# New Caledonia — national dossier

New Caledonia — economy, society, governance, health, technology, geography and resources in one sourced dossier: 28 indicators, each with its publisher…

Canonical: https://terralore.co/country/NCL
Updated: 2026-08-14 (latest domain refresh; each figure carries its own observation year)

## Overview

- Official name: New Caledonia
- Capital: Nouméa
- Region: Melanesia, Oceania
- Population: 279,000
- Area: 18,575 km²
- Languages: French
- Currency: CFP franc (XPF)

A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero. Each figure shows the year it was observed — vintages differ by indicator and nation.

## Economy

| Metric | Value | Observed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | $8.5 B | 2024 | World Development Indicators |
| GDP per capita | $29,213 | 2024 | World Development Indicators |
| GDP growth | -13.5% | 2024 | World Development Indicators |
| Inflation | 0.6% | 2016 | World Development Indicators |
| Trade openness | 40.4% | 2024 | World Development Indicators |

## Society

| Metric | Value | Observed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 295,000 | 2025 | World Development Indicators |
| Life expectancy | 78.9 yrs | 2024 | World Development Indicators |
| Urban population | 68.2% | 2025 | World Development Indicators |
| Fertility rate | 2.0 | 2024 | World Development Indicators |

## Governance

| Metric | Value | Observed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voice & accountability | 69.6 | 2024 | Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) |
| Political stability | 84.6 | 2024 | Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) |
| Rule of law | 75.6 | 2024 | Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) |
| Control of corruption | 50.4 | 2024 | Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) |

## Health

| Metric | Value | Observed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safe drinking water | 96.9% | 2024 | Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) |

## Technology

| Metric | Value | Observed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet users | 82.0% | 2017 | ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) |
| Mobile subscriptions | 92 | 2022 | ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) |
| High-tech exports | 5.3% | 2015 | World Development Indicators |

## Geography

| Metric | Value | Observed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land area | 18,280 km² | 2023 | World Development Indicators |
| Forest area | 45.8% | 2023 | World Development Indicators |
| Agricultural land | 10.1% | 2023 | World Development Indicators |
| CO₂ per capita (t) | 17.1 | 2024 | World Development Indicators |
| Renewable energy | 9.6% | 2022 | World Development Indicators |

## Resources

| Metric | Value | Observed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resource rents | 16.8% | 2021 | World Development Indicators |
| Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | World Development Indicators |
| Mineral rents | 16.8% | 2021 | World Development Indicators |
| Forest rents | 0.0% | 2021 | World Development Indicators |
| Electricity access | 100.0% | 2024 | World Development Indicators |
| Nickel (mined) | 140 kt | 2025 | Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 |

Every metric above is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/<metric>.md).

Machine-readable claims — every figure above as an addressable claim ID (TL:NCL:<metric>:<year>) with value, source, license and a ready citation string: https://terralore.co/country/NCL.claims.json

History: "Kanaky / Nouvelle-Calédonie — an Austronesian-settled Pacific archipelago, a French colony and penal bagne built on the world's richest nickel, now a sui generis collectivity working through one of the planet's last formal decolonisation processes." — the sourced chronicle is at https://terralore.co/country/NCL/chronicle.md (6 eras, 25 events).

## Sources

- World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-14 · https://data.worldbank.org
- Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-14 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators
- Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-14 · https://www.who.int/data/gho
- ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-14 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics
- Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 — U.S. Geological Survey · Public domain (U.S. Government work) · accessed 2026-08-14 · https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center

Citation template: Terralore, "New Caledonia — national dossier", terralore.co/country/NCL, retrieved <YYYY-MM-DD>.