Wallis and Futuna:
Geography

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Background	The Futuna island group was discovered by the Dutch in 1616 and Wallis by the British in 1767, but it was the French who declared a protectorate over the islands in 1842. In 1959, the inhabitants of the islands voted to become a French overseas territory.

Location	Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand
Geographic coordinates	13 18 S, 176 12 W
Map references	Oceania
Area	total: 274 sq km land: 274 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Uvea (Wallis Island), Ile Futuna (Futuna Island), Ile Alofi, and 20 islets
Area - comparative	1.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries	0 km
Coastline	129 km
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate	tropical; hot, rainy season (November to April); cool, dry season (May to October); rains 2,500-3,000 mm per year (80% humidity); average temperature 26.6 degrees C
Terrain	volcanic origin; low hills
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Singavi 765 m
Natural resources	NEGL
Land use	arable land: 7.14% permanent crops: 35.71% other: 57.15% (2005)
Irrigated land	NA
Natural hazards	NA
Environment - current issues	deforestation (only small portions of the original forests remain) largely as a result of the continued use of wood as the main fuel source; as a consequence of cutting down the forests, the mountainous terrain of Futuna is particularly prone to erosion; there are no permanent settlements on Alofi because of the lack of natural fresh water resources
Geography - note	both island groups have fringing reefs

Wallis and Futuna: Geography

Wallis and Futuna:
Geography