LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Niue
built 628 days ago
With its democratically elected legislative assembly of 20 members, Niue is the world's smallest self-governing state. Past problems with air links with the outside world have been eased with regular flights from New Zealand and Samoa, and the ongoing decline in population has currently abated, albeit at very low levels. However Niue remains heavily dependent of government aid and family remittances from New Zealand, but hopes to reinforce its fragile economy by promoting its charms as an ecotourism destination. More ambitiously it is a significant IT hub of the Pacific deriving revenue from sales of the .nu domain name, and in 2003 became the first island to get free wireless Internet coverage. Cyclone Heta hit Niue in January 2004, claiming the life of one person and causing widespread damage. Since Cyclone Heta, Niue is slowly bouncing back with greater confidence derived from local entrepreneurs taking advantage of the improved air access to provide a greater range of facilities and activities for the adventurous traveller.
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Niue was a British protectorate for a time, but the UK's involvement ended in 1901 when New Zealand annexed the island. Independence in the form of self-government was granted by the New Zealand parliament with the 1974 constitution. Robert Rex, CMG OBE (who was ethnically part European, part native) was appointed the country's first Premier, a position he continued to hold through re-election until his death 18 years later. Rex became the first Niuean to receive knighthood in 1984.
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In August 2005, an Australian mining company, Yamarna Goldfields, suggested that Niue might have the world's largest deposit of uranium. This was later realised as an insider trading matter at the Australia Stock Exchange. It has permission to drill on the island to confirm geological data that suggest the presence of a very large deposit. It will require government permission... to convert its prospecting licence to a mining lease. There is an Australian company that have been issued a mineral prospecting license in the early 1970s and is still very active in doing research and collecting data on potential mineral deposits in Niue.
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New Zealand and Niue have a special relationship. It is founded on close historical ties, unique constitutional arrangements and a common citizenship and currency. Niue became a British protectorate in 1900 and was annexed by New Zealand in 1901. In 1974, following an act of self-determination under United Nations auspices, the people of Niue adopted a Constitution providing for full self-government in free association with New Zealand, a status distinct from that of full independence.
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Niue remains a traditional Polynesian society. The population of almost 2000 people are mostly based in and around the capital of Alofi. The Niueans enjoy dual citizenship as an independent nation, in free association with New Zealand. The locals are well educated and bilingual in Niuean and English and take pride in their many traditions and cultures that have been handed down from generation to generation. Niuean women are highly respected for their craft of quality weaving. Individually woven hats, mats, baskets and other crafts can be purchased from the women on market days.
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Niue's economy is rather small, with a GDP of around $7.6 million estimated in 2000. Most economic activities centers around government, as the Government was traditionally in charge of organising and managing the affairs of a new country since 1974. However Niue has reached a stage where the state must give way to the private sector to be a partner in Niue's long development, there is an ongoing effort to develop the private sector. The
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Niue