Compare Finland (2006) - Australia (2006)

Compare Finland (2006) z Australia (2006)

	Finland (2006)	Australia (2006)

Administrative divisions	6 provinces (laanit, singular - laani); Aland, Etela-Suomen Laani, Ita-Suomen Laani, Lansi-Suomen Laani, Lappi, Oulun Laani	6 states and 2 territories; Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia*
Age structure	0-14 years: 17.1% (male 455,420/female 438,719) 15-64 years: 66.7% (male 1,766,674/female 1,724,858) 65 years and over: 16.2% (male 337,257/female 508,444) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 19.6% (male 2,031,313/female 1,936,802) 15-64 years: 67.3% (male 6,881,863/female 6,764,709) 65 years and over: 13.1% (male 1,170,589/female 1,478,806) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	barley, wheat, sugar beets, potatoes; dairy cattle; fish	wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits, cattle, sheep, poultry
Airports	148 (2006)	455 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 76 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 27 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 14 (2006)	total: 311 over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 133 914 to 1,523 m: 143 under 914 m: 13 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 72 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 67 (2006)	total: 144 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 111 under 914 m: 15 (2006)
Area	total: 338,145 sq km land: 304,473 sq km water: 33,672 sq km	total: 7,686,850 sq km land: 7,617,930 sq km water: 68,920 sq km note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Montana	slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states
Background	Finland was a province and then a grand duchy under Sweden from the 12th to the 19th centuries and an autonomous grand duchy of Russia after 1809. It won its complete independence in 1917. During World War II, it was able to successfully defend its freedom and resist invasions by the Soviet Union - albeit with some loss of territory. In the subsequent half century, the Finns made a remarkable transformation from a farm/forest economy to a diversified modern industrial economy; per capita income is now on par with Western Europe. As a member of the European Union, Finland was the only Nordic state to join the euro system at its initiation in January 1999.	Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession in the name of Great Britain. Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. In recent decades, Australia has transformed itself into an internationally competitive, advanced market economy. It boasted one of the OECD's fastest growing economies during the 1990s, a performance due in large part to economic reforms adopted in the 1980s. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef.
Birth rate	10.45 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	12.14 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $99.61 billion expenditures: $97.14 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)	revenues: $249.8 billion expenditures: $240.2 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
Capital	name: Helsinki geographic coordinates: 60 10 N, 24 58 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October	name: Canberra geographic coordinates: 35 17 S, 149 08 E time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in October; ends last Sunday in March (ended first Sunday in April 2006) note: Australia is divided into three time zones
Climate	cold temperate; potentially subarctic but comparatively mild because of moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current, Baltic Sea, and more than 60,000 lakes	generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
Coastline	1,250 km	25,760 km
Constitution	1 March 2000	9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Finland conventional short form: Finland local long form: Suomen tasavalta/Republiken Finland local short form: Suomi/Finland	conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia conventional short form: Australia
Death rate	9.86 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	7.51 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$211.7 billion (30 June 2005)	$323.4 billion (2005 est.)
Dependent areas	-	Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island, Macquarie Island
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Marilyn WARE embassy: Itainen Puistotie 14B, 00140 Helsinki mailing address: APO AE 09723 telephone: [358] (9) 616250 FAX: [358] (9) 6162 5800	chief of mission: Ambassador Robert D. McCALLUM, Jr. embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600 mailing address: APO AP 96549 telephone: [61] (02) 6214-5600 FAX: [61] (02) 6214-5970 consulate(s) general: Melbourne, Perth, Sydney
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Pekka LINTU chancery: 3301 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 298-5800 FAX: [1] (202) 298-6030 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York	chief of mission: Ambassador Dennis J. RICHARDSON chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 797-3000 FAX: [1] (202) 797-3168 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco
Disputes - international	various groups in Finland advocate restoration of Karelia and other areas ceded to the Soviet Union, but the Finnish Government asserts no territorial demands	East Timor and Australia agreed in 2005 to defer the disputed portion of the boundary for fifty years and to split hydrocarbon revenues evenly outside the Joint Petroleum Development Area covered by the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty; East Timor dispute hampers creation of a revised maritime boundary with Indonesia (see also Ashmore and Cartier Islands dispute); regional states express concern over Australia's 2004 declaration of a 1,000-nautical mile-wide maritime identification zone; Australia asserts land and maritime claims to Antarctica (see Antarctica); in 2004 Australia submitted its claims to UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) to extend its continental margin from both its mainland and Antarctic claims
Economic aid - donor	ODA, $379 million (2001)	ODA, $894 million (FY99/00)
Economy - overview	Finland has a highly industrialized, largely free-market economy with per capita output roughly that of the UK, France, Germany, and Italy. Its key economic sector is manufacturing - principally the wood, metals, engineering, telecommunications, and electronics industries. Trade is important; exports equal two-fifths of GDP. Finland excels in high-tech exports, e.g., mobile phones. Except for timber and several minerals, Finland depends on imports of raw materials, energy, and some components for manufactured goods. Because of the climate, agricultural development is limited to maintaining self-sufficiency in basic products. Forestry, an important export earner, provides a secondary occupation for the rural population. Rapidly increasing integration with Western Europe - Finland was one of the 12 countries joining the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) - will dominate the economic picture over the next several years. High unemployment remains a persistent problem.	Australia has an enviable Western-style capitalist economy with a per capita GDP on par with the four dominant West European economies. Rising output in the domestic economy, robust business and consumer confidence, and rising exports of raw materials and agricultural products are fueling the economy. Australia's emphasis on reforms, low inflation, and growing ties with China are other key factors behind the economy's strength. The impact of drought, weak foreign demand, and strong import demand pushed the trade deficit up from $8 billion in 2002, to $18 billion in 2003, $13 billion in 2004, and nearly $17 billion in 2005. Housing prices probably peaked in 2005, diminishing the prospect that interest rates would be raised to prevent a speculative bubble. Conservative fiscal policies have kept Australia's budget in surplus from 2002 to 2005.
Electricity - consumption	78.94 billion kWh (2003)	221 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports	7 billion kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	11.9 billion kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	79.61 billion kWh (2003)	237 billion kWh (2004)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Haltiatunturi 1,328 m	lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
Environment - current issues	air pollution from manufacturing and power plants contributing to acid rain; water pollution from industrial wastes, agricultural chemicals; habitat loss threatens wildlife populations	soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources
Environment - international agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Ethnic groups	Finn 93.4%, Swede 5.7%, Russian 0.4%, Estonian 0.2%, Roma 0.2%, Sami 0.1%	Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1%
Exchange rates	euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)	Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Tarja HALONEN (since 1 March 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Matti VANHANEN (since 24 June 2003) and Deputy Prime Minister Eero HEINALUOMA (since 24 September 2005) cabinet: Council of State or Valtioneuvosto appointed by the president, responsible to parliament elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 15 January 2006 (next to be held January 2012); the president appoints the prime minister and deputy prime minister from the majority party or the majority coalition after parliamentary elections and the parliament must approve the appointment election results: percent of vote - Tarja HALONEN (SDP) 46.3%, Sauli NIINISTO (Kok) 24.1%, Matti Vanhanen (Kesk) 18.6%, Heidi HAUTALA (VIHR) 3.5%; a runoff election between HALONEN and NIINISTO was held 29 January 2006 - HOLONEN 51.8%, NIINISTO 48.2% note: government coalition - Kesk, SDP, and SFP	chief of state: Queen of Australia ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Michael JEFFERY (since 11 August 2003) head of government: Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March 1996); Deputy Prime Minister Mark VAILE (since 6 July 2005) cabinet: prime minister nominates, from among members of Parliament, candidates who are subsequently sworn in by the governor general to serve as government ministers elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is sworn in as prime minister by the governor general note: government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party
Exports	101,000 bbl/day (2001)	523,400 bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals; timber, paper, pulp (1999)	coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment
Exports - partners	Russia 11.2%, Sweden 10.7%, Germany 10.5%, UK 6.6%, US 6.2%, Netherlands 4.8% (2005)	Japan 20.3%, China 11.5%, South Korea 7.9%, US 6.7%, NZ 6.5%, India 5% (2005)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 July - 30 June
Flag description	white with a blue cross extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)	blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth or Federation Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; on the fly half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 2.8% industry: 29.5% services: 67.6% (2005 est.)	agriculture: 3.8% industry: 26.2% services: 70% (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3% (2005 est.)	2.7% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	64 00 N, 26 00 E	27 00 S, 133 00 E
Geography - note	long boundary with Russia; Helsinki is northernmost national capital on European continent; population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain	world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; the invigorating tropical sea breeze known as the "Fremantle Doctor" affects the city of Perth on the west coast, and is one of the most consistent winds in the world
Heliports	-	1 (2006)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 4.2% highest 10%: 21.6% (1991)	lowest 10%: 2% highest 10%: 25.4% (1994)
Illicit drugs	-	Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate
Imports	318,300 bbl/day (2001)	530,800 bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities	foodstuffs, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, transport equipment, iron and steel, machinery, textile yarn and fabrics, grains	machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products
Imports - partners	Germany 16.2%, Sweden 14.1%, Russia 13.9%, Netherlands 6.2%, Denmark 4.6%, UK 4.3%, China 4.2% (2005)	US 13.9%, China 13.7%, Japan 11%, Singapore 5.6%, Germany 5.6% (2005)
Independence	6 December 1917 (from Russia)	1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies)
Industrial production growth rate	-2% (2005 est.)	1.1% (2005 est.)
Industries	metals and metal products, electronics, machinery and scientific instruments, shipbuilding, pulp and paper, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, clothing	mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel
Infant mortality rate	total: 3.55 deaths/1,000 live births male: 3.86 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 4.63 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	0.9% (2005 est.)	2.7% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	AfDB, Arctic Council, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC	ANZUS, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, Paris Club, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMIS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	640 sq km (2003)	25,450 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Korkein Oikeus (judges appointed by the president)	High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general)
Labor force	2.61 million (2005 est.)	10.42 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture and forestry 8%, industry 22%, construction 6%, commerce 14%, finance, insurance, and business services 10%, transport and communications 8%, public services 32%	agriculture: 3.6% industry: 21.2% services: 75.2% (2004 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 2,681 km border countries: Norway 727 km, Sweden 614 km, Russia 1,340 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 6.54% permanent crops: 0.02% other: 93.44% (2005)	arable land: 6.15% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland) permanent crops: 0.04% other: 93.81% (2005)
Languages	Finnish 92% (official), Swedish 5.6% (official), other 2.4% (small Sami- and Russian-speaking minorities) (2003)	English 79.1%, Chinese 2.1%, Italian 1.9%, other 11.1%, unspecified 5.8% (2001 Census)
Legal system	civil law system based on Swedish law; the president may request the Supreme Court to review laws; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations	based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch	unicameral Parliament or Eduskunta (200 seats; members are elected by popular vote on a proportional basis to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 16 March 2003 (next to be held March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - Kesk 24.7%, SDP 24.5%, Kok 18.5%, VAS 9.9%, VIHR 8%, KD 5.3%, SFP 4.6%; seats by party - Kesk 55, SDP 53, Kok 40, VAS 19, VIHR 14, KD 7, SFP 8, other 4	bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and 2 from each of the two mainland territories; one-half of state members are elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms while all territory members are elected every three years) and the House of Representatives (150 seats; members elected by popular preferential voting to serve terms of up to three-years; no state can have fewer than 5 representatives) elections: Senate - last held 9 October 2004 (next to be held no later than June 2008); House of Representatives - last held 9 October 2004 (next to be called no later than November 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 39, Australian Labor Party 28, Democrats 4, Australian Greens 4, Family First Party 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 87, Australian Labor Party 60, independents 3
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 78.5 years male: 74.99 years female: 82.17 years (2006 est.)	total population: 80.5 years male: 77.64 years female: 83.52 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2000 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.)
Location	Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Sweden and Russia	Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean
Map references	Europe	Oceania
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm (in the Gulf of Finland - 3 nm) continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm; extends to continental shelf boundary with Sweden	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	total: 87 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,250,600 GRT/952,072 DWT by type: bulk carrier 4, cargo 22, chemical tanker 6, container 1, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 20, petroleum tanker 4, roll on/roll off 25 foreign-owned: 3 (Norway 1, Russia 1, UK 1) registered in other countries: 48 (Bahamas 8, Germany 2, Gibraltar 3, Luxembourg 4, Marshall Islands 2, Netherlands 13, Norway 4, Sweden 11, UK 1) (2006)	total: 53 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,361,000 GRT/1,532,874 DWT by type: bulk carrier 17, cargo 4, chemical tanker 3, container 1, liquefied gas 4, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 7, petroleum tanker 6, roll on/roll off 5 foreign-owned: 17 (Canada 1, France 3, Germany 3, Japan 1, Netherlands 2, Norway 1, Philippines 1, UK 2, US 3) registered in other countries: 34 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Bahamas 2, Bermuda 3, Fiji 1, Hong Kong 1, Liberia 2, Marshall Islands 2, Netherlands 1, NZ 2, Panama 3, Portugal 1, Singapore 7, Tonga 1, UK 3, US 2, Vanuatu 2) (2006)
Military branches	Finnish Defense Forces: Army, Navy (includes coastal defense forces), Air Force (2003)	Australian Defense Force (ADF): Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, Special Operations Command
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$1.8 billion (FY98/99)	$17.84 billion (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2% (FY98/99)	2.7% (2005 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 6 December (1917)	Australia Day, 26 January (1788)
Nationality	noun: Finn(s) adjective: Finnish	noun: Australian(s) adjective: Australian
Natural hazards	NA	cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires
Natural resources	timber, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, nickel, gold, silver, limestone	bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum
Net migration rate	0.84 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	3.85 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines	gas 694 km (2006)	condensate/gas 546 km; gas 31,323 km; liquid petroleum gas 240 km; oil 4,808 km; oil/gas/water 110 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Center Party or Kesk [Matti VANHANEN]; Christian Democrats or KD [Paivi RASANEN]; Green League or VIHR [Tarja CRONBERG]; Left Alliance or VAS composed of People's Democratic League and Democratic Alternative [Martti KORHONEN]; National Coalition (conservative) Party or Kok [Jyrki KATAINEN]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Eero HEINALUOMA]; Swedish People's Party or SFP [Stefan WALLIN]	Australian Democrats [Lyn ALLISON]; Australian Greens [Bob BROWN]; Australian Labor Party [Kevin RUDD]; Country Liberal Party [Jodeen CARNEY]; Family First Party [Steve FIELDING]; Liberal Party [John Winston HOWARD]; The Nationals [Mark VAILE]
Population	5,231,372 (July 2006 est.)	20,264,082 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	NA%
Population growth rate	0.14% (2006 est.)	0.85% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 2, FM 186, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998)
Railways	total: 5,741 km broad gauge: 5,741 km 1.524-m gauge (2,619 km electrified) (2005)	total: 47,738 km broad gauge: 4,015 km 1.600-m gauge standard gauge: 28,662 km 1.435-m gauge (1,397 km electrified) narrow gauge: 14,831 km 1.067-m gauge (2,462 km electrified) dual gauge: 230 km dual gauge (2005)
Religions	Lutheran National Church 84.2%, Greek Orthodox in Finland 1.1%, other Christian 1.1%, other 0.1%, none 13.5% (2003)	Catholic 26.4%, Anglican 20.5%, other Christian 20.5%, Buddhist 1.9%, Muslim 1.5%, other 1.2%, unspecified 12.7%, none 15.3% (2001 Census)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	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: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Telephone system	general assessment: modern system with excellent service domestic: digital fiber-optic fixed-line network and an extensive cellular network provide domestic needs international: country code - 358; 1 submarine cable (Finland Estonia Connection); satellite earth stations - access to Intelsat transmission service via a Swedish satellite earth station, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Finland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden)	general assessment: excellent domestic and international service domestic: domestic satellite system; much use of radiotelephone in areas of low population density; rapid growth of mobile cellular telephones international: country code - 61; submarine cables to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia; satellite earth stations - 19 (10 Intelsat - 4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean, 2 Inmarsat - Indian and Pacific Ocean regions, 2 Globalstar, 5 other) (2005)
Telephones - main lines in use	2.12 million (2005)	11.46 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	5.231 million (2005)	18.42 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	120 (plus 431 repeaters) (1999)	104 (1997)
Terrain	mostly low, flat to rolling plains interspersed with lakes and low hills	mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast
Total fertility rate	1.73 children born/woman (2006 est.)	1.76 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	8.4% (2005 est.)	5.1% (2005 est.)
Waterways	7,842 km note: includes Saimaa Canal system of 3,577 km; southern part leased from Russia (2005)	2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2002)

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