Cocos (Keeling) Islands (2006) | Austria (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | 9 states (Bundeslaender, singular - Bundesland); Burgenland, Kaernten, Niederoesterreich, Oberoesterreich, Salzburg, Steiermark, Tirol, Vorarlberg, Wien |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.2% (male 678,944; female 646,390)
15-64 years: 68.3% (male 2,827,736; female 2,768,480) 65 years and over: 15.5% (male 490,979; female 775,678) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber |
Airports | 1 (2006) | 55 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
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 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 31
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 27 (2002) |
Area | total: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island |
total: 83,858 sq km
land: 82,738 sq km water: 1,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maine |
Background | There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century. Annexed by the UK in 1857, they were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island. | 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 in 1945, Austria's status remained unclear for a decade. A State Treaty signed in 1955 ended the occupation, recognized Austria's independence, and forbade unification with Germany. A constitutional law that same year declared the country's "perpetual neutrality" as a condition for Soviet military withdrawal. This neutrality, once ingrained as part of the Austrian cultural identity, has been called into question since the Soviet collapse of 1991 and Austria's entry into the European Union in 1995. A prosperous country, Austria entered the European Monetary Union in 1999. |
Birth rate | NA | 9.43 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues: $53 billion
expenditures: $54 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | name: West Island
geographic coordinates: 12 10 S, 96 55 E time difference: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Vienna |
Climate | tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year | temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional showers |
Coastline | 26 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1955) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 | 1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945) |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
conventional long form: Republic of Austria
conventional short form: Austria local long form: Republik Oesterreich local short form: Oesterreich |
Currency | - | euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by the financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 9.69 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $12.1 billion (2001 est.) |
Dependency status | non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador William Lee LYONS BROWN, Jr.
embassy: Boltzmanngasse 16, A-1090, Vienna mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [43] (1) 31339, 31375, 31335 FAX: [43] (1) 5125835 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Eva NOWOTNY
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 |
Disputes - international | none | minor disputes with Czech Republic and Slovenia continue over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $410 million (2000) |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | - |
Economy - overview | Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small tourist industry. | 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. Slowing growth in Germany and elsewhere in the world held the economy to only 1.2% growth in 2001, 0.6% in 2002, and 0.8% in 2003.. To meet increased competition from both EU and Central European countries, Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy, continue to deregulate the service sector, and lower its tax burden. A key issue is the encouragement of much greater participation in the labor market by its ageing population. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 54.85 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 14.25 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 14.47 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | - | 58.75 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 29.3%
hydro: 67.2% nuclear: 0% other: 3.5% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point: Neusiedler See 115 m
highest point: Grossglockner 3,798 m |
Environment - current issues | fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs | 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 |
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 |
Ethnic groups | Europeans, Cocos Malays | German 88%, non-nationals 9.3% (includes Croatians, Slovenes, Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Roma), naturalized 2% (includes those who have lived in Austria at least three generations) |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001) | euros per US dollar - 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 1.09 (2000), 0.94 (1999), 12.38 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator (nonresident) Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
chief of state: President Thomas KLESTIL (since 8 July 1992)
head of government: Chancellor Wolfgang SCHUESSEL (OeVP)(since 4 February 2000); Vice Chancellor Hubert GORBACH (since 21 October 2003) 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; 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 |
Exports | $NA | 35,470 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | copra | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel; textiles, foodstuffs |
Exports - partners | Australia (2004) | Germany 31.5%, Italy 9.3%, Switzerland 5.4%, US 4.9%, UK 4.9%, France 4.7%, Hungary 4.3% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of Australia is used | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and red |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $227.7 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 2%
industry: 33% services: 65% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $27,900 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 1.1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 30 S, 96 50 E | 47 20 N, 13 20 E |
Geography - note | islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation | 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 |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 200,000 km
paved: 200,000 km (including 1,633 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 22.5% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine destined for Western Europe |
Imports | $NA | 262,000 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Australia (2004) | Germany 42.6%, Italy 6.6%, Hungary 5.1%, Switzerland 4.8%, Netherlands 4.4% (2002) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 1156 (from Bavaria) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 3.8% (2001 est.) |
Industries | copra products and tourism | construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 4.33 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.38 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 1.8% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | none | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, 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, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOGIP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 37 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | 457 sq km (2000 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court | Supreme Judicial Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof; Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgerichtshof |
Labor force | NA | 4.3 million (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | note: the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others | services 67%, industry and crafts 29%, agriculture and forestry 4% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 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 |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land: 16.89%
permanent crops: 0.99% other: 82.12% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Malay (Cocos dialect), English | German |
Legal system | based upon the laws of Australia and local laws | civil law system with Roman law origin; judicial review of legislative acts by the Constitutional Court; separate administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held in May 2005 (next to be held in May 2007) |
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 24 November 2002 (next to be held in the fall of 2006) election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - OeVP 42.3%, SPOe 36.9%, FPOe 10.2%, Greens 9%; seats by party - OeVP 79, SPOe 69, FPOe 19, Greens 16 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 78.17 years
male: 75.02 years female: 81.48 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka | Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | - | total: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 27,551 GRT/34,225 DWT
ships by type: cargo 4, container 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory has a five-person police force | - |
Military branches | - | Land Forces (KdoLdSK), Air Forces (KdoLuSK) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $1.497 billion (FY01/02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.8% (FY01/02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 2,093,821 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,725,123 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 49,090 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) | National Day, 26 October (1955); note - commemorates the State Treaty restoring national sovereignty and the end of occupation and the passage of the law on permanent neutrality |
Nationality | noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander |
noun: Austrian(s)
adjective: Austrian |
Natural hazards | cyclone season is October to April | landslides; avalanches; earthquakes |
Natural resources | fish | iron ore, oil, timber, magnesite, lead, coal, lignite, copper, hydropower |
Net migration rate | NA | 2.44 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 2,722 km; oil 687 km; refined products 149 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Austrian People's Party or OeVP [Wolfgang SCHUESSEL]; Freedom Party of Austria or FPOe [Herbert HAUPT]; Social Democratic Party of Austria or SPOe [Alfred GUSENBAUER]; The Greens Alternative or GA [Alexander VAN DER BELLEN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | 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 |
Population | 574 (July 2006 est.) | 8,188,207 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0% (2006 est.) | 0.22% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Enns, Krems, Linz, Vienna |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 2, FM 160 (plus several hundred repeaters), shortwave 1 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 6,024 km (3,641 km electrified)
standard gauge: 5,566 km 1.435-m gauge (3,524 km electrified) narrow gauge: 34 km 1.000-m gauge (28 km electrified); 424 km 0.760-m gauge (89 km electrified) (2002) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.) | Roman Catholic 78%, Protestant 5%, Muslim and other 17% |
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: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | NA | 18 years of age; universal; compulsory for presidential elections |
Telephone system | general assessment: connected within Australia's telecommunication system
domestic: NA international: country code - 61; telephone, telex, and facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite; 1 INTELSAT satellite earth station |
general assessment: highly developed and efficient
domestic: there are 48 main lines for every 100 persons; 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 1 Eutelsat; in addition, there are about 600 VSAT (very small aperture terminals) (2002) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 287 (1992) | 4 million (consisting of 3,600,000 analog main lines plus 400,000 Integrated Services Digital Network connections); in addition, there are 100,000 Asymmetric Digital Services lines (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | note - analog cellular service available | 6 million (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 45 (plus more than 1,000 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | flat, low-lying coral atolls | in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping |
Total fertility rate | NA | 1.41 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 60% (2000 est.) | 4.8% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | - | 358 km (1999) |