Local time--:--:--Port Moresby ·

Oceania / Melanesia · Card 020

Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea is a country in Melanesia. Its capital is Port Moresby.

Find Papua New Guinea

● Capital · Gold highlights this card’s area.
Map: Natural Earth. Boundaries show geographic context, not a position on sovereignty. Small islands may use enlarged markers.

At a glance

Capital: Port Moresby
Language guide: Languages spoken & official status
Currency: Papua New Guinean kina (PGK)
Population: 10.8 million2025 · World Bank
Area: 462,840 km²178,703.45 square miles
Independence: 1975

Papua New Guinea in context

Oceania and its surrounding regions. The dot marks Port Moresby; the mapped territory is highlighted in gold.

Natural Earth · locator map

Geography & environment

Landscape

Papua New Guinea occupies the eastern half of New Guinea and many surrounding islands. The main island has a high mountain spine, broad river basins and extensive lowland forest. Rugged terrain separates communities and makes overland travel difficult in many regions.

The Sepik River crosses a large northern lowland basin. Highland valleys have a very different climate and agricultural landscape from the humid lowlands. Offshore islands add active volcanoes, steep coasts and separate forest environments.

Climate & seasons

Lowlands are tropical, while the highlands are much cooler. Monsoon winds and mountain terrain create large differences in rainfall across the country.

Elevation & isolation

Tropical forest gives way to cooler mountain vegetation at high elevations. Geographic barriers have contributed to exceptional biological and cultural diversity. Heavy rain and steep slopes influence rivers, erosion and transport routes.

Flag

Divided diagonally from upper-left corner; the upper triangle is red and has a soaring yellow bird of paradise in the center; the lower triangle is black with five five-pointed white stars of the Southern Cross constellation

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · UNCTAD · Papua New Guinea profile

Landscapes & nature

Languages

Public and official use

Tok Pisin, English and Hiri Motu have important official roles, and Papua New Guinean Sign Language was officially recognized in 2015.

Community and regional languages

Papua New Guinea has hundreds of Indigenous languages. Tok Pisin is widely used to communicate across language communities, while English is important in formal institutions. Tok Pisin has an established grammar and a substantial role in media and everyday public life.

Sources: United Nations · Papua New Guinea national report · CIA World Factbook · archived profile

History & independence

Papua New Guinea is home to hundreds of Indigenous societies and languages. European colonial boundaries divided the eastern part of New Guinea into separate territories, later administered by Australia. Papua New Guinea became independent in 1975. Conflict on Bougainville led to a peace agreement in 2001 and a 2019 referendum favouring independence; the referendum itself did not create a separate state.

1975
Papua New Guinea becomes independent from Australia
2001
The Bougainville Peace Agreement is signed
2005
Bougainville’s autonomous government is established
2019
Bougainville holds a non-binding independence referendum

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · UNCTAD · Papua New Guinea profile

Economy

Main activities

Mining and natural gas are major export industries. Gold, copper and liquefied natural gas generate earnings, while agriculture provides livelihoods for much of the population. Coffee, cocoa and palm oil are important commercial crops. Difficult terrain, infrastructure gaps and exposure to commodity prices complicate development.

Industry and production

Gold and copper mining, liquefied natural gas, agricultural processing, forestry and fisheries.

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · UNCTAD · Papua New Guinea profile

Population & economic trends

Dated World Bank observations. Population uses selected years; real GDP uses all available annual observations.

Population, 1970–2025

Millions of people

10.82025 · millions of people

Population estimates may be revised. Selected years are shown.

Sources: World Bank · Population

View data table

Population: source values and plotted units
Year	People	Millions of people
1970	2,505,628	2.506
1980	3,131,512	3.132
1990	3,896,481	3.896
2000	5,537,064	5.537
2010	7,633,523	7.634
2020	9,815,746	9.816
2025	10,762,817	10.763

Real GDP, 1990–2025

Billions of constant 2015 US dollars

28.72025 · billions of constant 2015 US dollars

Constant prices adjust for inflation. This is total economic output, not current-dollar GDP or income per person. Missing years are left as gaps.

Sources: World Bank · Real GDP

View data table

Real GDP: source values and plotted units
Year	Constant 2015 US$	Billions of constant 2015 US dollars
1990	7,373,337,464	7.373
1991	8,077,262,450	8.077
1992	9,195,889,414	9.196
1993	10,869,751,501	10.870
1994	11,515,643,990	11.516
1995	11,134,194,181	11.134
1996	11,995,278,889	11.995
1997	11,526,936,460	11.527
1998	11,092,473,175	11.092
1999	11,298,300,004	11.298
2000	11,016,425,271	11.016
2001	11,003,063,602	11.003
2002	10,985,579,675	10.986
2003	11,223,318,880	11.223
2004	11,528,725,111	11.529
2005	12,260,199,192	12.260
2006	12,923,469,113	12.923
2007	13,933,462,679	13.933
2008	13,892,155,836	13.892
2009	14,836,880,986	14.837
2010	16,339,627,662	16.340
2011	16,520,596,167	16.521
2012	17,289,980,089	17.290
2013	17,951,312,547	17.951
2014	20,382,597,142	20.383
2015	21,723,437,010	21.723
2016	22,915,960,976	22.916
2017	23,725,951,012	23.726
2018	23,659,695,751	23.660
2019	24,719,771,867	24.720
2020	23,936,789,891	23.937
2021	23,814,565,624	23.815
2022	25,173,667,564	25.174
2023	26,132,900,873	26.133
2024	27,148,935,841	27.149
2025	28,679,571,267	28.680

Human development

The Human Development Index combines health, education and income. Scores range from 0 to 1.

HDI · 20230.576Medium human developmentRank 160 of 193 · 2025 report

Human Development Index over time

19900.403

20000.456

20100.503

20200.567

20230.576

66.1 yearsLife expectancy at birth

5.0 yearsMean schooling, adults aged 25+

The latest values refer to 2023. All historical scores use the same report edition. HDI does not describe every aspect of inequality or quality of life.

Sources: UNDP · Human Development Report 2025

Government

A parliamentary constitutional monarchy. A Governor-General represents the monarch, a Prime Minister leads the government, and the National Parliament has one chamber. Provincial governments and the Autonomous Bougainville Government have subnational responsibilities.

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · UNCTAD · Papua New Guinea profile

Knowledge check

Three questions about Papua New Guinea.

QUESTION 1 OF 3

Which pair includes major Papua New Guinean export industries?

Sources & notes

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · UNCTAD · Papua New Guinea profile

Prepared 24 September 2026. World Bank series: SP.POP.TOTL (persons) and NY.GDP.MKTP.KD (constant 2015 US dollars); downloaded 24 September 2026, provider update 13 July 2026. UNDP values use the 2025 report and 2023 observation year. These are dated statistical snapshots, not live population or economic counters.

Maps use Natural Earth geographic data. Background geography, flag descriptions and selected historical facts use archived public-domain CIA World Factbook profiles, supplemented by the sources linked above. The Factbook is no longer updated; dated statistics here come from the separately named providers.