Compare Bangladesh (2007) - Costa Rica (2008)

Compare Bangladesh (2007) z Costa Rica (2008)

	Bangladesh (2007)	Costa Rica (2008)

Administrative divisions	6 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, Sylhet	7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Alajuela, Cartago, Guanacaste, Heredia, Limon, Puntarenas, San Jose
Age structure	0-14 years: 33.1% (male 25,639,640/female 24,174,937) 15-64 years: 63.4% (male 48,659,087/female 46,712,687) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 2,818,638/female 2,443,350) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 27.8% (male 587,395/female 560,408) 15-64 years: 66.4% (male 1,388,114/female 1,357,157) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 111,758/female 129,052) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry	bananas, pineapples, coffee, melons, ornamental plants, sugar, corn, rice, beans, potatoes; beef; timber
Airports	16 (2007)	151 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 15 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2007)	total: 36 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 21 under 914 m: 11 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)	total: 115 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 96 (2007)
Area	total: 144,000 sq km land: 133,910 sq km water: 10,090 sq km	total: 51,100 sq km land: 50,660 sq km water: 440 sq km note: includes Isla del Coco
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Iowa	slightly smaller than West Virginia
Background	Europeans began to set up trading posts in the area of Bangladesh in the 16th century; eventually the British came to dominate the region and it became part of British India. In 1947, West Pakistan and East Bengal (both primarily Muslim) separated from India (largely Hindu) and jointly became the new country of Pakistan. East Bengal became East Pakistan in 1955, but the awkward arrangement of a two-part country with its territorial units separated by 1,600 km left the Bengalis marginalized and dissatisfied. East Pakistan seceded from its union with West Pakistan in 1971 and was renamed Bangladesh. About a third of this extremely poor country floods annually during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development.	Although explored by the Spanish early in the 16th century, initial attempts at colonizing Costa Rica proved unsuccessful due to a combination of factors, including: disease from mosquito-infested swamps, brutal heat, resistance by natives, and pirate raids. It was not until 1563 that a permanent settlement of Cartago was established in the cooler, fertile central highlands. The area remained a colony for some two and a half centuries. In 1821, Costa Rica became one of several Central American provinces that jointly declared their independence from Spain. Two years later it joined the United Provinces of Central America, but this federation disintegrated in 1838, at which time Costa Rica proclaimed its sovereignty and independence. Since the late 19th century, only two brief periods of violence have marred the country's democratic development. Although it still maintains a large agricultural sector, Costa Rica has expanded its economy to include strong technology and tourism industries. The standard of living is relatively high. Land ownership is widespread.
Birth rate	29.36 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	18.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $6.633 billion expenditures: $9.34 billion (2006 est.)	revenues: $3.572 billion expenditures: $3.843 billion (2007 est.)
Capital	name: Dhaka geographic coordinates: 23 43 N, 90 24 E time difference: UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: San Jose geographic coordinates: 9 56 N, 84 05 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October)	tropical and subtropical; dry season (December to April); rainy season (May to November); cooler in highlands
Coastline	580 km	1,290 km
Constitution	4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972; suspended following coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986; amended many times	7 November 1949
Country name	conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh conventional short form: Bangladesh local long form: Gana Prajatantri Banladesh local short form: Banladesh former: East Bengal, East Pakistan	conventional long form: Republic of Costa Rica conventional short form: Costa Rica local long form: Republica de Costa Rica local short form: Costa Rica
Death rate	8.13 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	4.39 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$19.59 billion (2006 est.)	$7.163 billion (30 June 2007)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Geeta PASI embassy: Madani Avenue, Baridhara, Dhaka 1212 mailing address: G. P. O. Box 323, Dhaka 1000 telephone: [880] (2) 885-5500 FAX: [880] (2) 882-3744	chief of mission: Ambassador Mark LANGDALE embassy: Calle 120 Avenida O, Pavas, San Jose mailing address: APO AA 34020 telephone: [506] 519-2000 FAX: [506] 519-2305
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador M. Humayun KABIR chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183 FAX: [1] (202) 244-5366 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York	chief of mission: Ambassador Tomas DUENAS chancery: 2114 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-2945 FAX: [1] (202) 265-4795 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Hammond (temporary location in Louisiana), Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Tampa (temporarily closed), Washington, DC consulate(s): San Francisco
Disputes - international	discussions with India remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, exchange territory for 51 small Bangladeshi exclaves in India and 111 small Indian exclaves in Bangladesh, allocate divided villages, and stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, violence, and transit of terrorists through the porous border; Bangladesh resists India's attempts to fence or wall off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; a joint Bangladesh-India boundary inspection in 2005 revealed 92 pillars are missing; dispute with India over New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; 21,000 Burmese Rohingya Muslim refugees reside in two camps in Bangladesh	in September 2005, Costa Rica took its case before the ICJ to advocate the navigation, security, and commercial rights of Costa Rican vessels using the Río San Juan over which Nicaragua retains sovereignty
Economic aid - recipient	$1.321 billion (2005)	$29.51 million (2005)
Economy - overview	Despite sustained domestic and international efforts to improve economic and demographic prospects, Bangladesh remains a poor, overpopulated, and inefficiently-governed nation. Although more than half of GDP is generated through the service sector, nearly two-thirds of Bangladeshis are employed in the agriculture sector, with rice as the single-most-important product. Major impediments to growth include frequent cyclones and floods, inefficient state-owned enterprises, inadequate port facilities, a rapidly growing labor force that cannot be absorbed by agriculture, delays in exploiting energy resources (natural gas), insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. Reform is stalled in many instances by political infighting and corruption at all levels of government. Opposition from the bureaucracy, public sector unions, and other vested interest groups also have blocked progress. The BNP government, led by Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA, has the parliamentary strength to push through needed reforms, but the party's political will to do so has been lacking in key areas. On an encouraging note, growth has been a steady 5-6% for the past several years.	Costa Rica's basically stable economy depends on tourism, agriculture, and electronics exports. Poverty has remained at roughly 20% for nearly 20 years, and the strong social safety net that had been put into place by the government has eroded due to increased financial constraints on government expenditures. Immigration from Nicaragua has increasingly become a concern for the government. The estimated 300,000-500,000 Nicaraguans estimated to be in Costa Rica legally and illegally are an important source of (mostly unskilled) labor, but also place heavy demands on the social welfare system. Foreign investors remain attracted by the country's political stability and high education levels, as well as the fiscal incentives offered in the free-trade zones. Exports have become more diversified in the past 10 years due to the growth of the high-tech manufacturing sector, which is dominated by the microprocessor industry. Tourism continues to bring in foreign exchange, as Costa Rica's impressive biodiversity makes it a key destination for ecotourism. The government continues to grapple with its large internal and external deficits and sizable internal debt. Reducing inflation remains a difficult problem because of rising import prices, labor market rigidities, and fiscal deficits. Tax and public expenditure reforms will be necessary to close the budget gap. In October 2007, a national referendum voted in favor of the US-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). CAFTA implementation needs to be completed by March 1, 2008 and would result in an improved investment climate.
Electricity - consumption	19.49 billion kWh (2005)	7.776 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	70 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	81 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	21.35 billion kWh (2005)	8.349 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro Chirripo 3,810 m
Environment - current issues	many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; water-borne diseases prevalent in surface water; water pollution, especially of fishing areas, results from the use of commercial pesticides; ground water contaminated by naturally occurring arsenic; intermittent water shortages because of falling water tables in the northern and central parts of the country; soil degradation and erosion; deforestation; severe overpopulation	deforestation and land use change, largely a result of the clearing of land for cattle ranching and agriculture; soil erosion; coastal marine pollution; fisheries protection; solid waste management; air pollution
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	Bengali 98%, other 2% (includes tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims) (1998)	white (including mestizo) 94%, black 3%, Amerindian 1%, Chinese 1%, other 1%
Exchange rates	taka per US dollar - 69.031 (2006), 64.328 (2005), 59.513 (2004), 58.15 (2003), 57.888 (2002)	Costa Rican colones per US dollar - 519.53 (2007), 511.3 (2006), 477.79 (2005), 437.91 (2004), 398.66 (2003)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Iajuddin AHMED (since 6 September 2002) note: the country has a caretaker government until a general election is held; Iajuddin AHMED remains as President and Minister of Defense, and all other Cabinet portfolios are held by Caretaker Advisers (CAs); the Chief CA, Fakhruddin AHMED, is roughly equivalent to a prime minister elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election scheduled for 16 September 2002 was not held since Iajuddin AHMED was the only presidential candidate; he was sworn in on 6 September 2002 (next election NA); following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Iajuddin AHMED declared president-elect by the Election Commission; he ran unopposed as president; percent of National Parliament vote - NA	chief of state: President Oscar ARIAS Sanchez (since 8 May 2006); First Vice President Laura CHINCHILLA (since 8 May 2006); Second Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Oscar ARIAS Sanchez (since 8 May 2006); First Vice President Laura CHINCHILLA (since 8 May 2006); Second Vice President (vacant) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president elections: president and vice presidents elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single four-year term; election last held 5 February 2006 (next to be held in February 2010) election results: Oscar ARIAS Sanchez elected president; percent of vote - Oscar ARIAS Sanchez (PLN) 40.9%; Otton SOLIS (PAC) 39.8%, Otto GUEVARA Guth (PML) 8%, Ricardo TOLEDO (PUSC) 3%
Exports	NA bbl/day	2,998 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood (2001)	bananas, pineapples, coffee, melons, ornamental plants, sugar; seafood; electronic components, medical equipment
Exports - partners	US 25%, Germany 12.6%, UK 9.8%, France 4.9% (2006)	US 27.5%, Netherlands 12.2%, China 11.7%, UK 6.2%, Mexico 5.8% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 July - 30 June	calendar year
Flag description	green field with a large red disk shifted slightly to the hoist side of center; the red disk represents the rising sun and the sacrifice to achieve independence; the green field symbolizes the lush vegetation of Bangladesh	five horizontal bands of blue (top), white, red (double width), white, and blue, with the coat of arms in a white elliptical disk on the hoist side of the red band; above the coat of arms a light blue ribbon contains the words, AMERICA CENTRAL, and just below it near the top of the coat of arms is a white ribbon with the words, REPUBLICA COSTA RICA
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 19.7% industry: 28% services: 52.3% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 8.6% industry: 29.4% services: 62.1% (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	6.4% (2006 est.)	6.1% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates	24 00 N, 90 00 E	10 00 N, 84 00 W
Geography - note	most of the country is situated on deltas of large rivers flowing from the Himalayas: the Ganges unites with the Jamuna (main channel of the Brahmaputra) and later joins the Meghna to eventually empty into the Bay of Bengal	four volcanoes, two of them active, rise near the capital of San Jose in the center of the country; one of the volcanoes, Irazu, erupted destructively in 1963-65
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.7% highest 10%: 27.9% (2000 est.)	lowest 10%: 1% highest 10%: 37.4% (2003)
Illicit drugs	transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries	transshipment country for cocaine and heroin from South America; illicit production of cannabis in remote areas; domestic cocaine consumption, particularly crack cocaine, is rising; significant consumption of amphetamines
Imports	NA bbl/day	43,640 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs, petroleum products, cement	raw materials, consumer goods, capital equipment, petroleum, construction materials
Imports - partners	China 17.7%, India 12.5%, Kuwait 7.9%, Singapore 5.5%, Hong Kong 4.1% (2006)	US 41.2%, Venezuela 5.4%, Mexico 5.2%, Ireland 5%, Japan 4.9%, Brazil 4.3%, China 4.1% (2006)
Independence	16 December 1971 (from West Pakistan); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is known as Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh	15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Industrial production growth rate	7.2% (2006 est.)	7% (2007 est.)
Industries	cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar	microprocessors, food processing, medical equipment, textiles and clothing, construction materials, fertilizer, plastic products
Infant mortality rate	total: 59.12 deaths/1,000 live births male: 60.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 58.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 9.45 deaths/1,000 live births male: 10.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6.8% (2006 est.)	9.3% (2007 est.)
International organization participation	ARF, AsDB, BIMSTEC, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	47,250 sq km (2003)	1,080 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president)	Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (22 justices are elected for renewable eight-year terms by the Legislative Assembly)
Labor force	68 million note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $4.8 billion in 2005-06. (2006 est.)	1.946 million note: this official estimate excludes Nicaraguans living in Costa Rica (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 63% industry: 11% services: 26% (FY95/96)	agriculture: 14% industry: 22% services: 64% (2006 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 4,246 km border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km	total: 639 km border countries: Nicaragua 309 km, Panama 330 km
Land use	arable land: 55.39% permanent crops: 3.08% other: 41.53% (2005)	arable land: 4.4% permanent crops: 5.87% other: 89.73% (2005)
Languages	Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English	Spanish (official), English
Legal system	based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on Spanish civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies; members serve five-year terms elections: last held 1 October 2001 (the scheduled January 2007 election has been postponed) election results: percent of vote by party - BNP and alliance partners 41%, AL 40%, other 19%; seats by party - BNP 193, AL 58, JI 17, JP (Ershad faction) 14, IOJ 2, JP (Manzur) 4, other 12; note - the election of October 2001 brought to power a majority BNP government aligned with three other smaller parties - JI, IOJ, and Jatiya Party (Manzur)	unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (57 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 5 February 2006 (next to be held in February 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PLN 25, PAC 17, PML 6, PUSC 5, PASE 1, PFA 1, PRN 1, PUN 1
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 62.84 years male: 62.81 years female: 62.86 years (2007 est.)	total population: 77.21 years male: 74.61 years female: 79.94 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 43.1% male: 53.9% female: 31.8% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96% male: 95.9% female: 96.1% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India	Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Nicaragua and Panama
Map references	Asia	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 18 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: up to the outer limits of the continental margin	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 41 ships (1000 GRT or over) 328,530 GRT/468,509 DWT by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 27, container 6, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4 foreign-owned: 1 (China 1) registered in other countries: 9 (Comoros 1, Honduras 1, Malta 3, Panama 1, Singapore 2, St Vincent and The Grenadines 1) (2007)	total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,058 GRT/255 DWT by type: passenger/cargo 1 (2007)
Military branches	Bangladesh Defense Force: Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Navy, Bangladesh Air Force (Bangladesh Biman Bahini, BAF) (2006)	no regular military forces; Ministry of Public Security, Government, and Police (2006)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.5% (2006)	0.4% (2006)
National holiday	Independence Day, 26 March (1971); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh	Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Nationality	noun: Bangladeshi(s) adjective: Bangladeshi	noun: Costa Rican(s) adjective: Costa Rican
Natural hazards	droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season	occasional earthquakes, hurricanes along Atlantic coast; frequent flooding of lowlands at onset of rainy season and landslides; active volcanoes
Natural resources	natural gas, arable land, timber, coal	hydropower
Net migration rate	-0.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	gas 2,604 km (2006)	refined products 242 km (2007)
Political parties and leaders	Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA]; Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP [Saifuddin Ahmed MANIK]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIA]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ [Mufti Fazlul Haq AMINI]; Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh or JIB [Matiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP (Ershad faction) [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]; Jatiya Party (Manzur faction) [Naziur Rahman MANZUR]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Badrudozza CHOWDHURY and Oli AHMED]	Authentic Member from Heredia [Jose SALAS]; Citizen Action Party or PAC [Epsy CAMPBELL Barr]; Costa Rican Renovation Party or PRC [Gerardo Justo OROZCO Alvarez]; Democratic Force Party or PFD [Marco NUNEZ Gonzalez]; General Union Party or PUGEN [Carlos Alberto FERNANDEZ Vega]; Homeland First or PP [Juan Jose VARGAS Fallas]; Independent Worker Party or PIO [Jose Alberto CUBERO Carmona]; Libertarian Movement Party or PML [Otto GUEVARA Guth]; National Christian Alliance Party or ANC [Juan Carlos CHAVEZ Mora]; National Integration Party or PIN [Walter MUNOZ Cespedes]; National Liberation Party or PLN [Francisco Antonio PACHECO Fernandez]; National Patriotic Party or PPN [Daniel Enrique REYNOLDS Vargas]; National Restoration Party or PRN [Fabio Enrique DELGADO Hernandez]; National Union Party or PUN [Arturo ACOSTA Mora]; Nationalist Democratic Alliance or ADN [Jose Miguel VILLALOBOS Umana]; Patriotic Union or UP [Jose Miguel CORRALES Bolanos]; Social Christian Unity Party or PUSC [Luis FISHMAN Zonzinski]; Union for Change Party or UPC [Antonio ALVAREZ Desanti]; United Leftist Coalition or IU [Humberto VARGAS Carbonel]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Authentic Confederation of Democratic Workers or CATD (Communist Party affiliate); Chamber of Coffee Growers; Confederated Union of Workers or CUT (Communist Party affiliate); Costa Rican Confederation of Democratic Workers or CCTD (Liberation Party affiliate); Costa Rican Exporter's Chamber or CADEXCO; Costa Rican Solidarity Movement; Costa Rican Union of Private Sector Enterprises or UCCAEP [Rafael CARRILLO]; Federation of Public Service Workers or FTSP; National Association for Economic Development or ANFE; National Association of Educators or ANDE; National Association of Public and Private Employees or ANEP [Albino VARGAS]; Rerum Novarum or CTRN (PLN affiliate) [Gilbert BROWN]
Population	150,448,339 (July 2007 est.)	4,133,884 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	45% (2004 est.)	18% (2004 est.)
Population growth rate	2.056% (2007 est.)	1.412% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 15, FM 13, shortwave 2 (2006)	AM 65, FM 51, shortwave 19 (2002)
Railways	total: 2,768 km broad gauge: 946 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)	total: 278 km narrow gauge: 278 km 1.067-m gauge note: none of the railway network is in use (2007)
Religions	Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998)	Roman Catholic 76.3%, Evangelical 13.7%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.3%, other Protestant 0.7%, other 4.8%, none 3.2%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.061 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.042 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.154 male(s)/female total population: 1.052 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.048 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.023 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.866 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Telephone system	general assessment: totally inadequate for a modern country; fixed-line telephone density of less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of 13 per 100 persons domestic: modernizing; introducing digital systems; trunk systems include VHF and UHF microwave radio relay links, and some fiber-optic cable in cities international: country code - 880; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-4 fiber-optic submarine cable system that provides links to Europe, the Middle East and Asia; satellite earth stations - 6; international radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring countries (2007)	general assessment: good domestic telephone service in terms of breadth of coverage; restricted cellular telephone service; state-run monopoly provider is struggling with the demand for new lines, resulting in long waiting times domestic: point-to-point and point-to-multi-point microwave, fiber-optic, and coaxial cable link rural areas; Internet service is available international: country code - 506; landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber-optic telecommunications submarine cable and the MAYA-1 submarine cable that provide links to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; connected to Central American Microwave System; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use	1.134 million (2006)	1.351 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	19.131 million (2006)	1.444 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	15 (1999)	20 (plus 43 repeaters) (2002)
Terrain	mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast	coastal plains separated by rugged mountains including over 100 volcanic cones, of which several are major volcanoes
Total fertility rate	3.09 children born/woman (2007 est.)	2.21 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	2.5% (includes underemployment) (2006 est.)	5.5% (2007 est.)
Waterways	8,370 km note: includes up to 3,060 km main cargo routes; network reduced to 5,200 km in dry season (2006)	730 km (seasonally navigable by small craft) (2007)

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