1989 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1989 (Internet Archive)
Geography
Climate
temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional showers
Coastline
none — landlocked
Comparative area
slightly smaller than Maine
Disputes
South Tyrol question with Italy
Environment
because of steep slopes, poor soils, and cold temperatures, population is concentrated on eastern lowlands
Land boundaries
2,640 km total; Czechoslovakia 548 km, Hungary 366 km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 37 km, Switzerland 164 km, FRG 784 km, Yugoslavia 311 km
Land use
17% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 24% meadows and pastures; 39% forest and woodland; 19% other; includes NEGL% irrigated
Maritime claims
none — landlocked
Natural resources
iron ore, crude oil, timber, magnesite, aluminum, lead, coal, lignite, copper, hydropower
Note
landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys; major river is the Danube
Terrain
mostly mountains with Alps in west and south; mostly flat, with gentle slopes along eastern and northern margins
Total area
83,850 km2; land area: 82,730 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
1 2 births/ 1 ,000 population (1990)
Death rate
11 deaths/ 1,000 population (1990)
Ethnic divisions
99.4% German, 0.3% Croatian, 0.2% Slovene, 0.1% other
Infant mortality rate
6 deaths/ 1,000 live births (1990)
Labor force
3,037,000; 56.4% services, 35.4% industry and crafts, 8.1% agriculture and forestry; an estimated 200,000 Austrians are employed in other European countries; foreign laborers in Austria number 1 77,840, about 6% of labor force (1988)
Language
German
Life expectancy at birth
73 years male, 80 years female (1990)
Literacy
98%
Nationality
noun — Austrian(s); adjective — Austrian
Net migration rate
2 migrants/ 1 ,000 population (1990)
Organized labor
1,672,820 members of Austrian Trade Union Federation (1984)
Population
7,644,275 (July 1990), growth rate 0.3% (1990)
Religion
85% Roman Catholic, 6% Protestant, 9% other
Total fertility rate
1 .5 children born/ woman (1990)
Government
Administrative divisions
9 states (bundesla'nder. singular — bundesland); Burgenland, Karnten, Niederosterreich, Oberosterreich, Salzburg, Steiermark, Tirol, Vorarlberg, Wien
Capital
Vienna
Communists
membership 15,000 est.; activists 7,000-8,000
Constitution
1920, revised 1929 (reinstated 1945)
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador Friedrich HOESS; Embassy at 2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 483-4474; there are Austrian Consulates General in Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York; US — Ambassador Henry A. GRUNWALD; Embassy at Boltzmanngasse 16, A1091, Vienna (mailing address is APO New York 09108); telephone [43] (222) 31-551 1 ; there is a US Consulate General in Salzburg
Elections
President — last held 8 June 1986 (next to be held May 1992); results of Second Ballot— Dr. Kurt Waldheim 53.89%, Dr. Kurt Steyrer 46.1 1%; Federal Council — last held 23 November 1986 (next to be held November 1990); results — percent of vote by party NA; seats— (63 total) OVP 32, SPO 30, FPO 1; National Council — last held 23 November 1986 (next to be held November 1990); results— SPO 43.1%, OVP 41.3%, FPO 9.7%, GAL 4.8%, KPO 0.7%, other 0.32%; seats— (183 total) SPO 80, OVP 77, FPO 18, GAL 8
Executive branch
president, chancellor, vice chancellor, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
Flag
three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and red
Independence
12 November 1918 (from Austro-Hungarian Empire)
Judicial branch
Supreme Judicial Court (Oberster Gerichtshof) for civil and criminal cases. Administrative Court (Verwaltungsgerichtshof) for bureaucratic cases, Constitutional Court (Verfassungsgerichtshof) for constitutional cases
Leaders
Chief of State — President Kurt WALDHEIM (since 8 July 1986); Head of Government — Chancellor Franz VRANITZKY (since 16 June 1986); Vice Chancellor Josef RIEGLER (since 19 May 1989) Political parties and leaders: Socialist Party of Austria (SPO), Franz Vranitzky, chairman; Austrian People's Party (OVP), Josef Riegler, chairman; Freedom Party of Austria (FPO), Jorg Haider, chairman; Communist Party (KPO), Franz Muhri, chairman; Green Alternative List (GAL), Andreas Wabl, chairman
Legal system
civil law system with Roman law origin; judicial review of legislative acts by a Constitutional Court; separate administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
bicameral Federal Assembly (Bundesversammlung) consists of an upper council or Federal Council (Bundesrat) and a lower council or National Council (Nationalrat)
Long-form name
Republic of Austria
Member of
ADB, Council of Europe, CCC, DAC, ECE, EFTA, EMA, ESA, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IDB— Inter-American Development Bank, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, ILZSG, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, ITU, IWC— International Wheat Council, OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WSG; Austria is neutral and is not a member of NATO or the EC
National holiday
National Day, 26 October (1955)
Other political or pressure groups
Federal Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Austrian Trade Union Federation (primarily Socialist); three composite leagues of the Austrian People's Party (OVP) representing business, labor, and farmers; OVP-oriented League of Austrian Industrialists; Roman Catholic Church, including its chief lay organization, Catholic Action
Suffrage
universal at age 19; compulsory for presidential elections
Type
federal republic