[4] Notwithstanding these challenges it was also noted that Kiribati has a clear constitutional and legal framework and that there have been achievements in certain areas such as in education and addressing the impact of climate change, for example through the Environment Amendment Act (2007).
The NSP acknowledges that water supply and resource issues in Kiribati are some of the most complex in the world due to a combination of factors including the density of population and the impact of climate change.
In its submission to the UN Universal Periodic Review, Amnesty International identified overcrowding as the key cause of poor sanitation and drinking water shortages in Kiribati.
[9] As Kiribati is one of the most densely populated areas in the world there is increased stress on both infrastructure and resources, making management of water and sanitation a challenge in the country.
[8] This low level of sanitation is part of the reason for high disease rates and illness, for example the chance of a person having diarrhoea is four hundred percent more likely in Kiribati than in Australia or New Zealand, water borne diseases are increasingly common, outbreaks of typhoid occur annually and the country has the highest infant mortality rate in the Pacific region.
[8] The protection of women remains a sensitive issue within the nation and this is largely due to the cultural and social structures that exist within Kiribati.
Land inheritance and custody laws were considered particularly discriminatory by Amnesty International in its submission to the Human Rights Council.
[10] In addition to this progress has been made with the ratification of CEDAW and in 2011 the government introduced an action plan for the elimination of gender based violence.