en northern and southern Europe
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air
Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83,
Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur
94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol

Geographic note: 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

People
------

Population: 8,023,244 (July 1996 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 18% (male 720,696; female 685,179)
15-64 years: 67% (male 2,726,122; female 2,659,162)
65 years and over: 15% (male 451,231; female 780,854) (July 1996
est.)

Population growth rate: 0.41% (1996 est.)

Birth rate: 11.19 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate: 10.43 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net migration rate: 3.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Sex ratio:
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: 0.58 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.94 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 6.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 76.53 years
male: 73.38 years
female: 79.84 years (1996 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.49 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Austrian(s)
adjective: Austrian

Ethnic divisions: German 99.4%, Croatian 0.3%, Slovene 0.2%, other
0.1%

Religions: Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 6%, other 9%

Languages: German

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1974 est.)
total population: 99%
male: NA%
female: NA%

Government
----------

Name of country:
conventional long form: Republic of Austria
conventional short form: Austria
local long form: Republik Oesterreich
local short form: Oesterreich

Data code: AU

Type of government: federal republic

Capital: Vienna

Administrative divisions: 9 states (bundeslaender, singular -
bundesland); Burgenland, Kae