Tuvalu Government

What is the capital of Tuvalu?

Country Name	Tuvalu
Full Country Name	none
Local - Long	none
Local - Short	Tuvalu
Former Name	Ellice Islands
Etymology- history of name	"tuvalu" means "group of eight" or "eight standing together" referring to the country's eight traditionally inhabited islands
Government Type	parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm
Capital Name	Funafuti; note - the capital is an atoll of some 29 islets; administrative offices are in Vaiaku Village on Fongafale Islet
Capital - geographic coordinate	8 31 S, 179 13 E
Capital Time Difference	UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Independence	1 October 1978 (from the UK)
National Holiday	Independence Day, 1 October (1978)
Constitution	history: previous 1978 (at independence); latest effective 1 October 1986 amendments: proposed by the House of Assembly; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote by the Assembly membership in the final reading; amended 2007, 2010, 2013, 2023

Tuvalu Capital City Map

Source: Google Maps

Tuvalu Government and Politics

Who is the president of Tuvalu?

Executive Branch:	chief of state: King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Governor General Tofiga Vaevalu FALANI (since 29 August 2021) head of government: Prime Minister Feleti Penitala TEO (since 27 February 2024) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on recommendation of the prime minister elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by and from members of House of Assembly following parliamentary elections election results: 2019: Kausea NATANO elected prime minister by House of Assembly; House of Assembly vote - 10 to 6
Citizenship Criteria:	citizenship by birth: yes citizenship by descent: yes; for a child born abroad, at least one parent must be a citizen of Tuvalu dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: na
Legal System:	mixed legal system of English common law and local customary law
Suffrage:	18 years of age; universal
Legislative Branch:	description: unicameral House of Assembly or Fale I Fono (16 seats; members directly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 4-year terms) elections: last held on 26 January 2024 (next to be held in January 2028) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independent 16; composition as of February 2024 - 16 men, 0 women, percentage women 0%
Judicial Branch:	highest court(s): Court of Appeal (consists of the chief justice and not less than 3 appeals judges); High Court (consists of the chief justice); appeals beyond the Court of Appeal are heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London) judge selection and term of office: Court of Appeal judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the Cabinet; judge tenure based on terms of appointment; High Court chief justice appointed by the governor general on the advice of the Cabinet; chief justice serves for life; other judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the Cabinet after consultation with chief justice; judge tenure set by terms of appointment subordinate courts: magistrates' courts; island courts; land courts
Regions or States:	7 island councils and 1 town council; Funafuti, Nanumaga, Nanumea, Niutao, Nui, Nukufetau, Nukulaelae, Vaitupu
Political Parties and Leaders:	there are no political parties, but members of parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings
International Law Organization Participation:	has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
International Organization Participation:	ACP, ADB, AOSIS, C, FAO, IBRD, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS (observer), ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic Representation in the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador Tapugao FALEFOU (since 19 April 2023); note - also Permanent Representative to UN chancery: 685 Third Avenue, Suite 1104, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 490-0534 FAX: [1] (212) 808-4975 email address and website: tuvalumission.un@gmail.com https://www.un.int/tuvalu/about note - the Tuvalu Permanent Mission to the UN serves as the Embassy
Diplomatic Representation from US:	embassy: the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tuvalu

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