Overview
- Parliament approved a constitutional amendment in the two required votes to change the country’s official name and lawmakers decided not to hold a referendum because the name Naoero is already used domestically.
- The government formally notified the United Nations on June 26, and the UN now lists the State as Naoero while several foreign ministries and embassies have updated their references.
- Practical changes are underway including a switch of the ISO country code from NRU to NRO, a new demonym (dei-Naoero), and updates to passports, maps, aviation and shipping registrations.
- President David Adeang framed the move as restoring the nation’s language and identity, noting Naoero appears on national symbols and in everyday use across the island.
- The decision comes as the 12,000‑person island faces severe sea‑level risks, and the government is pursuing foreign investment and a citizenship‑by‑investment scheme to fund planned relocations and resilience projects.