Did You Know: How did Australia Become a Developed Country?

Australia is an enormous country that covers an entire continent. Still, there are fewer people who live in the huge area than in California. That is a bit surprising as Australia’s land area is closer to the United States than to one of its states, but it is also one of the reasons of how did Australia become a developed country. 

In General, What Makes a Country Developed?

There are still a lot of arguments about whether a country is developed or still developing. Some countries are very rich, but they are not considered developed due to some factors. Others are considered as developed despite being less wealthy. Therefore, there are at least three criteria to determine that development status.

Population Growth Rate

For this first criterion, the number required for a developed country is lower. If the rate of population growth of a country is high, that country is still developing. It is because the high rate is caused by the low quality of education and birth control, especially for women, which developed countries can not have.

Gross Domestic Product

Unlike the previous criteria, Gross Domestic Product or GDP needs to be high for developed countries. GDP is one of the most common terms in the topic of developed countries as it is about economic wealth. It is clear that a country must be wealthy to be considered a developed one.

Human Development Index

A country can not be called a developed country if its people do not get a high quality of life. The human development index is used to indicate some important aspects for people such as health, education, service, infrastructure, and others, so the higher the number is, the better.

When did Australia Become a Developed Country?

As a country that gained its independence on January 1, 1901, Australia is a young country, especially if it is compared with other developed countries. Therefore, it was a challenge for the country to be a developed one, which it is right now.

To know the time when Australia became developed, let’s see the three criteria of a developed country above. If a developed country is only determined by population growth, Australia perhaps has become developed since its existence. Until this day, the country has a very small population for such a huge country.

In terms of the economy, Australia had a significant improvement in the 1990s. The country went side by side with a superior country like the United States to gain its GDP per capita. Thanks to that improvement, all Australians can get what they need, hence the high human development index.

Due to the time of the economic improvement, it can be said that Australia became a developed country in the 1990s.

What Makes Australia a Developed Country?

From the three criteria that make a country considered developed, Australia has better numbers than most countries in the world, even those considered developed. The country has one of the lowest numbers of population growth rates and is among the countries with the highest GDP and human development index.

Australia is consistently placed just outside the top ten countries by GDP. It is a huge achievement for a country that is not even in the top 50 of the highest populated countries. Therefore, it is obvious that Australia is in the top ten countries by GDP per capita.

Moreover, Australians are among the world’s happiest people. Thanks to all services provided by the country, the life expectancy of people in Australia is about 80 years. No wonder people love to live in the country. That is how Australia become a developed country.

Why is Australia So Well Developed?

Anything that makes Australia considered developed can not appear out of nowhere. There must be some factors that can be the reason why the country is so well developed. In general, some biggest factors are the country’s resources, government, and people.

Australia’s economy was mainly controlled by a manufacturing-based one, but then, the country also has a service-based economy, which makes the country’s economy grow quickly. Some crucial factors for the economy are the country’s own mining and agriculture.

However, all those resources would be wasted without the people and the government. Australians are open to any kind of needed global trade and investment. They also have low debt and are stable monetarily. Thanks to that, Australia is one of the wealthiest and most developed countries in the world.

Which Part of Australia is the Most Developed?

To compare which part of Australia is the most developed, the country can be divided into two parts namely East and West. Between those two parts, the East is more developed due to some obvious reasons.

Although the part is less developed, the western part of Australia is still great for its tourism. As the part of the country is not dominated by busy areas, it has plenty of interesting natural features. Tourists from around the world love to have vacations in Australia’s eastern part.

On the other hand, most of Australia’s biggest cities such as Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, and the capital Canberra are located in the eastern part of the country. Thanks to that, the infrastructure and services in that part are better and being improved constantly, which makes the part more developed.

As explained, the East is more developed than the West, so the most developed part of Australia is around the eastern part. Out of all the big cities mentioned above, four of them are in the southeastern part of the country. That part is the center of the country’s government and economy, so it is clear that this is the most developed part of Australia.

What Makes Australia Better Than Other Countries?

As a developed country, it is only right for Australia to be better than other countries in some aspects. One of the most obvious ones, Australia is not at all crowded like most developed countries thanks to its low population. It makes many things like services, environment, quality of life, and others better.

Moreover, thanks to its huge area and various climates, the country still hosts many natural beauties despite having busy developed areas. Most countries can not match Australia as they mostly have only one of those features.

Last but not least, Australia is one of the greatest countries to study, work, or both. The country has one of the world’s greatest education systems and working culture with a very high average salary. Also, thanks to its multicultural people, foreigners will love to work, study, and live in Australia.

Knowing how did Australia become a developed country, you might be interested to learn more about the country. Moreover, you might even want to live there, which is great considering your life could not be better than living in a developed country, especially Australia.