The Principality of Liechtenstein was established within the Holy Roman Empire in 1719; it became a sovereign state in 1806. Until the end of World War I, it was closely tied to Austria, but the economic devastation caused by that conflict forced Liechtenstein to enter into a customs and monetary union with Switzerland. Since World War II (in which Liechtenstein remained neutral), the country's low taxes have spurred outstanding economic growth. Shortcomings in banking regulatory oversight resulted in concerns about the use of financial institutions for money laundering. However, Liechtenstein implemented anti-money-laundering legislation over the past several years and a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with the US went into effect in 2003.
total: 40.1 years male: 39.5 years female: 40.5 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.745% (2007 est.)
Birth rate:
10.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate:
7.3 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate:
4.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.979 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.982 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.735 male(s)/female total population: 0.946 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 4.58 deaths/1,000 live births male: 6.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 79.81 years male: 76.24 years female: 83.4 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.51 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
Nationality:
noun: Liechtensteiner(s) adjective: Liechtenstein
Ethnic groups:
Alemannic 86%, Italian, Turkish, and other 14%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 76.2%, Protestant 7%, unknown 10.6%, other 6.2% (June 2002)
Languages:
German (official), Alemannic dialect
Literacy:
definition: age 10 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100%
conventional long form: Principality of Liechtenstein conventional short form: Liechtenstein local long form: Fuerstentum Liechtenstein local short form: Liechtenstein
Government type:
constitutional monarchy
Capital:
name: Vaduz geographic coordinates: 47 09 N, 9 31 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
23 January 1719 (Principality of Liechtenstein established); 12 July 1806 (independence from the Holy Roman Empire)
National holiday:
Assumption Day, 15 August
Constitution:
5 October 1921
Legal system:
local civil and penal codes; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Prince HANS ADAM II (since 13 November 1989, assumed executive powers 26 August 1984); Heir Apparent Prince ALOIS, son of the monarch (born 11 June 1968); note - on 15 August 2004, HANS ADAM transferred the official duties of the ruling prince to ALOIS, but HANS ADAM retains status of chief of state head of government: Head of Government Otmar HASLER (since 5 April 2001); Deputy Head of Government Klaus TSCHUETSCHER (since 21 April 2005) cabinet: Cabinet elected by the Parliament, confirmed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party in the Landtag is usually appointed the head of government by the monarch and the leader of the largest minority party in the Landtag is usually appointed the deputy head of government by the monarch if there is a coalition government
Legislative branch:
unicameral Parliament or Landtag (25 seats; members are elected by popular vote under proportional representation to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 11 and 13 March 2005 (next to be held by 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - FBP 48.7%, VU 38.2%, FL 13%; seats by party - FBP 12, VU 10, FL 3
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Court of Appeal or Obergericht
Political parties and leaders:
Patriotic Union or VU [Adolf HEEB] (was Fatherland Union); Progressive Citizens' Party or FBP [Otmar HASLER]; The Free List or FL [Claudia HEEB-FLECK and Egon MATT]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation:
CE, EBRD, EFTA, IAEA, ICCt, ICRM, IFRCS, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WCL, WIPO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Claudia FRITSCHE chancery: 888 17th Street NW, Suite 1250, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 331-0590 FAX: [1] (202) 331-3221
Diplomatic representation from the US:
the US does not have an embassy in Liechtenstein; the US Ambassador to Switzerland is accredited to Liechtenstein
Flag description:
two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a gold crown on the hoist side of the blue band
general assessment: automatic telephone system domestic: NA international: country code - 423; linked to Swiss networks by cable and microwave radio relay
has strengthened money laundering controls, but money laundering remains a concern due to Liechtenstein's sophisticated offshore financial services sector
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