Vanuatu - Geography
Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Vanuatu. A Y-shaped chain of four main islands and 80 smaller islands; several of the islands have active volcanoes and there are several underwater volcanoes as well. Mother's mean age at first birth is (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 94 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Geographical data of Vanuatu
| Location | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Australia |
|---|---|
| Geographic coordinates | 16 00 S, 167 00 E |
| Map references | Oceania |
| Tarrain | mostly mountainous islands of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plains |
| Natural Resources | manganese, hardwood forests, fish |
| Natural Hazards | tropical cyclones (January to April); volcanic eruption on Aoba (Ambae) island began on 27 November 2005, volcanism also causes minor earthquakes; tsunamis volcanism: significant volcanic activity with multiple eruptions in recent years; Yasur (361 m), one of the world's most active volcanoes, has experienced continuous activity in recent centuries; other historically active volcanoes include Aoba, Ambrym, Epi, Gaua, Kuwae, Lopevi, Suretamatai, and Traitor's Head |
| Irrigated Land | 0 sq km (2022) |
| Major rivers (by length in km) | |
| Major aquifers | |
| Land Boundaries | 0 km |
| Border Countries | |
| Coastline | 2,528 km |
| Climate | tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds from May to October; moderate rainfall from November to April; may be affected by cyclones from December to April |
| Area | |
| Total Area | |
| Land Area | 12,189 sq km |
| Water Area | 0 sq km |
| comparative Area | slightly larger than Connecticut |
| Maritime Claims | |
| Territorial sea | 12 nm |
| Contiguous zone | 24 nm |
| Exclusive economic zone | 200 nm |
| Continental shelf | 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
| Elevations | |
| Highest point | Tabwemasana 1,877 m |
| Lowest point | Pacific Ocean 0 m |
| Land Use | |
| Agricultural land | 15.3% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: arable land | arable land: 1.6% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent crops | permanent crops: 10.3% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent pasture | permanent pasture: 3.4% (2018 est.) |
| Forest | 36.1% (2018 est.) |
| Other | 48.6% (2018 est.) |
Population Distribution
Three-quarters of the population lives in rural areas; the urban populace lives primarily in two cities, Port-Vila and Lugenville; three largest islands - Espiritu Santo, Malakula, and Efate - accomodate over half of the populace
People and Society
In Vanuatu, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Ni-Vanuatu 99%, other 1% (European, Asian, other Melanesian, Polynesian, Micronesian, other) (2020 est.)
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Pop growth rate | 1.55% (2024 est.) |
| Birth rate | 20.8 births/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Death rate | 4 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Health expenditure | 4% of GDP (2020) |
| Physicians Density | |
| Hospital bed Density | |
| Total fertility rate | 2.53 children born/woman (2024 est.) |
| Gross reproduction rate | 1.23 (2024 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 49% (2013) |
| Est married women (ages 15-49) | 69.2% (2023 est.) |
| Literacy | age 15 and over can read and write |
| Education expenditures | 2.2% of GDP (2020 est.) |
| Net Migration rate | -1.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Nationality | Ni-Vanuatu | Ni-Vanuatu (singular and plural) |
| Languages | indigenous languages (more than 100) 82.6%, Bislama (official; creole) 14.5%, English (official) 2.1%, French (official) 0.8% (2020 est.) |
| Religions | Protestant 39.9% (Presbyterian 27.2%, Seventh Day Adventist 14.8%, Anglican 12%, Churches of Christ 5%, Assemblies of God 4.9%, Neil Thomas Ministry/Inner Life Ministry 3.2%), Roman Catholic 12.1%, Apostolic 2.3%, Church of Jesus Christ 1.8%, customary beliefs (including Jon Frum cargo cult) 3.1%, other 12%, none 1.4%, unspecified 0.1% (2020 est.) |
| Age Structure | |
| 0-14 years | 31.1% (male 50,584/female 48,475) |
| 15-64 years | 63.8% (male 99,496/female 103,425) |
| 65 years and over | 5% (2024 est.) (male 7,852/female 8,175) |
| Dependency Ratios | |
| Total dependency ratio | 76.5 |
| Youth dependency ratio | 69.9 |
| Elderly dependency ratio | 12.3 |
| Potential support ratio | 15.2 (2021 est.) |
| Median Age | |
| Total | 24.6 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 24.1 years |
| Female | 25 years |
| Urbanization | |
| Urban population | 26% of total population (2023) |
| Rate of urbanization | 2.55% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Major urban areas (Pop) | 53,000 PORT-VILA (capital) (2018). |
| Sex Ratio | |
| At birth | 1.05 male(s)/female |
| 0-14 years | 1.04 male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 0.96 male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.96 male(s)/female |
| Total population | 0.99 male(s)/female (2024 est.) |
| Infant Motality | |
| Total | 13.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.) |
| Male | 15 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Female | 12.3 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life Expectancy at birth | |
| Total population | 75.7 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 74 years |
| Female | 77.4 years |
| Drinking Water Sources | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 100% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 89.7% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 92.3% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 0% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 10.3% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 7.7% of population (2020 est.) |
| Sanitation facility acess | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 91.1% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 60.4% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 68.2% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 8.9% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 39.6% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 31.8% of population (2020 est.) |
| Alcohol consumption per capita | |
| Total | 1.6 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Beer | 0.34 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Wine | 0.39 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Spirits | 0.87 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Other alcohols | 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Tobacco use | |
| Total | 17.8% (2020 est.) |
| Male | 33% (2020 est.) |
| Female | 2.6% (2020 est.) |
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about Vanuatu
Want to know more about Vanuatu? Check all different factbooks for Vanuatu below.
