Guam (2001) | Australia (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US) | 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:
35.07% (male 28,978; female 26,270) 15-64 years: 58.78% (male 48,704; female 43,902) 65 years and over: 6.15% (male 4,871; female 4,832) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
20.64% (male 2,045,892; female 1,948,949) 15-64 years: 66.86% (male 6,538,096; female 6,405,014) 65 years and over: 12.5% (male 1,059,107; female 1,360,536) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, copra, vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef | wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry |
Airports | 5 (2000 est.) | 411 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
271 over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 118 914 to 1,523 m: 122 under 914 m: 9 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
140 1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 112 under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
549 sq km land: 549 sq km water: 0 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 | three times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than the contiguous 48 states of the US |
Background | 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. | Australia became a commonwealth of the British Empire in 1901. It was able to take advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef. A referendum to change Australia's status, from a commonwealth headed by the British monarch to an independent republic, was defeated in 1999. |
Birth rate | 25.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.86 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$605.3 million expenditures: $654.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000) |
revenues:
$94 billion expenditures: $103 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
Capital | Hagatna (Agana) | Canberra |
Climate | 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 | generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north |
Coastline | 125.5 km | 25,760 km |
Constitution | Organic Act of 1 August 1950 | 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Territory of Guam conventional short form: Guam |
conventional long form:
Commonwealth of Australia conventional short form: Australia |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 4.2 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.18 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $220.6 billion (2000) |
Dependency status | 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 the US) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Edward W. GNEHM, 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: Sydney consulate(s): Melbourne and Perth |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael THAWLEY chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 797-3000 FAX: [1] (202) 797-3168 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | none | territorial claim in Antarctica (Australian Antarctic Territory) |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.43 billion (FY97/98) |
Economic aid - recipient | 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 | - |
Economy - overview | 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 has 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. | Australia has a prosperous Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP at the level of the four dominant West European economies. Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, minerals, metals, and fossil fuels. Commodities account for 57% of the value of total exports, so that a downturn in world commodity prices can have a big impact on the economy. The government is pushing for increased exports of manufactured goods, but competition in international markets continues to be severe. While Australia has suffered from the low growth and high unemployment characterizing the OECD countries in the early 1990s and during the recent financial problems in East Asia, the economy has expanded at a solid 4% annual growth pace in the last five years. Canberra's emphasis on reforms is a key factor behind the economy's resilience to the regional crisis and its stronger than expected growth rate. Growth in 2001 will depend on key international commodity prices, the extent of recovery in nearby Asian economies, and the strength of US and European markets. |
Electricity - consumption | 744 million kWh (1999) | 178.306 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 800 million kWh (1999) | 191.727 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
89.93% hydro: 8.36% nuclear: 0% other: 1.71% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 m |
lowest point:
Lake Eyre -15 m highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m |
Environment - current issues | extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown tree snake, an exotic species | 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:
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, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Chamorro 47%, Filipino 25%, white 10%, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and other 18% | Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) |
Executive branch | 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 Carl GUTIERREZ (since 8 November 1994) and Lieutenant Governor Madeleine BORDALLO (since 8 November 1994) 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 terms; election last held 3 November 1998 (next to be held NA November 2002) election results: Carl GUTIERREZ reelected governor; percent of vote - Carl GUTIERREZ (Democrat) 53.2%, Joseph ADA (Republican) 46.8% |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Rev. Peter HOLLINGSWORTH (since 29 June 2001) head of government: Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March 1996); Deputy Prime Minister John ANDERSON (since NA) cabinet: Cabinet selected from among the members of Federal Parliament by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general for a three-year term note: government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party |
Exports | $75.7 million (f.o.b., 1999) | $69 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | mostly transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction materials, fish, food and beverage products | coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment |
Exports - partners | US 25% | Japan 19%, EU 14%, ASEAN 12%, US 9%, South Korea, NZ, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | 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 | 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; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four, larger, seven-pointed stars |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.2 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $445.8 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: 15% (1993) services: NA% |
agriculture:
3% industry: 26% services: 71% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $21,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $23,200 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 4.7% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 28 N, 144 47 E | 27 00 S, 133 00 E |
Geography - note | largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean | world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as "the Doctor" occurs along the west coast in the summer |
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 |
total:
913,000 km paved: 353,331 km (including 1,363 km of expressways) unpaved: 559,669 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
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 | $203 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | $77 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, food, manufactured goods | machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 23%, Japan 19% | EU 24%, US 22%, Japan 14%, ASEAN 13% (1999) |
Independence | none (territory of the US) | 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | US military, tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles | mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel |
Infant mortality rate | 6.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 4.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0% (1999 est.) | 1.4% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ESCAP (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, SPC | ANZUS, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMEE, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 20 (2000) | 264 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 21,070 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Federal District Court (judge is appointed by the president); Territorial Superior Court (judges appointed for eight-year terms by the governor) | High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general) |
Labor force | 60,000 (2000 est.) | 9.5 million (December 1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | federal and territorial government 26%, private 74% (trade 24%, other services 40%, industry 10%) (2000 est.) | services 73%, industry 22%, agriculture 5% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
11% permanent crops: 11% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 18% other: 45% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
6% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 54% forests and woodland: 19% other: 21% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English, Chamorro, Japanese | English, native languages |
Legal system | modeled on US; US federal laws apply | based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislature (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 8, Democratic Party 7 note: Guam elects one delegate to the US House of Representatives; election last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2002); results - Robert UNDERWOOD was reelected as delegate; percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Democratic Party 1 |
bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and two from each of the two territories; one-half of the members elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (148 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve three-year terms; no state can have fewer than five representatives)
elections: Senate - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by October 2001); House of Representatives - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by October 2001) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 35, Australian Labor Party 29, Australian Democratic Party 9, Green Party 1, One Nation Party 1, independent 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 80, Australian Labor Party 67, independent 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
77.94 years male: 75.66 years female: 80.55 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
79.87 years male: 77.02 years female: 82.87 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (1980 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines | Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean |
Map references | Oceania | Oceania |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total:
54 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,558,371 GRT/2,038,776 DWT ships by type: bulk 26, cargo 3, chemical tanker 5, container 1, liquefied gas 4, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 6 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $6.9 billion (FY98/99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.9% (FY98/99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
4,990,107 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
4,303,966 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 17 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
138,971 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Discovery Day, first Monday in March (1521) | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) |
Nationality | noun:
Guamanian(s) adjective: Guamanian |
noun:
Australian(s) adjective: Australian |
Natural hazards | frequent squalls during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (especially in August) | cyclones along the coast; severe droughts |
Natural resources | fishing (largely undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan) | bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 2,500 km; petroleum products 500 km; natural gas 5,600 km |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party (party of the Governor) [leader NA]; Republican Party (controls the legislature) [leader NA] | Australian Democratic Party [Meg LEES]; Australian Labor Party [Kim BEAZLEY]; Green Party [Bob BROWN]; Liberal Party [John Winston HOWARD]; National Party [John ANDERSON]; One Nation Party [Pauline HANSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Australian Democratic Labor Party (anti-Communist Labor Party splinter group); Peace and Nuclear Disarmament Action (Nuclear Disarmament Party splinter group) |
Population | 157,557 (July 2001 est.) | 19,357,594 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.09% (2001 est.) | 0.99% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Apra Harbor | Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Devonport (Tasmania), Fremantle, Geelong, Hobart (Tasmania), Launceston (Tasmania), Mackay, Melbourne, Sydney, Townsville |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 7, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 221,000 (1997) | 25.5 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
33,819 km (2,540 km electrified) broad gauge: 3,719 km 1.600-m gauge standard gauge: 15,422 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 14,506 km 1.067-m gauge dual gauge: 172 km NA gauges (1999) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, other 15% (1999 est.) | Anglican 26.1%, Roman Catholic 26%, other Christian 24.3%, non-Christian 11% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.14 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.11 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2001 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: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; US citizens, but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | 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: 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) |
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: submarine cables to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean), 2 Inmarsat (Indian and Pacific Ocean regions) (1998) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 84,134 (1998) | 9.58 million (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 55,000 (1998) | 6.4 million (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1997) | 104 (1997) |
Terrain | 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-rising hills in center, mountains in south | mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 3.85 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.77 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (2000 est.) | 6.4% (2000) |
Waterways | none | 8,368 km (mainly used by small, shallow-draft craft) |