Norfolk Island (2006) | Austria (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | 9 states (bundeslaender, singular - bundesland); Burgenland, Kaernten, Niederoesterreich, Oberoesterreich, Salzburg, Steiermark, Tirol, Vorarlberg, Wien |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2006 est.) |
0-14 years:
16.57% (male 691,925; female 658,375) 15-64 years: 68.05% (male 2,802,019; female 2,744,536) 65 years and over: 15.38% (male 478,498; female 775,482) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber |
Airports | 1 (2006) | 55 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
total:
24 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 14 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
31 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 27 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
83,858 sq km land: 82,738 sq km water: 1,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maine |
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. | Once the center of power for the large Austro-Hungarian Empire, Austria was reduced to a small republic after its defeat in World War I. Following annexation by Nazi Germany in 1938 and subsequent occupation by the victorious Allies, Austria's 1955 State Treaty declared the country "permanently neutral" as a condition of Soviet military withdrawal. Neutrality, once ingrained as part of the Austrian cultural identity, has been called into question since the Soviet collapse of 1991 and Austria's increasingly prominent role in European affairs. A prosperous country, Austria joined the European Union in 1995 and the euro monetary system in 1999. |
Birth rate | NA | 9.74 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $4.6 million
expenditures: $4.8 million; including capital expenditures of $2 million (FY99/00) |
revenues:
$56.3 billion expenditures: $60.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Kingston
geographic coordinates: 29 03 S, 167 58 E time difference: UTC+11.5 (16.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Vienna |
Climate | subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation | temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional showers |
Coastline | 32 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | Norfolk Island Act of 1979 | 1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945) |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
conventional long form:
Republic of Austria conventional short form: Austria local long form: Republik Oesterreich local short form: Oesterreich |
Currency | - | Austrian schilling (ATS); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Austria at a fixed rate of 13.7603 Austrian shillings per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 9.8 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $16 billion (1999) |
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 Kathryn Walt HALL embassy: Boltzmanngasse 16, A-1091, Vienna mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [43] (1) 313-39-2060 FAX: [43] (1) 313-39-2057 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Peter MOSER chancery: 3524 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008-3035 telephone: [1] (202) 895-6700 FAX: [1] (202) 895-6750 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | none | minor disputes with Czech Republic and Slovenia over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $472 million (1999) |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | - |
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. | Austria with its well-developed market economy and high standard of living is closely tied to other EU economies, especially Germany's. Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market and proximity to EU aspirant economies. In 2000, Austria moved to further cut government spending and raise taxes to meet EMU deficit targets after facing unexpected difficulties in reducing the public deficit. To meet increased competition from both EU and Central European countries, Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy and continue to deregulate the service sector. Growth is expected to remain at about 3% in 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 53.231 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | - | 13.507 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | - | 11.605 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 59.283 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
29.53% hydro: 67.65% nuclear: 0% other: 2.82% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
lowest point:
Neusiedler See 115 m highest point: Grossglockner 3,798 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | some forest degradation caused by air and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of agricultural chemicals; air pollution results from emissions by coal- and oil-fired power stations and industrial plants and from trucks transiting Austria between northern and southern Europe |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesian | German 98%, Croatian, Slovene, other (includes Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Roma) |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001) | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Austrian schillings per US dollar - 11.86 (January 1999), 12.91 (1999), 12.379 (1998), 12.204 (1997), 10.587 (1996) |
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 October 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 Thomas KLESTIL (since 8 July 1992) head of government: Chancellor Wolfgang SCHUESSEL (OeVP)(since 4 February 2000); Vice Chancellor Susanne RIESS-PASSER (FPOe) (since 4 February 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor elections: president elected by direct popular vote for a six-year term; presidential election last held 19 April 1998 (next to be held in the spring of 2004); chancellor traditionally chosen by the president from the plurality party in the National Council; in the case of the current coalition, the chancellor was chosen from another party after the plurality party failed to form a government; vice chancellor chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor election results: Thomas KLESTIL reelected president; percent of vote - Thomas KLESTIL 63%, Gertraud KNOLL 14%, Heide SCHMIDT 11%, Richard LUGNER 10%, Karl NOWAK 2% note: government coalition - OeVP and FPOe |
Exports | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY91/92) | $63.2 billion (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados | machinery and equipment, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel; textiles, foodstuffs |
Exports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe (2004) | EU 64.2% (Germany 35.7%, Italy 8.7%, France 4.5%), Switzerland 5.9%, US 4.5%, Hungary 3.9% (1999) |
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 | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and red |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $203 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture:
2.2% industry: 30.4% services: 67.4% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $25,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 3.1% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 02 S, 167 57 E | 47 20 N, 13 20 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 | landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys; major river is the Danube; population is concentrated on eastern lowlands because of steep slopes, poor soils, and low temperatures elsewhere |
Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | - | total:
133,361 km paved: 133,361 km (including 1,613 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1998) |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine destined for Western Europe |
Imports | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92) | $65.6 billion (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | NA | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe (2004) | EU 70.3% (Germany 42.5%, Italy 7.9%, France 5.3%), US 5.4%, Switzerland 3.0%, Hungary 2.8% (1999) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 1156 (from Bavaria) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 4.2% (2000) |
Industries | tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete | construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
4.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 2% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 37 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | 457 sq km (1995 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions | Supreme Judicial Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof; Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgerichtshof |
Labor force | 1,345 | 3.7 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 10%
industry and services: 90% |
services 68%, industry and crafts 29%, agriculture and forestry 3% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
2,562 km border countries: Czech Republic 362 km, Germany 784 km, Hungary 366 km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 35 km, Slovakia 91 km, Slovenia 330 km, Switzerland 164 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land:
17% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 23% forests and woodland: 39% other: 20% (1996 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian | German |
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 | civil law system with Roman law origin; judicial review of legislative acts by the Constitutional Court; separate administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung consists of Federal Council or Bundesrat (64 members; members represent each of the states on the basis of population, but with each state having at least three representatives; members serve a four- or six-year term) and the National Council or Nationalrat (183 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: National Council - last held 3 October 1999 (next to be held in the fall of 2003) election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - SPOe 33.2%, OeVP 26.9%, FPOe 26.9%, Greens 7.4%; seats by party - SPOe 65, OeVP 52, FPOe 52, Greens 14 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population:
77.84 years male: 74.68 years female: 81.15 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | - | total:
23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 86,905 GRT/117,417 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 18, combination bulk 2, container 2 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia | - |
Military branches | - | Army (includes Flying Division) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $1.7 billion (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.2% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
2,091,263 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,731,383 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
50,580 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856) | National Day, 26 October (1955); note - commemorates the passage of the law on permanent neutrality |
Nationality | noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
noun:
Austrian(s) adjective: Austrian |
Natural hazards | typhoons (especially May to July) | NA |
Natural resources | fish | iron ore, oil, timber, magnesite, lead, coal, lignite, copper, hydropower |
Net migration rate | NA | 2.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 777 km; natural gas 840 km (1999) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Austrian People's Party or OeVP [Wolfgang SCHUESSEL]; Freedom Party of Austria or FPOe [Susanne RIESS-PASSER]; Social Democratic Party of Austria or SPOe [Alfred GUSENBAUER]; The Greens Alternative or GA [Alexander VAN DER BELLEN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | Austrian Trade Union Federation (primarily Socialist) or OeGB; Federal Economic Chamber; OeVP-oriented League of Austrian Industrialists or VOeI; Roman Catholic Church, including its chief lay organization, Catholic Action; three composite leagues of the Austrian People's Party or OeVP representing business, labor, and farmers |
Population | 1,828 (July 2006 est.) | 8,150,835 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.01% (2006 est.) | 0.24% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Linz, Vienna, Enns, Krems |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) | AM 1, FM 61 (plus several hundred repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 6.08 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
6,095.2 km (3,643.3 km electrified) standard gauge: 5,564.2 km 1.435-m gauge (3,521.2 km electrified) narrow gauge: 497.1 km (33.9 km 1.000-m gauge - 28.1 km electrified, 497.1 km 0.760-m gauge - 94 km electrified) (2001) |
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 78%, Protestant 5%, Muslim and other 17% |
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: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 19 years of age; universal; compulsory for presidential elections |
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:
highly developed and efficient domestic: there are 48 main lines for every 100 persons and the system is nearly 100% digital; the fiber optic net is very extensive; all telephone applications and Internet services are available international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 2 Eutelsat (1999) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004) | 4 million (3,600,000 analog main lines plus 400,000 ISDN or Integrated Services Digital Network connections) (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum) (2002) | 4.5 million (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in Australian programs by satellite) (2005) | 45 (plus 960 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains | in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping |
Total fertility rate | NA | 1.39 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0% | 5.4% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | - | 358 km (1999) |