Why should I choose Australia?
Australia has much to offer to intended migrants. Things that come to mind include:
• Excellent weather
• Friendly people
• Balanced lifestyle
• Fresh air & clear skies
• Clean & safe
• Great place to raise a family
• Excellent schools & universities
• Peaceful multicultural society
• Political stability
• Outdoor lifestyle & sports
• Lovely beaches
• Wide open spaces
• Technological & sporting achievements
Australia's spectacular natural environment, multicultural communities, food and wine, combined with its weather and lifestyle make it one of the world's most popular destinations for tourists. These qualities also make it one of the best places in the world in which to live and conduct business.
Australia is one of the most popular places in the world for people to travel to or relocate to. The people are cheerful, extrovert, very quick witted (often at the expense of those coming from their mother country - who they refer to as Poms). Australia has a lot going for it, the climate - the fantastic blue skies, the sun always shines, the cold beer, the excellent wine and food, and the white sandy beaches. Life doesn’t get much better.
Australia is the world’s sixth largest country and the largest island, It is the only island that is a continent. However, it has only a relatively small population. It is one of the world's most urbanized countries and has a multicultural society.
Australia has one of the strongest and most outstanding economies in the world. Australia's strong economic growth, low inflation, low interest rate economy has made the economies more vibrant than ever before. There is an efficient government sector, a flexible labour market and a very competitive business sector. Australia has stable and modern institutional structure, which provides certainty to businesses and has a low barrier to trade and investment.
Australia is a stable, culturally diverse and democratic society with a skilled workforce and a strong, competitive economy. With a population of more than 21 million, Australia is the only nation to govern an entire continent and is the sixth largest country in the world in land area. Australia’s multicultural society includes its Indigenous peoples and migrants from some 200 countries.
Economy
Australia has one of the world’s most open and innovative economies and the Australian Government is committed to continue in this direction. Strong growth since the 1990s has been accompanied by strong productivity performance. Australia’s stable economic, political and social environment has led to increased foreign investment in recent years. Since 1990, Australia’s real economy has grown by an average of around 3.3 per cent a year.
Because of major diversification of Australia’s export base, Australia is now not only a commodity exporter, it also has sophisticated manufacturing and service industries. The value of Australia’s exports in goods and services reached $215.8 billion in 2006–07, with service exports comprising $46.2 billion of that figure — 21.4 per cent of total exports. Japan remains Australia’s largest export market ($35.6 billion in 2006), followed by China ($26.4 billion), the United States ($15.5 billion), the Republic of Korea ($14.9 billion) and New Zealand ($12.7 billion).
Australia is strong in information and communications technology infrastructure and innovation. It also has an economic and regulatory environment conducive to business and a well educated and trained workforce.The emergence of e-commerce is projected to add 2.7 per cent to Australian gross domestic product growth over the next ten years.
History of Australia
Australia was originally settled some 40,000 years ago by the descendants of the aboriginals, the word aboriginals meaning “native”. The Aboriginals are divided into many tribes and clans with many different dialects and languages, and their version of creation is called the Dreamtime. They are very spiritual people, They have an extensive knowledge of bush survival skills, and can find water and food in the most barren places, obtaining medicinal plants from the bush.
Their most famous contributions to today’s world from a tourist’s perspective are the didgeridoo and boomerang that make very popular souvenirs.
Australia was claimed by the British in 1770 and originally settled as a penal colony. As the population grew and new areas were explored, the largely self governing colonies were established during the 19th century and became a Federation in 1901, forming the Commonwealth of Australia.
The Australian federation consists of six states and two territories namely New South Wales (NSW), Queensland (QLD), South Australia (SA), Tasmania (TAS), Victoria (VIC), Western Australia (WA), Australian Capital Territory (ACT) & Northern Territory (NT).
Population
Australia has a population of approximately 21 million people, 25% of which were born outside of Australia. English is the main language, but Australia is a multi-cultural country, so it’s not unusual to walk down a city street and hear people speaking Persian, Chinese, Greek, Arabic, Irish, Vietnamese or Italian as their first language.
Geography
Australia’s size is 7,686,850 square kilometers (2,967,909 sq. mi) landmass, with 25,7600 kilometers of coastline, including the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest coral reef and one of the natural wonders of the world.
Australia comprises just five percent of the world’s land area, yet it is the planet’s sixth largest country.
Migrants
Immigration is an important feature of Australian society. Australia is a home to citizens from 200 countries and this has made a major contribution to shaping the modern society. The federal government sets immigration intake numbers on a yearly basis and the policy is non-discriminatory for all applicants to migrate all must meet the same selection criteria.
Australia is currently suffering a skills shortage and is seeking skilled professionals and business people. Australian migration laws provide a range of visas for people who want to work either on a temporary or permanent basis. A number of Australian employers will sponsor workers for both temporary and permanent visas.
A culturally diverse society
Australia is a tolerant and inclusive society—a nation built by people from many different backgrounds. Vietnam, China, Greece and the United Kingdom are among the main countries from which Australians have migrated. Cultural diversity has become a touchstone of Australia’s national identity.
One example of this is the growth of Islam in Australia. Today, Muslims form an increasingly important part of Australia’s diverse, modern society, with the 2006 Census recording more than 340 000 Australian Muslims. Australia accepts and respects the right of all Australians to express and share their individual cultural heritage within an overriding commitment to Australia’s democratic foundations and to English as the national language.
Basic Facts About Australia
· Australia is one of the world’s oldest landmasses and has been populated by human beings for an estimated 60 000 years.
· In 2007, Australia’s population passed 21 million people.
· In over 60 years of planned migration, Australia has welcomed more than 6.5 million migrants from over 200 countries, including more than 660 000 refugees.
· More than 20 percent (five million) Australians speak a second language.
· Since 1990, Australia’s economy has grown by an average of 3.3 percent a year with 17 consecutive years of growth.
· Australia is the only nation to govern an entire continent.
· Australia has 10 percent of the world’s biodiversity and a great number of its native plants, animals and birds exist nowhere else in the world.
· Australia is located in the Southern Hemisphere. It has an area of nearly 7.7 million square kilometers. It is the world's sixth largest nation after Russia, Canada, China, the USA and Brazil.
· Australia is a culturally diverse society.
· English is Australia's official language.
· Australia has an exceptional range of species with more than 80 percent of our mammals, frogs, reptiles and flowering plants found nowhere else in the world.
· Climatic zones range from deserts to snow-capped mountains; from tropical rainforests to cool climate forests. The summer months are December to February, autumn months are March to May, winter months are June to August and spring months are September to November.
· There are three levels of Government in Australia: Commonwealth (also known as 'Australian Government' or 'Federal Government'), State and Local.
· Under the Australian Constitution, the legislative power of the Commonwealth of Australia is vested in the Parliament of the Commonwealth, which consists of the monarch (currently Queen Elizabeth II), the Senate and the House of Representatives.
· The Australian economy has experienced strong growth in recent years producing a high-growth, low-inflation economy.
· Sport plays an important part of the Australian lifestyle. Some popular Australian sports include Australian Rules football, cricket, hockey, netball, rugby league, rugby union, soccer, swimming and tennis.
· Australia has a rich and diverse contemporary arts scene which reflects its society, ancient landscape, cultural traditions and varied mix of migrant cultures. All forms of the performing arts, including music, dance and theatre have strong followings in Australia.
· January 26 is celebrated as Australia Day and is a national public holiday.