Forgotten World (112): Kiribati
Kiribati – the former Gilbert Islands – consists of 33 atolls that occupy a vast area in the Pacific. They stretch nearly 4,000 km from east to west, more than 2,000 km from north to south, and straddle the Equator. Many of the atolls are inhabited (the total population is around 100,000) but most of them are very low-lying and at risk from rising sea levels.
The country won independence from the United Kingdom in 1979. The economy is weak and is affected by rises and falls in the world demand for coconut. Fishing licences, foreign aid and money sent home by workers abroad also play their part, as does a trust fund set up with revenues from phosphate mining on the island of Banaba.