Australia is the sixth largest country in the world. It's about the same size as the 48 mainland states of the USA and 50 per cent larger than Europe. The capital city of Australia is Canberra is located in the Australian Capital Territory. Australia's total population being 21 million, is mainly concentrated in the vibrant, sophisticated and welcoming cities of Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, and Adelaide. Australia is renowned for its stunning scenery, friendly people and also voted as the best place in the world to live. Great Barrier Reef and Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Sydney Opera House and many more are the areas in Australia which are on the World Heritage list. Australia is home to citizens from some 200 countries, making it the most multilingual workforce in the Asia–Pacific region. Economically Australia is currently doing very well. It has a stable and competitive economy. As of July 2009, there were 10,772,200 people employed, with an unemployment rate at a low of 5.2 %. Australia is experiencing a severe skills shortage because; a high number of its population is aged. There is a huge need of skilled labor from overseas to cater for the skill shortages.
Australia is a developed country, with a prosperous multicultural society and has excellent results in many international comparisons of national performance such as health care, life expectancy, quality of life, human development, public education, economic freedom, and the protection of civil liberties and political rights. Australian cities routinely rank among the worlds highest in terms of cultural offerings and quality of life. It is a member of the United Nations, G-20 major economies, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, OECD, and the WTO.