Marshall islands

Total land area	181km² ^[1] spread over 29 atolls and 5 islands
Exclusive economic zone (EEZ) area	2.1m² ^[1]

Resident population (2008 estimate)	53,033 ^[2]
2015 forecast	57,127 ^[3]
Average annual growth rate 2008-15	0.9%
Population density	293/km²
Women in parliament	1 out of 33 seats in the Nitijela and 3 out of 12 seats in the Council of Iroij
Human Development Index score	0.71605^[4]

The Republic of the Marshall Islands is an independent country in a Compact of Free Association with the United States. Following the Second World War, the United States administered the Marshall Islands and other Micronesian countries under the 1947 Trusteeship Agreement with the United Nations. A bicameral Congress of Micronesia was established in 1964 of which the Marshall Islands was a part. In 1978 the Marshall Islands voted in a referendum to break away from the rest of Micronesia and instead opted for a separate Constitution, which was ratified in 1979. The country gained independence and commenced its free-association relationship with the United States in October 1986. RMI is a constitutional government with a blended parliamentary-presidential system. The 1979 Constitution makes provision for an advisory upper house - the Council of Iroij (or Council of Chiefs) - and a legislature - an elected lower house, the Nitijela. Executive power lies with the President, who is elected by the Nitijela from among its members, and the cabinet. The President, in turn, appoints cabinet ministers from the Nitijela. Legislative power resides in the Nitijela, which consists of 33 senators elected by 24 electoral districts by universal suffrage of all citizens above 18 years of age. While there are no formal political parties in the RMI, there are two political groupings, the Aelon Kein Ad (AKA) and the United Democratic Party (UDP). In October 2009, a motion of no confidence ousted President Litokwa Tomeing and Jurelang Zedkaia, a paramount chief for the capital atoll of Majuro, was elected president. This was the first time for a leader to lose a no-confidence vote in the 30-year history of constitutional government in the former US Trust territory. RMI operates under a mixed parliamentary- presidential system set out in its Constitution, which was adopted in 1979. The Nitijela (lower house parliament) comprises 33 members, elected every four years by universal suffrage. Every inhabited atoll is represented, with Majuro (5 members) and Kwajalein (3 members) having the largest representation. There is also an upper house - the Council of Iroij (chiefs). Independence from the UN Trust Territory (administered by the United States) on 21 October 1986.

Head of State and Government	President Jurelang Zedkaia since October 2009. The president is elected from the Nitijela to serve a four year term (subject to retaining the confidence of the Nitijela). The president appoints a cabinet from the members of the Nitijela.
Executive	The president selects a cabinet from members of the Nitijela. These are then appointed to the following ministries: Ministry of Education - Ministry of Finance - Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Ministry of Health - Ministry of Internal Affairs - Ministry of Justice - Ministry of Public Works - Ministry of Resources & Development - Ministry of Transportation & Communications
Civil Service	The civil service consists of nine major ministries and a number of public agencies. The ministries are: Finance, Education, Health, Foreign Affairs, Internal Affairs, Justice, Resources and Development, Public Works, and Transportation and Communication. The majority of governmental functions and services are provided by the national government. The civil service was dramatically curtailed during the late 1990s reforms, but from FY2000 to FY2008 it rebounded sharply, growing from just under 1,500 to around 2,400 and putting major strain on the national budget. Recent reform discussions have focused heavily on the size, cost and performance of the civil service, and recent analyses have identified a number of reform options, but a clear reform plan has yet to emerge. The Constitution bestows civil service management responsibilities upon the Public Service Commission and the Chief Secretary, who serves as the head of the civil service and who is a member of the Cabinet. The Constitution also provides for a Judicial Service Commission that consists of the following: the Chief Justice of the High Court, as chair; the Attorney-General; and a private citizen selected by the Cabinet. The JSC nominates to Cabinet for appointment judges for the Supreme Court, the High Court, and the Traditional Rights Court and appoints judges to the District Court and the Community Courts.
Local Government	While the national government plays a dominant role in the economic and political landscape, the 24 local governments continue to push for a greater share of national resources and more recognition and authority. Each of the 24 districts has a local government headed by a council and a mayor. Local governments are established through their own constitutions and are granted, through the national Constitution, law and policy making authority in their respective jurisdictions, including taxation authority. Ordinances proposed by local governments are reviewed by the Minister of Internal Affairs to ensure consistency with the national Constitution and laws. The Marshall Islands Mayors Association (MIMA) is the central vehicle through which local government policies and concerns are discussed. Decentralization and greater local government autonomy are active and lively topics in MIMA. Nevertheless, local government capacity remains a fundamental weakness. For example, a number of local governments are unable to properly account for resources granted to them through the national government and from donors. Local governments receive a relatively small portion of the financial and technical assistance flows received by the RMI and they claim that access to more financial and technical assistance will improve their accountability and overall governance capacities. Annual leadership conferences between national and local government leaders have discussed decentralisation matters extensively, but no clear plans have emerged.
Judiciary	The Supreme Court is the superior constitutional court of record having appellate jurisdiction. The High Court is a superior constitutional court of record having general jurisdiction. The District Court is a statutory court of record. It consists of a Presiding Judge and two Associate Judges. The District Court has original jurisdiction concurrently with the High Court. A Community Court is a statutory court of record for a local government area, of which there are 24. Each Community Court consists of a Presiding Judge and such number of Associate Judges, if any, as may be appointed. The Traditional Rights Court is a constitutional court of record consisting of three or more judges selected to include a fair representation of all classes of land rights: Iroijlaplap (high chief); where applicable, Iroijedrik (lower chief); Alap (head of commoner/worker clan); and Dri Jerbal (commoner/worker).
International Organisations	ACP, ADB, AOSIS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO

The RMI’s Vision 2018 Strategic Development Plan Framework identifies the country’s key development priorities. The framework contains 10 major goals, each supported by key objectives, and articulates principles and priorities for macroeconomic management, the productive sectors, infrastructure, fiscal management and administration, education, health and other areas. Developed in 2001, in preparation for renegotiating the Compact of Free Association with the United States, Vision 2018 is now considered by many to be outdated, especially as new reform needs have been identified. Nevertheless, the Government continues to refer to the framework as its ‘roadmap’ for development. In September 2009, the Comprehensive Adjustment Program (CAP) Advisory Group submitted its final report to the government with recommendations to create both an improved fiscal position of the government and a more supportive environment for economic development over the long-term. The RMI experienced relatively steady economic growth from 1999 - 2007, fuelled mostly by new resource flows from Taiwan and the amended Compact with the US. However, this economic growth was not sustained and in 2008 a number of key indicators signalled a major slowdown in the economy and the re-emergence of fiscal distress. Moreover, despite high aid receipts for many years, human development remains a major weakness and many social challenges linger. The fiscal, economic and social challenges facing the country have put reforms back onto the agenda, but a clear commitment to and plan for reform remain to be seen. Public sector and fiscal reforms in the late 1990s and early 2000s brought some stability to RMI's public finance system. However, major challenges have re-emerged that now require critical fiscal adjustment and reform. Public financial management performance ratings for RMI generally fall below regional averages. The country's public finances and broader economy are heavily influenced by the Compact of Free Association with the United States. Annual decrements in Compact grants are having major impacts on revenue (which in 2008 represented only 94 percent of expenditures) and accelerate the need for fiscal adjustment. The government is currently considering fiscal reforms, primarily expenditure compression measures and an overhaul of the tax system. The Financial Management Act and Vision 2018 articulate a number of financial policies and priorities. Among them are: the need to maintain balanced budgets and fiscal stability; strengthening of budgetary controls, financial controls, proper accounting procedures, auditing and reporting systems; full compliance with competitive bidding procedures; strengthening of the Ministry of Finance; and avoidance of unplanned and wasteful expenditures. While progress has been made in upholding some of these policies, many weaknesses prevail throughout the financial management system. Transfers to public enterprises are growing unsustainably, totalling over US$7 million in FY2008, prompting the Finance Ministry and Cabinet to voice concern over poorly performing public enterprise. As of FY2008, RMI’s total outstanding external debt stood at just under $99 million, with about $60 million made up of concessional debt to the Asian Development Bank. This gives the RMI a relatively high debt to GDP ratio of 62 percent.

Annual budget documents

Items included:	- Proposed expenditures (shown by programs and sub- programs with a summary of policies and programs and specific performance targets to be achieved during the fiscal year shown against each program). - Anticipated revenues. - Development expenditures. - Recurrent expenditures. - Proposed receipts, disbursements and commitments of external aid. - Opening and closing balances, flow of funds of public financial assets including trust funds and special funds. - Revenues and expenditures for the previous year and projects for the next fiscal year. - Government borrowing in the current fiscal year, existing national debt and annual debt servicing.
Document: Medium Term Budget Framework	This document will present a four-year statement of the Budget by main programs of revenue, expenditure and financing.
Document: Annual Ministerial Economic Policy Statement	Tabled by the Minister of Finance, this document presents a macroeconomic overview and a sector review of the progress against the national vision.

GNI per person 2007 (Atlas method)	US$3,240 ^[3]
GDP current (2008)	US$152m ^[2]
GDP per capita 2008	US$2,866 ^[2]

Labour market, Formal sector (1999)

Number of employees	10,117 ^[2]
% Female	29% ^[2]
% Public sector	40% ^[2]
% Non-public sector	60% ^[2]

RMI enjoyed relatively stable economic growth for most of the past decade, but FY2007 and FY2008 brought major crises, including the food and fuel price surges, and signalled the return of fiscal and economic difficulty. RMI is highly dependent on food, fuel and other commodity imports and is thus highly exposed to global price fluctuations. Long-term inflation has averaged around 3 percent, but in FY2008 RMI experienced the sharpest jump in consumer prices in the Pacific with a CPI rise of 14.8 percent. RMI’s overall economic management performance ratings are below the regional average, and the RMI does not have a clear and credible economic policy. Vision 2018 articulates some broad macroeconomic policy and priority statements, but in practice does not articulate a well developed strategy for managing the economy, and the government has not committed to any concrete reform or austerity measures. Public expenditure, fuelled mostly by official transfers, dominate the economy. The public sector (inclusive of all levels of government) contributes around 40 percent of GDP and formal employment. RMI’s long-held objective to reduce the role of the public sector in the economy (a major goal of the structural adjustment reforms of the late 1990s) has yet to materialise. Fisheries exports have rebounded in recent years, totalling US$5.6 million in FY2008. Coconut related product exports (copra and oil) totalled US$13.2 million, an improvement over the FY2006 and FY2007 levels. Efforts to grow tourism and agriculture are underway, including the development of a new national tourism development plan. Private sector employment has not grown in recent years, but commercial lending has picked up notably in FY2007 and FY2008. The current account has recorded high and sustained trade deficits, with the FY2008 deficit totalling $72.1 million. Balance of payments inflows are dominated by grants, Kwajalein lease payments, and exports, consisting mostly of fish, copra and coconut oil. Formal employment has remained virtually flat in recent years, with a net of only 24 new jobs created between FY2004 and FY2008.

The Constitution directs that there be a Council of Iroij (chiefs) that may request, in accordance with the powers vested in it under the Constitution, the reconsideration of any bill affecting customary law, or any traditional practice, or land tenure, or any related matter. Nearly all land in the country is held privately, under the traditional land tenure system. Therefore, most government occupied land, including land used for public offices, schools, the main hospital, the national airport, and portions of Kwajalein Atoll that are used by the US for its missile testing program, are only accessible through lease arrangements. Disputes over lease terms are growing increasingly common, including a major ongoing impasse over the multi- million dollar Kwajalein Land Use Agreement. In 2003 the RMI set up a voluntary land registry system in the effort to improve accessibility to and security of land for development purposes. Skepticism from landowners, however, has resulted in very few land parcels and islands being registered to date.

The Constitution and laws protect freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of assembly. The Marshall Islands has a strong and independent media.

Telephone	Marshall Islands National Telecommunications Authority is a private corporation with significant ownership by the National Government. It is the authorized provider of telecommunications services and is responsible for providing local and long distance voice, fax, data, and Internet services to the Marshall Islands.
Internet	2,200 users as of September 2010 ^[6]. 3, 820 Facebook users (5.92% of population) ^[7].
Newspapers	One private weekly journal, Marshall Islands Journal. The government publication Marshall Islands Gazette is not currently published.
Television	Three satellite television stations: one private, one partially owned, and one operated by the US military on Kwajalein.
Radio	Numerous radio broadcast services, including one national government station, US military radio on Kwajalein and numerous private stations.

The Marshall Islands has no regular military forces, but under the Compact the US has full authority and responsibility for security and defence. It maintains a national police force, including a sea patrol operation. Multi-country surveillance and monitoring exercises, including Australia and New Zealand forces, are occasionally conducted in the RMI and surrounding regions and Marshallese police personnel participate in regional police training and cooperation efforts arranged by Australia.

Official transfers make up around two-thirds of annual revenues, making RMI one of the most aid-dependent countries in the Pacific. The bulk of the transfers come from the US, through the Compact and federal funds, and from Taiwan, which provides an annual cash grant. Japan, the European Union and Australia also provide donor assistance, and RMI is a member of many regional and international organisations, including the Asian Development Bank (ADB), World Bank, and International Monetary Fund (IMF). RMI has established diplomatic relations with 72 countries. Australia was the second country, after the US, to establish diplomatic relations, in 1987. Australia has a modest development assistance program with RMI. The estimated total aid budget to the RMI bilateral program was A$750,000 in 2008-09. This assistance is focused on scholarships, providing technical assistance and the small grant scheme which provides support to community organisations. Under the Defence Cooperation Program, Australia provides ongoing funding for the Pacific Patrol Boat Program. In 2008-09, the estimated total actual funding to RMI through the Defence Cooperation Program is A$775,000.