Compare Bahamas, The (2006) - Australia (2007)

Compare Bahamas, The (2006) z Australia (2007)

	Bahamas, The (2006)	Australia (2007)

Administrative divisions	21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay	6 states and 2 territories; Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia*
Age structure	0-14 years: 27.5% (male 41,799/female 41,733) 15-64 years: 66.1% (male 98,847/female 102,074) 65 years and over: 6.4% (male 7,891/female 11,426) (2006 est.)	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.)
Agriculture - products	citrus, vegetables; poultry	wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits, cattle, sheep, poultry
Airports	64 (2006)	461 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 29 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 1 (2006)	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)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 35 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 22 (2006)	total: 144 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 109 under 914 m: 16 (2007)
Area	total: 13,940 sq km land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km	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
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Connecticut	slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states
Background	Lucayan Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US.	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 pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef.
Birth rate	17.57 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	12.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $1.03 billion expenditures: $1.03 billion; including capital expenditures of $130 million (FY04/05)	revenues: $268.2 billion expenditures: $257.3 billion (2006 est.)
Capital	name: Nassau geographic coordinates: 25 05 N, 77 21 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in April; ends last Sunday in October	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
Climate	tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream	generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
Coastline	3,542 km	25,760 km
Constitution	10 July 1973	9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
Country name	conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas conventional short form: The Bahamas	conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia conventional short form: Australia
Death rate	9.05 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	7.56 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$342.6 million (2004 est.)	$628.1 billion (2006 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 John D. ROOD embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; US Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours) FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222	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
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: vacant chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York	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
Disputes - international	disagrees with the US on the alignment of the maritime boundary; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian refugees fleeing economic privation and political instability	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
Economic aid - donor	-	ODA, $894 million (FY99/00)
Economic aid - recipient	$5 million (2004)	-
Economy - overview	The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism together with tourism-driven construction and manufacturing accounts for approximately 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in 2001-03. The current government has presided over a period of economic recovery and an upturn in large-scale private sector investments in tourism. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors.	Australia has an enviable Western-style capitalist 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. Australia's emphasis on reforms, low inflation, and growing ties with China are other key factors behind the economy's strength. Drought and strong import demand pushed the trade deficit up in recent years, although the trade balance improved in 2006. Housing prices probably peaked in 2005, diminishing the prospect that interest rates would be raised to prevent a speculative bubble. Conservative fiscal policies have kept Australia's budget in surplus since 2002.
Electricity - consumption	1.683 billion kWh (2003)	219.8 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	1.81 billion kWh (2003)	236.7 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m	lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
Environment - current issues	coral reef decay; solid waste disposal	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
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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
Ethnic groups	black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%	white 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1%
Exchange rates	Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2005), 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001)	Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002)
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Arthur D. HANNA (since 1 February 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia PRATT (since 7 May 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister	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
Exports	transhipments of 29,000 bbl/day (2003)	333,200 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals, fruit and vegetables	coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment
Exports - partners	US 31%, Spain 29.7%, Poland 9.3%, Germany 5.6%, Guatemala 4.1% (2005)	Japan 19.6%, China 12.3%, South Korea 7.5%, US 6.2%, India 5.5%, NZ 5.5%, UK 5% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 July - 30 June	1 July - 30 June
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side	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
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 3% industry: 7% services: 90% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 3.7% industry: 26.2% services: 70.1% (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.7% (2005 est.)	2.7% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	24 15 N, 76 00 W	27 00 S, 133 00 E
Geography - note	strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited	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
Heliports	1 (2006)	1 (2007)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: 27%	lowest 10%: 2% highest 10%: 25.4% (1994)
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center	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	NA bbl/day	611,400 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals	machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products
Imports - partners	US 22.5%, South Korea 20.2%, Spain 7.8%, Brazil 7.1%, Italy 6.5%, Germany 5.4% (2005)	China 14.4%, US 14.1%, Japan 9.6%, Singapore 6%, Germany 5.1% (2006)
Independence	10 July 1973 (from UK)	1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	-3.5% (2006 est.)
Industries	tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe	mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel
Infant mortality rate	total: 24.68 deaths/1,000 live births male: 30.29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 18.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	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.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.2% ( 2004)	3.5% (2006 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOM, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), WToO	ANZUS, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, 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, UNHCR, UNMIS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	10 sq km (2003)	25,450 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Privy Council (London); Courts of Appeal; Supreme (lower) Court; magistrates courts	High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general)
Labor force	176,300 (2004)	10.74 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (2005 est.)	agriculture: 3.6% industry: 21.2% services: 75.2% (2004 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0.58% permanent crops: 0.29% other: 99.13% (2005)	arable land: 6.15% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland) permanent crops: 0.04% other: 93.81% (2005)
Languages	English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)	English 79.1%, Chinese 2.1%, Italian 1.9%, other 11.1%, unspecified 5.8% (2001 Census)
Legal system	based on English common law	based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member body appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader for five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms); the government may dissolve the Parliament and call elections at any time elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%, FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29, FNM 7, independents 4	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 80, Liberal Party 50, National Party 10, independents 2, undecided 8
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 65.6 years male: 62.24 years female: 69.03 years (2006 est.)	total population: 80.62 years male: 77.75 years female: 83.63 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95.6% male: 94.7% female: 96.5% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.)
Location	Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba	Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Oceania
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	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
Merchant marine	total: 1,177 ships (1000 GRT or over) 37,743,270 GRT/50,918,747 DWT by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 253, cargo 250, chemical tanker 64, container 79, liquefied gas 35, livestock carrier 2, passenger 115, passenger/cargo 34, petroleum tanker 175, refrigerated cargo 114, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 5, vehicle carrier 30 foreign-owned: 1,093 (Angola 5, Australia 2, Belgium 13, Canada 18, China 3, Cuba 1, Cyprus 13, Denmark 59, Estonia 1, Finland 8, France 37, Germany 22, Greece 232, Hong Kong 8, Iceland 1, India 1, Indonesia 4, Ireland 2, Israel 1, Italy 5, Japan 51, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Latvia 1, Malaysia 12, Monaco 17, Montenegro 2, Netherlands 24, Nigeria 2, Norway 259, Philippines 1, Poland 15, Reunion 1, Russia 6, Saudi Arabia 12, Singapore 12, Slovenia 1, Spain 12, Sweden 6, Switzerland 2, Thailand 1, Turkey 8, UAE 16, UK 69, Uruguay 2, US 121, Venezuela 1) registered in other countries: 4 (Barbados 1, Liberia 1, Panama 2) (2006)	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	Royal Bahamian Defense Force: Marines, Air Wing (2006)	Australian Defense Force (ADF): Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, Special Operations Command (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	NA	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	2.4% (2006)
National holiday	Independence Day, 10 July (1973)	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)
Nationality	noun: Bahamian(s) adjective: Bahamian	noun: Australian(s) adjective: Australian
Natural hazards	hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage	cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires
Natural resources	salt, aragonite, timber, arable land	bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum
Net migration rate	-2.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	3.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	-	condensate/gas 546 km; gas 31,323 km; liquid petroleum gas 240 km; oil 4,808 km; oil/gas/water 110 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert INGRAHAM]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE]	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]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	-
Population	303,770 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 2006 est.)	20,434,176 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	9.3% (2004)	NA%
Population growth rate	0.64% (2006 est.)	0.824% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2006)	AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998)
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	Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8% (2000 census)	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)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	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.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Telephone system	general assessment: modern facilities domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed international: country code - 1-242; tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 2 (2005)	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)
Telephones - main lines in use	139,900 (2004)	9.94 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	186,000 (2004)	19.76 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	2 (2006)	104 (1997)
Terrain	long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills	mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast
Total fertility rate	2.18 children born/woman (2006 est.)	1.76 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	10.2% (2005 est.)	4.9% (2006 est.)
Waterways	-	2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2006)

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