Norfolk Island (2005) | Chile (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | 13 regions (regiones, singular - region); Aisen del General Carlos Ibanez del Campo, Antofagasta, Araucania, Atacama, Bio-Bio, Coquimbo, Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins, Los Lagos, Magallanes y de la Antartica Chilena, Maule, Region Metropolitana (Santiago), Tarapaca, Valparaiso
note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 25.2% (male 2,062,735/female 1,970,913)
15-64 years: 66.7% (male 5,320,870/female 5,342,771) 65 years and over: 8% (male 534,737/female 748,886) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry | grapes, apples, pears, onions, wheat, corn, oats, peaches, garlic, asparagus, beans, beef, poultry, wool; fish; timber |
Airports | 1 (2004 est.) | 364 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 71
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 21 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 15 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 293
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 60 under 914 m: 217 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 756,950 sq km
land: 748,800 sq km water: 8,150 sq km note: includes Easter Island (Isla de Pascua) and Isla Sala y Gomez |
Area - comparative | about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than twice the size of Montana |
Background | Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony (1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. | Prior to the coming of the Spanish in the 16th century, northern Chile was under Inca rule while Araucanian Indians inhabited central and southern Chile; the latter were not completely subjugated until the early 1880s. Although Chile declared its independence in 1810, decisive victory over the Spanish was not achieved until 1818. In the War of the Pacific (1879-84), Chile defeated Peru and Bolivia and won its present northern lands. A three-year-old Marxist government of Salvador ALLENDE was overthrown in 1973 by a dictatorial military regime led by Augusto PINOCHET, who ruled until a freely elected president was installed in 1990. Sound economic policies, maintained consistently since the 1980s, have contributed to steady growth and have helped secure the country's commitment to democratic and representative government. Chile has increasingly assumed regional and international leadership roles befitting its status as a stable, democratic nation. |
Birth rate | NA | 15.44 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $20 million
expenditures: $20 million, including capital expenditures of $2 million (FY99/00) |
revenues: $21.53 billion
expenditures: $19.95 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.33 billion (2004 est.) |
Capital | Kingston | Santiago |
Climate | subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation | temperate; desert in north; Mediterranean in central region; cool and damp in south |
Coastline | 32 km | 6,435 km |
Constitution | Norfolk Island Act of 1979 | 11 September 1980, effective 11 March 1981; amended 30 July 1989, 1993, and 1997 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
conventional long form: Republic of Chile
conventional short form: Chile local long form: Republica de Chile local short form: Chile |
Death rate | NA | 5.76 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $44.6 billion (2004 est.) |
Dependency status | territory of Australia; Canberra administers Commonwealth responsibilities on Norfolk Island through the Department of Environment, Sport, and Territories | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Craig A. KELLY
embassy: Avenida Andres Bello 2800, Las Condes, Santiago mailing address: APO AA 34033 telephone: [56] (2) 232-2600 FAX: [56] (2) 330-3710 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Andres BIANCHI
chancery: 1732 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 785-1746 FAX: [1] (202) 887-5579 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | none | Chile rebuffs Bolivia's reactivated claim to restore the Atacama corridor, ceded to Chile in 1884, offering instead unrestricted but not sovereign maritime access through Chile to Bolivian gas and other commodities; Peru proposes changing its latitudinal maritime boundary with Chile to an equidistance line with a southwestern axis; territorial claim in Antarctica (Chilean Antarctic Territory) partially overlaps Argentine and British claims |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | ODA, $0 (2002) |
Economy - overview | Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs. | Chile has a market-oriented economy characterized by a high level of foreign trade. During the early 1990s, Chile's reputation as a role model for economic reform was strengthened when the democratic government of Patricio AYLWIN - which took over from the military in 1990 - deepened the economic reform initiated by the military government. Growth in real GDP averaged 8% during 1991-97, but fell to half that level in 1998 because of tight monetary policies implemented to keep the current account deficit in check and because of lower export earnings - the latter a product of the global financial crisis. A severe drought exacerbated the recession in 1999, reducing crop yields and causing hydroelectric shortfalls and electricity rationing, and Chile experienced negative economic growth for the first time in more than 15 years. Despite the effects of the recession, Chile maintained its reputation for strong financial institutions and sound policy that have given it the strongest sovereign bond rating in South America. By the end of 1999, exports and economic activity had begun to recover, and growth rebounded to 4.2% in 2000. Growth fell back to 3.1% in 2001 and 2.1% in 2002, largely due to lackluster global growth and the devaluation of the Argentine peso. Chile's economy began a slow recovery in 2003, growing 3.2% and accelerated to 5.8% in 2004. GDP growth benefited from high copper prices, solid export earnings (particularly forestry, fishing, and mining), and stepped-up foreign direct investment. Unemployment, however, remains stubbornly high. Chile deepened its longstanding commitment to trade liberalization with the signing of a free trade agreement with the US, which took effect on 1 January 2004. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 41.8 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | - | 1.813 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 48.6 billion kWh (2004) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Nevado Ojos del Salado 6,880 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | widespread deforestation and mining threaten natural resources; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesians | white and white-Amerindian 95%, Amerindian 3%, other 2% |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) | Chilean pesos per US dollar - 609.37 (2004), 691.43 (2003), 688.94 (2002), 634.94 (2001), 539.59 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and Australia are represented by Administrator Grant TAMBLING (since 1 November 2003)
head of government: Assembly President and Chief Minister Geoffrey Robert GARDNER (since 5 December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and acts as an advisor to the administrator elections: the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia; chief minister elected by the Legislative Assembly for a term of not more than three years; election last held 20 Ocotber 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: Geoffrey Robert GARDNER elected chief minister; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - 17.2% |
chief of state: President Ricardo LAGOS Escobar (since 11 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ricardo LAGOS Escobar (since 11 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 12 December 1999, with runoff election held 16 January 2000 (next to be held December 2005) election results: Ricardo LAGOS Escobar elected president; percent of vote - Ricardo LAGOS Escobar 51.32%, Joaquin LAVIN 48.68% |
Exports | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY99/00) | 0 bbl/day (2003) |
Exports - commodities | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados | copper, fruit, fish products, paper and pulp, chemicals, wine |
Exports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe | US 14%, Japan 11.4%, China 9.9%, South Korea 5.5%, Netherlands 5.1%, Brazil 4.3%, Italy 4.1%, Mexico 4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; there is a blue square the same height as the white band at the hoist-side end of the white band; the square bears a white five-pointed star in the center representing a guide to progress and honor; blue symbolizes the sky, white is for the snow-covered Andes, and red stands for the blood spilled to achieve independence; design was influenced by the US flag |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 6.3%
industry: 38.2% services: 55.5% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | purchasing power parity - $10,700 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 5.8% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 02 S, 167 57 E | 30 00 S, 71 00 W |
Geography - note | most of the 32-km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs, but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated | strategic location relative to sea lanes between Atlantic and Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Atacama Desert is one of world's driest regions |
Highways | total: 80 km
paved: 53 km unpaved: 27 km (2001) |
total: 79,605 km
paved: 16,080 km (including 407 km of expressways) unpaved: 63,525 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 47% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | - | important transshipment country for cocaine destined for Europe and the US; economic prosperity and increasing trade have made Chile more attractive to traffickers seeking to launder drug profits, especially through the Iquique Free Trade Zone, but a new anti-money-laundering law improves controls; imported precursors passed on to Bolivia; domestic cocaine consumption is rising |
Imports | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92) | 221,500 bbl/day (2003 est.) |
Imports - commodities | NA | petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, electrical and telecommunications equipment, industrial machinery, vehicles, natural gas |
Imports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe | Argentina 17%, US 14%, Brazil 11.2%, China 7.4% (2004) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 18 September 1810 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 7.8% (2004 est.) |
Industries | tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete | copper, other minerals, foodstuffs, fish processing, iron and steel, wood and wood products, transport equipment, cement, textiles |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 8.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.55 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 2.4% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU | APEC, BIS, CSN, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 18,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are appointed by the president and ratified by the Senate from lists of candidates provided by the court itself; the president of the Supreme Court is elected by the 21-member court); Constitutional Tribunal |
Labor force | 1,345 | 6.2 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | tourism 90%, subsistence agriculture 10% | agriculture 13.6%, industry 23.4%, services 63% (2003) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 6,171 km
border countries: Argentina 5,150 km, Bolivia 861 km, Peru 160 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 2.65%
permanent crops: 0.42% other: 96.93% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian | Spanish |
Legal system | based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or Norfolk Island law | based on Code of 1857 derived from Spanish law and subsequent codes influenced by French and Austrian law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
note: Chile is in the process of completely overhauling its criminal justice system; a new, US-style adversarial system is being gradually implemented throughout the country with the final stage of implementation in the Santiago metropolitan region expected in June 2005 |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be given to any one candidate; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 20 October 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 (note - no political parties) |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (48 seats, 38 elected by popular vote, 9 designated members, and 1 former president who has served a full six-year term and is senator for life); elected members serve eight-year terms (one-half elected every four years) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (120 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 16 December 2001 (next to be held December 2005); Chamber of Deputies - last held 16 December 2001 (next to be held December 2005) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CPD 20 (PDC 12, PS 5, PPD 3), APC 16 (UDI 9, RN 7), independents 2; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CPD 62 (PDC 24, PPD 21, PS 11, PRSD 6), UDI 35, RN 22, independent 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 76.58 years
male: 73.3 years female: 80.03 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.2% male: 96.4% female: 96.1% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | Southern South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Argentina and Peru |
Map references | Oceania | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200/350 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 725,216 GRT/954,519 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 10, cargo 6, chemical tanker 9, container 1, liquefied gas 3, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 8, roll on/roll off 1, vehicle carrier 4 registered in other countries: 21 (2005) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia | - |
Military branches | - | Army of the Nation, National Navy (includes naval air, Coast Guard, and Marine Corps), Chilean Air Force, Chilean Carabineros (National Police) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $3.42 billion (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 3.8% (2004) |
National holiday | Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856) | Independence Day, 18 September (1810) |
Nationality | noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
noun: Chilean(s)
adjective: Chilean |
Natural hazards | typhoons (especially May to July) | severe earthquakes; active volcanism; tsunamis |
Natural resources | fish | copper, timber, iron ore, nitrates, precious metals, molybdenum, hydropower |
Net migration rate | NA | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 2,583 km; gas/lpg 42 km; liquid petroleum gas 539 km; oil 1,003 km; refined products 757 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Alliance for Chile ("Alianza") or APC (including National Renewal or RN [Sebastian PINERA] and Independent Democratic Union or UDI [Pablo LONGUEIRA]); Coalition of Parties for Democracy ("Concertacion") or CPD (including Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Adolfo ZALDIVAR], Socialist Party or PS [Gonzalo MARTNER], Party for Democracy or PPD [Victor BARRUETO], Radical Social Democratic Party or PRSD [Orlando CANTUARIAS]); Communist Party or PC [Gladys MARIN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | revitalized university student federations at all major universities; Roman Catholic Church; United Labor Central or CUT includes trade unionists from the country's five largest labor confederations |
Population | 1,828 (July 2005 est.) | 15,980,912 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 20.6% (2000) |
Population growth rate | -0.01% (2005 est.) | 0.97% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; loading jetties at Kingston and Cascade | Antofagasta, Arica, Huasco, Iquique, Lirquen, San Antonio, San Vicente, Valparaiso |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) | AM 180 (eight inactive), FM 64, shortwave 17 (one inactive) (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 6,585 km
broad gauge: 2,831 km 1.676-m gauge (1,317 km electrified) narrow gauge: 3,754 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Anglican 34.9%, Roman Catholic 11.7%, Uniting Church in Australia 11.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist 2.8%, Australian Christian 2.4%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, other 2.7%, unspecified 15.3%, none 18.1% (2001 census) | Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 11%, Jewish NEGL% |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate
domestic: free local calls international: country code - 672; undersea coaxial cable links with Australia, New Zealand, and Canada; satellite earth station |
general assessment: modern system based on extensive microwave radio relay facilities
domestic: extensive microwave radio relay links; domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations international: country code - 56; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004) | 3.467 million (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum) (2002) | 6,445,700 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in Australian programs by satellite) (2005) | 63 (plus 121 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains | low coastal mountains; fertile central valley; rugged Andes in east |
Total fertility rate | NA | 2.02 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0% | 8.5% (2004 est.) |