What is the capital of Kiribati?

The capital of Kiribati is South Tarawa. It is the country’s political, commercial, and population centre, stretching across a chain of connected islets in the Gilbert Islands.

South Tarawa includes places such as Betio, Bairiki, Ambo, and Bikenibeu. Government ministries, the State House, foreign diplomatic missions, the port, major schools, and key health facilities are concentrated across these densely settled islets. The area is connected by a main road and causeways.

A common mix-up is answering simply “Tarawa.” Tarawa is the larger atoll, while South Tarawa is the southern, urbanized portion that functions as Kiribati’s capital. North Tarawa is a separate, more rural area of the same atoll. Majuro is the capital of the Marshall Islands, Funafuti is the capital of Tuvalu, and Palikir is the capital of the Federated States of Micronesia.

South Tarawa’s low-lying geography makes it especially vulnerable to coastal flooding, erosion, overcrowding, and saltwater intrusion. It is also historically significant as the site of the 1943 Battle of Tarawa.