Australia Territories & Provinces

Australia is the sixth largest country in the world. Australia is officially known as the Commonwealth, and comprises of six states {provinces}, two mainland territories and thousands of islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is located in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Provinces of Australia are:

STATE ----- CAPITAL

New South Wales ----- Sydney

Queensland ----- Brisbane

Tasmania ----- Hobart

Victoria ----- Melbourne

Western Australia ----- Perth

South Australia ------ Adelaide

The two major mainland Territories are:

Northern Territory (Capital - Darwin)

Australian Capital Territory (Capital - Canberra)

The Northern Territory was administered by the State of South Australia until it was placed under federal government control in 1911.

Aborigines form larger proportion of the population than elsewhere.

The Australian Capital Territory was established in 1911. National government remains its main industry, but private sector employment has expanded and includes production of sophisticated scientific equipment and computer software.

South Australia is the source of many fine wines. The wine producing areas are a major tourist attraction.

Tasmania has substantial farming, mining, forestry and fishing industries. Its landscapes and colonial era buildings are major tourist attractions.

Victoria is the smallest of the mainland states and the most densely populated. In the middle of the nineteenth century, its capital, Melbourne, was the primary city of the Victorian gold rush.

Western Australia is the leading supplier of bulk ores for the world aluminum and steel industries.

The capital of New South Wales is Sydney, the country’s largest and most cosmopolitan city. The city’s icons include its cricket ground, Harbor Bridge and Opera House. Sydney hosted the 2000 Olympic Games.

Most of the territories are directly administered by the Commonwealth government. The distribution of powers between the Commonwealth and the territories is different from that between the Commonwealth and the states.

Each province {state} has a Governor, appointed by the Queen, which she does on the advice of the state Premier. In the Australian Capital Territory the Governor General exercises some powers, as it has neither a Governor nor an Administrator.