More Information about New Caledonia

With its 267,840 people, New Caledonia is the 180th largest country in the world by population. It is the 154th largest country in the world by area with 18,575 square kilometers.

Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island became a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s ended in the 1998 Noumea Accord, which over a period of 15 to 20 years will transfer an increasing amount of governing responsibility from France to New Caledonia. The agreement also commits France to conduct a referendum between 2014 and 2018 to decide whether New Caledonia should assume full sovereignty and independence.

Reading about New Caledonia

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