Macau (2002) | Liechtenstein (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (special administrative region of China) | 11 communes (gemeinden, singular - gemeinde); Balzers, Eschen, Gamprin, Mauren, Planken, Ruggell, Schaan, Schellenberg, Triesen, Triesenberg, Vaduz |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.8% (male 52,262; female 48,439)
15-64 years: 70.9% (male 154,942; female 172,647) 65 years and over: 7.3% (male 13,616; female 19,927) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
18.41% (male 2,992; female 2,996) 15-64 years: 70.6% (male 11,455; female 11,511) 65 years and over: 10.99% (male 1,439; female 2,135) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, vegetables | wheat, barley, corn, potatoes; livestock, dairy products |
Airports | 1 (2001) | none |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 25.4 sq km
land: 25.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
160 sq km land: 160 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999. China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs. | The Principality of Liechtenstein was established within the Holy Roman Empire in 1719; it became a sovereign state in 1806. Until the end of World War I, it was closely tied to Austria, but the economic devastation caused by that conflict forced Liechtenstein to conclude a customs and monetary union with Switzerland. Since World War II (in which Liechtenstein remained neutral) the country's low taxes have spurred outstanding economic growth. However, shortcomings in banking regulatory oversight have resulted in concerns about the use of the financial institutions for money laundering. |
Birth rate | 12.19 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 11.53 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.15 billion
expenditures: $1.03 billion, including capital expenditures of $166 million (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$424.2 million expenditures: $414.1 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | - | Vaduz |
Climate | subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers | continental; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow or rain; cool to moderately warm, cloudy, humid summers |
Coastline | 41 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | Basic Law, approved in March 1993 by China's National People's Congress, is Macau's "mini-constitution" | 5 October 1921 |
Country name | conventional long form: Macau Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Macau local long form: Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese); Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese) local short form: Aomen (Chinese); Macau (Portuguese) |
conventional long form:
Principality of Liechtenstein conventional short form: Liechtenstein local long form: Fuerstentum Liechtenstein local short form: Liechtenstein |
Currency | pataca (MOP) | Swiss franc (CHF) |
Death rate | 3.78 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.5 billion (1998) | $0 (1996) |
Dependency status | special administrative region of China | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US has no offices in Macau, and US interests are monitored by the US Consulate General in Hong Kong | the US does not have an embassy in Liechtenstein, but the US Ambassador to Switzerland is also accredited to Liechtenstein |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (special administrative region of China) | Liechtenstein's Ambassador to the US, Claudia FRITSCHE, is dually accredited to the UN in New York |
Disputes - international | none | Liechtenstein's royal family claims restitution for 1,600 sq km of land in the Czech Republic confiscated in 1918 |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | none |
Economy - overview | Macau's economy two years after reversion to China remains one of the most open in the world, according to the World Trade Organization. The government collects no duty on imports and sets no restrictions on exports beyond those required by international agreements. The territory's net exports of goods and services account for 35% of GDP, with tourism and apparel exports as the mainstays. The territory therefore has been hit hard by the 2001 downturn in its key US and EU export markets. Tourism remained strong, however, driven by a surge in visitors from mainland China. In response to the expected contraction of the economy in 2002, the government has announced a stimulative income tax cut and public works program that will push the budget into deficit. China already has extended support by easing restrictions on travel to Macau and is proposing a China-Hong Kong-Macau free trade area. China's economic weight is increasingly felt, with the mainland now holding more than 50% of assets in the financial, real estate, and construction sectors. Mainlanders, however, have been excluded from bidding on the gambling industry licenses that Macau is offering to break up the territory's four-decade-old gambling monopoly. Gambling taxes account for up to 60% of revenue, and the government with Beijing's backing intends to revitalize the industry. | Despite its small size and limited natural resources, Liechtenstein has developed into a prosperous, highly industrialized, free-enterprise economy with a vital financial service sector and living standards on a par with the urban areas of its large European neighbors. Low business taxes - the maximum tax rate is 18% - and easy incorporation rules have induced 73,700 holding or so-called letter box companies to establish nominal offices in Liechtenstein, providing 30% of state revenues. The country participates in a customs union with Switzerland and uses the Swiss franc as its national currency. It imports more than 90% of its energy requirements. Liechtenstein has been a member of the European Economic Area (an organization serving as a bridge between European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and EU) since May 1995. The government is working to harmonize its economic policies with those of an integrated Europe. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.476 billion kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 1 million kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - imports | 175 million kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | 1.4 billion kWh (2000) | - |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Coloane Alto 172.4 m |
lowest point:
Ruggeller Riet 430 m highest point: Grauspitz 2,599 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Chinese 95%, Macanese (mixed Portuguese and Asian ancestry), Portuguese, other | Alemannic 87.5%, Italian, Turkish, and other 12.5% |
Exchange rates | patacas per US dollar - 8.033 (January 2002), 8.034 (2001), 8.026 (2000), 7.992 (1999), 7.979 (1998), 7.975 (1997); note - linked to the Hong Kong dollar at the rate of 1.03 patacas per Hong Kong dollar | Swiss francs per US dollar - 1.6303 (January 2001), 1.6888 (2000), 1.5022 (1999), 1.4498 (1998), 1.4513 (1997), 1.2360 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President of China JIANG Zemin (since 27 March 1993)
head of government: Chief Executive Edmund HO Hau-wah (since 20 December 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of all five government secretaries, three legislators, and two businessmen elections: chief executive chosen by a 200-member selection committee for up to two five-year terms |
chief of state:
Prince HANS ADAM II (since 13 November 1989, assumed executive powers 26 August 1984); Heir Apparent Prince ALOIS, son of the monarch (born 11 June 1968) head of government: Head of Government Mario FRICK (since 15 December 1993) and Deputy Head of Government Michael RITTER (since 2 February 1997) cabinet: Cabinet elected by the Diet; confirmed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party in the Diet is usually appointed the head of government by the monarch and the leader of the largest minority party in the Diet is usually appointed the deputy head of government by the monarch |
Exports | $2.5 billion f.o.b. (2000) | $2.47 billion (1996) |
Exports - commodities | clothing, textiles, cement, electronics, cameras | small specialty machinery, dental products, stamps, hardware, pottery |
Exports - partners | US 48%, EU 28%, China 10%, Hong Kong 7% (2000) | EU and EFTA countries 60.57% (Switzerland 15.7%) (1995) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller | two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a gold crown on the hoist side of the blue band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $8 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $730 million (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 25% services: 74% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,600 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $23,000 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.5% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 22 10 N, 113 33 E | 47 10 N, 9 32 E |
Geography - note | essentially urban; one causeway and two bridges connect the two islands of Coloane and Taipa to the peninsula on mainland | along with Uzbekistan, one of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world; variety of microclimatic variations based on elevation |
Highways | total: 50 km
paved: 50 km unpaved: 0 km (2001) |
total:
250 km paved: 250 km unpaved: 0 km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | multilateral organizations engaged in issuing international guidelines for financial sector oversight have found gaps in Liechtenstein's financial services controls that make it vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | $2.3 billion c.i.f. (2000) | $917.3 million (1996) |
Imports - commodities | clothing, textiles, yarn, minerals, electrical machinery, fuel, livestock | machinery, metal goods, textiles, foodstuffs, motor vehicles |
Imports - partners | China 41%, Hong Kong 15%, EU 10%, Taiwan 10%, Japan 6% (2000) | EU countries, Switzerland (1996) |
Independence | none (special administrative region of China) | 23 January 1719 Imperial Principality of Liechtenstein established; 12 July 1806 established independence from the Holy Roman Empire |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys | electronics, metal manufacturing, textiles, ceramics, pharmaceuticals, food products, precision instruments, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 4.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 4.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -2% (2001 est.) | 0.5% (1997 est.) |
International organization participation | CCC, ESCAP (associate), IHO, IMO (associate), Interpol (subbureau), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), WMO, WToO (associate), WTrO | CE, EBRD, ECE, EFTA, IAEA, ICRM, IFRCS, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO (observer), WIPO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 44 (Liechtenstein and Switzerland) (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | The Court of Final Appeal in the Macau Special Administrative Region | Supreme Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Superior Court or Obergericht |
Labor force | 218,000 (2001) | 22,891 of which 13,847 are foreigners; 8,231 commute from Austria and Switzerland to work each day |
Labor force - by occupation | restaurants and hotels 26%, manufacturing 20%, other services and agriculture 54% (2000 est.) | industry, trade, and building 45%, services 53%, agriculture, fishing, forestry, and horticulture 2% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 0.34 km
border countries: China 0.34 km |
total:
76 km border countries: Austria 35 km, Switzerland 41 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% note: "green areas" represent 22.4% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
24% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 16% forests and woodland: 35% other: 25% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Portuguese, Chinese (Cantonese) | German (official), Alemannic dialect |
Legal system | based on Portuguese civil law system | local civil and penal codes; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (27 seats; 10 elected by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and 7 appointed by the chief executive; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 23 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by political bloc - Entertainment Industry 3, pro-democracy 2, pro-Beijing Labor Union 2, pro-Beijing Neighborhood Association 2, pro-business 1 |
unicameral Diet or Landtag (25 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote under proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 9-11 February 2001 (next to be held by NA 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - FBP 49.90%, VU 41.35%, FL 8.71%; seats by party - FBP 13, VU 11, FL 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 81.78 years
male: 78.97 years female: 84.73 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
78.95 years male: 75.32 years female: 82.6 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90% male: 93% female: 86% (1981 est.) |
definition:
age 10 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (1981 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China | Central Europe, between Austria and Switzerland |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Europe |
Maritime claims | not specified | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
Military - note | responsibility for defense reverted to China on 20 December 1999 | defense is the responsibility of Switzerland |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; responsibility for defense reverted to China on 20 December 1999; there is a local police force | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 128,005 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 70,508 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December 1999 is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day | Assumption Day, 15 August |
Nationality | noun: Chinese
adjective: Chinese |
noun:
Liechtensteiner(s) adjective: Liechtenstein |
Natural hazards | typhoons | NA |
Natural resources | NEGL | hydroelectric potential, arable land |
Net migration rate | 9.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 4.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | there are no formal political parties, however, there are civic associations that, for purposes of legislative voting, join together to form political blocs | Fatherland Union or VU [Dr. Oswald KRANZ]; Progressive Citizens' Party or FBP [Dr. Ernst WALCH]; The Free List or FL [Dr. Pepo FRICK, Karin JENNY, Rene HASLER] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Catholic Church [Domingos LAM, bishop]; Macau Society of Tourism and Entertainment or STDM [Stanley HO, managing director]; Union for Democracy Development [Antonio NG Kuok-cheong, leader] | NA |
Population | 461,833 (July 2002 est.) | 32,528 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.75% (2002 est.) | 0.98% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Macau | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 160,000 (1997) | 21,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
18.5 km; note - owned, operated, and included in statistics of Austrian Federal Railways standard gauge: 18.5 km 1.435-m gauge (electrified) |
Religions | Buddhist 50%, Roman Catholic 15%, none and other 35% (1997 est.) | Roman Catholic 80%, Protestant 7.4%, unknown 7.7%, other 4.9% (1996) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.01 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | direct election 18 years of age, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" (257 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies | 20 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services
domestic: NA international: HF radiotelephone communication facility; access to international communications carriers provided via Hong Kong and China; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment:
automatic telephone system domestic: NA international: linked to Swiss networks by cable and microwave radio relay |
Telephones - main lines in use | 176,902 (November 2001) | 20,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 158,251 (November 2001) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (receives Hong Kong broadcasts) (1997) | NA (linked to Swiss networks) (1997) |
Terrain | generally flat | mostly mountainous (Alps) with Rhine Valley in western third |
Total fertility rate | 1.31 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.5 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.5% (2001 est.) | 1.8% (February 1999) |
Waterways | none | none |