"text":"Originally settled by Polynesian emigrants from surrounding island groups, the Tokelau Islands were made a British protectorate in 1889. They were transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925. Referenda held in 2006 and 2007 to change the status of the islands from that of a New Zealand territory to one of free association with New Zealand did not meet the needed threshold for approval."
}
},
"Geography":{
"Location":{
"text":"Oceania, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand"
"text":"the country's small population is fairly evenly distributed amongst the three atolls"
},
"Natural hazards":{
"text":"lies in Pacific cyclone belt"
},
"Environment - current issues":{
"text":"overexploitation of certain fish and other marine species, coastal sand, and forest resources; pollution of freshwater lenses and coastal waters from improper disposal of chemicals"
},
"Geography - note":{
"text":"consists of three atolls (Atafu, Fakaofo, Nukunonu), each with a lagoon surrounded by a number of reef-bound islets of varying length and rising to over 3 m above sea level"
"text":"\"tokelau\" is a Polynesian word meaning \"north wind\""
}
},
"Dependency status":{
"text":"self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelau and New Zealand have agreed to a draft constitution as Tokelau moves toward free association with New Zealand; a UN-sponsored referendum on self governance in October 2007 did not meet the two-thirds majority vote necessary for changing the political status"
"text":"UTC+13 (18 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)"
},
"note":"<br><br>note: there is no designated, official capital for Tokelau; the location of the capital rotates among the three atolls along with the head of government or Ulu o Tokelau"
"text":"proposed as a resolution by the General Fono; passage requires support by each village and approval by the General Fono; amended many times, last in 2007"
"text":"Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General of New Zealand Governor General Dame Patricia Lee REDDY (since 28 September 2016); New Zealand is represented by Administrator Ross ARDERN (since May 2018)"
"text":"(Ulu o Tokelau) Fofo Filipo TUISANO (since 9 March 2020); note - position rotates annually among the three Faipule (village leaders) of the atolls"
"text":"Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau (or Tokelau Council) functions as a cabinet; consists of 3 Faipule (village leaders) and 3 Pulenuku (village mayors)"
},
"elections/appointments":{
"text":"the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; head of government chosen from the Council of Faipule to serve a 1-year term"
"note":"<p><strong>note:</strong> the meeting place of the Tokelau Council rotates annually among the three atolls; this tradition has given rise to the somewhat misleading description that the capital rotates yearly between the three atolls; in actuality, it is the seat of the government councilors that rotates since Tokelau has no capital</p>"
"text":"unicameral General Fono (20 seats apportioned by island - Atafu 7, Fakaofo 7, Nukunonu 6; members directly elected by simple majority vote to serve 3-year terms); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power to the General Fono"
"text":"a yellow stylized Tokelauan canoe on a dark blue field sails toward the manu - the Southern Cross constellation of four, white, five-pointed stars at the hoist side; the Southern Cross represents the role of Christianity in Tokelauan culture and, in conjunction with the canoe, symbolizes the country navigating into the future; the color yellow indicates happiness and peace, and the blue field represents the ocean on which the community relies"
},
"National symbol(s)":{
"text":"tuluma (fishing tackle box); national colors: blue, yellow, white"
"note":"<p><strong>note:</strong> adopted 2008; in preparation for eventual self governance, Tokelau held a national contest to choose an anthem; as a territory of New Zealand, \"God Defend New Zealand\" and \"God Save the Queen\" are official (see New Zealand)</p>"
"text":"<p>Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The principal sources of revenue are from sales of copra, postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand.</p><p></p><p>The people rely heavily on aid from New Zealand - about $15 million annually in FY12/13 and FY13/14 - to maintain public services. New Zealand's support amounts to 80% of Tokelau's recurrent government budget. An international trust fund, currently worth nearly $32 million, was established in 2004 by New Zealand to provide Tokelau an independent source of revenue.</p>"
"text":"modern satellite-based communications system; demand for mobile broadband increasing due to mobile services being the method of access for Internet across the region; 2G widespread with some 4G LTE service; satellite services has improved with the launch of the Kacific-1 satellite launched in 2019 (2020)"
},
"domestic":{
"text":"radiotelephone service between islands; fixed-line 21 per 100 persons (2019)"
},
"international":{
"text":"country code - 690; landing point for the Southern Cross NEXT submarine cable linking Australia, Tokelau, Samoa, Kiribati, Fiji, New Zealand and Los Angeles, CA (USA); radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok); satellite earth stations - 3 (2020)"
"note":"<br><br><strong>note:</strong> the COVID-19 outbreak is negatively impacting telecommunications production and supply chains globally; consumer spending on telecom devices and services has also slowed due to the pandemic's effect on economies worldwide; overall progress towards improvements in all facets of the telecom industry - mobile, fixed-line, broadband, submarine cable and satellite - has moderated"
