| Baker Island (2006) | Norfolk Island (2003) | |
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| Administrative divisions | - | none (territory of Australia) |
| Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2003 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | - | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry |
| Airports | one abandoned World War II runway of 1,665 m covered with vegetation and unusable (2006) | 1 (2002) |
| Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
| Area | total: 1.4 sq km
land: 1.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | about 2.5 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC |
| Background | The US took possession of the island in 1857, and its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization was begun on this island - as well as on nearby Howland Island - but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. Presently the island is a National Wildlife Refuge run by the US Department of the Interior; a day beacon is situated near the middle of the west coast. | Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony (1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. |
| Birth rate | - | NA births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Budget | - | revenues: $4.6 million
expenditures: $4.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY 92/93) |
| Capital | - | Kingston |
| Climate | equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun | subtropical, mild, little seasonal temperature variation |
| Coastline | 4.8 km | 32 km |
| Constitution | - | Norfolk Island Act of 1979 |
| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Baker Island |
conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
| Currency | - | Australian dollar (AUD) |
| Death rate | - | NA deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Debt - external | - | $NA |
| Dependency status | unincorporated territory of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge system | territory of Australia; Canberra administers Commonwealth responsibilities on Norfolk Island through the Department of Environment, Sport, and Territories |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | - | none (territory of Australia) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | - | none (territory of Australia) |
| Disputes - international | none | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
| Economy - overview | no economic activity | Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs. |
| Electricity - consumption | - | NA kWh |
| Electricity - production | - | NA kWh |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2002) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 8 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
| Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources | NA |
| Ethnic groups | - | descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesians |
| Exchange rates | - | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.8406 (2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998) |
| Executive branch | - | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and Australia are represented by Administrator Anthony J. MESSNER (since 4 August 1997)
head of government: Assembly President and Chief Minister Geoffrey Robert GARDNER (since 5 December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and acts as an advisor to the administrator elections: the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia; chief minister elected by the Legislative Assembly for a term of not more than three years; election last held 29 November 2001 (next to be held by December 2004) election results: Geoffrey Robert GARDNER elected chief minister; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - NA% |
| Exports | - | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY 91/92) |
| Exports - commodities | - | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados |
| Exports - partners | - | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe |
| Fiscal year | - | 1 July - 30 June |
| Flag description | the flag of the US is used | three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band |
| GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $NA |
| GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $NA |
| GDP - real growth rate | - | NA% |
| Geographic coordinates | 0 13 N, 176 28 W | 29 02 S, 167 57 E |
| Geography - note | treeless, sparse, and scattered vegetation consisting of grasses, prostrate vines, and low growing shrubs; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife | most of the 32-km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs, but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated |
| Highways | - | total: 80 km
paved: 53 km unpaved: 27 km (2001) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Imports | - | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY 91/92) |
| Imports - commodities | - | NA |
| Imports - partners | - | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe |
| Independence | - | none (territory of Australia) |
| Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
| Industries | - | tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | - | total: NA%
male: NA% female: NA% |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | NA% |
| International organization participation | - | none |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 0 sq km | NA sq km |
| Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions |
| Labor force | - | NA |
| Labor force - by occupation | - | tourism NA%, subsistence agriculture NA% |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
| Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
| Languages | - | English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian |
| Legal system | the laws of the US, where applicable, apply | based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or Norfolk Island law |
| Legislative branch | - | unicameral Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be given to any one candidate; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 29 November 2001 (next to be held by December 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 |
| Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years (2003 est.) |
| Literacy | - | NA |
| Location | Oceania, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and Australia | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
| Map references | Oceania | Oceania |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US; visited annually by the US Coast Guard | defense is the responsibility of Australia |
| National holiday | - | Pitcairners Arrival Day, 8 June (1856) |
| Nationality | - | noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
| Natural hazards | the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard | typhoons (especially May to July) |
| Natural resources | guano (deposits worked until 1891), terrestrial and aquatic wildlife | fish |
| Net migration rate | - | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | - | none |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | - | none |
| Population | uninhabited
note: American civilians evacuated in 1942 after Japanese air and naval attacks during World War II; occupied by US military during World War II, but abandoned after the war; public entry is by special-use permit from US Fish and Wildlife Service only and generally restricted to scientists and educators; a cemetery and remnants of structures from early settlement are located near the middle of the west coast; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service (2005 est.) |
1,853 (July 2003 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
| Population growth rate | - | 0.01% (2003 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | - | none; loading jetties at Kingston and Cascade |
| Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Railways | - | 0 km |
| Religions | - | Anglican 37.4%, Uniting Church in Australia 14.5%, Roman Catholic 11.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3.1%, none 12.2%, unknown 17.4%, other 3.9% (1996) |
| Sex ratio | - | NA (2003 est.) |
| Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | - | general assessment: adequate
domestic: NA international: radiotelephone service with Sydney (Australia) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | - | 1,087 (1983) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 0 (1983) |
| Television broadcast stations | - | 1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in Australian programs by satellite) (1998) |
| Terrain | low, nearly level coral island surrounded by a narrow fringing reef | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains |
| Total fertility rate | - | NA children born/woman (2003 est.) |
| Transportation - note | there is a day beacon near the middle of the west coast | - |
| Unemployment rate | - | NA% |
| Waterways | - | none |