1987 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1987 (Internet Archive)
Geography
Climate
continental; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow or rain; cool to moderately warm, cloudy, humid summers
Comparative area
slightly smaller than Washington, D.C.
Environment
variety of microclimatic variations based on elevation
Land boundaries
76 km total
Land use
25% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 38% meadows and pastures; 19% forest and woodland; 18% other
Special notes
landlocked
Terrain
mostly mountainous (Alps) with Rhine Valley in western third
Total area
160 km?; land area: 160 km?
People and Society
Ethnic divisions
95% Alemannic, 5% Italian and other
Infant mortality rate
6.3/1,000 (1985)
Labor force
12,258; 5,078 foreign workers (mostly from Switzerland and Austria); 54.4% industry, trade, and building; 41.6% services; 4.0% agriculture, fishing, forestry, and horticulture; no unemployment
Language
German (official), Alemannic dialect
Life expectancy
men 65, women 74
Literacy
100%
Nationality
noun—Liechtensteiner(s); adjective—Liechtenstein
Population
27,074 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 0.59%
Religion
82.7% Roman Catholic, 7.1% Protestant, 10.2% other
Government
Administrative divisions
11 communes
Branches
unicameral legislature (Diet) with 15 deputies elected to four-year terms, hereditary Prince, independent judiciary
Capital
Vaduz
Communists
none
Elections
every four years; last election Political parties and leaders: Fatherland Union (VU), Dr. Otto Hasler; Progressive Citizens’ Party (FBP), Dr. Herbert Batliner; Christian Social Party, Fritz Kaiser
Government leaders
FRANZ JOSEF II, Prince (since 1938); Hans BRUNHART, Head of Government (Prime Minister; since May 1978); the Prince transferred most of his executive powers to his son, Prince HANS ADAM, in August 1984
Legal system
principality has its own civil and penal codes; lowest court is county court (Landgericht) which decides minor civil cases and summary criminal offenses; criminal court (Kriminalgericht) is for major crimes; the court of assizes is for misdemeanors; Superior Court (Obergericht) and Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof) are courts of appeal for civil and criminal cases; an administrative court of appeal from government actions and the State Court determine the constitutionality of laws; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Member of
Council of Europe, EFTA, IAEA, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, ITU, UNCTAD, UNIDO, UNICEF, UPU, WIPO; considering UN membership; has consultative status in the EC; under several post-World War I treaties Switzerland handles Liechtenstein’s customs and represents the principality abroad on a diplomatic and consular level whenever requested to do so by the Liechtenstein
Official name
Principality of Liechtenstein
Suffrage
universal adult
Type
hereditary constitutional monarchy
Voting strength
(1986) VU 50.2% (8 seats), FBP about 41.9% (7 seats)
Economy
Agriculture
livestock, vegetables, corn, wheat, potatoes, grapes
Budget
revenues, $108 million; expenditures, $86 million (1983)
Electric power
23,000 kW capacity; 150 million kWh produced, 5,360 kWh per capita (1986)
Exports
(1984) $440 million; 39% EC, 82% EFTA (24% Switzerland), 29% other
GNP
about $15,000 per capita (1984)
Major industries
electronics, metal manufacturing, textiles, ceramics, pharmaceuticals, food products
Monetary conversion rate
1.69 Swiss francs=US$1 (November 1986)
Natural resources
hydroelectric power
Note
Liechtenstein has a prosperous economy based primarily on small-scale light industry and some farming; industry accounts for 54% of total employment, service sector 42%, and agriculture and forestry 4%; the sale of postage stamps to collectors, estimated at $10 million annually, provides for 10% of state budget; companies incorporated in Liechtenstein solely for tax purposes provide an additiona] 30% of the state budget; low business taxes (maximum tax rate is 20%) and easy incorporation rules have induced about 25,000 holding or so-called letter box companies, to establish nominal offices there; economy is tied closely to that of Switzerland in a customs union; no national accounts data are available
Communications
Airfields
none
Civil air
no transport aircraft
Highways
130.66 km main roads, 192.27 km byroads
Railroads
18.5 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, electrified; owned, operated, and included in statistics of Austrian Federal Railways
Telecommunications
automatic telephone system serving about 21,400 telephones (77.0 per 100 popl.); no broadcast facilities
Military and Security
Branches
Police Department