The economy of Wallis and Futuna is limited, with about 80% of the labor force earning its livelihood from subsistence agriculture (coconuts and vegetables), livestock (mostly pigs), and fishing. About 4% of the population is employed in government. Revenues come from French government subsidies, licensing of fishing rights to Japan and South Korea, import taxes, and remittances from expatriate workers in New Caledonia, French Polynesia and France. Industries include copra, handicrafts, fishing, and lumber.
The vast majority of the population are of Polynesian ethnicity, with a small minority of Metropolitan French descent and/or native-born whites of French descent. There are more Wallisians and Futunans living on New Caledonia, due to greater economic and educational opportunities, than live in the islands themselves.
The overwhelming majority (99%) of the people in Wallis and Futuna are Catholics, served by their own Roman Catholic Diocese of Wallis and Futuna.
The culture of Wallis and Futuna is Polynesian, and is very similar to the cultures of its neighboring nations Samoa and Tonga. The Wallisian and Futunan cultures share very similar components in language, dance, cuisine and modes of celebration.
Fishing and agriculture are the traditional practices and most people live in traditional fate houses in an oval shape made of thatch. Kava, as on many Polynesian islands, is a popular beverage brewed in the two islands, and is a traditional offering in rituals. Highly detailed tapa cloth art is a specialty of Wallis and Futuna.
Communication costs are high, costing up to ten times as much as in western countries. The island of Wallis has about 62 mi of roadways, of which 16 are paved, while the island of Futuna has only 12 mi and none are paved. The territory has two main ports and harbours, Mata-Utu and Leava (on the island of Futuna), that support its merchant marine fleet consisting of three ships (two passenger ships and a petroleum tanker).
There are two airports, Hihifo Airport on Wallis
and Pointe Vele Airport on Futuna.
New Caledonia-based Aircalin operates the only commercial flights that go to Wallis, where it has an office in Mata-Utu. From Wallis it is possible to fly on, or back as the actual case happens to be, to Futuna.
As my loyal readers already know, the official flag of all constituent territories of Overseas France is the French tricolor, however, as is also quite common, Wallis and Futuna do have an unofficial flag that is commonly seen around the islands.
That is the flag we flew today.
It is unlikely that anyone reading this will be headed to Wallis or Futuna anytime soon because the islands remain quite isolated and little visited with only minor infrastructure for visitors. However, they can also be considered as a cultural preserve in some senses as the local culture remains vibrant and alive.