My Science School

            Malta is a Southern European island country consisting of an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea.

            The Republic of Malta is actually made up of three islands: Gozo, Comino, and Malta, which is the largest of the three. This small country has a population of over 410,000 inhabitants, making it one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Another popular tourist destination, foreigners from all over the world come to Malta for its sunny weather, attractive beaches, rich history, and vibrant nightlife.

            The British ruled Malta until 1964, when it became independent. The capital of Malta is Valletta, is the smallest national capital in the European Union by area. Valletta is one of the most concentrated historical areas in the world. Malta has one national language, which is Maltese, and English is used as an official language.

            Malta’s location in the middle of the Mediterranean has historically given it great strategic importance as a naval base. There are more than a few sunken World War II ships along the coastline. It was heavily bombarded by German and Italian aircraft, and by the end of the World War, Malta was devastated.

               The tiny Caribbean island of Grenada is one of the smallest independent countries in the western hemisphere. It consists of the island of Grenada, and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines island chain. Its size is 348.5 square kilometres. Its capital is St. George’s. Known as the Spice Island, the island of Carriacou is the largest island in the Grenadines. It remains within the British Commonwealth as an independent nation, and the Governor General represents the Queen.

               The East Caribbean dollar is the currency used locally. It is linked to the US dollar. Tourism is Grenada’s main economic force. Conventional beach and water-sports tourism is largely focused in the southwest region around St. George’s. Beautiful scenery with fertile valleys, rainforests, mountain lakes and excellent beaches are a big draw for tourists.

               St Vincent and the Grenadines, one of the Windward Island countries of the Eastern Caribbean, lies near the southern end of the Caribbean chain, about 97 km north of Grenada. Most of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines lies within the Hurricane Belt. Kingstown is the capital and main port.

               Some 69 per cent of the country’s land area is forested. The country been colonized by both the French and the British. The country comprises six parishes, one of these being Grenadines.

               St Vincent and the Grenadines is a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state, bearing the title Queen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The official language of the country is English, and the currency is the East Caribbean dollar.

            Barbados is an island country in the Caribbean region of North America.

            Barbados is one of the more populous and prosperous Caribbean islands. Political, economic and social stability have given it a relatively high standard of living. Its capital and largest city is Bridgetown, which is also the main seaport.

            It has a population of 284,996 people, predominantly of African descent. Barbadians are crazy about afternoon tea, cricket, golfing and scuba diving. The island was a British possession without interruption from the 17th century to 1966, when it attained independence.

            The tropical climate is tempered by an almost constant sea breeze from the northeast in the winter.

            Barbados is host to four species of nesting turtles, and has the second-largest hawksbill turtle breeding population in the Caribbean. The currency of Barbados is the Barbadian dollar.

               The country which is in the 14th place in the smallest list is Antigua and Barbuda. It is a dual-island nation in the West Indies. It is a sovereign state in the Americas, lying between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.

               Antigua and Barbuda is part of the Leeward Islands, and consists of two inhabited main islands, Antigua and Barbuda, and a number of smaller islands. The capital and largest city is St. John’s on Antigua.

               Its governance, language, and culture have all been strongly influenced by the British Empire, of which the country was formerly a part, gaining sovereignty on 1st November 1981. It remains a member of the Commonwealth, and Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state.

               The island is tropical and drier than most of the West Indies. The hot season, when most rain falls, is May to November. Hurricanes strike on an average of once a year.

               The most significant environmental issue here is limited natural freshwater resources.

               Located in the continent of Africa, Seychelles covers 459 square kilometres of land. It is the 15th smallest country. In fact, it is the smallest country in Africa.

               Seychelles became an independent state in 1976, after gaining its sovereignty from the UK. The population of Seychelles is 94,228.

               Seychelles’s economy depends heavily on the fishing industry and tourism. Seychelles is very popular because of its scenic beauty, and enchanting climate. The island country, whose capital is Victoria, lies 1,500 kilometres east of mainland East Africa.

               Seychelles is a member of the African Union, the Southern African Development Community, the Commonwealth of Nations, and the United Nations. It got independence in 1976.

               The currency of Seychelles is the Seychellois Rupee (SCR). As well, the people of Seychelles are referred to as Seychellois.

            Andorra is situated in south-western Europe, in the eastern Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain.

            The first Andorran Constitution was passed in 1993, establishing parliamentary government. It then joined the United Nations and Council of Europe.

            Andorra has traditionally had a strong affinity with the region of Catalonia in northern Spain. Andorra’s official language is Catalan. Andorra is the sixth-smallest nation in Europe, with an area of 468 square kilometres. Its capital Andorra la Vella is the highest capital city in Europe.

            The mainstay of the highly-prosperous economy is tourism. The country’s banking sector enjoys partial tax-haven status. An estimated 10 million people visit each year, drawn by winter sports, a warm summer climate. Andorra is not a member of the EU, but enjoys a special relationship with it and uses the Euro.

          Located in the western Pacific Ocean, Palau has an area of 466 square kilometres.

          It consists of some 340 coral and volcanic islands.

          Palau became an independent state in 1994, after gaining its sovereignty from the US. The population of Palau is 21,032. The most populous island is Koror.

          The original settlers of Palau are believed to have arrived from Indonesia as early as 2500 BC. The capital Ngerulmud is located on the nearby island of Babeldaob, in Melekeok State.

          Tourism is low key, although growing in economic importance. Many visitors come from Taiwan, with which Palau has diplomatic ties. Taiwanese aid boosts the economy. The government is Palau’s largest employer.

          There is concern that the low-lying islands could be badly affected by rising sea levels possibly due to climate change.

               Saint Lucia is a sovereign island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. It covers a land area of 617 square kilometres and reported a population of 165,595 in the 2010 census. Its capital is Castries.

               On February 22, 1979, Saint Lucia became an independent state of the Commonwealth of Nations associated with the United Kingdom. Tourism is vital to Saint Lucia’s economy. Most of the tourists to Saint Lucia arrive by cruise ship.

               Saint Lucia’s currency is the East Caribbean Dollar, a regional currency shared among members of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECU).

               With two Nobel Prize winners, Saint Lucia boasts the world’s second highest ratio of Nobel laureates compared to the total population. Sir Arthur Lewis won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1979, and poet Derek Walcott received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1992.

            The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) is a country located in the western Pacific Ocean, and in the Micronesia cultural and ecological sub-region of Oceania. The Federated States of Micronesia is an independent sovereign island nation and a United States associated state consisting of four states —from west to east, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae. Together, the states comprise around 607 islands.

            Though formally independent, in 1986 Micronesia signed a “Compact of Free Association” with the US. Under this, Washington took on responsibility for defence and gained the right to set up military bases and deny other nations’ access to Micronesia.

            It has the 14th largest exclusive economic zone in the world. The FSM has a population of about 110,000 inhabitants. The largest island is Pohnpei, home to the nation’s capital Palikir. Largest city is Weno on Chuuk, a huge atoll west of Pohnpei. English is the official language.

 

               Singapore is located at the-southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, about 137 kilometres north of the Equator. It consists of the diamond-shaped Singapore Island, and some 60 small islets.

               Singapore became an independent state in 1965, after the expulsion from Malaysia.

               The currency of the country is the Singapore dollar. Singapore is the largest port in Southeast Asia, and is one of the busiest in the world. Singapore is a global commerce, finance and transport hub. The country has also been identified as a tax haven.

               Chinese account for more than 75 per cent of Singapore’s multi-racial population, with Malays and Indians making up much of the remainder. It is ranked highly in education, healthcare, life expectancy, quality of life, personal safety and housing.

               Singapore is also referred to as Garden City for its tree-lined streets and greening efforts since independence.

            Tonga is a Polynesian sovereign state and archipelago comprising 169 islands, of which 36 are inhabited. Located in the continent of Oceania, Tonga covers a total area of 748 square kilometres.

            Tonga became an independent state in 1970, after gaining its sovereignty from the United Kingdom. The population of Tonga is 107,122 and the nation has a density of 139 people per square kilometre. Tonga became known in the West as the Friendly Islands because of the congenial reception accorded to Captain James Cook on his first visit in 1773.

            The capital city of Tonga is Nuku’alofa on the nation’s main island Tongatapu. The languages spoken are Tongan and English.

            Tonga voted in its first popularly elected parliament in 2010, ending 165 years of feudal rule. In 2015, the country elected its first non-noble prime minister.

            Tonga has no strategic or mineral resources, and relies on agriculture and fishing.

 

          Dominica is situated in the eastern Caribbean, south of Guadeloupe, and north of Martinique. Dominica is part of the Windward Islands, the southern group of the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies.

          Dominica was the last of the Caribbean islands to be colonized by Europeans due to the fierce resistance of the native Caribs. The country has been a member of the Commonwealth since independence in 1978. The capital, Roseau, is located on the leeward side of the island.

          The island has a coastline of 148 km, its landscape is mountainous and of volcanic origin. The Sisserou parrot, also known as the imperial amazon is the island’s national bird and featured on the national flag. Dominica’s economy depends on tourism and agriculture.

          Dominica’s government system is that of a parliamentary democracy within the Commonwealth of Nations, based on its constitution which was adopted in 1978.

          The head of state is the president; the head of government is the prime minister. The currency of the country is East Caribbean dollar.

 

            Bahrain is the third smallest nation in Asia after the Maldives and Singapore. Bahrain covers 765 square kilometres of land. Bahrain is an Arab constitutional monarchy in the Persian Gulf.

            Bahrain became an independent state in 1971, after gaining its sovereignty from the United Kingdom.

            The currency of Bahrain is the Bahraini Dinar. Manama is the capital city of Bahrain. Manama is also the political centre of Bahrain.

            The spoken language is Arabic. Bahrain is ruled by the king, whose family holds the main political and military posts. Bahrain has a high Human Development Index and was recognized by the World Bank as a high income economy.

            Some 200 different species of desert plants grow in the arid portions of the archipelago, while the Irrigated and cultivated areas of the islands support fruit trees and vegetables mainly.

 

            Officially known as the Republic of Kiribati, a widely scattered nation of Kiribati, located in the Pacific Ocean along the edges of the Equator, includes the Gilbert, Phoenix and Line island groups. Most are uninhabited. Among the 33 islands of Kiribati only 20 are inhabited.

            All the islands are low-lying coral atolls. They are the protruding tips of undersea volcanoes, and extend only a few feet above sea level.

            Kiribati became independent from the United Kingdom in 1979. The capital, and now most populated area, South Tarawa, consists of a number of islets, connected by a series of causeways.

            Kiribati is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, the IMF and the World Bank, and became a full member of the United Nations in 1999.

            Kiribati is considered one of the least developed countries in the world. The economy of Kiribati benefits from international development assistance programmes.