria, Makin, Marakei, Onotoa, Nonouti, Nikunau, Tabitevea & Tamana.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sites.google.com/site/southpacificislandtravel/airlines-of-the-south-pacific|title=Airlines Of The South Pacific|website=South Pacific Island Travel|via=sites.google.com}}</ref>

[[Cassidy International Airport]] on [[Kiritimati]] has an international service provided by [[Fiji Airways]]: [[Nadi International Airport|Nadi]] to Cassidy Airport and then to [[Daniel K. Inouye International Airport|Honolulu]].

== Communications and media ==
{{main|Mass media in Kiribati}}
With the combination of the islands' remote location in the Central Pacific at approximately the International Date Line, and islands spanning hundreds of miles north and south of the equator, communications within the country have always been challenging. Primarily, communication is conducted by radio and print media. [[Television Kiribati|TV Kiribati Ltd]] was owned by the government and operated between 2004 and mid-2012, but could not reach all of the islands. Radio Kiribati, based on Tarawa and operated by the government's Broadcasting and Publications Authority (BPA) on 1440&nbsp;kHz AM, is the only form of mass media that reaches all the major islands. Transmission hours are limited and local content in Gilbertese is supplemented by English summaries and BBC News.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tarawa, Kiribati |url=http://radio.garden/listen/kiribati-radio-live/lWw8pNel |access-date=24 June 2021}}</ref> The BPA and a private broadcaster also operate FM stations accessible on Tarawa.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kiribati Country Profile |url=https://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/map/google_map_Tarawa.htm
|access-date=24 June 2021}}</ref><ref name="Savekiribati">{{cite web |title=Communication |url=https://savekiribati.com/communication.php |access-date=24 June 2021 |work=Savekiribati.com |archive-date=24 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624212456/https://savekiribati.com/communication.php |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Inter-island communications for many years relied on a centralized shortwave radio network operated by Telecom Services Kiribati, Ltd ([[Amalgamated Telecom Holdings Kiribati Limited|TSKL]]) based in each Island's Council Headquarters. Numerous issues including low availability, maintenance, privacy, and only one per island led TSKL to adopt satellite-based telephones. However, the system is more expensive and still only located at Council Headquarters.<ref name="Savekiribati" />

Print weeklies in Gilbertese include the ''Te Uekara'' published by the government, ''Te Mauri'' published by the Kiribati Protestant Church, and the ''Kiribati Independent'', published from [[Auckland]] as well as the ''Kiribati Newstar'', published in English.<ref name="Savekiribati" />

In December 2019, SpaceX launched the [[Kacific Broadband Satellites|Kacific1 broadband satellite]] that provides 100&nbsp;Mbit/s mobile and broadband service to 25 countries throughout to the Asia-Pacific region including Kiribati.<ref>{{cite web |title=SpaceX successfully launches Kacific 100Mbps satellite |url=https://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/networking/spacex-successfully-launches-kacific-100mbps-satellite/ |access-date=13 July 2021 |date=17 December 2019 |first=Campbell |last=Kwan |website=[[ZDNet]]}}</ref> Three of the satellite's 56 spot beams provide overlapping coverage of the Gilbert Islands and Tuvalu; however, the more eastern regions of the country, the Phoenix and Line Islands, are outside of the satellite's coverage.<ref>{{ cite web|title= Kacific to double in size as first satellite launch nears, mulls second satellite |url= https://spacenews.com/kacific-to-double-in-size-as-first-satellite-launch-nears-mulls-second-satellite/ |first=Caleb |last=Henry |date=2 January 2019 |access-date=13 July 2021}}</ref>

The Southern Cross NEXT cable system, which entered service in July 2022,<ref>{{cite web |title=Southern Cross NEXT Is Now In-Service! |url=https://subtelforum.com/southern-cross-next-is-now-in-service/ |access-date=21 December 2022 |date=7 July 2022}}</ref> connects the US to Australia and provides service to eastern part of Kiribati (Kiritimati island) through the {{convert |234 |mi |km |adj=on}} Kiritimati Branch with one fiber pair. The network, which is an upgrade to the existing [[Southern Cross Cable]], also connects to Samoa, Fiji, and New Zealand.<ref>{{cite web |title=Southern Cross NEXT Cable System Overview |url=https://www.submarinenetworks.com/en/systems/trans-pacific/southern-cross-next/southern-cross-next-cable-system-overview |first=Winston |last=Qiu |access-date=13 July 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title= FCC Approves Cable Landing License for the Southern Cross Next |url= https://www.submarinenetworks.com/en/systems/trans-pacific/southern-cross-next/fcc-approves-cable-landing-license-for-the-southern-crsoss-next |access-date=13 July 2021 |date=31 July 2020 |first=Winston |last=Qui }}</ref>

In June 2021, the World Bank-backed procurement for the East Micronesian Cable system was cancelled due to security concerns. The undersea fiberoptic system, which would have originated in [[Guam]], was "designed to improve the communications in the island nations of Nauru, Kiribati and Federated States of Micronesia (FSM)."<ref>{{cite news |title=EXCLUSIVE Pacific undersea cable project sinks after U.S. warns against Chinese bid |first1= Jonathan |last1=Barrett |first2= Yew Lun |last2= Tian |newspaper= Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/exclusive-pacific-undersea-cable-project-sinks-after-us-warns-against-chinese-2021-06-18/ |date=17 June 2021 |access-date=13 July 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title= East Micronesia subsea cable scrapped as US says Chinese firms pose threat
|url= https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/east-micronesia-subsea-cable-scrapped-as-us-says-chinese-firms-pose-threat/ |access-date=13 July 2021 |date=18 June 2021 |first=Sebastian |last=Moss }}</ref> In January 2023, ministers from the three Pacific island nations signed a joint communiqué for moving forward with the stalled project. Funded by the U.S., Japan and Australia the project is valued at $70 million.<ref>{{cite web |title= FSM, Nauru, Kiribati reach a deal to push forward a stalled fiber optic cable project
|url=https://www.pacificislandtimes.com/post/fsm-nauru-kiribati-agree-to-push-forward-a-stalled-fiber-optic-cable-project |publisher=Pacific Island Times |date=2023-01-31 |access-date=2023-03-10 |first=Marc-Vic |last=Cagurangan }}</ref> In early 2023, it was reported that Kiribati became the first Pacific island country to receive [[Starlink]] services.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://ts2.space/en/starlink-in-kiribati/ |access-date=2023-03-15 |title= Starlink in Kiribati How Starlink is Improving Internet Connectivity in Kiribati |website=TS2 Space|date=2 March 2023 }}</ref>

==Demographics==
{{Main|Demographics of Kiribati}}
[[File:Children in Bairiki Square, Tarawa, Kiribati.JPG|thumb|[[I-Kiribati]] children in [[South Tarawa]]]]
The November 2020 census showed a population of 119,940. About 90% lived in the [[Gilbert Islands]], with 52.9% of them on South Tarawa, including [[Betio]], the biggest township.<ref>{{cite web |title=2015 Population and Housing Census, Volume 1: Management Report and Basic Tables |publisher=National Statistics Office (Ministry of Finance, Kiribati) |date=September 2016 |url=http://www.mfed.gov.ki/statistics/documents/2015_Population_Census_Report_Volume_1final_211016.pdf |access-date=17 August 2017 |archive-date=29 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029145745/http://www.mfed.gov.ki/statistics/documents/2015_Population_Census_Report_Volume_1final_211016.pdf |url-status=dead }} The populations of Kiribati and of South Tarawa appear in Table 1b ("Population and No. of Households by Island, Ethnicity and Land Area: 2015") on page 32. The population of South Tarawa is 39,058. If the population of nearby [[Betio]] is included, the figure increases to 56,388. The population located in the Gilbert Islands is 99,633 and is given in Table A3 ("Population Summary by Island: 1931–2015") on page 195.</ref>

Until recently, people lived mostly in villages with populations between 50 and 3,000 on the outer islands. Most houses are made of materials obtained from coconut and pandanus trees. Frequent droughts and infertile soil hinder reliable large-scale agriculture, so the islanders have largely turned to the sea for livelihood and subsistence. Most are outrigger sailors and fishermen. Copra plantations serve as a second source of employment. In recent years, large numbers of citizens have moved to the more urban island capital of Tarawa, where Betio is the largest town and South Tarawa reunites larger towns like [[Bikenibeu]] or [[Teaoraereke]]. South Tarawa's 2024 population is now estimated at 69,710. In 1978, the population of South Tarawa was 17,921.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/south-tarawa-population|title=South Tarawa Population 2024|website=World Population Review}}</ref>

=== Ethnicity ===
[[File:Landscape, Kiribati, 2011. Photo- Erin Magee - DFAT (12425893525).jpg|thumb|Village on Kiribati]]
{{bar box
|title=Ethnic groups in Kiribati
|titlebar=#ddd
|left1=Ethnic groups
|right1=percent
|float=right
|bars=
{{bar percent|I-Kiribati|darkgreen|95.71}}
{{bar percent|Part I-Kiribati|purple|3.76}}
{{bar percent|Tuvalu|red|0.24}}
{{bar percent|Other|black|1.8}}
}}
The native people of Kiribati are called [[I-Kiribati]]. Ethnically, the I-Kiribati are [[Oceanic languages|Oceanians]], a sub-ethnicity of [[Austronesian peoples|Austronesians]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kukutai |first1=Tahu Hera |author-link=Tahu Kukutai |last2=Broman |first2=Patrick |date=October 2016 |title=From colonial categories to local culture: Evolving state practices of ethnic enumeration in Oceania, 1965–2014 |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1468796815603755 |journal=Ethnicities |language=en |volume=16 |issue=5 |pages=689–711 |doi=10.1177/1468796815603755 |hdl=10289/11158 |s2cid=147393852 |issn=1468-7968|hdl-access=free }}</ref> Recent archaeological evidence indicates that Austronesians originally settled the islands thousands of years ago.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}} Around the 14th century, Fijians, Samoans, and Tongans invaded the islands, thus diversifying the ethnic range and introducing [[Polynesian languages|Polynesian]] linguistic traits. Intermarriage among all ancestral groups, however, has led to a population reasonably homogeneous in appearance and traditions.<ref name="US State Dept"/>

=== Languages ===
The people of Kiribati speak [[Gilbertese language|Gilbertese]], an [[Oceanic languages|Oceanic language]]. English is the other [[official language]], but is not used very often outside the island capital of [[Tarawa]]. It is more likely that some English words are mixed in their use with Gilbertese. Older generations of I-Kiribati tend to use more complicated versions of the language. Several words in Gilbertese have been adopted from European settlers, for instance, ''kamea'' is one of the Gilbertese words for dog, ''kiri'' being the Oceanic one,<ref>{{cite web |title=Kiribati – English Glossary for the Communication and Culture Handbook |url=http://www.trussel.com/kir/glossary.htm |website=Te taetae ni Kiribati—The language of Kiribati |access-date=23 July 2020}}</ref> which has its origins in the I-Kiribati people hearing the European settlers saying "come here" to their dogs, and adopting that as ''kamea''.{{sfn|Stearns|1973|page=228}}

Many other [[loanword]]s have been adopted (like ''buun'', spoon, ''moko'', smoke, ''beeki'', pig, ''batoro'', bottle) but some typical Gilbertese words are quite common, even for European objects (like ''wanikiba'', plane – the flying canoe, ''rebwerebwe'', motorbike – for the motor noise, ''kauniwae'', shoes – the cow for the feet).{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

=== Religion ===
[[File:Kiribati(008).JPG|thumb|Catholic Church in Betio]]
{{Further|Religion in Kiribati}}

Christianity is the major religion in Kiribati, having been lately introduced by [[Missionary|missionaries]], because of its remoteness and the absence of any significant European presence until the latter half of the 19th century. The population is predominantly [[Catholic Church in Kiribati|Roman Catholic]] (58.9%), with two main Protestant denominations ([[Kiribati Protestant Church]] 8.4% and [[Kiribati Uniting Church]] 21.2%) accounting for 29.6%. [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (5.6%), [[Baháʼí Faith in Kiribati|Baháʼí Faith]] (2.1%), [[Seventh-day Adventist Church]] (2.1%), [[Pentecostalism|Pentecostals]], [[Jehovah's Witnesses]], and other small faiths together account for less than 2% (2020 census).<ref name="Census 2020"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Religious freedom in Kiribati |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2014religiousfreedom/index.htm?year=2014&dlid=238302#wrapper |access-date=10 August 2022}}</ref>

===Health===
{{See also|List of hospitals in Oceania#Kiribati}}
[[File:Prevalence Of Obesity In The Adult Population, Top Countries (2016).svg|thumb|upright=2|Prevalence of obesity in the adult population, top countries (2016), Kiribati has the seventh highest rate in the world.]]
The [[Gilbert Islands]] where 90% of the Kiribati population live, boast some of the highest population densities in the Pacific, rivalling cities like Hong Kong or Singapore without any [[skyscraper]]s or other forms of conventional high-density housing. This overcrowding produces a great amount of pollution, worsening the quality and length of life. Due to insufficient sanitation and water filtration systems, worsened by the fragility of the [[Lens (hydrology)|water lens]] of the atolls and by climate change, only about 66% have access to clean water. Waterborne diseases grow at record levels throughout the islands. Poor sanitation has led to an increase in cases of conjunctivitis, diarrhoea, dysentery, and fungal infections. Kiribati is the country with the third highest prevalence of smoking in the world, with 54–57% of the population reported as smokers.<ref>{{cite news |title=Number of smokers up by 35 million in 30 years, study finds |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Number-of-smokers-up-by-35-million-in-30-years-study-finds/articleshow/28530274.cms |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=The Times of India |date=8 January 2014}}</ref> Due to this and other "[[lifestyle disease]]s", such as [[type 2 diabetes]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://reliefweb.int/report/kiribati/kiribati-remote-island-nation-faces-triple-threat-health|title=Kiribati: The remote island nation faces a triple threat to health|website=ReliefWeb|date=16 May 2023}}</ref> there has been a drastic spike in amputations on the islands, doubling in a few years.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

As a consequence, the population of Kiribati has a quite low life expectancy at birth of 68.46 years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/KIR/kiribati/life-expectancy|title = Kiribati Life Expectancy 1950-2021}}</ref> Even if this data is of only 66.9 years, provided elsewhere, Kiribati ranks last in life expectancy out of the 20 nations of Oceania. This life expectancy is 64.3 for males, and 69.5 for females and there is an infant mortality rate of 41 deaths per 1,000 live births.<ref name="IMF 2011"/> [[Tuberculosis]] has a small presence in the country, with 365 cases per 100,000 a year.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kiribati—TB Country Profile |url=http://apps.who.int/globalatlas/predefinedReports/TB/PDF_Files/kir.pdf |publisher=World Health Organization |access-date=23 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100713063006/http://apps.who.int/globalatlas/predefinedReports/TB/PDF_Files/kir.pdf |archive-date=13 July 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Government expenditure on health was at US$268 per capita (PPP) in 2006.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/data_sheets/cty_ds_KIR.html |title = Human Development Report 2009 – Kiribati |publisher = Hdrstats.undp.org |access-date = 14 May 2010 }}</ref> In 1990–2007, there were 23 physicians per 100,000 persons.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://earthtrends.wri.org/text/population-health/variable-1297.html |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110611161258/http://earthtrends.wri.org/text/population-health/variable-1297.html |archive-date = 11 June 2011 |title = Public Health: Physicians per 100,000 people |publisher = Earthtrends.wri.org |access-date = 14 May 2010 }}</ref> Since the arrival of Cuban doctors in 2006, the infant mortality rate has decreased significantly.<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/171387/cuban-doctors-reduce-kiribati-infant-mortality-rate-by-80-percent |title = Cuban doctors reduce Kiribati infant mortality rate by 80 percent |last=Meetai |first= Airam |publisher = Rnzi.com |date = 19 July 2007 |access-date = 14 May 2010 }}</ref>

Most health problems are related to consumption of semi-raw seafood, limited food storage facilities, and bacterial contamination of fresh water supplies. In the early 2000s, between 1 and 7% of the population, depending on the island, were annually treated for food poisoning in a hospital. Modernization and cross-cultural exchange of the late 20th century brought new issues of unhealthy diet and lifestyle, heavy smoking, especially among the young, and external infections, including HIV/AIDS.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|pp=8–9}}

Fresh water remains a concern of Kiribati – during the dry season (Aumaiaki), water has been drilled for instead of using rain water tanks. In recent years, there has been a longer than usual Aumaikai season resulting in additional water having to be drilled from beneath the water table. This has introduced water-borne illnesses, compounding the health problems within Kiribati.<ref>{{cite web |title=Fresh water supply |url=http://www.climate.gov.ki/effects/fresh-water-supply/ |website=Climate Change |publisher=Republic of Kiribati |access-date=23 July 2020 |archive-date=30 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170930035644/http://www.climate.gov.ki/effects/fresh-water-supply/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The Human Rights Measurement Initiative<ref>{{cite web |title=Human Rights Measurement Initiative – The first global initiative to track the human rights performance of countries |url=https://humanrightsmeasurement.org/ |access-date=2022-03-18 |website=humanrightsmeasurement.org}}</ref> finds that Kiribati is fulfilling 77.2% of what it should be fulfilling for the right to health based on its level of income.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=Kiribati - HRMI Rights Tracker |url=https://rightstracker.org/ |access-date=2022-03-18 |website=rightstracker.org}}</ref> When looking at the right to health with respect to children, Kiribati achieves 93.8% of what is expected based on its current income.<ref name=":0" /> In regards to the right to health amongst the adult population, the country achieves 92.2% of what is expected based on the nation's level of income.<ref name=":0" /> Kiribati falls into the "very bad" category when evaluating the right to reproductive health because the government is fulfilling only 45.5% of what the country is expected to achieve based on the resources (income) it has available.<ref name=":0" />

===Education===
{{further|Education in Kiribati}}
[[File:University of South Pacific, Kiribati Campus.jpg|thumb|The [[University of the South Pacific]], Kiribati Campus]]
Primary education is free and compulsory for the first nine years, beginning at age six.<ref>{{cite web |first= |date=31 May 2022 |title=Education in Kiribati |url=https://www.commonwealthofnations.org/sectors-kiribati/education/ |access-date=31 May 2022 |website=Commonwealth of Nations}}</ref> Mission schools are slowly being absorbed into the government primary school system. Higher education is expanding; students may seek technical, teacher or marine training, or study in other countries.<ref name="US State Dept"/> Most choosing to do the latter have gone to Fiji to attend the [[University of the South Pacific]], and those wishing to complete medical training have been sent to Australia, New Zealand or Cuba.<ref>{{cite news |title=I-Kiribati students perform well in Cuba. |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-172788770.html |publisher=HighBeam Research |access-date=23 July 2020 |work=Pacific Islands Broadcasting Association |date=24 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501140253/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-172788770.html |archive-date=1 May 2013}}</ref>

The education system is organised as follows:
* Preschool for childhood from 1 to 5 years;
* Primary school (Class 1 to 6) from 6 to 11 years;
* Junior secondary school (Form 1 to 3) from 12 to 14;
* Senior secondary school (Form 4 to 7) from 15 to 18.

[[Kiribati Ministry of Education]] is the education ministry. The government high schools are [[King George V and Elaine Bernacchi School]], ''Tabiteuea North Senior Secondary School'', and ''Melaengi Tabai Secondary School''. Thirteen high schools are operated by Christian churches.<ref>{{cite web |title=English Language Trainer (of Trainers/ Teachers) |url=https://vsa.org.nz/assets/Volunteer/ADSW8/41041-KIR-Eng-Language-Trainer.pdf |pages=6–7 |website=Volunteer Service Abroad (Te Tūao Tāwāhi) |access-date=23 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180706162000/https://vsa.org.nz/assets/Volunteer/ADSW8/41041-KIR-Eng-Language-Trainer.pdf |archive-date=6 July 2018 |date=12 March 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The University of the South Pacific has a campus in [[Teaoraereke]] for distant/flexible learning, but also to provide preparatory studies towards obtaining certificates, diplomas and degrees at other campus sites.

The other prominent schools in Kiribati are:
* the [[Marine Training Centre]] in Betio;
* the Kiribati Institute of Technology;
* the Kiribati Fisheries Training Centre;
* the Kiribati School of Nursing;
* the Kiribati Police Academy;
* the Kiribati Teachers College.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dfat.gov.au/sites/default/files/financing-of-tvet-in-kiribati.pdf |title=Research into the Financing of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in the Pacific |series=Kiribati Country Report |date=August 2014 |publisher=Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade |last1=Majumder |first1=Prabir |last2=Tearo |first2=Teweiariki |access-date=20 August 2021 }}</ref>

==Culture==
{{Main|Culture of Kiribati}}
Songs (''te anene'') and above all, dances (''te mwaie''), are held in high regard.

===Music===
{{main|Music of Kiribati}}
Kiribati folk music is generally based on [[chanting]] or other forms of vocalising, accompanied by [[body percussion]]. Public performances in modern Kiribati are generally performed by a seated chorus, accompanied by a guitar. However, during formal performances of the standing dance (''Te Kaimatoa'') or the hip dance (''Te Buki''), a wooden box is used as a percussion instrument. This box is constructed to give a hollow and reverberating tone when struck simultaneously by a chorus of men sitting around it. Traditional songs are often love-themed, but there are also competitive, religious, children's, patriotic, war and wedding songs. There are also [[tirere|stick dance]]s which accompany legends and semi-historical stories.<ref name=Encarta>{{cite web|title=Music from Kiribati|work=Encarta|access-date=29 September 2005|url=http://encarta.msn.com/media_461524732/Music_from_Kiribati.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090829123232/http://encarta.msn.com/media_461524732/Music_from_Kiribati.html|archive-date=29 August 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> These stick dances or "tirere" (pronounced seerere) are performed only during major festivals.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

===Dance===
{{main|Dance in Kiribati}}
[[File:Bonriki International Airport welcome.jpg|thumb|A welcome display]]
The uniqueness of Kiribati when compared with other forms of Pacific island dance is its emphasis on the outstretched arms of the dancer and the sudden birdlike movement of the head. The [[Great frigatebird|Frigate bird]] (''Fregata minor'') on the Kiribati flag refers to this bird-like style of Kiribati dancing. Most dances are in the standing or sitting position with movement limited and staggered. Smiling whilst dancing is generally considered vulgar within the context of Kiribati dancing. This is due to its origin of not being solely as a form of entertainment but as a form of storytelling and a display of the skill, beauty and endurance of the dancer.{{sfn|Stevenson|1896}}{{sfn|Whincup|Whincup|2001}}

=== Cuisine ===
Traditionally, the staple diet of the I-Kiribati was the abundance of seafood and coconuts. Starch-based carbohydrate sources were not plentiful due to the hostile climate of the atolls with only the northernmost atolls being viable for constant agriculture. The national crop ''[[Cyrtosperma merkusii|bwabwai]]'' was only eaten during special celebrations along with pork.
[[file:Babai.jpg|thumb|Bwabwai cultivation in [[Butaritari]]]]
To complement the rather low consumption of carbohydrates in their diets, the I-Kiribati processed the sap and fruit of the abundant pandanus and coconut trees into different beverages and foods such as ''te karewe'' (fresh daily sap of the coconut tree) or ''[[te tuae]]'' (dried pandanus cake) and ''te kabubu'' (dried pandanus flour) from pandanus fruit pulp and ''te kamaimai'' (coconut sap syrup) from coconut sap.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

After World War II, rice became a daily staple in most households, which is still the case today. The majority of seafood—in particular, fish—is eaten sashimi-style with either coconut sap, soy sauce or vinegar-based dressings, often combined with chillies and onions.

[[Coconut crabs]] and [[mud crabs]] are traditionally given to breastfeeding mothers, with the belief that the meat stimulates the production of high-quality [[breast milk]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

===Sport===
{{see also|Kiribati at the Olympics|Kiribati at the 2014 Commonwealth Games}}

[[File:Bairiki National Stadium, Tarawa, Kiribati.jpg|thumb|Bairiki National Stadium, at Bairiki, Tarawa]]

Kiribati has competed at the [[Commonwealth Games]] since 1998 and the [[Summer Olympics]] since 2004. It sent three competitors to its first Olympics, two sprinters and a weightlifter.<ref>{{cite news|last=Lopresti|first=Mike|title=Small step at Olympics is giant leap for tiny island nation|url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/lopresti/2004-08-19-lopresti-runner_x.htm|access-date=30 June 2014|work=[[USA Today]]|date=19 August 2004}}</ref> Kiribati won its first ever Commonwealth Games medal at the [[2014 Commonwealth Games]], when weightlifter [[David Katoatau]] won Gold in the 105&nbsp;kg Group.<ref>{{cite news|last=Johnston|first=Neil|title=Glasgow 2014: David Katoatau claims first ever Kiribati medal|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/commonwealth-games/28576400|access-date=30 July 2014|publisher=[[BBC Sport]]|date=30 July 2014}}</ref>

[[Association football|Football]] is the most popular sport. [[Kiribati Islands Football Federation]] (KIFF) is an associate member of the [[Oceania Football Confederation]], but not of world-governing body [[FIFA]]. Instead, they are member of [[ConIFA]]. The [[Kiribati national football team|Kiribati National team]] has played ten matches, all of which they have lost, and all at the [[Football at the Pacific Games|Pacific Games]] from 1979 to 2011. The Kiribati football stadium is [[Bairiki National Stadium]], which has a capacity of 2,500.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Djazmi|first1=Mani|title=The hardest job in football?|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/17790014|access-date=30 June 2014|publisher=BBC Sport|date=20 April 2012}}</ref>

The Betio Soccer Field is home to a number of local sporting teams.<ref>{{cite web |title=Betio Soccer Field |url=https://mapcarta.com/27549318 |website=Mapcarta |access-date=23 July 2020}}</ref>

===Outside perspectives===
[[Edward Carlyon Eliot]], who was Resident Commissioner of the [[Gilbert and Ellice Islands]] (now Kiribati and Tuvalu) from 1913 to 1920, describes this period in his autobiography ''Broken Atoms''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Eliot |first1=Edward Carlyon |title=Broken Atoms |date=1938 |publisher=G. Bles |location=London |oclc=2721201}}</ref>

Sir [[Arthur Grimble]] wrote about his time working in the British colonial service in Kiribati (then the Gilbert Islands) from 1914 to 1932 in two popular books ''A Pattern of Islands'' (1952){{sfn|Grimble|1952}} and ''Return to the Islands'' (1957).<ref name="Guiart 2002 v450">{{cite web | last=Guiart | first=Jean | title=Oceanic Literature | website=Encyclopedia Britannica | date=August 2, 2002 | url=https://www.britannica.com/art/Oceanic-literature#ref364471 | access-date=May 6, 2024}}</ref> He also undertook academic studies of Gilbertese culture.{{sfn|Grimble|1989}}

[[John Hilary Smith|John Smith]], the last governor of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands, wrote his memoir ''An Island in the Autumn'' (2011).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Smith |first1=John |title=An Island in the Autumn |date=2011 |publisher=Librario |isbn=978-1-906775-26-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UcSGvwEACAAJ |language=en}}</ref>

[[J. Maarten Troost]]'s more recent autobiographical experiences in [[Tarawa]] are documented in his book ''[[The Sex Lives of Cannibals]]'' (2004).{{sfn|Troost|2004}}

Alice Piciocchi's illustrated essay, ''Kiribati. Cronache illustrate da una terra (s)perduta'', (2016) Milan: 24 ORE Cultura, also translated into French (2018, éditions du Rouergue), tries to write and portray a comprehensive encyclopaedic book of modern Kiribati.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Favier|first=Olivier|url=https://www.rfi.fr/fr/culture/20181004-litterature-roman-graphique-kiribati-portrait-monde-sursis|title=Les Kiribati: Portrait d'un monde en sursis|date=7 October 2018|language=fr}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Oceania}}
* [[List of towns and villages in Kiribati]]
* [[Outline of Kiribati]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}
{{NoteFoot}}

==References==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==Bibliography==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last1=Ellis |first1=Albert F. |title=Ocean Island and Nauru; Their Story |year=1935 |publisher=Angus and Robertson |location=Sydney, Australia |oclc=3444055 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Grimble |first1=Arthur |title=A Pattern of Islands |year=1952 |publisher=[[Early New Zealand Books]] (NZETC) |url=http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-GriPatt.html |access-date=16 October 2011 |isbn=978-1-906011-45-1 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Grimble |first1=Arthur |title=Tungaru Traditions: Writings on the Atoll Culture of the Gilbert Islands |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |series=Penguin Travel Library |year=1989 |isbn=978-0-8248-1217-1}}
* {{cite book |last1= Koch |first1= Gerd (translated by Guy Slater)|title=The Material Culture of Kiribati|year=1986 |publisher= University of the South Pacific|location=Suva |isbn=9789820200081 }}
* {{cite book |title=Te Rikitianere ni baibara, ae te boki ni kaoti nanon taeka ianena aika 376 aika n te baibara ni kiribati: ma te kankaotanti ae karako |trans-title=Gilbert Islands Bible dictionary, and pocket concordance of proper names and contents of the Bible |publisher=E katauraoaki irouni beiñam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ibMUAAAAYAAJ |year=1895 |location=Honolulu |ref={{harvid|HBM|1895}} }}
* {{cite book |last1=Macdonald |first1=Barrie |title=Cinderellas of the Empire: Towards a History of Kiribati and Tuvalu |date=1982 |publisher=Australian National University Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_FwTAQAAIAAJ |isbn=9789820203358 |via=Google Books}}
* {{cite book |last1=Moseley |first1=William G. |title=An Introduction to Human-Environment Geography: Local Dynamics and Global Processes |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-4051-8932-3 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Piciocchi |first1=Alice |title=Kiribati: cronache illustrate da una terra (s)perduta |year=2016|publisher=24 ORE Cultura |location=Milan, Italy |isbn=978-88-6648-307-6}} (also in French)
* {{cite book |last1=Sabatier |first1=Ernest |title=Dictionnaire gilbertin-français |date=1954 |publisher=Mission of the Sacred Heart}}
* {{cite book |last1=Stearns |first1=Harold Thornton |title=Geologic Setting of the Fossil Goose Bones Found on Molokai Island, Hawaii|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lbe0AAAAIAAJ&q=kamea+Gilbertese|year=1973|publisher=Bernice P. Bishop Museum|quote=Malayo-Polynesian terms for the dog, te kiri, and the pig. te buaka, occur in Gilbertese word lists, but in general usage the dog is often called te kamea (from "come here") and the pig is known only as te beki.}}
* {{cite book |last1=Stevenson |first1=Robert Louis |title=In the South Seas |date=1896}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Thomas |first1=Frank R. |year=2003 |url=http://www.sil.si.edu/DigitalCollections/AtollResearchBulletin/issues/00501.pdf |title=Kiribati: 'Some aspects of human ecology,' forty years later |journal=Atoll Research Bulletin |volume=501 |pages=1–40 |doi=10.5479/si.00775630.501.1 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Troost |first1=J. Maarten |title=The Sex Lives of Cannibals |date=8 June 2004 |publisher=Broadway Books |isbn=978-0-76-791530-4}}
* {{cite book
 |last= Walsh
 |first= Michael Ravell
 |date= 2020
 |title= A History of Kiribati: From the Earliest Times to the 40th Anniversary of the Republic
 |page= <!-- or pages= -->
 |isbn=9-79869535-895-7
}}
* {{cite book |last1=Whincup |first1=Joan |last2=Whincup |first2=Tony |title=Akekeia! Traditional dance in Kiribati |date=2001 |location=Wellington, NZ |publisher=none}}{{self-published source|date=September 2023}}
* {{cite book |last1=Williams |first1=Maslyn |last2=Macdonald |first2=Barrie |title=The Phosphateers: A History of the British Phosphate Commissioners and the Christmas Island Phosphate Commission |year=1985 |publisher=Melbourne University Press |isbn=978-0-522-84302-6}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|voy=Kiribati}}
* [https://www.worldmaps.info/maps/high/KI/ki.jpg Map of Kiribati] from World Maps
* [http://www.kiribatitourism.gov.ki/ Kiribati National Tourism Office]
* [http://www.parliament.gov.ki/ Parliament of Kiribati]
* [http://www.climate.gov.ki/ Kiribati National Climate Change Portal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120202030155/http://www.climate.gov.ki/tarawa_climate_change_conference.html |date=2 February 2012 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090506023409/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/world-leaders-1/world-leaders-k/kiribati.html Chief of State and Cabinet Members] (archived 6 May 2009)