South Tarawa is the capital and hub of the Republic of Kiribati and home to approximately half of Kiribati's total population.
The South Tarawa population centre consists of all the small islets from Betio in the West to Bonriki in the East, connected by the South Tarawa main road; with a population of 50,182.
South Tarawa is home to most of the Government, commercial and education facilities in Kiribati including the Port and the High Court at Betio, the State House, Government Ministries, and foreign High Commissions in Bairiki. The weather in South Tarawa is warm and humid all year round and average rainfalls are relatively high.