Papua New Guinea Population: 7,027,332

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 History
The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives. Since 2001, Bougainville has experienced autonomy; a referendum asking the population if they would like independence or greater self rule is tentatively scheduled for October 2019.

 Geography
    Shares island of New Guinea with Indonesia; generally east-west trending highlands break up New Guinea into diverse ecoregions; one of world's largest swamps along southwest coast

  • Papua New Guinea is one of the countries along the Ring of Fire, a belt of active volcanoes and earthquake epicenters bordering the Pacific Ocean; up to 90% of the world's earthquakes and some 75% of the world's volcanoes occur within the Ring of Fire
Location: Oceania, group of islands including the eastern half of the island of New Guinea between the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean, east of Indonesia
Geographic coordinates: 6 00 S, 147 00 E
Area: total: 462,840 sq km
land: 452,860 sq km
water: 9,980 sq km

Size comparison: slightly larger than California
Land Boundaries: total: 824 km border countries (1): Indonesia 824 km
Coastline: 5,152 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
Climate: tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March), southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: mostly mountains with coastal lowlands and rolling foothills
Natural resources: gold, copper, silver, natural gas, timber, oil, fisheries
Land use: agricultural land: 2.6% (2011 est.) arable land: 0.7% (2011 est.)
permanent crops: 1.5% (2011 est.) permanent pasture: 0.4% (2011 est.) forest: 63.1% (2011 est.)
other: 34.3% (2011 est.)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (2012)
Natural hazards: active volcanism; the country is subject to frequent and sometimes severe earthquakes; mud slides; tsunamis volcanism: severe volcanic activity; Ulawun (2,334 m), one of Papua New Guinea's potentially most dangerous volcanoes, has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; Rabaul (688 m) destroyed the city of Rabaul in 1937 and 1994; Lamington erupted in 1951 killing 3,000 people; Manam's 2004 eruption forced the island's abandonment; other historically active volcanoes include Bam, Bagana, Garbuna, Karkar, Langila, Lolobau, Long Island, Pago, St. Andrew Strait, Victory, and Waiowa; see note 2 under "Geography - note"
Current Environment Issues: rain forest loss as a result of growing commercial demand for tropical timber; unsustainable logging practices result in soil erosion, water quality degredation, and loss of habitat and biodiversity; large-scale mining projects cause adverse impacts on forests and water quality (discharge of heavy metals, cyanide, and acids into rivers); severe drought; inappropriate farming practices accelerate land degradion (soil erosion, siltation, loss of soil fertility); destructive fishing practices and coastal pollution due to run-off from land-based activities and oil spills
International Environment Agreements: party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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 People
Nationality: noun: Papua New Guinean(s)
adjective: Papua New Guinean
Ethnic groups: Melanesian, Papuan, Negrito, Micronesian, Polynesian
Languages: Tok Pisin (official), English (official), Hiri Motu (official), some 839 indigenous languages spoken (about 12% of the world's total); many languages have fewer than 1,000 speakers note: Tok Pisin, a creole language, is widely used and understood; English is spoken by 1%-2%; Hiri Motu is spoken by less than 2%
Religions: Roman Catholic 27%, Protestant 69.4% (Evangelical Lutheran 19.5%, United Church 11.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10%, Pentecostal 8.6%, Evangelical Alliance 5.2%, Anglican 3.2%, Baptist 2.5%, other Protestant 8.9%), Baha'i 0.3%, indigenous beliefs and other 3.3% (2000 census)
Population: 7,027,332 (July 2018 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 32.94% (male 1,178,509 /female 1,136,069)
15-24 years: 19.94% (male 710,166 /female 690,848)
25-54 years: 37.13% (male 1,338,558 /female 1,271,008)
55-64 years: 5.59% (male 201,271 /female 191,833)
65 years and over: 4.4% (male 153,922 /female 155,148) (2018 est.)
Dependency ratios: total dependency ratio: 67.4 (2015 est.)
youth dependency ratio: 61.3 (2015 est.)
elderly dependency ratio: 6.1 (2015 est.)
potential support ratio: 16.4 (2015 est.)
Median age: total: 23.4 years
male: 23.5 years
female: 23.4 years (2018 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.67% (2018 est.)
Birth rate: 23.3 births/1,000 population (2018 est.)
Death rate: 6.6 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2018 est.)
Urbanization: urban population: 13.2% of total population (2018)
rate of urbanization: 2.51% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)
Major urban areas - population: 367,000 PORT MORESBY (capital) (2018)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.99 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2018 est.)
Maternal mortality rate: 215 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 35.3 deaths/1,000 live births male: 38.6 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 31.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2018 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 67.5 years male: 65.3 years
female: 69.8 years (2018 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.97 children born/woman (2018 est.)
Physicians density: 0.05 physicians/1,000 population (2010)
Drinking water source: improved:
urban: 88% of population
rural: 32.8% of population
total: 40% of population

unimproved:
urban: 12% of population
rural: 67.2% of population
total: 60% of population (2015 est.)
Sanitation facility access: improved:
urban: 56.4% of population (2015 est.)
rural: 13.3% of population (2015 est.)
total: 18.9% of population (2015 est.)

unimproved:
urban: 43.6% of population (2015 est.)
rural: 86.7% of population (2015 est.)
total: 81.1% of population (2015 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.9% (2017 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 48,000 (2017 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 1,100 (2017 est.)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate: 21.3% (2016)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 27.8% (2010)
Education expenditures: n/a
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2015 est.)
total population: 64.2%
male: 65.6%
female: 62.8% (2015 est.) Unemployment, youth ages 15-24: total: 3.6% male: 4.3% female: 3% (2010 est.)
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 Government
Country name: conventional long form: Independent State of Papua New Guinea
conventional short form: Papua New Guinea
local short form: Papuaniugini
former: Territory of Papua and New Guinea
abbreviation: PNG
etymology: the word "papua" derives from the Malay "papuah" describing the frizzy hair of the Melanesians; Spanish explorer Ynigo ORTIZ de RETEZ applied the term "Nueva Guinea" to the island of New Guinea in 1545 after noting the resemblance of the locals to the peoples of the Guinea coast of Africa
Government type: parliamentary democracy (National Parliament) under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm
Capital: name: Port Moresby
geographic coordinates: 9 27 S, 147 11 E
time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

note: Papua New Guinea has two time zones, including Bougainville (UTC+11)
etymology: named in 1873 by Captain John Moresby (1830-1922) in honor of his father, British Admiral Sir Fairfax Moresby (1786-1877)
Administrative divisions: 20 provinces, 1 autonomous region*, and 1 district**; Bougainville*, Central, Chimbu, Eastern Highlands, East New Britain, East Sepik, Enga, Gulf, Hela, Jiwaka, Madang, Manus, Milne Bay, Morobe, National Capital**, New Ireland, Northern, Southern Highlands, Western, Western Highlands, West New Britain, West Sepik
Independence: 16 September 1975 (from the Australia-administered UN trusteeship)
National holiday: Independence Day, 16 September (1975)
Constitution: history: adopted 15 August 1975, effective at independence 16 September 1975 amendments: proposed by the National Parliament; passage has prescribed majority vote requirements depending on the constitutional sections being amended – absolute majority, two-thirds majority, or three-fourths majority; amended many times, last in 2014 (2018)
Legal system: mixed legal system of English common law and customary law
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Grand Chief Sir Bob DADAE (since 28 February 2017)

head of government: Prime Minister James MARAPE (since 30 May 2019); Deputy Prime Minister Charles ABEL (since 4 August 2017)

cabinet: National Executive Council appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general nominated by the National Parliament and appointed by the chief of state; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the governor general pending the outcome of a National Parliament vote

election results: Peter Paire O'NEILL (PNC) reelected prime minister; National Parliament vote - 60 to 46
Legislative branch: description: unicameral National Parliament (111 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies - 89 local, 20 provinicial, the autonomous province of Bouganville, and the National Capital District - by majority preferential vote; members serve 5-year terms); note - the constitution allows up to 126 seats

elections: last held from 24 June 2017 to 8 July 2017 (next to be held in June 2022)

election results: percent of vote by party - PNC 37%;n/a13%; Pangu 14%; URP 11%; PPP 4%; SDP 4%; Independents 3%; and smaller parties 14%; seats by party - NA; composition - men 108, women 3, percent of women 3%
Judicial branch: highest courts: Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice, deputy chief justice, 35 justices, and 5 acting justices); National Courts (consists of 13 courts located in the provincial capitals, with a total of 19 resident judges) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court chief justice appointed by the governor general upon advice of the National Executive Council (cabinet) after consultation with the National Justice Administration minister; deputy chief justice and other justices appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission, a 5-member body that includes the Supreme Court chief and deputy chief justices, the chief ombudsman, and a member of the National Parliament; full-time citizen judges appointed for 10-year renewable terms; non-citizen judges initially appointed for 3-year renewable terms and after first renewal can serve until age 70; appointment and tenure of National Court resident judges NA

subordinate courts: district, village, and juvenile courts, military courts, taxation courts, coronial courts, mining warden courts, land courts, traffic courts, committal courts, grade five courts
Political parties and leaders: National Alliance Party or NAP [Patrick PRUAITCH] Papua and Niugini Union Party or PANGU [Sam BASIL] Papua New Guinea Party or PNGP [Belden NAMAH] People's National Congress Party or PNC [Peter Paire O'NEILL] People's Party or PP [Peter IPATAS] People's Progress Party or PPP [Sir Julius CHAN] Social Democratic Party or SDP [Powes PARKOP] Triumph Heritage Empowerment Party or THE [Don POLYE] United Resources Party or URP [William DUMA] note: as of 8 July 2017, 45 political parties were registered
International organization participation: ACP, ADB, AOSIS, APEC, ARF, ASEAN (observer), C, CD, CP, EITI (candidate country), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMISS, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
National symbol(s): bird of paradise;
national colors: red, black
National anthem: name: O Arise All You Sons
lyrics/music: Thomas SHACKLADY

note: adopted 1975
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge D’Affaires Elias Rahuromo WOHENGU (since 30 September 2017)
chancery: 1779 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Suite 805, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 745-3680
FAX: [1] (202) 745-3679
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Catherine EBERT-GRAY (since 23 February 2016); note - also accredited to the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu
embassy: P.O. Box 1492, Port Moresby
mailing address: 4240 Port Moresby Place, US Department of State, Washington DC 20521-4240
telephone: [675] 321-1455
FAX: [675] 321-3423
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 Economy
Papua New Guinea (PNG) is richly endowed with natural resources, but exploitation has been hampered by rugged terrain, land tenure issues, and the high cost of developing infrastructure. The economy has a small formal sector, focused mainly on the export of those natural resources, and an informal sector, employing the majority of the population. Agriculture provides a subsistence livelihood for 85% of the people. The global financial crisis had little impact because of continued foreign demand for PNG's commodities. Mineral deposits, including copper, gold, and oil, account for nearly two-thirds of export earnings. Natural gas reserves amount to an estimated 155 billion cubic meters. Following construction of a $19 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, PNG LNG, a consortium led by ExxonMobil, began exporting liquefied natural gas to Asian markets in May 2014. The project was delivered on time and only slightly above budget. The success of the project has encouraged other companies to look at similar LNG projects. French supermajor Total is hopes to begin construction on the Papua LNG project by 2020. Due to lower global commodity prices, resource revenues of all types have fallen dramatically. PNG’s government has recently been forced to adjust spending levels downward. Numerous challenges still face the government of Peter O'NEILL, including providing physical security for foreign investors, regaining investor confidence, restoring integrity to state institutions, promoting economic efficiency by privatizing moribund state institutions, and maintaining good relations with Australia, its former colonial ruler. Other socio-cultural challenges could upend the economy including chronic law and order and land tenure issues. In August, 2017, PNG launched its first-ever national trade policy, PNG Trade Policy 2017-2032. The policy goal is to maximize trade and investment by increasing exports, to reduce imports, and to increase foreign direct investment (FDI).
GDP (purchasing power parity): $30.19 billion (2017 est.) $29.44 billion (2016 est.) $28.98 billion (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
GDP (official exchange rate): $19.82 billion (2017 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.5% (2017 est.) 1.6% (2016 est.) 5.3% (2015 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): $3,700 (2017 est.) $3,600 (2016 est.) $3,700 (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
Gross national saving: 36.8% of GDP (2017 est.) 38% of GDP (2016 est.) 33.7% of GDP (2015 est.) GDP - composition, by end use: household consumption: 43.7% (2017 est.) government consumption: 19.7% (2017 est.) investment in fixed capital: 10% (2017 est.) investment in inventories: 0.4% (2017 est.) exports of goods and services: 49.3% (2017 est.) imports of goods and services: -22.3% (2017 est.) GDP - composition, by sector of origin: agriculture: 22.1% (2017 est.) industry: 42.9% (2017 est.) services: 35% (2017 est.)
Agriculture - products: coffee, cocoa, copra, palm kernels, tea, sugar, rubber, sweet potatoes, fruit, vegetables, vanilla; poultry, pork; shellfish
Industries: copra crushing, palm oil processing, plywood production, wood chip production; mining (gold, silver, copper); crude oil and petroleum products; construction, tourism, livestock (pork, poultry, cattle), dairy products, spice products (turmeric, vanilla, ginger, cardamom, chili, pepper, citronella, and nutmeg), fisheries products
Industrial production growth rate: 3.3% (2017 est.)
Labor force: 3.681 million (2017 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 85%
industry: n/a
services: n/a
Unemployment rate: 2.5% (2017 est.) 2.5% (2016 est.)
Population below poverty line: 37% (2002 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 1.7%
highest 10%: 40.5% (1996)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 50.9 (1996)
Budget: revenues: 3.638 billion (2017 est.)
expenditures: 4.591 billion (2017 est.)
Taxes and other revenues: 18.4% (of GDP) (2017 est.) Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-): -4.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Public debt: 36.9% of GDP (2017 est.) 36.9% of GDP (2016 est.)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.4% (2017 est.) 6.7% (2016 est.)
Current account balance: $4.859 billion (2017 est.) $4.569 billion (2016 est.)
Exports: $8.522 billion (2017 est.) $9.224 billion (2016 est.)
Exports - commodities: liquefied natural gas, oil, gold, copper ore, nickel, cobalt logs, palm oil, coffee, cocoa, copra, spice (turmeric, vanilla, ginger, and cardamom), crayfish, prawns, tuna, sea cucumber
Exports - partners: Australia 18.9%, Singapore 17.5%, Japan 13.8%, China 12.7%, Philippines 4.7%, Netherlands 4.2%, India 4.2% (2017)
Imports: $1.876 billion (2017 est.) $2.077 billion (2016 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners: Australia 30.1%, China 17.3%, Singapore 10.2%, Malaysia 8.2%, Indonesia 4% (2017)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $1.735 billion (31 December 2017 est.) $1.656 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
Debt - external: $17.94 billion (31 December 2017 est.) $18.28 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: n/a
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: n/a
Market value of publicly traded shares: $10.71 billion (31 December 2012 est.) $8.999 billion (31 December 2011 est.) $9.742 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
Exchange rates: kina (PGK) per US dollar - 3.179 (2017 est.) 3.133 (2016 est.) 3.133 (2015 est.) 2.7684 (2014 est.) 2.4614 (2013 est.)
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 Energy
Electricity - production: 3.481 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Electricity - consumption: 3.237 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2017 est.)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2016 est.)
Electricity - installed generating capacity: 900,900 kW (2016 est.)
Electricity - from fossil fuels: 63% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)
Electricity - from nuclear fuels: 0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Electricity - from hydroelectric plants: 30% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Electricity - from other renewable sources: 7% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Crude oil - production: 50,000 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Crude oil - exports: 55,600 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Crude oil - imports: 22,220 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Crude oil - proved reserves: 183.8 million bbl (1 January 2018 est.)
Refined petroleum products - production: 22,170 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Refined petroleum products - consumption: 37,000 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Refined petroleum products - exports: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Refined petroleum products - imports: 17,110 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Natural gas - production: 11.18 billion cu m (2017 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 99.11 million cu m (2017 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 11.1 billion cu m (2017 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2017 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 210.5 billion cu m (1 January 2018 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy: 6.082 million Mt (2017 est.)
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 Communications
Cellular Phones in use: total subscriptions: 3.782 million
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 55 (July 2016 est.)
Telephone system: general assessment: services are minimal; facilities provide radiotelephone and telegraph, coastal radio, aeronautical radio, and international radio communication services; a great deal of the population is under served in telecommunications; terrain, living conditions and economice stability is not high; 3G and 4G LTE in urban areas (2018)

domestic: access to telephone services is not widely available; fixed-line 2 per 100 and mobile-cellular 55 per 100 person, teledensity has increased (2018)

international: country code - 675; submarine cables to Australia and Guam; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); international radio communication service; Coral Sea Cable System linking PNG, and the Solomons Islands to Australia and APEC partners; planned for 2019 Kacific-1 launch (2017)
Broadcast media: 4 TV stations: 1 commercial station operating since 1987, 1 state-run station launched in 2008, 1 digital free-to-view network launched in 2014, and 1 satellite network Click TV (PNGTV) launched in 2015; the state-run National Broadcasting Corporation operates 3 radio networks with multiple repeaters and about 20 provincial stations; several commercial radio stations with multiple transmission points as well as several community stations; transmissions of several international broadcasters are accessible (2018)
Internet country code: .pg
Internet users: total: 652,071
percent of population: 9.6% (July 2016 est.)
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 Transportation
Airports: 561 (2013)
Airports (paved runways): total 21
(2017) over 3,047 m: 1 (2017)
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2017)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 (2017)
914 to 1,523 m: 5 (2017)
under 914 m: 1 (2017)
Airports (unpaved runways): total 540
(2013)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 (2013)
914 to 1,523 m: 53 (2013)
under 914 m: 476 (2013)
Heliports: 2 (2013)
Pipelines: 264 km oil (2013)
Roadways: total 9,349 km
(2011) paved: 3,000 km (2011)
unpaved: 6,349 km (2011)
Waterways: 11,000 km (2011)
Merchant marine: total 173

by type: container ship 7, general cargo 79, oil tanker 3, other 84 (2018)
Ports and terminals: major seaport(s): Kimbe, Lae, Madang, Rabaul, Wewak LNG terminal(s) (export): Port Moresby
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 Military
Military branches: Papua New Guinea Defense Force (PNGDF, includes Maritime Operations Element, Air Operations Element) (2013)
Military service age and obligation: 16 years of age for voluntary military service (with parental consent); no conscription; graduation from grade 12 required (2013)
Military expenditures: 0.66% of GDP (2014) 0.68% of GDP (2013) 0.72% of GDP (2012) 0.5% of GDP (2011)
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 Transnational Issues
Disputes - International: relies on assistance from Australia to keep out illegal cross-border activities from primarily Indonesia, including goods smuggling, illegal narcotics trafficking, and squatters and secessionists
Refugees and internally displaced persons: refugees (country of origin): 9,368 (Indonesia) (2018) IDPs: 12,000 (natural disasters, tribal conflict, inter-communal violence, development projects) (2017)
Illicit drugs: major consumer of cannabis
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