Austria (2001) | Swaziland (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 9 states (bundeslaender, singular - bundesland); Burgenland, Kaernten, Niederoesterreich, Oberoesterreich, Salzburg, Steiermark, Tirol, Vorarlberg, Wien | 4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
16.57% (male 691,925; female 658,375) 15-64 years: 68.05% (male 2,802,019; female 2,744,536) 65 years and over: 15.38% (male 478,498; female 775,482) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 41% (male 242,090; female 237,395)
15-64 years: 55.3% (male 323,004; female 324,029) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 18,685; female 24,038) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber | sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep |
Airports | 55 (2000 est.) | 18 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
24 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 14 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
31 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 27 (2000 est.) |
total: 17
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
83,858 sq km land: 82,738 sq km water: 1,120 sq km |
total: 17,363 sq km
land: 17,203 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maine | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
Background | Once the center of power for the large Austro-Hungarian Empire, Austria was reduced to a small republic after its defeat in World War I. Following annexation by Nazi Germany in 1938 and subsequent occupation by the victorious Allies, Austria's 1955 State Treaty declared the country "permanently neutral" as a condition of Soviet military withdrawal. Neutrality, once ingrained as part of the Austrian cultural identity, has been called into question since the Soviet collapse of 1991 and Austria's increasingly prominent role in European affairs. A prosperous country, Austria joined the European Union in 1995 and the euro monetary system in 1999. | Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the British in the late 19th century; independence was granted in 1968. Student and labor unrest during the 1990s pressured the monarchy (one of the oldest on the continent) to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy. Swaziland recently surpassed Botswana as the country with the world's highest known rates of HIV/AIDS infection |
Birth rate | 9.74 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 28.55 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$56.3 billion expenditures: $60.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $462.4 million
expenditures: $563.4 million, including capital expenditures of $147 million (2003) |
Capital | Vienna | Mbabane; note - Lobamba is the royal and legislative capital |
Climate | temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional showers | varies from tropical to near temperate |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945) | a constitution was adopted 14 November 2003 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Austria conventional short form: Austria local long form: Republik Oesterreich local short form: Oesterreich |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Swaziland
conventional short form: Swaziland |
Currency | Austrian schilling (ATS); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Austria at a fixed rate of 13.7603 Austrian shillings per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
lilangeni (SZL) |
Death rate | 9.8 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 23.06 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $16 billion (1999) | $320 million (2002 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Kathryn Walt HALL embassy: Boltzmanngasse 16, A-1091, Vienna mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [43] (1) 313-39-2060 FAX: [43] (1) 313-39-2057 |
chief of mission: Ambassador James D. McGEE
embassy: Central Bank Building, Warner Street, Mbabane mailing address: P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone: [268] 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX: [268] 404-5959 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Peter MOSER chancery: 3524 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008-3035 telephone: [1] (202) 895-6700 FAX: [1] (202) 895-6750 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Mary Madzandza KANYA
chancery: 3400 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 362-6683 FAX: [1] (202) 244-8059 |
Disputes - international | minor disputes with Czech Republic and Slovenia over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $472 million (1999) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $104 million (2001) |
Economy - overview | Austria with its well-developed market economy and high standard of living is closely tied to other EU economies, especially Germany's. Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market and proximity to EU aspirant economies. In 2000, Austria moved to further cut government spending and raise taxes to meet EMU deficit targets after facing unexpected difficulties in reducing the public deficit. To meet increased competition from both EU and Central European countries, Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy and continue to deregulate the service sector. Growth is expected to remain at about 3% in 2001. | In this small, landlocked economy, subsistence agriculture occupies more than 80% of the population. The manufacturing sector has diversified since the mid-1980s. Sugar and wood pulp remain important foreign exchange earners. Mining has declined in importance in recent years with only coal and quarry stone mines remaining active. Surrounded by South Africa, except for a short border with Mozambique, Swaziland is heavily dependent on South Africa from which it receives about nine-tenths of its imports and to which it sends nearly three-quarters of its exports. Customs duties from the Southern African Customs Union and worker remittances from South Africa substantially supplement domestically earned income. The government is trying to improve the atmosphere for foreign investment. Overgrazing, soil depletion, drought, and sometimes floods persist as problems for the future. More than one-fourth of the population needed emergency food aid in 2002 because of drought, and more than one-third of the adult population was infected by HIV/AIDS. |
Electricity - consumption | 53.231 billion kWh (1999) | 962.9 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 13.507 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 11.605 billion kWh (1999) | 639 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) |
Electricity - production | 59.283 billion kWh (1999) | 348.3 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
29.53% hydro: 67.65% nuclear: 0% other: 2.82% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Neusiedler See 115 m highest point: Grossglockner 3,798 m |
lowest point: Great Usutu River 21 m
highest point: Emlembe 1,862 m |
Environment - current issues | some forest degradation caused by air and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of agricultural chemicals; air pollution results from emissions by coal- and oil-fired power stations and industrial plants and from trucks transiting Austria between northern and southern Europe | limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | German 98%, Croatian, Slovene, other (includes Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Roma) | African 97%, European 3% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Austrian schillings per US dollar - 11.86 (January 1999), 12.91 (1999), 12.379 (1998), 12.204 (1997), 10.587 (1996) | emalangeni per US dollar - 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001), 6.9398 (2000), 6.1095 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Thomas KLESTIL (since 8 July 1992) head of government: Chancellor Wolfgang SCHUESSEL (OeVP)(since 4 February 2000); Vice Chancellor Susanne RIESS-PASSER (FPOe) (since 4 February 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor elections: president elected by direct popular vote for a six-year term; presidential election last held 19 April 1998 (next to be held in the spring of 2004); chancellor traditionally chosen by the president from the plurality party in the National Council; in the case of the current coalition, the chancellor was chosen from another party after the plurality party failed to form a government; vice chancellor chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor election results: Thomas KLESTIL reelected president; percent of vote - Thomas KLESTIL 63%, Gertraud KNOLL 14%, Heide SCHMIDT 11%, Richard LUGNER 10%, Karl NOWAK 2% note: government coalition - OeVP and FPOe |
chief of state: King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986)
head of government: Prime Minister Absolom Themba DLAMINI (since 14 November 2003) cabinet: Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $63.2 billion (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel; textiles, foodstuffs | soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit |
Exports - partners | EU 64.2% (Germany 35.7%, Italy 8.7%, France 4.5%), Switzerland 5.9%, US 4.5%, Hungary 3.9% (1999) | South Africa 72%, EU 14.2%, Mozambique 3.7%, US 3.5% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and red | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red band is a large black and white shield covering two spears and a staff decorated with feather tassels, all placed horizontally |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $203 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5.702 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
2.2% industry: 30.4% services: 67.4% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 16.2%
industry: 43.2% services: 40.5% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $25,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,900 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.1% (2000 est.) | 2.2% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 47 20 N, 13 20 E | 26 30 S, 31 30 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys; major river is the Danube; population is concentrated on eastern lowlands because of steep slopes, poor soils, and low temperatures elsewhere | landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
133,361 km paved: 133,361 km (including 1,613 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1998) |
total: 3,247 km
paved: NA unpaved: NA (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 50.2% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine destined for Western Europe | - |
Imports | $65.6 billion (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs | motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | EU 70.3% (Germany 42.5%, Italy 7.9%, France 5.3%), US 5.4%, Switzerland 3.0%, Hungary 2.8% (1999) | South Africa 88.8%, EU 5.6%, Japan 0.6%, Singapore 0.4% (1999) |
Independence | 1156 (from Bavaria) | 6 September 1968 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.2% (2000) | 3.7% (FY95/96) |
Industries | construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism | mining (coal), wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates, textile and apparel |
Infant mortality rate | 4.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 68.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 71.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 64.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2000 est.) | 7.3% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 37 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 457 sq km (1995 est.) | 690 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Judicial Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof; Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgerichtshof | High Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch |
Labor force | 3.7 million (1999) | 383,200 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 68%, industry and crafts 29%, agriculture and forestry 3% (1999 est.) | NA |
Land boundaries | total:
2,562 km border countries: Czech Republic 362 km, Germany 784 km, Hungary 366 km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 35 km, Slovakia 91 km, Slovenia 330 km, Switzerland 164 km |
total: 535 km
border countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km |
Land use | arable land:
17% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 23% forests and woodland: 39% other: 20% (1996 est.) |
arable land: 10.35%
permanent crops: 0.7% other: 88.95% (2001) |
Languages | German | English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official) |
Legal system | civil law system with Roman law origin; judicial review of legislative acts by the Constitutional Court; separate administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung consists of Federal Council or Bundesrat (64 members; members represent each of the states on the basis of population, but with each state having at least three representatives; members serve a four- or six-year term) and the National Council or Nationalrat (183 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: National Council - last held 3 October 1999 (next to be held in the fall of 2003) election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - SPOe 33.2%, OeVP 26.9%, FPOe 26.9%, Greens 7.4%; seats by party - SPOe 65, OeVP 52, FPOe 52, Greens 14 |
bicameral Parliament or Libandla, an advisory body, consists of the Senate (30 seats - 10 appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats - 10 appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 18 October 2003 (next to be held NA October 2008) election results: House of Assembly - balloting is done on a nonparty basis; candidates for election are nominated by the local council of each constituency and for each constituency the three candidates with the most votes in the first round of voting are narrowed to a single winner by a second round |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
77.84 years male: 74.68 years female: 81.15 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 37.54 years
male: 39.1 years female: 35.94 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.6% male: 82.6% female: 80.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia | Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 86,905 GRT/117,417 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 18, combination bulk 2, container 2 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Army (includes Flying Division) | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (Army, including Air Wing) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1.7 billion (FY98) | $29 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY98) | 1.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,091,263 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 289,985 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,731,383 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 168,257 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
50,580 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | National Day, 26 October (1955); note - commemorates the passage of the law on permanent neutrality | Independence Day, 6 September (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Austrian(s) adjective: Austrian |
noun: Swazi(s)
adjective: Swazi |
Natural hazards | NA | drought |
Natural resources | iron ore, oil, timber, magnesite, lead, coal, lignite, copper, hydropower | asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc |
Net migration rate | 2.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 777 km; natural gas 840 km (1999) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Austrian People's Party or OeVP [Wolfgang SCHUESSEL]; Freedom Party of Austria or FPOe [Susanne RIESS-PASSER]; Social Democratic Party of Austria or SPOe [Alfred GUSENBAUER]; The Greens Alternative or GA [Alexander VAN DER BELLEN] | political parties are banned by the constitution - the following are considered political associations; Imbokodvo National Movement or INM [leader NA]; Ngwane National Liberatory Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president]; Swaziland National Front or SWANAFRO [Elmond SHONGWE, president] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Austrian Trade Union Federation (primarily Socialist) or OeGB; Federal Economic Chamber; OeVP-oriented League of Austrian Industrialists or VOeI; Roman Catholic Church, including its chief lay organization, Catholic Action; three composite leagues of the Austrian People's Party or OeVP representing business, labor, and farmers | NA |
Population | 8,150,835 (July 2001 est.) | 1,169,241
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 40% (1995) |
Population growth rate | 0.24% (2001 est.) | 0.55% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Linz, Vienna, Enns, Krems | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 61 (plus several hundred repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 3, FM 2 plus 4 repeaters, shortwave 3 (2001) |
Radios | 6.08 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
6,095.2 km (3,643.3 km electrified) standard gauge: 5,564.2 km 1.435-m gauge (3,521.2 km electrified) narrow gauge: 497.1 km (33.9 km 1.000-m gauge - 28.1 km electrified, 497.1 km 0.760-m gauge - 94 km electrified) (2001) |
total: 301 km
narrow gauge: 301 km 1.067-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 78%, Protestant 5%, Muslim and other 17% | Zionist (a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral worship) 40%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, Anglican, Bahai, Methodist, Mormon, Jewish and other 30% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 19 years of age; universal; compulsory for presidential elections | 18 years of age |
Telephone system | general assessment:
highly developed and efficient domestic: there are 48 main lines for every 100 persons and the system is nearly 100% digital; the fiber optic net is very extensive; all telephone applications and Internet services are available international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 2 Eutelsat (1999) |
general assessment: a somewhat modern but not an advanced system
domestic: system consists of carrier-equipped, open-wire lines and low-capacity, microwave radio relay international: country code - 268; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4 million (3,600,000 analog main lines plus 400,000 ISDN or Integrated Services Digital Network connections) (1999) | 46,200 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4.5 million (2000) | 88,000 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 45 (plus 960 repeaters) (1995) | 5 plus 7 relay stations (2001) |
Terrain | in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping | mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains |
Total fertility rate | 1.39 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.81 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.4% (2000 est.) | 34% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 358 km (1999) | - |