South Tarawa

South Tarawa () is the capital and hub of the Republic of Kiribati and home to more than half of Kiribati's population. The South Tarawa population centre consists of all the small islets from Betio in the west to Bonriki and Tanaea in the north-east, connected by the South Tarawa main road, with an approximate population of 73,073 .

South Tarawa is home to most of the government, commercial and education facilities in Kiribati including the Port and the High Court at Betio, the State House, Government Ministries and foreign embassies and High Commissions in Bairiki, the University of the South Pacific campus in Teaoraereke, the House of Assembly in Ambo, the Kiribati Teacher College and King George V and Elaine Bernacchi School, the Government High School, is in Bikenibeu, and the Tungaru central hospital in Nawerewere. The Roman Catholic Diocese is based in Teaoraereke, the Kiribati Uniting Church in Antebuka, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Kiribati in Bikenibeu, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Eita.

Administration

At the local government level, South Tarawa has two administrative subdivisions, created by John Hilary Smith in 1972:

Betio Town Council (or BTC) on Betio
(or TUC), from Bairiki to Tanaea (the meaning of teinainano is "down of the mast", alluding to the sail-shape of the atoll)

Buota, which is part of North Tarawa and administered by the Eutan Tarawa Council (or ETC), is linked by road to South Tarawa and is experiencing many similar issues of rapid population growth, urbanisation and environmental degradation.

none|150px|thumb|Flag of Teinainano Urban Council.

none|150px|thumb|Flag of Betio Town Council.

Geography

thumb|Map of South Tarawa (orange) and North Tarawa (green) within Tarawa Atoll.

South Tarawa is a string of islets on the atoll of Tarawa, between the Tarawa Lagoon to the north, with a maximum depth of , and the Pacific Ocean to the south, with a depth of up to . The island has been built from sediments from the lagoon.

The process of soil accumulation is driven by the dominant easterly trade winds and can be reversed during extended periods of westerly winds during El Niño–Southern Oscillations.

These islets are now joined by causeways, forming one long islet on the reef along the southern side of the Tarawa Lagoon. Most of South Tarawa is less than above sea level with an average width of only .

!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=right valign=top width=100|2005

!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=right valign=top width=100|2010

Climate

The climate in South Tarawa is a Tropical rainforest climate (Koppen: Af) which is warm and humid all year round and average rainfalls are relatively high. However, rainfall is very unpredictable, varying with the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, and South Tarawa can go for many months with almost no rain during La Niña cycles. The hottest and coldest temperatures ever recorded in South Tarawa are and , respectively, which is one of the narrowest temperature ranges in the world.

Water

South Tarawa has very limited water resources for its rapidly growing population. During the frequent droughts, the only source of water is the shallow freshwater lens that permeates the coral rock of the atoll. The water lenses at Bonriki and Buota have been declared as water reserves, and have a combined sustainable yield of 1,300 m<sup>3</sup> per day.

Other previously declared water reserves have been relinquished for urbanisation or abandoned due to overpumping and pollution from human settlement.

Water from the Bonriki and Buota reserves is distributed by a reticulated network to South Tarawa households. However, the poor condition of the network and the limited water supply mean that water can only be supplied to each village for around 2 hours every two days. Most schools and community buildings have no water supply at all, and many households rely on polluted groundwater due to the shortage of treated water.

Because of the shortage of fresh water, sanitation systems must use saltwater for flushing. The sanitation network on South Tarawa is performing very poorly, and a major project is underway to rehabilitate the system and improve sanitation and public hygiene.

Coastal erosion

The Ministry of Environment, Lands and Agricultural Development (MELAD) is involved in the replanting of mangroves in selected sites to help against coastal erosion; however, much more is required to protect many of the sites eroded on South Tarawa including islets that once were protected with mangrove and iron-wood (tengea) trees. It is unclear how much of the erosion being experienced on South Tarawa is due to sea-level rise and how much is due to human activities (such as building inappropriate seawalls and mining sand and gravel from the beaches and foreshores). Coastal erosion will accelerate in future, due to climate change related sea level rise.

Multi-story buildings are very uncommon on South Tarawa. The high population is accommodated through large household sizes, with an average of 7.3 people per household, on small land plots. Most land is owned by the original families or kain Tarawa, although in the main centres of Betio, Bairiki and Bikenibeu there are large areas of land on long-term lease to the government. Without access to family lands or government housing, many South Tarawa residents have no choice but to become squatters; disputes over land are common.

South Tarawa and especially Betio have high rates of respiratory infections, diarrhoea, and dysentery, Unsustainable development in South Tarawa is a concern to the government and to Kiribati's aid partners. Anote Tong's administration aims to ease the problem in the country's main urban centre by encouraging people to stay and to resettle in outer islands. It has invested in facilities such as the South Kiribati Hospital to spread institutions and services out around the islands and relieve South Tarawa from overcrowding.

{|class="wikitable"

|colspan=5 style="background-color:#C1CDC1"|South Tarawa: Population and Land Area

!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=left valign=top width=100|Census Area

!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=right valign=top width=80|Population 2010

Church of God High School
Moroni High School - Also has a junior high school
Sacred Heart High School
St. Louis High School
William Goward Memorial School

Visiting

Transport

Fiji Airways flies to Bonriki International Airport on South Tarawa from Nadi, on Tuesdays and Fridays. Nauru Airlines flies to Majuro once a week and Yaren twice a week.

Accommodation

There is a range of accommodation available for visitors and for those working short term in South Tarawa.