Geography

Australia is the earth’s biggest inhabited island and the sixth largest country in the world. It is also one of the driest, with just 6 per cent of its land considered suitable for agriculture. Distances are vast and visitors are often surprised at the size of the country and how long it takes to travel from city to city. Australia stretches about 4000 kilometres from east to west and 3700 kilometres from north to south. It takes about five hours to fly from Sydney to Perth. In total area, Australia is about the same size as the United States (not including Alaska).

Australia is a natural wonderland of beautiful beaches, crystal blue waters, amazing ancient rock formations and pristine rainforests. Much of Australia's exotic flora and fauna cannot be found anywhere else in the world and the lifestyle is one second to none.

Seventeen parts of Australia are on the World Heritage List, including the Great Barrier Reef, the Tasmanian　Wilderness, the Wet Tropics of Queensland, Kakadu National Park, Uluru–Kata Tjuta National Park in the　Northern Territory, the Lord Howe Island Group and the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia.

The people

Australia’s original inhabitants, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, have been living in Australia for at least 40 000 years and possibly up to 60 000 years. The rest of Australia’s people are migrants or descendants of migrants who have come from nearly 200 countries since the start of European settlement of Australia in 1788.

In 1945, Australia’s population was about seven million people. Since then, more than 6.5 million migrants, including around 675 000 refugees, have settled in Australia. Today, Australia has a population of 21 million people, of which 43 per cent were either born overseas or have one parent who was born overseas. Australians of all religious, racial, ethnic and social backgrounds live together in peace.

Although Australia’s migrants have come from many different cultural and religious backgrounds, they have successfully settled in Australia and integrated into the broader community. Australia, in turn, has been enriched by the contributions they have made socially, culturally and economically.

The Economy

Australia has a strong market–based economy that is open, flexible and competitive. Ranked as one of the most stable economies in the world, its modern institutional structure provides a welcoming environment for international investment. Australia is also a major regional finance centre with reliable domestic and international transport systems, world–class information and telecommunication technology, a multilingual and highly skilled workforce and a system of regulation. The Australian Stock Exchange is the world’s eighth largest listed exchange measured by market capitalisation.

In terms of purchase power parity Australia’s per capita GDP is above that of the UK, Germany, and France. It also became the first country to see four of its cities placed on The Economist’s Top Ten World’s Most Livable Cities. The Australian economy is fueled by massive tourism industry and commodity exportation. Australia is a significant world trader, with its two–way trade in goods and services valued at more than $400 billion, about 1 per cent of total world trade. Japan is Australia’s largest trading partner, followed by China, the United States, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Korea.

Its economy has grown at an average annual rate of 3.6 per cent for over 15 years. Over the past decade, inflation has typically been 2–3% and the base interest rate 5–6%.

Climate

Australia is one of the driest countries in the world. Much of the interior is flat, barren and sparsely populated. Yet much of northern Australia has a tropical climate. Parts of Queensland, the north of Western Australia and the Northern Territory experience monsoon–type rainfalls during the wet season from January to March.

The coldest areas are in Tasmania and the alpine areas in the south–east highlands of mainland Australia. The hottest areas are in the central west of the continent.

Australia’s seasons are the opposite of those of the northern hemisphere. Summer is from December to February, autumn is from March to May, winter is from June to August and spring is from September to November.

July has the coldest average temperature. Average daytime temperatures are between 10 and 20 degrees Celsius (50 and 68 degrees F) in most of southern Australia, and in the high 20s or low 30s degrees Celsius (70s and 80s F) in the northern tropics. Temperatures below freezing are rare near the coast but many inland areas experience light overnight frosts in winter. In alpine areas, temperatures regularly fall below 0 degrees Celsius (32 F) and snow lies above 1500 metres elevation for several months a year. January and February are the hottest months in southern Australia, whereas in the tropics November and December are hottest. Average daytime temperatures are more than 30 degrees Celsius (80s or 90s F) in most inland areas, and reach near 40 degrees Celsius (104 F) in parts of Western Australia. They are cooler (20s C/70s or 80s F) near southern coasts, in highland areas and in Tasmania.

Health

Australian people enjoy a high level of good health. The nation has quality housing, water and sanitation, high food hygiene safety and an adequate supply and medicines.

The Australian Government provides help with basic hospital and medical expenses through a programme called Medicare Australia. The government also subsidises the cost of most medicine under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) for Medicare holders.

The Australian Government has signed reciprocal health care agreements with the governments of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Finland, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand and Sweden. Visitors from these countries are eligible for Medicare assistance for medically necessary treatment. If hospital treatment is required, such visitors are eligible for treatment only as Medicare patients, not as private patients. Other visitors are not eligible for Medicare and should arrange for health insurance to cover their stay in Australia.

Government

Australia belongs to the Commonwealth and the English Queen Elizabeth is also Queen of Australia. It is a constitutional monarchical democracy with regional power devolved to its various regions. It is governed by a parliamentary system of government. There are two major political groups that form government, federally and in the states: the Australian Labor Party, and the Coalition which is a formal grouping of two parties: the Liberal Party and its minor partner, the National Party.

The Constitution establishes a federal system of government comprising the Commonwealth (or national) government and the six state governments. In addition, self–governing territories have been established by the Commonwealth Parliament, which operate much like states, and local government bodies have been established by states and territories to deal with some local matters (such as parks, local roads and rubbish collection).

The Australian Constitution lists the subjects about which the Commonwealth Parliament can make laws. These include external affairs, interstate and international trade, defence and immigration. The states and territories can make laws about any subject of relevance to the state or territory. Examples of areas covered by state and territory laws are education, roads, police, fire and public transport.