Southern Asia, group of atolls in the Indian Ocean, south-southwest of India
3 15 N, 73 00 E
Asia
total: 298 sq km
land: 298 sq km
water: 0 sq km
about 1.7 times the size of Washington, DC
total: 0 km
644 km
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
tropical; hot, humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November to March); rainy, southwest monsoon (June to August)
flat, with white sandy beaches
highest point: 8th tee, golf course, Villingi Island 5 m
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
mean elevation: 2 m
fish
agricultural land: 23.3% (2018 est.)
arable land: 10% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 10% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 3.3% (2018 est.)
forest: 3% (2018 est.)
other: 73.7% (2018 est.)
0 sq km (2012)
30 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
about a third of the population lives in the centrally located capital city of Male and almost a tenth in southern Addu City; the remainder of the populace is spread over the 200 or so populated islands of the archipelago
tsunamis; low elevation of islands makes them sensitive to sea level rise
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
smallest Asian country; archipelago of 1,190 coral islands grouped into 26 atolls (200 inhabited islands, plus 80 islands with tourist resorts); strategic location astride and along major sea lanes in Indian Ocean
NOTE: The information regarding Maldives on this page is re-published from the 2021 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Maldives 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Maldives 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
This page was last modified 16 Dec 23, Copyright © 2023 ITA all rights reserved.