Tokelau is a group of three tropical coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, a non-self-governing colonial territory of New Zealand.
Tokelau has fewer than 1500 Polynesian inhabitants living in three villages, who speak Tokelauan and English. Their isolation and lack of resources greatly restrains economic development and confines agriculture to the subsistence level. The very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand, resulting in a population decline of about 0.9% per year.