Cocos (Keeling) Islands (2006) | Guam (2004) | |
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 (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.8% (male 25,577; female 23,850)
15-64 years: 64% (male 54,220; female 52,026) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 4,912; female 5,505) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts | fruits, copra, vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef |
Airports | 1 (2006) | 5 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
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: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island |
total: 549 sq km
land: 549 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | three times the size of Washington, DC |
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. | 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 | 19.31 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues: $340 million
expenditures: $445 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 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) |
Hagatna (Agana) |
Climate | tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year | 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 | 26 km | 125.5 km |
Constitution | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1955) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 | Organic Act of 1 August 1950 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
conventional long form: Territory of Guam
conventional short form: Guam local long form: Guahan |
Currency | - | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 4.35 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | - | NA (2003 est.) |
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 | 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. | 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 | - | 771.9 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | - | 830 million kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 m |
Environment - current issues | fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs | extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown tree snake, an exotic, invasive species |
Ethnic groups | Europeans, Cocos Malays | Chamorro 37%, Filipino 26%, white 10%, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and other 27% |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001) | 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 (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 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 NA 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 (2001) |
Exports - commodities | copra | mostly transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction materials, fish, food and beverage products |
Exports - partners | Australia (2004) | Japan 70.1%, South Korea 17.9%, Singapore 6% (2003) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | the flag of Australia is used | 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 | - | purchasing power parity - $3.2 billion (2000 est.) |
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 | 12 30 S, 96 50 E | 13 28 N, 144 47 E |
Geography - note | islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation | largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean |
Highways | - | total: 885 km
paved: 675 km unpaved: 210 km note: there are also 685 km of roads classified non-public, including roads located on federal government installations |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | $NA | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs | petroleum and petroleum products, food, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | Australia (2004) | Singapore 35.8%, Japan 22.2%, South Korea 17.5%, Hong Kong 11.4% (2003) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | none (territory of the US) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA |
Industries | copra products and tourism | US military, tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 7.15 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 0% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | none | Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU |
Irrigated land | NA | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme 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 | note: the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others | 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% (2005) |
arable land: 9.09%
permanent crops: 16.36% other: 74.55% (2001) |
Languages | Malay (Cocos dialect), English | English, Chamorro, Japanese |
Legal system | based upon the laws of Australia and local laws | modeled on US; US federal laws apply |
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) |
unicameral Legislature (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held 2 November 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Democratic Party 9, Republican Party 6 note: Guam elects one nonvoting delegate to the US House of Representatives; election last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held 2 November 2004); 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: 78.12 years
male: 75.08 years female: 81.34 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka | 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
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | - | none |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory has a five-person police force | defense is the responsibility of the US |
National holiday | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) | Discovery Day, first Monday in March (1521) |
Nationality | noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander |
noun: Guamanian(s)
adjective: Guamanian |
Natural hazards | cyclone season is October to April | frequent squalls during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (June - December) |
Natural resources | fish | fishing (largely undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan) |
Net migration rate | NA | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Democratic Party (controls the legislature) [speaker, Vicente (Ben) PANGELINAN]; Republican Party (party of Governor CAMACHO) [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 574 (July 2006 est.) | 166,090 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | 23% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0% (2006 est.) | 1.5% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Apra Harbor |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 4, FM 7, shortwave 2 (2003) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.) | Roman Catholic 85%, other 15% (1999 est.) |
Sex ratio | - | 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: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | NA | 18 years of age; universal; US citizens, but do not vote in US 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: 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 | 287 (1992) | 84,134 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | note - analog cellular service available | 32,600 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 5 (1997) |
Terrain | flat, low-lying coral atolls | 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 | 2.61 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 60% (2000 est.) | 15% (2000 est.) |