LIECHTENSTEIN
GEOGRAPHY
Total area: 160 km2; land area: 160 km2
Comparative area: about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 78 km total; Austria 37 km, Switzerland 41 km
Coastline: none--landlocked
Maritime claims: none--landlocked
Climate: continental; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow or
rain; cool to moderately warm, cloudy, humid summers
Terrain: mostly mountainous (Alps) with Rhine Valley in western
third
Natural resources: hydroelectric potential
Land use: arable land 25%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures
38%; forest and woodland 19%; other 18%
Environment: variety of microclimatic variations based on elevation
Note: landlocked
PEOPLE
Population: 28,476 (July 1991), growth rate 0.6% (1991)
Birth rate: 13 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Infant mortality rate: 5 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Life expectancy at birth: 73 years male, 81 years female (1991)
Total fertility rate: 1.5 children born/woman (1991)
Nationality: noun--Liechtensteiner(s); adjective--Liechtenstein
Ethnic divisions: Alemannic 95%, Italian and other 5%
Religion: Roman Catholic 87.3%, Protestant 8.3%, unknown 1.6%,
other 2.8% (1988)
Language: German (official), Alemannic dialect
Literacy: 100% (male 100%, female 100%) age 10 and over can
read and write (1981)
Labor force: 12,258; 5,078 foreign workers (mostly from
Switzerland and Austria); industry, trade, and building 54.4%; services
41.6%; agriculture, fishing, forestry, and horticulture 4.0%
Organized labor: NA
GOVERNMENT
Long-form name: Principality of Liechtenstein
Type: hereditary constitutional monarchy
Capital: Vaduz
Administrative divisions: 11 communes (gemeinden,
singular--gemeinde); Balzers, Eschen, Gamprin, Mauren, Planken, Ruggell,
Schaan, Schellenberg, Triesen, Triesenberg, Vaduz
Independence: 23 January 1719, Imperial Principality of
Liechtenstein established
Constitution: 5 October 1921
Legal system: local civil and penal codes; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction, with reservations
National holiday: Saint Joseph's Day, 19 March
Executive branch: reigning prince, hereditary prince, head
of government, deputy head of government
Legislative branch: unicameral Diet (Landtag)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof) for criminal
cases and Superior Court (Obergericht) for civil cases
Leaders:
Chief of State--Prince HANS ADAM II (since 13 November 1989;
assumed executive powers 26 August 1984);
Heir Apparent Prince ALOIS von und zu Liechtenstein (born 11 June 1968);
Head of Government--Hans BRUNHART (since 26 April 1978);
Deputy Head of Government Dr. Herbert WILLE (since 2 February 1986)
Political parties and leaders:
Fatherland Union (VU), Dr. Otto HASLER;
Progressive Citizens' Party (FBP), Emanuel VOGT;
Free Electoral List (FW)
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
Diet--last held on 5 March 1989 (next to be held by March 1993);
results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(25 total) VU 13, FBP 12
Communists: none
Member of: CE, CSCE, EBRD, EFTA, IAEA, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC,
ITU, LORCS, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WIPO
Diplomatic representation: in routine diplomatic matters,
Liechtenstein is represented in the US by the Swiss Embassy;
US--the US has no diplomatic or consular mission in Liechtenstein,
but the US Consul General at Zurich (Switzerland) has consular
accreditation at Vaduz
Flag: two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a
gold crown on the hoist side of the blue band
ECONOMY
Overview: The prosperous economy is based primarily on small-scale
light industry and tourism. Industry accounts for 54% of total
employment, the service sector 42% (mostly based on tourism), and
agriculture and forestry 4%. The sale of postage stamps to collectors is
estimated at $10 million annually. Low business taxes (the 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 in
Liechtenstein. Such companies, incorporated solely for tax purposes,
provide 30% of state revenues. The economy is tied closely to that of
Switzerland in a customs union, and incomes and living standards parallel
those of the more prosperous Swiss groups.
GDP: $630 million, per capita $22,300; real growth rate NA% (1990
est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.0% (1989 est.)
Unemployment rate: 0.1% (December 1986)
Budget: revenues $240 million; expenditures $197 million, including
capital expenditures of NA (1988)
Exports: $1.28 billion (1988);
commodities--small specialty machinery, dental products, stamps,
hardware, pottery;
partners--EC 40%, EFTA 22% (Switzerland 18%) (1988)
Imports: $NA;
commodities--machinery, metal goods, textiles, foodstuffs, motor
vehicles;
partners--NA
External debt: $NA
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
Electricity: 23,000 kW capacity; 150 million kWh produced,
5,340 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: electronics, metal manufacturing, textiles, ceramics,
pharmaceuticals, food products, precision instruments, tourism
Agriculture: livestock, vegetables, corn, wheat, potatoes, grapes
Economic aid: none
Currency: Swiss franc, franken, or franco (plural--francs, franken,
or franchi); 1 Swiss franc, franken, or franco (SwF) = 100 centimes,
rappen, or centesimi
Exchange rates: Swiss francs, franken, or franchi (SwF) per
US$1--1.2724 (January 1991), 1.3892 (1990), 1.6359 (1989), 1.4633 (1988),
1.4912 (1987), 1.7989 (1986), 2.4571 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
COMMUNICATIONS
Railroads: 18.5 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, electrified; owned,
operated, and included in statistics of Austrian Federal Railways
Highways: 130.66 km main roads, 192.27 km byroads
Civil air: no transport aircraft
Airports: none
Telecommunications: automatic telephone system; 25,400 telephones;
stations--no AM, no FM, no TV
DEFENSE FORCES
Branches: Police Department
Note: defense is responsibility of Switzerland