Majuro
Marshall Islands
Key facts and a structured country profile. π§Ύ Change log π True Size
Locator πΊοΈ Map
82,011 (2024 est.)
181 sq km
Oceania, consists of 29 atolls and five isolated islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and Australia; the atolls and islands are situated in two, almost-parallel island chains - the Ratak (Sunrise) group and the Ralik (Sunset) group; the total number of islands and islets is about 1,225; 22 of the atolls and four of the islands are uninhabited
π§ Background
Humans arrived in the Marshall Islands in the first millennium B.C. and gradually created permanent settlements on the various atolls. The early inhabitants were skilled navigators who frequently traveled between atolls using stick charts to map the islands. Society became organized under two paramount chiefs, one each for the Ratak (Sunrise) Chain and the Ralik (Sunset) Chain. Spain formally claimed the islands in 1592. Germany established a supply station on Jaluit Atoll and bought the islands from Spain in 1884, although paramount chiefs continued to rule. Japan seized the Marshall Islands in 1914 and was granted a League of Nations Mandate to administer the islands in 1920. The US captured the islands in heavy fighting during World War II, and the islands came under US administration as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) in 1947. Between 1946 and 1958, the US resettled populations from Bikini and Enewetak Atolls and conducted 67 nuclear tests; people from Ailinginae, Rongelap, and Utrik Atolls were also evacuated because of nuclear fallout, and Bikini and Rongelap remain largely uninhabited. In 1979, the Marshall Islands drafted a constitution separate from the rest of the TTPI and declared independence under President Amata KABUA, a paramount chief. In 2000, Kessai NOTE became the first commoner elected president. In 2016, Hilda HEINE was the first woman elected president.
πΊοΈ Geography
Oceania, consists of 29 atolls and five isolated islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and Australia; the atolls and islands are situated in two, almost-parallel island chains - the Ratak (Sunrise) group and the Ralik (Sunset) group; the total number of islands and islets is about 1,225; 22 of the atolls and four of the islands are uninhabited
9 00 N, 168 00 E
Oceania
181 sq km
181 sq km
0 sq km
About the size of Washington, D.C.
0 km
370.4 km
12 nm
24 nm
200 nm
Tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November; islands border typhoon belt
Low coral limestone and sand islands
East-central Airik Island, Maloelap Atoll 14 m
Pacific Ocean 0 m
2 m
Coconut products, marine products, deep seabed minerals
38.9% (2023 est.)
Arable land: 2.8% (2023 est.)
Permanent crops: 36.1% (2023 est.)
Permanent pasture: 0% (2022 est.)
53.9% (2023 est.)
7.2% (2023 est.)
0 sq km (2022)
Most people live in urban clusters on many of the country's islands; more than two thirds of the population lives on the atolls of Majuro and Ebeye
Infrequent typhoons
Kwajalein atoll surrounds the world's largest lagoon; the island city of Ebeye is the second largest settlement in the Marshall Islands, after the capital of Majuro, and one of the most densely populated locations in the Pacific
π₯ People and Societyβ¬οΈ Top
82,011 (2024 est.)
41,581
40,430
Marshallese (singular and plural)
Marshallese
Marshallese 95.6%, Filipino 1.1%, other 3.3% (2021 est.)
Marshallese (official) 98.2%, other languages 1.8% (1999)
Bok eo an Lalin kin Melele ko Rejimwe ej jikin ebΕk melele ko raurΕk. (Marshallese) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Protestant 79.3% (United Church of Christ 47.9%, Assembly of God 14.1%, Full Gospel 5%, Bukot Nan Jesus 3%, Salvation Army 2.3%, Reformed Congressional Church 2.2%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.7%, New Beginning Church 1.4%, other Protestant 1.6%), Roman Catholic 9.3%, Church of Jesus Christ 5.7%, Jehovah's Witness 1.3%, other 3.3%, none 1.1% (2021 est.)
30% (male 12,538/female 12,072)
64.3% (male 26,750/female 25,944)
5.7% (2024 est.) (male 2,293/female 2,414)
55.6 (2024 est.)
46.7 (2024 est.)
8.9 (2024 est.)
11.2 (2024 est.)
25.9 years (2025 est.)
25.4 years
25.6 years
1.22% (2025 est.)
20.81 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
4.37 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
-4.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Most people live in urban clusters on many of the country's islands; more than two thirds of the population lives on the atolls of Majuro and Ebeye
78.9% of total population (2023)
0.61% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
31,000 MAJURO (capital) (2018)
1.05 male(s)/female
1.04 male(s)/female
1.03 male(s)/female
0.95 male(s)/female
1.03 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
155 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
20.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
24 deaths/1,000 live births
17.1 deaths/1,000 live births
75.2 years (2024 est.)
73 years
77.5 years
2.62 children born/woman (2025 est.)
1.28 (2025 est.)
Urban: 84.5% of population (2022 est.)
Rural: 87.2% of population (2022 est.)
Total: 85.1% of population (2022 est.)
Urban: 15.5% of population (2022 est.)
Rural: 12.8% of population (2022 est.)
Total: 14.9% of population (2022 est.)
12.5% of GDP (2021)
6.7% of national budget (2022 est.)
0.47 physicians/1,000 population (2012)
Urban: 92.8% of population (2022 est.)
Rural: 70.4% of population (2022 est.)
Total: 88% of population (2022 est.)
Urban: 7.2% of population (2022 est.)
Rural: 29.6% of population (2022 est.)
Total: 12% of population (2022 est.)
52.9% (2016)
30.9% (2025 est.)
52.9% (2025 est.)
8.5% (2025 est.)
11.9% (2017 est.)
68.3% (2022 est.)
7.7% of GDP (2022 est.)
11.3% national budget (2022 est.)
95.8% (2021 est.)
95.7% (2021 est.)
96.4% (2021 est.)
14 years (2022 est.)
14 years (2022 est.)
15 years (2022 est.)
πΏ Environmentβ¬οΈ Top
Inadequate potable water; pollution of Majuro lagoon from household waste and discharges from fishing vessels; sea-level rise
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
None of the selected agreements
Tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November; islands border typhoon belt
38.9% (2023 est.)
Arable land: 2.8% (2023 est.)
Permanent crops: 36.1% (2023 est.)
Permanent pasture: 0% (2022 est.)
53.9% (2023 est.)
7.2% (2023 est.)
78.9% of total population (2023)
0.61% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
293,700 metric tonnes of CO2 (2017 est.)
7.2 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
8,600 tons (2024 est.)
39.7% (2022 est.)
ποΈ Governmentβ¬οΈ Top
Republic of the Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands
Republic of the Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Marshall Islands District
RMI
Named after British Captain John MARSHALL, who charted many of the islands in 1788
Mixed presidential-parliamentary system in free association with the US
Majuro
7 06 N, 171 23 E
UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Majuro means "two openings" or "two eyes" and refers to the two major passages through the atoll into the Majuro lagoon
24 municipalities; Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikini & Kili, Ebon, Enewetak & Ujelang, Jabat, Jaluit, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Ujae, Utrik, Wotho, Wotje
Mixed system of US and English common law, customary law, and local statutes
Effective 1 May 1979
Proposed by the National Parliament or by a constitutional convention; passage by Parliament requires at least two-thirds majority vote of the total membership in each of two readings and approval by a majority of votes in a referendum; amendments submitted by a constitutional convention require approval of at least two thirds of votes in a referendum
Accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
No
At least one parent must be a citizen of the Marshall Islands
No
5 years
18 years of age; universal
President Hilda C. HEINE (since 3 January 2023)
President Hilda C. HEINE (since 3 January 2023)
Cabinet nominated by the president from among members of the Nitijela, appointed by Nitijela speaker
President indirectly elected by the Nitijela from among its members for a 4-year term (no term limits)
2 January 2023
2023: Hilda C. HEINE elected president; National Parliament vote - Hilda C. HEINE (independent) 17, David KABUA (independent) 16 2020: David KABUA elected president; National Parliament vote - David KABUA (independent) 20, Hilda C. HEINE (independent) 12
2027
Parliament (Nitijela)
Unicameral
33 (all directly elected)
Plurality/majority
Full renewal
4 years
11/20/2023
12.1%
November 2027
Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 2 associate justices)
Judges appointed by the Cabinet on the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission (consists of the chief justice of the High Court, the attorney general and a private citizen selected by the Cabinet) and upon approval of the Nitijela; the current chief justice, appointed in 2013, serves for 10 years; Marshallese citizens appointed as justices serve until retirement at age 72
High Court; District Courts; Traditional Rights Court; Community Courts
Traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures
Ambassador Charles Rudolph PAUL (since 27 February 2024)
2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
[1] (202) 234-5414
[1] (202) 232-3236
Info@rmiembassyus.org
Honolulu, Springdale (AR)
Ambassador Laura M. STONE (since 12 July 2024)
Mejen Weto, Ocean Side, Majuro
4380 Majuro Place, Washington DC 20521-4380
[692] 247-4011
[692] 247-4012
MAJConsular@state.gov https://mh.usembassy.gov/
ACP, ADB, AOSIS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHRC, WHO
21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship)
Constitution Day, 1 May (1979)
Description: blue with an orange stripe and a white stripe radiating from the lower-left corner to the upper-right corner; a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays appears on the left side above the two stripes meaning: blue stands for the Pacific Ocean, orange for the Ralik Chain (or sunset and courage), and white for the Ratak Chain (or sunrise and peace); the star symbolizes the Christian cross, with a small ray for each electoral district and a larger ray for the principal cultural centers of Majuro, Jaluit, Wotje, and Ebeye; the diagonal stripes can also be interpreted as representing the equator, with the star showing the archipelago's position
A 24-rayed star
Blue, white, orange
"Forever Marshall Islands"
Amata KABUA
Adopted 1981; words and music written by the first president of the Marshall Islands
1 (cultural)
Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site
πΉ Economyβ¬οΈ Top
Upper middle-income Pacific island economy; US aid reliance; large public sector; coconut oil production as diesel fuel substitute; growing offshore banking locale; fishing rights seller; import-dependent
$270.809 million (2024 est.)
$263.507 million (2023 est.)
$274.3 million (2022 est.)
2.8% (2024 est.)
-3.9% (2023 est.)
-1.1% (2022 est.)
$7,200 (2024 est.)
$6,800 (2023 est.)
$6,800 (2022 est.)
$280.358 million (2024 est.)
6.2% (2022 est.)
2.6% (2021 est.)
-0.7% (2020 est.)
19.5% (2023 est.)
11.1% (2023 est.)
70.5% (2023 est.)
70.7% (2023 est.)
53.5% (2023 est.)
20.2% (2023 est.)
-0.5% (2023 est.)
38.9% (2023 est.)
-71.2% (2023 est.)
Coconuts (2023)
Copra, tuna processing, tourism, craft items (from seashells, wood, and pearls)
-2.8% (2023 est.)
7.2% (2019 est.)
35.5 (2019 est.)
2.8% (2019 est.)
27.5% (2019 est.)
13.3% of GDP (2023 est.)
13.6% of GDP (2022 est.)
13.3% of GDP (2021 est.)
$171.267 million (2020 est.)
$159.095 million (2020 est.)
41.6% of GDP (2019 est.)
17.2% (of GDP) (2020 est.)
$76.263 million (2021 est.)
$90.281 million (2020 est.)
$86.133 million (2019 est.)
$130.016 million (2021 est.)
$88.042 million (2020 est.)
$91.394 million (2019 est.)
UK 16%, Germany 13%, Denmark 10%, Ghana 9%, Cyprus 9% (2023)
Ships, refined petroleum, fish, natural gas, stone processing machines (2023)
$206.025 million (2021 est.)
$132.845 million (2020 est.)
$129.682 million (2019 est.)
China 47%, Japan 15%, Germany 5%, Brazil 4%, Cyprus 4% (2023)
Ships, refined petroleum, additive manufacturing machines, iron structures, crude petroleum (2023)
The US dollar is used
β‘ Energyβ¬οΈ Top
100% (2022 est.)
96.1%
100%
π‘ Communicationsβ¬οΈ Top
2,000 (2014 est.)
5 (2022 est.)
16,000 (2021 est.)
38 (2021 est.)
No TV broadcast station; a cable network is available on Majuro with programming via videotape replay and satellite relays; 4 radio broadcast stations; US Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS) provides satellite radio and TV service to Kwajalein Atoll (2019)
.mh
66% (2023 est.)
1,000 (2022 est.)
2 (2022 est.)
π Transportationβ¬οΈ Top
V7
33 (2025)
4,180 (2023)
Bulk carrier 1,939, container ship 277, general cargo 66, oil tanker 1039, other 859
3 (2024)
0
0
0
3
2
Enitwetak Island, Kwajalein, Majuro Atoll
π‘οΈ Military and Securityβ¬οΈ Top
Marshall Islands Police Department (includes a Sea Patrol Division)
Defense is the responsibility of the US; in 1982, the Marshall Islands signed a Compact of Free Association (COFA) with the US, which granted the Marshall Islands financial assistance and access to many US domestic programs in exchange for exclusive US military access and defense responsibilities; the COFA entered into force in 1986; the Marshall Islands hosts a US Army missile test site the Marshall Islands has a "shiprider" agreement with the US, which allows local maritime law enforcement officers to embark on US Coast Guard (USCG) and US Navy (USN) vessels, including to board and search vessels suspected of violating laws or regulations within its designated exclusive economic zone (EEZ) or on the high seas; "shiprider" agreements also enable USCG personnel and USN vessels with embarked USCG law enforcement personnel to work with host nations to protect critical regional resources (2025)
π Transnational Issuesβ¬οΈ Top
35 (2024 est.)
Source: Factbook JSON archive.