Natural hazards:
occasional cyclonic storms in January

Environment - current issues:
NA

Geography - note:
includes five archipelagoes (4 volcanic, 1 coral); Makatea in
French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in
the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati
and Nauru

People French Polynesia

Population:
262,125 (July 2003 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 28.3% (male 37,804; female 36,249)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 90,421; female 83,304)
65 years and over: 5.4% (male 7,226; female 7,121) (2003 est.)

Median age:
total: 26.7 years
male: 27.1 years
female: 26.3 years (2002)

Population growth rate:
1.62% (2003 est.)

Birth rate:
17.74 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)

Death rate:
4.53 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)