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Compare Christmas Island (2003) - Syria (2004)
Compare Christmas Island (2003) z Syria (2004)
| Christmas Island (2003) | Syria (2004) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | 14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: NA%
15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 38% (male 3,524,406; female 3,319,323)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 5,421,133; female 5,163,669) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 281,795; female 306,548) (2004 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | NA | wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk |
| Airports | 1 (2002) | 93 (2003 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 26
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 66
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 54 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 135 sq km
land: 135 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 185,180 sq km
land: 184,050 sq km water: 1,130 sq km note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory |
| Area - comparative | about 0.7 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than North Dakota |
| Background | Named in 1643 for the day of its discovery, the island was annexed and settlement was begun by the UK in 1888. Phosphate mining began in the 1890s. The UK transferred sovereignty to Australia in 1958. Almost two-thirds of the island has been declared a national park. | Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon, ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. Over the past decade, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights. |
| Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 28.93 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $6.106 billion
expenditures: $7.397 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6 billion (2003 est.) |
| Capital | The Settlement | Damascus |
| Climate | tropical; heat and humidity moderated by trade winds | mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus |
| Coastline | 80 km | 193 km |
| Constitution | NA | 13 March 1973 |
| Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Christmas Island
conventional short form: Christmas Island |
conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic
conventional short form: Syria local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah local short form: Suriyah former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt) |
| Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | Syrian pound (SYP) |
| Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 4.96 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Debt - external | $NA | $21.55 billion (2003 est.) |
| Dependency status | territory of Australia; administered by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Margaret SCOBEY
embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus telephone: [963] (11) 333-1342 FAX: [963] (11) 331-9678 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Imad MUSTAFA
chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313 FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548 |
| Disputes - international | none | Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied; Lebanon claims Shaba'a farms in Golan Heights; Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon since October 1976; Syria protests Turkish hydrological projects regulating upper Euphrates waters; settled border dispute with Jordan in 2004 |
| Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $199 million (1997 est.) |
| Economy - overview | Phosphate mining had been the only significant economic activity, but in December 1987 the Australian Government closed the mine. In 1991, the mine was reopened. With the support of the government, a $34 million casino opened in 1993. The casino closed in 1998. The Australian Government in 2001 agreed to support the creation of a commercial space-launching site on the island, slated to begin operation in 2003. | Syria's predominantly statist economy lately has been growing more slowly than its 2.4% annual population growth rate. Recent legislation allows private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector will take years and further government cooperation to develop. Factors, including the war between the US-led coalition and Iraq, probably drove real annual GDP growth levels back below 1% in 2003 following growth of 3.5% in 2001 and 4.5% in 2002. A long-run economic constraint is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution. |
| Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 21.63 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | NA kWh | 23.26 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Murray Hill 361 m |
lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m
highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m |
| Environment - current issues | NA | deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water |
| Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
| Ethnic groups | Chinese 70%, European 20%, Malay 10%
note: no indigenous population (2001) |
Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7% |
| Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.9354 (2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173(2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998) | Syrian pounds per US dollar - (Official rate): 11.225 (2003), 11.225 (2002), 11.225 (2001), 11.225 (2000), 11.225 (1999), (Free market rate): 49.65 (2001), 49.4 (2000), 51.7 (1999) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator William Leonard TAYLOR (since 4 February 1999) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim ibn Said KHADDAM (since 11 March 1984) and Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984)
head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; referendum/election last held 10 July 2000 - after the death of President Hafiz al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held 2007); vice presidents appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29% note: Hafiz al-ASAD died on 10 June 2000; on 20 June 2000, the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council on 25 June 2000 |
| Exports | $NA | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | phosphate | crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat |
| Exports - partners | Australia, NZ | Germany 20.9%, Italy 12.6%, UAE 7.6%, Lebanon 6.2%, Turkey 6%, France 5.4%, Croatia 4.8%, US 4.1% (2003) |
| Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
| Flag description | the flag of Australia is used; note - in early 1986, the Christmas Island Assembly held a design competition for an island flag, however, the winning design has never been formally adopted as the official flag of the territory | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, colors associated with the Arab Liberation flag; two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; former flag of the United Arab Republic where the two stars represented the constituent states of Syria and Egypt; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band, and that of Egypt, which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; the current design dates to 1980 |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $NA | purchasing power parity - $58.01 billion (2003 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 28.5%
industry: 29.4% services: 42.1% (2003 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $NA | purchasing power parity - $3,300 (2003 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 0.9% (2003 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 10 30 S, 105 40 E | 35 00 N, 38 00 E |
| Geography - note | located along major sea lanes of Indian Ocean | there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.) |
| Heliports | - | 7 (2003 est.) |
| Highways | total: 240 km
paved: 30 km unpaved: 210 km (2000) |
total: 43,381 km
paved: 10,021 km (including 877 km of expressways) unpaved: 33,360 km (1999) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
| Illicit drugs | - | a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets; weak anti-money-laundering controls, bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money-laundering |
| Imports | $NA | NA (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | consumer goods | machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper |
| Imports - partners | principally Australia | Germany 7.2%, Italy 7.1%, China 6.3%, France 5.9%, Turkey 5.4% (2003) |
| Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA |
| Industries | tourism, phosphate extraction (near depletion) | petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining |
| Infant mortality rate | total: NA%
male: NA% female: NA% |
total: 30.6 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 30.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 30.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 1.5% (2003 est.) |
| International organization participation | none | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 12,130 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court; District Court; Magistrate's Court | Supreme Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts |
| Labor force | NA | 4.97 million (2003 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | tourism 400 people, mining 100 people (1995) | agriculture, industry, services NA |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,253 km
border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km |
| Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% note: mainly tropical rainforest; 63% of the island is a national park (1998 est.) |
arable land: 25.22%
permanent crops: 4.43% other: 70.35% (2001) |
| Languages | English (official), Chinese, Malay | Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood |
| Legal system | under the authority of the governor general of Australia and Australian law | based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Christmas Island Shire Council (9 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve one-year terms)
elections: last held NA December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 |
unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2-3 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, independents 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receives one-half of the seats |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years (2003 est.) |
total population: 69.71 years
male: 68.47 years female: 71.02 years (2004 est.) |
| Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.9% male: 89.7% female: 64% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Southeastern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of Indonesia | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Middle East |
| Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 12 NM
exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 41 nm |
| Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 122 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 446,981 GRT/636,620 DWT
by type: bulk 12, cargo 101, container 2, livestock carrier 4, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: Egypt 1, Germany 1, Greece 1, Italy 1, Lebanon 10, Romania 1 registered in other countries: 83 (2004 est.) |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia | - |
| Military branches | - | Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (including Air Defense Command), Police and Security Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 5.9% (FY00) |
| Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 4,876,040 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 2,716,054 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 216,077 (2004 est.) |
| National holiday | NA | Independence Day, 17 April (1946) |
| Nationality | noun: Christmas Islander(s)
adjective: Christmas Island |
noun: Syrian(s)
adjective: Syrian |
| Natural hazards | the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard | dust storms, sandstorms |
| Natural resources | phosphate, beaches | petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower |
| Net migration rate | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | gas 2,300 km; oil 2,183 km (2004) |
| Political parties and leaders | none | National Progressive Front or NPF (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party; the governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallal Nasr Al-DIN]; Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yuusuf Rashid FAYSAL]; Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL]; Arab Socialist Unionist Movement [Ahmed al-AHMED]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan QUDSI]); Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | none | conservative religious leaders; Kurdish Democratic Alliance [leader NA]; Kurdish Democratic Front [lader NA]; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in London) [Ali Badr Eddine al-BAYANOUNI]; National Democratic Front [Hassan Abd al-AZIM] |
| Population | 433 (July 2003 est.) | 18,016,874
note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2004 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 20% (2003 est.) |
| Population growth rate | -9% (2003 est.) | 2.4% (2004 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Flying Fish Cove | Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Railways | 24 km to serve phosphate mines | total: 2,711 km
standard gauge: 2,460 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 251 km 1.050-m gauge (2003) |
| Religions | Buddhist 36%, Muslim 25%, Christian 18%, other 21% (1997) | Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo) |
| Sex ratio | NA (2003 est.) | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
| Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: service provided by the Australian network
domestic: only analog mobile telephone service is available international: satellite earth stations - one Intelsat earth station provides telephone and telex service (2000) |
general assessment: fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology
domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 963; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel |
| Telephones - main lines in use | NA | 2,099,300 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 400,000 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | NA | 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995) |
| Terrain | steep cliffs along coast rise abruptly to central plateau | primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west |
| Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.61 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | NA% | 20% (2002 est.) |
| Waterways | none | 900 km (not economically significant) (2002) |
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