Christmas Island (2007) | Guam (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | none (territory of the US) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
0-14 years: 29.4% (male 25,645/female 23,887)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 55,115/female 52,935) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 5,157/female 5,825) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | NA | fruits, copra, vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef |
Airports | 1 (2007) | 5 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 135 sq km
land: 135 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 549 sq km
land: 549 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about three-quarters the size of Washington, DC | three times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Named in 1643 for the day of its discovery, the island was annexed and settlement began 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. | Guam was ceded to the US by Spain in 1898. Captured by the Japanese in 1941, it was retaken by the US three years later. The military installation on the island is one of the most strategically important US bases in the Pacific. |
Birth rate | NA | 19.03 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues: $340 million
expenditures: $445 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: The Settlement
geographic coordinates: 10 25 S, 105 43 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Hagatna (Agana) |
Climate | tropical with a wet season (December to April) and dry season; heat and humidity moderated by trade winds | tropical marine; generally warm and humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to June, rainy season from July to December; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 138.9 km | 125.5 km |
Constitution | Christmas Island Act of 1958-59 (1 October 1958) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 | Organic Act of 1 August 1950 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Christmas Island
conventional short form: Christmas Island |
conventional long form: Territory of Guam
conventional short form: Guam local long form: Guahan |
Death rate | NA | 4.41 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | - | NA |
Dependency status | non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services | organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between Guam and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | none (territory of the US) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | none (territory of the US) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | Guam receives large transfer payments from the US Federal Treasury ($143 million in 1997) into which Guamanians pay no income or excise taxes; under the provisions of a special law of Congress, the Guam Treasury, rather than the US Treasury, receives federal income taxes paid by military and civilian Federal employees stationed in Guam (2001 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, but closed in 1998. The Australian Government in 2001 agreed to support the creation of a commercial space-launching site on the island, expected to begin operations in the near future. | The economy depends on US military spending, tourism, and the export of fish and handicrafts. Total US grants, wage payments, and procurement outlays amounted to $1 billion in 1998. Over the past 20 years, the tourist industry has grown rapidly, creating a construction boom for new hotels and the expansion of older ones. More than 1 million tourists visit Guam each year. The industry had recently suffered setbacks because of the continuing Japanese slowdown; the Japanese normally make up almost 90% of the tourists. Most food and industrial goods are imported. Guam faces the problem of building up the civilian economic sector to offset the impact of military downsizing. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 776.6 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | - | 835 million kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Murray Hill 361 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 m |
Environment - current issues | loss of rainforest; impact of phosphate mining | extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown tree snake, an exotic, invasive species |
Ethnic groups | Chinese 70%, European 20%, Malay 10%
note: no indigenous population (2001) |
Chamorro 37.1%, Filipino 26.3%, other Pacific islander 11.3%, white 6.9%, other Asian 6.3%, other ethnic origin or race 2.3%, mixed 9.8% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Felix P. P. CAMACHO (since 6 January 2003) and Lieutenant Governor Kaleo MOYLAN (since 6 January 2003) cabinet: executive departments; heads appointed by the governor with the consent of the Guam legislature elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for a four-year term; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year term; election last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held November 2006) election results: Felix P. P. CAMACHO elected governor; percent of vote - Felix P. P. CAMACHO (Republican Party) 55.4%, Robert A. UNDERWOOD (Democratic Party) 44.6% |
Exports | $NA | NA |
Exports - commodities | phosphate | mostly transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction materials, fish, food and beverage products |
Exports - partners | Australia, NZ (2006) | Japan 66.1%, South Korea 9.9%, Singapore 8.4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | territorial flag; divided diagonally from upper hoist to lower fly; the upper triangle is green with a yellow image of the Golden Bosun Bird superimposed, while the lower triangle is blue with the Southern Cross constellation, representing Australia, superimposed; a centered yellow disk displays a green map of the island; the flag of Australia is used for official purposes | territorial flag is dark blue with a narrow red border on all four sides; centered is a red-bordered, pointed, vertical ellipse containing a beach scene, outrigger canoe with sail, and a palm tree with the word GUAM superimposed in bold red letters; US flag is the national flag |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 7%
industry: 15% services: 78% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $21,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 10 30 S, 105 40 E | 13 28 N, 144 47 E |
Geography - note | located along major sea lanes of Indian Ocean | largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean |
Highways | - | total: 977 km
paved: 962 km unpaved: 15 km (2004) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | $NA | NA |
Imports - commodities | consumer goods | petroleum and petroleum products, food, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | principally Australia (2006) | Singapore 39.5%, South Korea 20.8%, Japan 19%, Hong Kong 9%, Philippines 4.3% (2004) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | none (territory of the US) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA |
Industries | tourism, phosphate extraction (near depletion) | US military, tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 6.94 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 0% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | none | Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU |
Irrigated land | NA | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; District Court; Magistrate's Court | Federal District Court (judge is appointed by the president); Territorial Superior Court (judges appointed for eight-year terms by the governor) |
Labor force | NA | 60,000 (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | private 74% (industry 10%, trade 24%, other services 40%), federal and territorial government 26% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (mainly tropical rainforest; 63% of the island is a national park) (2005) |
arable land: 9.09%
permanent crops: 16.36% other: 74.55% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Chinese, Malay | English 38.3%, Chamorro 22.2%, Philippine languages 22.2%, other Pacific island languages 6.8%, Asian languages 7%, other languages 3.5% (2000 census) |
Legal system | under the authority of the governor general of Australia and Australian law | modeled on US; US federal laws apply |
Legislative branch | unicameral Christmas Island Shire Council (9 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held 20 October 2007 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 9 |
unicameral Legislature (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Democratic Party 6, Republican Party 9 note: Guam elects one nonvoting delegate to the US House of Representatives; election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006); results - Madeleine BORDALLO (Democratic Party) was elected as delegate; percent of vote by party - Democratic Party 64.6%, Republican Party 35.4%; seats by party - Democratic Party 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 78.4 years
male: 75.34 years female: 81.64 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of Indonesia | Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia | defense is the responsibility of the US |
National holiday | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) | Discovery Day, first Monday in March (1521) |
Nationality | noun: Christmas Islander(s)
adjective: Christmas Island |
noun: Guamanian(s)
adjective: Guamanian |
Natural hazards | the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard | frequent squalls during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (June - December) |
Natural resources | phosphate, beaches | fishing (largely undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan) |
Net migration rate | NA | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Democratic Party [leader Michael PHILLIPS]; Republican Party (controls the legislature) [leader Philip J. FLORES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 1,402 (July 2006 est.) (July 2007 est.) | 168,564 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | 23% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0% (2007 est.) | 1.46% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Apra Harbor |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2006) | AM 4, FM 7, shortwave 2 (2003) |
Religions | Buddhist 36%, Muslim 25%, Christian 18%, other 21% (1997) | Roman Catholic 85%, other 15% (1999 est.) |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal; US citizens, but do not vote in US presidential elections |
Telephone system | general assessment: service provided by the Australian network
domestic: GSM mobile telephone service replaced older analog system in February 2005 international: country code - 61-8; satellite earth stations - 1 INTELSAT earth station provides telephone and telex service (2005) |
general assessment: modern system, integrated with US facilities for direct dialing, including free use of 800 numbers
domestic: modern digital system, including cellular mobile service and local access to the Internet international: country code - 1-671; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); submarine cables to US and Japan (Guam is a trans-Pacific communications hub for MCI, Sprint, AT&T, IT&E, and GTE, linking the US and Asia) |
Telephones - main lines in use | NA | 84,134 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 32,600 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (TV broadcasts received via satellite from mainland Australia) (2006) | 5 (1997) |
Terrain | steep cliffs along coast rise abruptly to central plateau | volcanic origin, surrounded by coral reefs; relatively flat coralline limestone plateau (source of most fresh water), with steep coastal cliffs and narrow coastal plains in north, low hills in center, mountains in south |
Total fertility rate | NA | 2.6 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | 15% (2000 est.) |