Norfolk Island (2005) | Egypt (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | 26 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Ad Daqahliyah, Al Bahr al Ahmar, Al Buhayrah, Al Fayyum, Al Gharbiyah, Al Iskandariyah, Al Isma'iliyah, Al Jizah, Al Minufiyah, Al Minya, Al Qahirah, Al Qalyubiyah, Al Wadi al Jadid, Ash Sharqiyah, As Suways, Aswan, Asyut, Bani Suwayf, Bur Sa'id, Dumyat, Janub Sina', Kafr ash Shaykh, Matruh, Qina, Shamal Sina', Suhaj |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 33.4% (male 13,038,369; female 12,418,254)
15-64 years: 62.2% (male 23,953,949; female 23,419,418) 65 years and over: 4.3% (male 1,407,248; female 1,880,183) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry | cotton, rice, corn, wheat, beans, fruits, vegetables; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats |
Airports | 1 (2004 est.) | 89 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 72
over 3,047 m: 13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 38 1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 15
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1,001,450 sq km
land: 995,450 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than three times the size of New Mexico |
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. | The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood, coupled with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and west, allowed for the development of one of the world's great civilizations. A unified kingdom arose circa 3200 B.C. and a series of dynasties ruled in Egypt for the next three millennia. The last native dynasty fell to the Persians in 341 B.C., who in turn were replaced by the Greeks, Romans, and Byzantines. It was the Arabs who introduced Islam and the Arabic language in the 7th century and who ruled for the next six centuries. A local military caste, the Mamluks took control about 1250 and continued to govern after the conquest of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. Following the completion of the Suez Canal in 1869, Egypt became an important world transportation hub, but also fell heavily into debt. Ostensibly to protect its investments, Britain seized control of Egypt's government in 1882, but nominal allegiance to the Ottoman Empire continued until 1914. Partially independent from the UK in 1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty following World War II. The completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1971 and the resultant Lake Nasser have altered the time-honored place of the Nile River in the agriculture and ecology of Egypt. A rapidly growing population (the largest in the Arab world), limited arable land, and dependence on the Nile all continue to overtax resources and stress society. The government has struggled to ready the economy for the new millennium through economic reform and massive investment in communications and physical infrastructure. |
Birth rate | NA | 23.84 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $20 million
expenditures: $20 million, including capital expenditures of $2 million (FY99/00) |
revenues: $14.69 billion
expenditures: $19.03 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.7 billion (2003) |
Capital | Kingston | Cairo |
Climate | subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation | desert; hot, dry summers with moderate winters |
Coastline | 32 km | 2,450 km |
Constitution | Norfolk Island Act of 1979 | 11 September 1971 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
conventional long form: Arab Republic of Egypt
conventional short form: Egypt local long form: Jumhuriyat Misr al-Arabiyah local short form: Misr former: United Arab Republic (with Syria) |
Currency | - | Egyptian pound (EGP) |
Death rate | NA | 5.3 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $30.34 billion (2003 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 C. David WELCH
embassy: 8 Kamal El Din Salah St., Garden City, Cairo mailing address: Unit 64900, Box 15, APO AE 09839-4900 telephone: [20] (2) 797-3300 FAX: [20] (2) 797-3200 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador M. Nabil FAHMY
chancery: 3521 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 895-5400 FAX: [1] (202) 244-4319 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, New York, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | none | Egypt and Sudan retain claims to administer the triangular areas that extend north and south of the 1899 Treaty boundary along the 22nd Parallel, but have withdrawn their military presence; Egypt is economically developing and effectively administers the "Hala'ib Triangle" north of the Treaty line |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | ODA, $1.2 billion (2001) |
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. | Lack of substantial progress on economic reform since the mid 1990s has limited foreign direct investment in Egypt and kept annual GDP growth in the range of 2-3 percent in 2001-03. Egyptian officials in late 2003 and early 2004 proposed new privatization and customs reform measures, but the government is likely to pursue these initiatives cautiously and gradually to avoid a public backlash over potential inflation or layoffs associated with the reforms. Monetary pressures on an overvalued Egyptian pound led the government to float the currency in January 2003, leading to a sharp drop in its value and consequent inflationary pressure. The existence of a black market for hard currency is evidence that the government continues to influence the official exchange rate offered in banks. In September 2003, Egyptian officials increased subsidies on basic foodstuffs, helping to calm a frustrated public but widening an already deep budget deficit. Egypt's balance-of-payments position was not hurt by the war in Iraq in 2003, as tourism and Suez Canal revenues fared well. The development of an export market for natural gas is a bright spot for future growth prospects, but improvement in the capital-intensive hydrocarbons sector does little to reduce Egypt's persistent unemployment. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 69.96 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 75.23 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
lowest point: Qattara Depression -133 m
highest point: Mount Catherine 2,629 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | agricultural land being lost to urbanization and windblown sands; increasing soil salination below Aswan High Dam; desertification; oil pollution threatening coral reefs, beaches, and marine habitats; other water pollution from agricultural pesticides, raw sewage, and industrial effluents; very limited natural fresh water resources away from the Nile which is the only perennial water source; rapid growth in population overstraining the Nile and natural resources |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesians | Eastern Hamitic stock (Egyptians, Bedouins, and Berbers) 99%, Greek, Nubian, Armenian, other European (primarily Italian and French) 1% |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) | Egyptian pounds per US dollar - 5.8509 (2003), 4.4997 (2002), 3.973 (2001), 3.4721 (2000), 3.3953 (1999) |
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 Mohammed Hosni MUBARAK (since 14 October 1981)
head of government: Prime Minister Ahmed NAZIF (since 9 July 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president nominated by the People's Assembly for a six-year term, the nomination must then be validated by a national, popular referendum; national referendum last held 26 September 1999 (next to be held NA October 2005); prime minister appointed by the president election results: national referendum validated President MUBARAK's nomination by the People's Assembly to a fourth term |
Exports | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY99/00) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados | crude oil and petroleum products, cotton, textiles, metal products, chemicals |
Exports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe | US 13.3%, Italy 12.3%, UK 7.9%, France 4.7%, Germany 4.7%, India 4.2% (2003) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; the national emblem (a gold Eagle of Saladin facing the hoist side with a shield superimposed on its chest above a scroll bearing the name of the country in Arabic) centered in the white band; design is based on the Arab Liberation flag and similar to the flag of Syria, which has two green stars, Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band, and Yemen, which has a plain white band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $295.2 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 17%
industry: 33% services: 50% (2003) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 3.1% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 02 S, 167 57 E | 27 00 N, 30 00 E |
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 | controls Sinai Peninsula, only land bridge between Africa and remainder of Eastern Hemisphere; controls Suez Canal, a sea link between Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea; size, and juxtaposition to Israel, establish its major role in Middle Eastern geopolitics; dependence on upstream neighbors; dominance of Nile basin issues; prone to influxes of refugees |
Heliports | - | 2 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total: 80 km
paved: 53 km unpaved: 27 km (2001) |
total: 64,000 km
paved: 49,984 km unpaved: 14,016 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 3.7%
highest 10%: 29.5% (1999) |
Illicit drugs | - | transit point for Southwest Asian and Southeast Asian heroin and opium moving to Europe, Africa, and the US; transit stop for Nigerian couriers; concern as money-laundering site due to lax financial regulations and enforcement |
Imports | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | NA | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, wood products, fuels |
Imports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe | US 13.6%, Germany 7.4%, Italy 7%, France 6.6%, China 4.8%, Saudi Arabia 4.3% (2003) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 28 February 1922 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 1.5% (2003 est.) |
Industries | tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete | textiles, food processing, tourism, chemicals, hydrocarbons, construction, cement, metals |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 33.9 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 34.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 33.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 4.3% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU | ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, BSEC (observer), CAEU, EBRD, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, ONUB, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 33,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions | Supreme Constitutional Court |
Labor force | 1,345 | 20.19 million (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | tourism 90%, subsistence agriculture 10% | agriculture 32%, industry 17%, services 51% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,665 km
border countries: Gaza Strip 11 km, Israel 266 km, Libya 1,115 km, Sudan 1,273 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 2.87%
permanent crops: 0.48% other: 96.65% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian | Arabic (official), English and French widely understood by educated classes |
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 English common law, Islamic law, and Napoleonic codes; judicial review by Supreme Court and Council of State (oversees validity of administrative decisions); accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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 system consists of the People's Assembly or Majlis al-Sha'b (454 seats; 444 elected by popular vote, 10 appointed by the president; members serve five-year terms) and the Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura - which functions only in a consultative role (264 seats; 176 elected by popular vote, 88 appointed by the president; members serve six-year terms)
elections: People's Assembly - three-phase voting - last held 19 October, 29 October, 8 November 2000 (next to be held NA October-November 2005); Advisory Council - last held May-June 2004 (next to be held May-June 2007) election results: People's Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; Advisory Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 70.71 years
male: 68.22 years female: 73.31 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 57.7% male: 68.3% female: 46.9% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
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-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | - | total: 159 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,194,696 GRT/1,754,815 DWT
by type: bulk 18, cargo 41, container 5, passenger 64, petroleum tanker 14, roll on/roll off 13, short-sea/passenger 4 foreign-owned: China 2, Cyprus 1, Denmark 1, Greece 6, Lebanon 2, Turkey 1 registered in other countries: 50 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Command |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $2,443.2 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 3.6% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 20,340,716 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 13,148,944 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 756,233 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856) | Revolution Day, 23 July (1952) |
Nationality | noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
noun: Egyptian(s)
adjective: Egyptian |
Natural hazards | typhoons (especially May to July) | periodic droughts; frequent earthquakes, flash floods, landslides; hot, driving windstorm called khamsin occurs in spring; dust storms, sandstorms |
Natural resources | fish | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone, gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead, zinc |
Net migration rate | NA | -0.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 289 km; condensate/gas 94 km; gas 6,115 km; liquid petroleum gas 852 km; oil 5,032 km; oil/gas/water 36 km; refined products 246 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Nasserist Arab Democratic Party or Nasserists [Dia' al-din DAWUD]; National Democratic Party or NDP [President Mohammed Hosni MUBARAK] - governing party; National Progressive Unionist Grouping or Tagammu [Rifaat EL-SAID]; New Wafd Party or NWP [No'man GOMA]; Socialist Liberal Party or Al-Ahrar [Hilmi SALIM]; Tomorrow Party or Al-Ghad [Ayman NOUR]
note: formation of political parties must be approved by the government |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | despite a constitutional ban against religious-based parties, the technically illegal Muslim Brotherhood constitutes MUBARAK's potentially most significant political opposition; MUBARAK tolerated limited political activity by the Brotherhood for his first two terms, but moved more aggressively since then to block its influence; civic society groups are sanctioned, but constrained in practical terms; trade unions and professional associations are officially sanctioned |
Population | 1,828 (July 2005 est.) | 76,117,421 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 16.7% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.01% (2005 est.) | 1.83% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; loading jetties at Kingston and Cascade | Alexandria, Al Ghardaqah, Aswan, Asyut, Bur Safajah, Damietta, Marsa Matruh, Port Said, Suez |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) | AM 42 (plus 15 repeaters), FM 14, shortwave 3 (1999) |
Railways | - | total: 5,063 km
standard gauge: 5,063 km 1.435-m gauge (62 km electrified) (2003) |
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) | Muslim (mostly Sunni) 94%, Coptic Christian and other 6% |
Sex ratio | NA | 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: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 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: large system; underwent extensive upgrading during 1990s and is reasonably modern; Internet access and cellular service are available
domestic: principal centers at Alexandria, Cairo, Al Mansurah, Ismailia, Suez, and Tanta are connected by coaxial cable and microwave radio relay international: country code - 20; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean), 1 Arabsat, and 1 Inmarsat; 5 coaxial submarine cables; tropospheric scatter to Sudan; microwave radio relay to Israel; a participant in Medarabtel and a signatory to Project Oxygen (a global submarine fiber-optic cable system) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004) | 8,735,700 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum) (2002) | 5,797,500 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in Australian programs by satellite) (2005) | 98 (September 1995) |
Terrain | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains | vast desert plateau interrupted by Nile valley and delta |
Total fertility rate | NA | 2.95 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0% | 9.9% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | - | 3,500 km
note: includes Nile River, Lake Nasser, Alexandria-Cairo Waterway, and numerous smaller canals in delta; Suez Canal (193.5 km including approaches) navigable by oceangoing vessels drawing up to 17.68 m (2004) |