Tuvalu is a scattered group of nine small atolls n the western Pacific north of Fiji. The soil is poor so there is little agriculture although copra is exported.
Fishing is important, as is income from licences granted to foreign fishing fleets.
Foreign currency is earned from stamp sales. Formerly the Ellice Islands they came under British jurisdiction in 1877 and in 1916 became a colony with the Gilbert Islands. They seceeded from the Gilbert Islands in 1976 and became independent in 1978. A referendum in 1986 favoured retaining the status of a constitutional monarchy rather than becoming a republic. The head of state is the British monarch and a Parliament is elected every four years by universal adult suffrage.