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Compare Australia (2008) - Guinea-Bissau (2006)

Compare Australia (2008) z Guinea-Bissau (2006)

 Australia (2008)Guinea-Bissau (2006)
 AustraliaGuinea-Bissau
Administrative divisions 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia 9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos
Age structure 0-14 years: 19.3% (male 2,023,375/female 1,929,229)


15-64 years: 67.4% (male 6,945,068/female 6,831,653)


65 years and over: 13.2% (male 1,197,494/female 1,507,357) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 41.4% (male 297,623/female 298,942)


15-64 years: 55.6% (male 384,559/female 417,811)


65 years and over: 3% (male 18,048/female 25,046) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits, cattle, sheep, poultry rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish
Airports 461 (2007) 28 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways total: 317


over 3,047 m: 11


2,438 to 3,047 m: 12


1,524 to 2,437 m: 138


914 to 1,523 m: 143


under 914 m: 13 (2007)
total: 3


over 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 144


1,524 to 2,437 m: 19


914 to 1,523 m: 109


under 914 m: 16 (2007)
total: 25


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 20 (2006)
Area total: 7,686,850 sq km


land: 7,617,930 sq km


water: 68,920 sq km


note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
total: 36,120 sq km


land: 28,000 sq km


water: 8,120 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut
Background Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession in the name of Great Britain. Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. In recent decades, Australia has transformed itself into an internationally competitive, advanced market economy. It boasted one of the OECD's fastest growing economies during the 1990s, a performance due in large part to economic reforms adopted in the 1980s. Long-term concerns include climate-change issues such as the depletion of the ozone layer and more frequest droughts, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef. Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable political and military upheaval. In 1980, a military coup established authoritarian dictator Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA as president. Despite setting a path to a market economy and multiparty system, VIEIRA's regime was characterized by the suppression of political opposition and the purging of political rivals. Several coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him. In 1994 VIEIRA was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military mutiny and resulting civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIEIRA's ouster in May 1999. In February 2000, a transitional government turned over power to opposition leader Kumba YALA, after he was elected president in transparent polling. In September 2003, after only three years in office, YALA was ousted by the military in a bloodless coup, and businessman Henrique ROSA was sworn in as interim president. In August 2005, former President VIEIRA was re-elected president in the second round of presidential polling. Since formally assuming office in October 2005, Vieira has pledged to pursue economic development and national reconciliation.
Birth rate 12.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 37.22 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget revenues: $312 billion


expenditures: $299.6 billion (2007 est.)
revenues: $NA


expenditures: $NA
Capital name: Canberra


geographic coordinates: 35 17 S, 149 13 E


time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in October; ends last Sunday in March


note: Australia is divided into three time zones
name: Bissau


geographic coordinates: 11 51 N, 15 35 W


time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds
Coastline 25,760 km 350 km
Constitution 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901 16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, NA 1996
Country name conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia


conventional short form: Australia
conventional long form: Republic of Guinea-Bissau


conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau


local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau


local short form: Guine-Bissau


former: Portuguese Guinea
Death rate 7.56 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 16.53 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external $757.9 billion (30 June 2007) $941.5 million (2000 est.)
Dependent areas Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island, Macquarie Island -
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Robert D. McCALLUM, Jr.


embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600


mailing address: APO AP 96549


telephone: [61] (02) 6214-5600


FAX: [61] (02) 6214-5970


consulate(s) general: Melbourne, Perth, Sydney
the US Embassy suspended operations on 14 June 1998 in the midst of violent conflict between forces loyal to then President VIEIRA and military-led junta; the US Ambassador to Senegal is accredited to Guinea-Bissau
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Dennis J. RICHARDSON


chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036


telephone: [1] (202) 797-3000


FAX: [1] (202) 797-3168


consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC; Guinea-Bissau's representative in Washington is Henrique Adriano DA SILVA, P.O. Box 33813, Washington, DC 20033, telephone: (301)947-3958
Disputes - international Timor-Leste and Australia agreed in 2005 to defer the disputed portion of the boundary for fifty years and to split hydrocarbon revenues evenly outside the Joint Petroleum Development Area covered by the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty; East Timor dispute hampers creation of a revised maritime boundary with Indonesia in the Timor Sea; Indonesian groups challenge Australia's claim to Ashmore and Cartier Islands; Australia closed parts of the Ashmore and Cartier Reserve to Indonesian traditional fishing and placed restrictions on certain catch; regional states continue to express concern over Australia's 2004 declaration of a 1,000-nautical mile-wide maritime identification zone; Australia asserts land and maritime claims to Antarctica (see Antarctica); in 2004 Australia submitted its claims to UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) to extend its continental margins covering over 3.37 million square kilometers or roughly thirty percent of its claimed exclusive economic zone; since 2003, Australian Defense Force leads the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) to maintain civil and political order and reinforce regional security attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region
Economic aid - donor ODA, $894 million (FY99/00) -
Economic aid - recipient - $115.4 million (1995)
Economy - overview Australia has an enviable, strong economy with a per capita GDP on par with the four dominant West European economies. Robust business and consumer confidence and high export prices for raw materials and agricultural products are fueling the economy, particularly in mining states. Australia's emphasis on reforms, low inflation, a housing market boom, and growing ties with China have been key factors behind the economy's 16 solid years of expansion. Drought, robust import demand, and a strong currency have pushed the trade deficit up in recent years, while infrastructure bottlenecks and a tight labor market are constraining growth in export volumes and stoking inflation. Australia's budget has been in surplus since 2002 due to strong revenue growth. One of the 10 poorest countries in the world, Guinea-Bissau depends mainly on farming and fishing. Cashew crops have increased remarkably in recent years, and the country now ranks sixth in cashew production. Guinea-Bissau exports fish and seafood along with small amounts of peanuts, palm kernels, and timber. Rice is the major crop and staple food. However, intermittent fighting between Senegalese-backed government troops and a military junta destroyed much of the country's infrastructure and caused widespread damage to the economy in 1998; the civil war led to a 28% drop in GDP that year, with partial recovery in 1999-2002. Before the war, trade reform and price liberalization were the most successful part of the country's structural adjustment program under IMF sponsorship. The tightening of monetary policy and the development of the private sector had also begun to reinvigorate the economy. Because of high costs, the development of petroleum, phosphate, and other mineral resources is not a near-term prospect. However, offshore oil prospecting has begun and could lead to much-needed revenue in the long run. The inequality of income distribution is one of the most extreme in the world. The government and international donors continue to work out plans to forward economic development from a lamentably low base. In December 2003, the World Bank, IMF, and UNDP were forced to step in to provide emergency budgetary support in the amount of $107 million for 2004, representing over 80% of the total national budget. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in continued low growth in 2002-05.
Electricity - consumption 219.8 billion kWh (2005) 52.08 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production 236.7 billion kWh (2005) 56 million kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m


highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m
Environment - current issues soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing
Environment - international agreements party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups white 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1% African 99% (includes Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1%
Exchange rates Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.2137 (2007), 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003) Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)


note: since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc has been pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro
Executive branch chief of state: Queen of Australia ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Michael JEFFERY (since 11 August 2003)


head of government: Prime Minister Kevin RUDD (since 3 December 2007); Deputy Prime Minister Julia GILLARD (since 3 December 2007)


cabinet: prime minister nominates, from among members of Parliament, candidates who are subsequently sworn in by the governor general to serve as government ministers


elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is sworn in as prime minister by the governor general
chief of state: President Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA (since 1 October 2005)


head of government: Prime Minister Aristides GOMES (since 2 November 2005)


cabinet: NA


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (no term limits); election last held 24 July 2005 (next to be held in 2010); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature


election results: Joao Bernardo VIEIRA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Joao Bernardo VIEIRA 52.4%, Malan Bacai SANHA 47.6%
Exports 333,200 bbl/day (2004) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities coal, iron ore, gold, meat, wool, alumina, wheat, machinery and transport equipment cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber
Exports - partners Japan 19.6%, China 12.3%, South Korea 7.5%, US 6.2%, India 5.5%, NZ 5.5%, UK 5% (2006) India 72%, Nigeria 17.1%, Ecuador 4% (2005)
Fiscal year 1 July - 30 June calendar year
Flag description blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth or Federation Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; on the fly half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and green with a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a black five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 3.7%


industry: 25.6%


services: 70.7% (2007 est.)
agriculture: 62%


industry: 12%


services: 26% (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4% (2007 est.) 2.3% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 27 00 S, 133 00 E 12 00 N, 15 00 W
Geography - note world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; the invigorating sea breeze known as the "Fremantle Doctor" affects the city of Perth on the west coast, and is one of the most consistent winds in the world this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland
Heliports 1 (2007) -
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 2%


highest 10%: 25.4% (1994)
lowest 10%: 0.5%


highest 10%: 42.4% (1991)
Illicit drugs Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate; major consumer of cocaine and amphetamines -
Imports 611,400 bbl/day (2004) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products
Imports - partners China 14.4%, US 14.1%, Japan 9.6%, Singapore 6%, Germany 5.1% (2006) Italy 25.3%, Senegal 18.6%, Portugal 15.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.3% (2005)
Independence 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies) 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal)
Industrial production growth rate 3.5% (2007 est.) 4.7% (2003 est.)
Industries mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks
Infant mortality rate total: 4.57 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 4.95 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 4.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total: 105.21 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 115.53 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 94.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3% (2007 est.) 4% (2002 est.)
International organization participation ADB, ANZUS, APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, Paris Club, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNMIS, UNMIT, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land 25,450 sq km (2003) 250 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general) Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices appointed by the president and serve at his pleasure; final court of appeals in criminal and civil cases); Regional Courts (one in each of nine regions; first court of appeals for Sectoral Court decisions; hear all felony cases and civil cases valued at over $1,000); 24 Sectoral Courts (judges are not necessarily trained lawyers; they hear civil cases under $1,000 and misdemeanor criminal cases)
Labor force 10.9 million (2007 est.) 480,000 (1999)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 3.6%


industry: 21.2%


services: 75.2% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 82%


industry and services: 18% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries 0 km total: 724 km


border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km
Land use arable land: 6.15% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland)


permanent crops: 0.04%


other: 93.81% (2005)
arable land: 8.31%


permanent crops: 6.92%


other: 84.77% (2005)
Languages English 79.1%, Chinese 2.1%, Italian 1.9%, other 11.1%, unspecified 5.8% (2001 Census) Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages
Legal system based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats; 12 members from each of the six states and 2 from each of the two mainland territories; one-half of state members are elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms while all territory members are elected every three years) and the House of Representatives (150 seats; members elected by popular preferential vote to serve terms of up to three-years; no state can have fewer than 5 representatives)


elections: Senate - last held 24 November 2007 (next to be held no later than 2010); House of Representatives - last held 24 November 2007 (next to be called no later than 2010)


election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 37, Australian Labor Party 32, Australian Greens 5, Family First Party 1, other 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Australian Labor Party 83, Liberal Party 55, National Party 10, independents 2
unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve a maximum of four years)


elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2008)


election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 31.5%, PRS 24.8%, PUSD 16.1%, UE 4.1%, APU 1.3%, 13 other parties 22.2%; seats by party - PAIGC 45, PRS 35, PUSD 17, UE 2, APU 1
Life expectancy at birth total population: 80.62 years


male: 77.75 years


female: 83.63 years (2007 est.)
total population: 46.87 years


male: 45.05 years


female: 48.75 years (2006 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99%


male: 99%


female: 99% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 42.4%


male: 58.1%


female: 27.4% (2003 est.)
Location Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal
Map references Oceania Africa
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine total: 52 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,322,527 GRT/1,501,865 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 16, cargo 5, chemical tanker 1, container 1, liquefied gas 4, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 5


foreign-owned: 16 (Canada 2, France 1, Germany 2, Netherlands 2, Norway 1, Philippines 1, UK 2, US 5)


registered in other countries: 29 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Bahamas 3, Bermuda 4, Fiji 1, The Gambia 1, Liberia 2, Marshall Islands 1, Panama 4, Singapore 6, Tonga 1, UK 1, US 2, Vanuatu 2, unknown 1) (2007)
-
Military branches Australian Defense Force (ADF): Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, Special Operations Command (2006) People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $9.46 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.4% (2006) 3.1% (2005 est.)
National holiday Australia Day, 26 January (1788); ANZAC Day (commemorated as the anniversary of the landing of troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during World War I at Gallipoli, Turkey), 25 April (1915) Independence Day, 24 September (1973)
Nationality noun: Australian(s)


adjective: Australian
noun: Guinean(s)


adjective: Guinean
Natural hazards cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires
Natural resources bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum
Net migration rate 3.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines condensate/gas 469 km; gas 26,719 km; liquid petroleum gas 240 km; oil 3,720 km; oil/gas/water 110 km (2007) -
Political parties and leaders Australian Democrats [Lyn ALLISON]; Australian Greens [Bob BROWN]; Australian Labor Party [Kevin RUDD]; Country Liberal Party [Jodeen CARNEY]; Family First Party [Steve FIELDING]; Liberal Party [Brendan NELSON]; The Nationals [Warren TRUSS] African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Democratic Social Front or FDS; Electoral Union or UE; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Alberto NAMBEIA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP (coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB); United Popular Alliance or APU; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL]
Political pressure groups and leaders - NA
Population 20,434,176 (July 2007 est.) 1,442,029 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% NA%
Population growth rate 0.824% (2007 est.) 2.07% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002)
Railways total: 38,550 km


broad gauge: 3,727 km 1.600-m gauge


standard gauge: 20,519 km 1.435-m gauge (1,877 km electrified)


narrow gauge: 14,074 km 1.067-m gauge (2,453 km electrified)


dual gauge: 230 km dual gauge (2006)
-
Religions Catholic 26.4%, Anglican 20.5%, other Christian 20.5%, Buddhist 1.9%, Muslim 1.5%, other 1.2%, unspecified 12.7%, none 15.3% (2001 Census) indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5%
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.049 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.017 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.794 male(s)/female


total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female


total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal and compulsory 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: excellent domestic and international service


domestic: domestic satellite system; much use of radiotelephone in areas of low population density; rapid growth of mobile cellular telephones


international: country code - 61; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 optical telecommunications submarine cable with links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; the Southern Cross fiber optic submarine cable provides links to New Zealand and the United States; satellite earth stations - 19 (10 Intelsat - 4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean, 2 Inmarsat - Indian and Pacific Ocean regions, 2 Globalstar, 5 other) (2007)
general assessment: small system


domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications


international: country code - 245
Telephones - main lines in use 9.94 million (2006) 10,600 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 19.76 million (2006) 67,000 (2005)
Television broadcast stations 104 (1997) NA (2005)
Terrain mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east
Total fertility rate 1.76 children born/woman (2007 est.) 4.86 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate 4.4% (November 2007 est.) NA%
Waterways 2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2006) four largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2006)
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