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It is compulsory and free school for children aged 6-16.
The primary school is 7 years old, and the secondary school
lasts up to 4 years.
Nauru, Island Republic of Oceania, in the southeastern
Pacific south of the equator. Bordering Micronesia and the
Marshall Islands in the north, Kiribati in the east, Solomon
Islands in the south and Papua New Guinea in the west. Nauru
is the world's smallest republic in area and the world's
smallest non-European country. There is no official capital,
but the government resides in the Yaren.
Nauru became independent in 1968.
The name, Nauru, is of unknown origin.
As the country's phosphate mines are almost depleted, more
and more of its residents are forced to subsist agriculture
and fisheries. The country is becoming increasingly
dependent on Australia's aid and the payment it receives to
house the disputed refugee camp for Australia.
More than 80 Sri Lankan refugees were sent to the refugee
camp from Australia in March 2007, after the Canberra
government was unable to reach an agreement with Indonesia
to take over the refugees.
Marcus Stephen was elected president in December. Already
in March-April 2008, he experienced a severe parliamentary
and constitutional crisis. In Parliament he was faced with a
vote of no confidence, which was initially averted when the
President resigned. The turmoil now spread to the whole
island. A few days later, the new President of Parliament
convened Parliament, without informing more ministers.
Parliament now passed a law banning dual citizenship for
ministers. Had the law been effective, power would have been
tipped in favor of the opposition as two sitting ministers
held dual citizenship. In April, the Supreme Court knew the
law was illegal, as it was a mistake not to summon all
members. The situation between parliament and government was
still tapered off to Stephen on April 18, prompting a swift
parliamentary election, that was already held 8 days later.
That, in turn, gave him a majority in parliament and
immediately resolved the crisis.
As a small country, Nauru has an affinity for smaller
states. It is therefore often quick to recognize new states.
In 2008, it recognized as one of the first countries in
Kosovo, and in 2009 it recognized Abkhazia - the autonomous
region detached from Georgia. In recognition of the
recognition, Nauru received DKK 50 million. US $ in aid from
Russia.
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