Country Info:
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Northern Mariana Islands Location:
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), is a commonwealth in political union with the United States of America at a strategic location in the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines, at 15°1'2?N, 145°4'5?E. The United States Census Bureau reports the total land area of all islands as 463.63 km2 (179.01 sq mi).
Northern Mariana Islands Geography:
The Northern Mariana Islands, together with Guam to the south, comprise the Mariana Islands.
The southern islands are limestone with level terraces and fringing coral reefs; the northern islands are volcanic, with active volcanoes on Anatahan, Pagan and Agrihan. The volcano on Agrihan is the highest elevation in the islands at 965 meters. About one-fifth of the land is arable, another tenth is permanent pasture. The primary natural resource is fish, which causes conflict with the protection of endangered species. Past development has created landfills that must be cleaned up and has caused contamination of groundwater on Saipan, which may contribute to disease.
Anatahan Volcano is a small volcanic island located 120 km (80 miles) north of Saipan Island and 320 km (200 miles) north of Guam. The island is about 9 km (5.6 miles) long and 3 km (2 miles) wide. Anatahan began erupting suddenly from its east crater on May 10, 2003 at about 5:00 p.m. (17:00h). Since then it has continued to alternate between eruptive and calm periods. On April 6, 2005, approximately 50,000 cubic meters of ash and rock were ejected, causing a large, black cloud to drift southward over Saipan and Tinian. Recent eruptions have caused some commercial flights to re-route.
The islands have a tropical marine climate moderated by seasonal northeast trade winds. There is little seasonal temperature variation; the dry season runs from December to June, and the rainy season from July to October can include typhoons. The Guinness Book of World Records has cited Saipan as having the most equable temperature in the world.
Northern Mariana Islands People:
Population
- July 2005 estimate 80,801 (198th)
- Density 168 /km2 (n/a)
63.8 /sq mi
Northern Mariana Islands Government:
Government Presidential representative democracy
- Head of State George W. Bush
- Governor Benigno R. Fitial
- Lt. Governor Timothy P. Villagomez
- Resident
Representative
Pedro Agulto Tenorio
Northern Mariana Islands Economy:
The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands benefits from substantial subsidies and development assistance from the federal government of the United States. The economy also relies heavily on tourism, especially, from Japan, and the rapidly dwindling garment manufacturing sector. The tourism industry is also dwindling. Since late 2006, tourist arrivals fell 15.23 percent (73,000 potential visitors) from the eleven months prior. [10]
The Northern Mariana Islands has successfully used its position as a free trade area with the U.S., while at the same time not being subject to the same labor laws. For example, the $3.05 per hour minimum wage in the Commonwealth is lower than in the U.S. and some other worker protections are weaker leading to lower production costs. This allows garments to be labeled "Made in USA" without having to comply with all U.S. labor laws. A bill passed by the US House of Representatives would extend federal minimum wages laws to the Northern Mariana Islands and raise the wage to $7.00 if signed into law. [11]
In the extreme, the island's exemption from U.S. labor laws have led to many alleged exploitations including recent claims of the existence of sweatshops, child labor, child prostitution and even forced abortions. [12] Ms. magazine took on the issue in depth in their Spring 2006 article "Paradise Lost: Greed, Sex Slavery, Forced Abortions and Right-Wing Moralists."
A separate immigration system outside of federal U.S. control has resulted in a large number of Chinese migrant workers employed in the Islands' garment trade. However, the lifting of World Trade Organization restrictions on Chinese imports to the US has put the Commonwealth-based trade under severe pressure, leading to a number of recent factory closures.
Agricultural production, primarily of tapioca, cattle, coconuts, breadfruit, tomatoes, and melons exists, but is of relatively minor economic importance.
Northern Mariana Islands More Information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Mariana_Islands |
