Spratly Islands (2008) | Cocos (Keeling) Islands (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (territory of Australia) |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
Agriculture - products | - | vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts |
Airports | 3 (2007) | 1 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
- |
Area | total: less than 5 sq km
land: less than 5 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes 100 or so islets, coral reefs, and sea mounts scattered over an area of nearly 410,000 sq km of the central South China Sea |
total: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island |
Area - comparative | NA | about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | The Spratly Islands consist of more than 100 small islands or reefs. They are surrounded by rich fishing grounds and potentially by gas and oil deposits. They are claimed in their entirety by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, while portions are claimed by Malaysia and the Philippines. About 45 islands are occupied by relatively small numbers of military forces from China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Brunei has established a fishing zone that overlaps a southern reef but has not made any formal claim. | There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century. From the 1820s to 1978, members of the CLUNIE-ROSS family controlled the islands and the copra produced from local coconuts. Annexed by the UK in 1857, the Cocos Islands were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island. |
Birth rate | - | NA |
Budget | - | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | - | name: West Island
geographic coordinates: 12 10 S, 96 50 E time difference: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical | tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year |
Coastline | 926 km | 26 km |
Constitution | - | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1955) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Spratly Islands |
conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
Death rate | - | NA |
Dependency status | - | non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Attorney-General's Department |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | none (territory of Australia) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | none (territory of Australia) |
Disputes - international | all of the Spratly Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam; parts of them are claimed by Malaysia and the Philippines; in 1984, Brunei established an exclusive fishing zone that encompasses Louisa Reef in the southern Spratly Islands but has not publicly claimed the reef; claimants in November 2002 signed the "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea," which has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct"; in March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord to conduct marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
Economy - overview | Economic activity is limited to commercial fishing. The proximity to nearby oil- and gas-producing sedimentary basins suggests the potential for oil and gas deposits, but the region is largely unexplored. There are no reliable estimates of potential reserves. Commercial exploitation has yet to be developed. | Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small tourist industry. |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Southwest Cay 4 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs |
Ethnic groups | - | Europeans, Cocos Malays |
Exchange rates | - | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.2137 (2007), 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator (nonresident) Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
Exports | - | $NA |
Exports - commodities | - | copra |
Exports - partners | - | Australia (2006) |
Fiscal year | - | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | - | the flag of Australia is used |
Geographic coordinates | 8 38 N, 111 55 E | 12 30 S, 96 50 E |
Geography - note | strategically located near several primary shipping lanes in the central South China Sea; includes numerous small islands, atolls, shoals, and coral reefs | islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation |
Heliports | 3 (2007) | - |
Imports | - | $NA |
Imports - commodities | - | foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | - | Australia (2006) |
Independence | - | none (territory of Australia) |
Industries | - | copra products and tourism |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
International organization participation | - | none |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km | NA |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court |
Labor force | - | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | - | note: the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | - | Malay (Cocos dialect), English |
Legal system | - | based upon the laws of Australia and local laws |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held in May 2005 (next to be held in May 2007) |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Literacy | - | NA |
Location | Southeastern Asia, group of reefs and islands in the South China Sea, about two-thirds of the way from southern Vietnam to the southern Philippines | Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | NA | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | Spratly Islands consist of more than 100 small islands or reefs of which about 45 are claimed and occupied by China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam | defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory has a five-person police force |
National holiday | - | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) |
Nationality | - | noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander |
Natural hazards | typhoons; numerous reefs and shoals pose a serious maritime hazard | cyclone season is October to April |
Natural resources | fish, guano, undetermined oil and natural gas potential | fish |
Net migration rate | - | NA |
Political parties and leaders | - | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | none |
Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: there are scattered garrisons occupied by personnel of several claimant states |
596 (July 2007 est.) |
Population growth rate | - | 0% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Religions | - | Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | - | NA |
Telephone system | - | general assessment: connected within Australia's telecommunication system
domestic: NA international: country code - 61; telephone, telex, and facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite; 1 INTELSAT satellite earth station (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 287 (1992) |
Television broadcast stations | - | NA |
Terrain | flat | flat, low-lying coral atolls |
Total fertility rate | - | NA |
Unemployment rate | - | 60% (2000 est.) |