Yearbook 2002

Tuvalu. In August, Parliament elected former finance minister Saufatu Sopoanga as new prime minister. The nomination was preceded by parliamentary elections where 9 of the 15 members were re-elected.

According to Countryaah website, national day of Tuvalu is every October 1. The government is considering suing the United States and Australia before the International Court of Justice in The Hague for failing to sign the Kyoto Protocol to reduce emissions that cause global warming. Tuvalu claims that climate change threatens to submerge the country within 50 years. Several small islands have already disappeared due to rising sea levels. New Zealand has agreed to adopt a 30-year plan to receive Tuvaluans who become homeless as their islands sink.

In December, the EU decided to grant Tuvalu € 3.3 million in aid by 2007. The money will go to education and environmental projects in the outer islands.

Tuvalu Country Overview

Visas and admission
Finnish citizen does not need a visa for Tuvalu for a trip of less than 90 days. The passport must be valid for 6 months after leaving the country.

• According to ABBREVIATIONFINDER.ORG, TUV stands for Tuvalu.

Insurance
Every person participating in the trip must have a valid travel insurance that covers medical expenses in the event of illness or other similar need. Please check the validity of your own insurance and the terms and conditions of the insurance cancellation cover.

Please pay attention to the special nature of your trip and check the coverage of the insurance in that respect as well.

Many dive trips require more extensive insurance. Please check the contents of your insurance with your insurance company.

Currency: Tuvalu’s currency is the Australian Dollar (AUD). € 1 is about 1.55 AUD. Credit cards are not accepted in Tuvalu.

Vaccinations 
Check that your basic vaccinations are valid (tetanus, polio and diphtheria and MPR). Hepatitis A and B vaccinations are recommended for the trip.

Always check the vaccination requirements at the health center or the Vaccination Advice of the Tourist Clinic

Time difference
10 hours

Electric
current Electric current 220 V / 50 Hz. Sockets similar to e.g. Australia.

Safety
We stay in safe areas during our trip, but general caution within common sense is desirable throughout the trip.

For more information on traveling in the country, see the English Foreign Office’s travel bulletin, for example .

History

During the 1990s, a fundamental theme of political debate in the country was represented by relations with Great Britain. Although the Parliament had rejected in 1992 the proposal to transform the institutional structure of the country into a republic (Tuvalu is a ‘special member’ of the Commonwealth), in the following years the prime minister K. Latasi, elected at the end of 1993, showed himself determined to scale back trade and relations with Great Britain. In fact, in 1995, on the occasion of the 17th anniversary of independence, the Union Jack symbol was removed from the national flag. The initiative, however, did not meet the favor of the population and in February 1997the original flag was restored. Latasi himself, placed in the minority, was defeated in the 1998 elections and became Prime Minister B. Paeniu, who had already held this office from 1989 to 1993. Forced Paeniu to resign due to the lack of confidence of the Parliament, he was succeeded in April 1999 by I. Ionatana.