Natural hazards: tropical cyclones or typhoons (January to April); volcanism causes minor earthquakes; tsunamis
Environment - current issues: a majority of the population does not have access to a potable and reliable supply of water; deforestation
Environment - international agreements: party to: Antarctic-Marine Living
Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94 signed,
but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: a Y-shaped chain of four main islands and 80 smaller islands; several of the islands have active volcanoes
People Vanuatu
Population: 196,178 (July 2002 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 35.6% (male 35,681; female 34,164) 15-64 years: 61.1% (male 61,384; female 58,473) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 3,473; female 3,003) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.66% (2002 est.)
Birth rate: 24.83 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Death rate: 8.25 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)