Compare Maldives (2007) - Australia (2007)

Compare Maldives (2007) z Australia (2007)

	Maldives (2007)	Australia (2007)

Administrative divisions	19 atolls (atholhu, singular and plural) and the capital city; Alifu, Baa, Dhaalu, Faafu, Gaafu Alifu, Gaafu Dhaalu, Gnaviyani, Haa Alifu, Haa Dhaalu, Kaafu, Laamu, Lhaviyani, Maale (Male), Meemu, Noonu, Raa, Seenu, Shaviyani, Thaa, Vaavu	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: 42.9% (male 81,383/female 76,984) 15-64 years: 54% (male 101,699/female 97,518) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 5,619/female 5,828) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 19.3% (male 2,023,375/female 1,929,229) 15-64 years: 67.4% (male 6,945,068/female 6,831,653) 65 years and over: 13.2% (male 1,197,494/female 1,507,357) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	coconuts, corn, sweet potatoes; fish	wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits, cattle, sheep, poultry
Airports	5 (2007)	461 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)	total: 317 over 3,047 m: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 138 914 to 1,523 m: 143 under 914 m: 13 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007)	total: 144 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 109 under 914 m: 16 (2007)
Area	total: 300 sq km land: 300 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	about 1.7 times the size of Washington, DC	slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states
Background	The Maldives was long a sultanate, first under Dutch and then under British protection. It became a republic in 1968, three years after independence. Since 1978, President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM - currently in his sixth term in office - has dominated the islands' political scene. Following riots in the capital Male in August 2004, the president and his government pledged to embark upon democratic reforms, including a more representative political system and expanded political freedoms. Progress has been slow, however, and many promised reforms have been delayed indefinitely. Tourism and fishing are being developed on the archipelago.	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	34.2 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	12.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $508 million (including foreign grants) expenditures: $671 million (2006 est.)	revenues: $268.2 billion expenditures: $257.3 billion (2006 est.)
Capital	name: Male geographic coordinates: 4 10 N, 73 30 E time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: Canberra geographic coordinates: 35 17 S, 149 13 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 note: Australia is divided into three time zones
Climate	tropical; hot, humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November to March); rainy, southwest monsoon (June to August)	generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
Coastline	644 km	25,760 km
Constitution	adopted 1 January 1998	9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Maldives conventional short form: Maldives local long form: Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa local short form: Dhivehi Raajje	conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia conventional short form: Australia
Death rate	6.88 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	7.56 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$482 million (2006 est.)	$628.1 billion (2006 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	the US does not have an embassy in Maldives; the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka is accredited to Maldives and makes periodic visits there	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 Mohamed LATHEEF chancery: 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400E, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 599-6195 FAX: [1] (212) 661-6405	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	none	Timor-Leste 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 in the Timor Sea; Indonesian groups challenge Australia's claim to Ashmore and Cartier Islands; Australia closed parts of the Ashmore and Cartier Reserve to Indonesian traditional fishing and placed restrictions on certain catch; regional states continue to 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 margins covering over 3.37 million square kilometers or roughly thirty percent of its claimed exclusive economic zone; since 2003, Australian Defense Force leads the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) to maintain civil and political order and reinforce regional security
Economic aid - donor	-	ODA, $894 million (FY99/00)
Economic aid - recipient	$66.83 million (2005)	-
Economy - overview	Tourism, Maldives' largest industry, accounts for 28% of GDP and more than 60% of the Maldives' foreign exchange receipts. Over 90% of government tax revenue comes from import duties and tourism-related taxes. Fishing is the second leading sector. Agriculture and manufacturing continue to play a lesser role in the economy, constrained by the limited availability of cultivable land and the shortage of domestic labor. Most staple foods must be imported. Industry, which consists mainly of garment production, boat building, and handicrafts, accounts for about 7% of GDP. The Maldivian Government began an economic reform program in 1989 initially by lifting import quotas and opening some exports to the private sector. Subsequently, it has liberalized regulations to allow more foreign investment. Real GDP growth averaged over 7.5% per year for more than a decade. In late December 2004, a major tsunami left more than 100 dead, 12,000 displaced, and property damage exceeding $300 million. As a result of the tsunami, the GDP contracted by about 3.6% in 2005. A rebound in tourism, post-tsunami reconstruction, and development of new resorts helped boost GDP by about 18 percent in 2006. The trade deficit has expanded sharply as a result of high oil prices and imports of construction material. Diversifying beyond tourism and fishing is the major challenge facing the government. Over the longer term Maldivian authorities worry about the impact of erosion and possible global warming on their low-lying country; 80% of the area is one meter or less above sea level.	Australia has an enviable Western-style capitalist economy with a per capita GDP on par with the four dominant West European economies. Robust business and consumer confidence and high export prices for 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. Drought and strong import demand pushed the trade deficit up in recent years, although the trade balance improved in 2006. 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 since 2002.
Electricity - consumption	157.1 million kWh (2005)	219.8 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	169 million kWh (2005)	236.7 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Wilingili island in the Addu Atoll 2.4 m	lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
Environment - current issues	depletion of freshwater aquifers threatens water supplies; global warming and sea level rise; coral reef bleaching	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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution 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	South Indians, Sinhalese, Arabs	white 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1%
Exchange rates	rufiyaa per US dollar - 12.8 (2006), 12.8 (2005), 12.8 (2004), 12.8 (2003), 12.8 (2002)	Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM (since 11 November 1978); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM (since 11 November 1978) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president nominated by the Majlis; nomination must be ratified by a national referendum (at least a 51% approval margin is required); president elected for a five-year term; election last held 17 October 2003 (next to be held in 2008) election results: President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM reelected in referendum held 17 October 2003; percent of popular vote - Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM 90.3%	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 Kevin RUDD (since 3 December 2007); Deputy Prime Minister Julia GILLARD (since 3 December 2007) 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
Exports	NA bbl/day	333,200 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	fish	coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment
Exports - partners	Thailand 33.1%, UK 14.3%, Sri Lanka 11.9%, Japan 10.3%, France 6.9%, Algeria 6.1% (2006)	Japan 19.6%, China 12.3%, South Korea 7.5%, US 6.2%, India 5.5%, NZ 5.5%, UK 5% (2006)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 July - 30 June
Flag description	red with a large green rectangle in the center bearing a vertical white crescent; the closed side of the crescent is on the hoist side of the 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: 16% industry: 7% services: 77% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 3.7% industry: 26.2% services: 70.1% (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	18% (2006 est.)	2.7% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	3 15 N, 73 00 E	27 00 S, 133 00 E
Geography - note	1,190 coral islands grouped into 26 atolls (200 inhabited islands, plus 80 islands with tourist resorts); archipelago with strategic location astride and along major sea lanes in Indian Ocean	world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; the invigorating 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 (2007)
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; major consumer of cocaine and amphetamines
Imports	NA bbl/day	611,400 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	petroleum products, ships, foodstuffs, clothing, intermediate and capital goods	machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products
Imports - partners	Singapore 23.2%, UAE 15.8%, India 11.1%, Malaysia 7.9%, Thailand 6.9%, Sri Lanka 5.7% (2006)	China 14.4%, US 14.1%, Japan 9.6%, Singapore 6%, Germany 5.1% (2006)
Independence	26 July 1965 (from UK)	1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies)
Industrial production growth rate	-0.9% (2004 est.)	-3.5% (2006 est.)
Industries	tourism, fish processing, shipping, boat building, coconut processing, garments, woven mats, rope, handicrafts, coral and sand mining	mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel
Infant mortality rate	total: 53.25 deaths/1,000 live births male: 52.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 54.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 4.57 deaths/1,000 live births male: 4.95 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6% (2005 est.)	3.5% (2006 est.)
International organization participation	AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	ANZUS, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, Paris Club, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMIS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	NA	25,450 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	High Court	High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general)
Labor force	101,300 (2004)	10.74 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 22% industry: 18% services: 60% (1995)	agriculture: 3.6% industry: 21.2% services: 75.2% (2004 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 13.33% permanent crops: 30% other: 56.67% (2005)	arable land: 6.15% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland) permanent crops: 0.04% other: 93.81% (2005)
Languages	Maldivian Dhivehi (dialect of Sinhala, script derived from Arabic), English spoken by most government officials	English 79.1%, Chinese 2.1%, Italian 1.9%, other 11.1%, unspecified 5.8% (2001 Census)
Legal system	based on Islamic law with admixtures of English common law primarily in commercial matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch	unicameral People's Council or Majlis (50 seats; 42 members elected by popular vote, 8 appointed by the president; to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 22 January 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 50	bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats; 12 members 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 vote to serve terms of up to three-years; no state can have fewer than 5 representatives) elections: Senate - last held 24 November 2007 (next to be held no later than 2010); House of Representatives - last held 24 November 2007 (next to be called no later than 2010) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 37, Australian Labor Party 32, Australian Greens 5, Family First Party 1, other 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Australian Labor Party 80, Liberal Party 50, National Party 10, independents 2, undecided 8
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 64.76 years male: 63.41 years female: 66.19 years (2007 est.)	total population: 80.62 years male: 77.75 years female: 83.63 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96.3% male: 96.2% female: 96.4% (2000 census)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Asia, group of atolls in the Indian Ocean, south-southwest of India	Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean
Map references	Asia	Oceania
Maritime claims	measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	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: 22 ships (1000 GRT or over) 85,935 GRT/114,054 DWT by type: cargo 17, petroleum tanker 3, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Greece 1) registered in other countries: 2 (Panama 1, Tuvalu 1) (2007)	total: 52 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,322,527 GRT/1,501,865 DWT by type: bulk carrier 16, cargo 5, chemical tanker 1, container 1, liquefied gas 4, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 5 foreign-owned: 16 (Canada 2, France 1, Germany 2, Netherlands 2, Norway 1, Philippines 1, UK 2, US 5) registered in other countries: 29 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Bahamas 3, Bermuda 4, Fiji 1, The Gambia 1, Liberia 2, Marshall Islands 1, Panama 4, Singapore 6, Tonga 1, UK 1, US 2, Vanuatu 2, unknown 1) (2007)
Military - note	Maldives has no regular armed forces; the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) includes ground forces, the Coast Guard, and a small, undermanned air element; with its small size and with little servable equipment, the MNDF is inadequate to prevent external aggression and is primarily tasked to reinforce the Maldives Police Service (MPS) and ensure security in the exclusive economic zone (2007)	-
Military branches	Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF): Quick Reaction Force, Security Protection Group, Coast Guard (2007)	Australian Defense Force (ADF): Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, Special Operations Command (2006)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.5% (2005 est.)	2.4% (2006)
National holiday	Independence Day, 26 July (1965)	Australia Day, 26 January (1788); ANZAC Day (commemorated as the anniversary of the landing of troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during World War I at Gallipoli, Turkey), 25 April (1915)
Nationality	noun: Maldivian(s) adjective: Maldivian	noun: Australian(s) adjective: Australian
Natural hazards	low level of islands makes them very sensitive to sea level rise	cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires
Natural resources	fish	bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	3.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	-	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	Adhaalath (Justice) Party or AP [Abdul Majeed Abdul BARI]; Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (Maldivian People's Party) or DRP [Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM]; Islamic Democratic Party or IDP [Omar NASEER]; Maldivian Democratic Party or MDP [Mohamed NASHEED]; note - political parties were allowed to register in June 2005	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 [Brendan NELSON]; The Nationals [Warren TRUSS]
Political pressure groups and leaders	various unregistered political parties	-
Population	369,031 (July 2007 est.)	20,434,176 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	21% (2004)	NA%
Population growth rate	2.732% (2007 est.)	0.824% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998)
Railways	-	total: 38,550 km broad gauge: 3,727 km 1.600-m gauge standard gauge: 20,519 km 1.435-m gauge (1,877 km electrified) narrow gauge: 14,074 km 1.067-m gauge (2,453 km electrified) dual gauge: 230 km dual gauge (2006)
Religions	Sunni Muslim	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: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.057 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.964 male(s)/female total population: 1.046 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.049 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.017 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.794 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	21 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Telephone system	general assessment: telephone services have improved; each island now has at least 1 public telephone, and there are mobile cellular networks with expanding subscribership domestic: interatoll communication through microwave links; all inhabited islands and resorts are connected with telephone and fax service international: country code - 960; satellite earth station - 3 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)	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; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 optical telecommunications submarine cable with links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; the Southern Cross fiber optic submarine cable provides links to New Zealand and the United States; satellite earth stations - 19 (10 Intelsat - 4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean, 2 Inmarsat - Indian and Pacific Ocean regions, 2 Globalstar, 5 other) (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use	32,500 (2006)	9.94 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	262,600 (2006)	19.76 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2006)	104 (1997)
Terrain	flat, with white sandy beaches	mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast
Total fertility rate	4.78 children born/woman (2007 est.)	1.76 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	NEGL% (2003 est.)	4.9% (2006 est.)
Waterways	-	2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2006)

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