El Salvador (2001) | Argentina (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Vicente, Sonsonate, Usulutan | 23 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia), and 1 autonomous city* (distrito federal); Buenos Aires; Buenos Aires Capital Federal*; Catamarca; Chaco; Chubut; Cordoba; Corrientes; Entre Rios; Formosa; Jujuy; La Pampa; La Rioja; Mendoza; Misiones; Neuquen; Rio Negro; Salta; San Juan; San Luis; Santa Cruz; Santa Fe; Santiago del Estero; Tierra del Fuego, Antartica e Islas del Atlantico Sur; Tucuman
note: the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
37.68% (male 1,198,623; female 1,151,584) 15-64 years: 57.27% (male 1,693,865; female 1,878,254) 65 years and over: 5.05% (male 142,345; female 172,991) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
26.54% (male 5,077,593; female 4,842,811) 15-64 years: 63.04% (male 11,795,282; female 11,773,855) 65 years and over: 10.42% (male 1,609,672; female 2,285,603) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products | sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock |
Airports | 83 (2000 est.) | 1,359 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total:
143 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 25 1,524 to 2,437 m: 57 914 to 1,523 m: 48 under 914 m: 9 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
79 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 62 (2000 est.) |
total:
1,216 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 56 914 to 1,523 m: 601 under 914 m: 555 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
21,040 sq km land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
total:
2,766,890 sq km land: 2,736,690 sq km water: 30,200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US |
Background | El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost the lives of some 75,000 people, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms. | Following independence from Spain in 1816, Argentina experienced periods of internal political conflict between conservatives and liberals and between civilian and military factions. After World War II, a long period of Peronist dictatorship was followed by a military junta that took power in 1976. Democracy returned in 1983, and numerous elections since then have underscored Argentina's progress in democratic consolidation. |
Birth rate | 28.67 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.41 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.8 billion expenditures: $2.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues:
$44 billion expenditures: $48 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | San Salvador | Buenos Aires |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands | mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest |
Coastline | 307 km | 4,989 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1983 | 1 May 1853; revised August 1994 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of El Salvador conventional short form: El Salvador local long form: Republica de El Salvador local short form: El Salvador |
conventional long form:
Argentine Republic conventional short form: Argentina local long form: Republica Argentina local short form: Argentina |
Currency | Salvadoran colon (SVC); US dollar (USD) | Argentine peso (ARS) |
Death rate | 6.18 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.58 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.1 billion (2000 est.) | $154 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Rose M. LIKINS embassy: Boulevard Santa Elena Final, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 278-4444 FAX: [503] 278-6011 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador James D. WALSH embassy: Avenida Colombia 4300, 1425 Buenos Aires mailing address: international mail: use street address; APO address: Unit 4334, APO AA 34034 telephone: [54] (11) 4777-4533/4534 FAX: [54] (11) 4511-4997 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Rene Antonio LEON Rodriguez chancery: 2308 California Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9671 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco consulate(s): Boston |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Guillermo Enrique GONZALEZ chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 238-6400 FAX: [1] (202) 332-3171 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York |
Disputes - international | with respect to the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua likely would be required | claims UK-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); claims UK-administered South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica partially overlaps British and Chilean claims |
Economic aid - recipient | total $252 million; $57 million from US (1999 est.) | IMF offer of $13.7 billion (January 2001) |
Economy - overview | El Salvador is a struggling Central American economy which has been suffering from a weak tax collection system, factory closings, the aftermaths of Hurricane Mitch of 1998 and the devastating earthquakes of early 2001, and weak world coffee prices. On the bright side, in recent years inflation has fallen to single digit levels, and total exports have grown substantially. The trade deficit has been offset by remittances (an estimated $1.6 billion in 2000) from Salvadorans living abroad and by external aid. As of 1 January 2001, the US dollar was made legal tender alongside the colon. | Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. However, when President Carlos MENEM took office in 1989, the country had piled up huge external debts, inflation had reached 200% per month, and output was plummeting. To combat the economic crisis, the government embarked on a path of trade liberalization, deregulation, and privatization. In 1991, it implemented radical monetary reforms which pegged the peso to the US dollar and limited the growth in the monetary base by law to the growth in reserves. Inflation fell sharply in subsequent years. In 1995, the Mexican peso crisis produced capital flight, the loss of banking system deposits, and a severe, but short-lived, recession; a series of reforms to bolster the domestic banking system followed. Real GDP growth recovered strongly, reaching 8% in 1997. In 1998, international financial turmoil caused by Russia's problems and increasing investor anxiety over Brazil produced the highest domestic interest rates in more than three years, halving the growth rate of the economy. Conditions worsened in 1999 with GDP falling by 3%. President Fernando DE LA RUA, who took office in December 1999, sponsored tax increases and spending cuts to reduce the deficit, which had ballooned to 2.5% of GDP in 1999. Growth in 2000 was a disappointing 0.8%, as both domestic and foreign investors remained skeptical of the government's ability to pay debts and maintain its fixed exchange rate with the US dollar. One bright spot at the start of 2001 was the IMF's offer of $13.7 billion in support. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.638 billion kWh (1999) | 77.111 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 208 million kWh (1999) | 1.08 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 460 million kWh (1999) | 6.5 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 3.641 billion kWh (1999) | 77.087 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
45.65% hydro: 41.01% nuclear: 0% other: 13.34% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
60.3% hydro: 30.7% nuclear: 8.75% other: 0.25% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m |
lowest point:
Salinas Chicas -40 m (located on Peninsula Valdes) highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes; Hurricane Mitch damage | environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as soil degradation, desertification, air pollution, and water pollution
note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 90%, Amerindian 1%, white 9% | white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo, Amerindian, or other nonwhite groups 3% |
Exchange rates | Salvadoran colones per US dollar - 8.755 (fixed rate since 1993) | Argentine pesos per US dollar - 1.000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Francisco FLORES Perez (since 1 June 1999); Vice President Carlos QUINTANILLA Schmidt (since 1 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Francisco FLORES Perez (since 1 June 1999); Vice President Carlos QUINTANILLA Schmidt (since 1 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: cabinet selected by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: Francisco FLORES Perez elected president; percent of vote - Francisco FLORES (ARENA) 52%, Facundo GUARDADO (FMLN) 29%, Ruben ZAMORA (CDU) 7.5%, other (no individual above 3%) 11.5% |
chief of state:
President Fernando DE LA RUA (since 10 December 1999); Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and a replacement has not yet been named; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Fernando DE LA RUA (since 10 December 1999); Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and a replacement has not yet been named; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Fernando DE LA RUA elected president; percent of vote - 48.5% |
Exports | $2.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $26.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity | edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed, motor vehicles |
Exports - partners | US 63%, Guatemala 11%, Honduras 7%, Costa Rica 4% (1999) | Brazil 24%, EU 21%, US 11% (1999 est.) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band - it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band | three equal horizontal bands of light blue (top), white, and light blue; centered in the white band is a radiant yellow sun with a human face known as the Sun of May |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $24 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $476 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
12% industry: 28% services: 60% (1999 est.) |
agriculture:
6% industry: 32% services: 62% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $12,900 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2000 est.) | 0.8% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 50 N, 88 55 W | 34 00 S, 64 00 W |
Geography - note | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea | second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between South Atlantic and South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage) |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
10,029 km paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways) unpaved: 8,043 km (1997) |
total:
215,434 km paved: 63,553 km (including 734 km of expressways) unpaved: 151,881 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.2% highest 10%: 38.3% (1995) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine; marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic drug abuse on the rise | use as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for Europe and the US; increasing use as a money-laundering center; domestic consumption of drugs in urban centers is increasing |
Imports | $4.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $25.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics |
Imports - partners | US 52%, Guatemala 9%, Mexico 6%, Costa Rica 3% (1999) | EU 28%, US 22%, Brazil 21% (1999 est.) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 9 July 1816 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 1% (2000 est.) |
Industries | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals | food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel |
Infant mortality rate | 28.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 17.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2000 est.) | -0.9% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | AfDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-6, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MTCR, NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 4 (2000) | 33 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 1,200 sq km (1993 est.) | 17,000 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (the nine Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president with approval by the Senate) |
Labor force | 2.35 million (1999) | 15 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 30%, industry 15%, services 55% (1999 est.) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total:
545 km border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km |
total:
9,665 km border countries: Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,224 km, Chile 5,150 km, Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 579 km |
Land use | arable land:
27% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 29% forests and woodland: 5% other: 31% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
9% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 52% forests and woodland: 19% other: 19% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) | Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French |
Legal system | based on civil and Roman law, with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (84 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 12 March 2000 (next to be held NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - ARENA 36.1%, FMLN 35.14%, PCN 8.76%, PDC 7.08%, CD 5.32%, PAN 3.75%, USC 1.47%, PLD 1.29%; seats by party - ARENA 28, FMLN 31, PCN 14, PDC 5, CD 3, PAN 1, independent 2 |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate (72 seats; formerly, three members appointed by each of the provincial legislatures; presently transitioning to one-third of the members being elected every two years to six-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies (257 seats; one-half of the members elected every two years to four-year terms)
elections: Senate - transition phase will begin in the 2001 elections when all seats will be fully contested; winners will randomly draw to determine whether they will serve a two-year, four-year, or full six-year term, beginning a rotating cycle renovating one-third of the body every two years; Chamber of Deputies - last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2001) election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Peronist 40, UCR 20, Frepaso 1, other 11; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Alliance 124 (UCR 85, Frepaso 36, others 3), Peronist 101, AR 12, other 20 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
70.03 years male: 66.43 years female: 73.81 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
75.26 years male: 71.88 years female: 78.82 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 10 and over can read and write total population: 71.5% male: 73.5% female: 69.8% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96.2% male: 96.2% female: 96.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Middle America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
200 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total:
26 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 185,355 GRT/281,475 DWT ships by type: cargo 9, petroleum tanker 11, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 2 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic (includes Naval Aviation, Marines, and Coast Guard), Argentine Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Aeronautical Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $112 million (FY99) | $4.3 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.7% (FY99) | 1.3% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,464,898 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
9,404,434 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
929,263 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
7,625,425 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 20 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
68,103 (2001 est.) |
males:
335,085 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Revolution Day, 25 May (1810) |
Nationality | noun:
Salvadoran(s) adjective: Salvadoran |
noun:
Argentine(s) adjective: Argentine |
Natural hazards | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity | San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the Pampas and northeast; heavy flooding |
Natural resources | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land | fertile plains of the Pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium |
Net migration rate | -3.95 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.64 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 4,090 km; petroleum products 2,900 km; natural gas 9,918 km |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rene AGUILUZ]; Democratic Convergence or CD (includes PSD, MNR, MPSC) [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general]; Democratic Party or PD [Jorge MELENDEZ]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Fabio CASTILLO]; Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Kirio Waldo SALGADO, president]; National Action Party or PAN [Gustavo Rogelio SALINAS, secretary general]; National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ Zepeda, president]; National Republican Alliance or ARENA [Walter ARAUJO]; Social Christian Union or USC (formed by the merger of Christian Social Renewal Party or PRSC and Unity Movement or MU) [Abraham RODRIGUEZ, president] | Action for the Republic or AR [Domingo CAVALLO]; Front for a Country in Solidarity or Frepaso (a four-party coalition) [Carlos ALVAREZ]; Justicialist Party or PJ [Carlos Saul MENEM] (Peronist umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Raul ALFONSIN]; several provincial parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | labor organizations - Electrical Industry Union of El Salvador or SIES; Federation of the Construction Industry, Similar Transport and other activities, or FESINCONTRANS; National Confederation of Salvadoran Workers or CNTS; National Union of Salvadoran Workers or UNTS; Port Industry Union of El Salvador or SIPES; Salvadoran Union of Ex-Petrolleros and Peasant Workers or USEPOC; Salvadoran Workers Central or CTS; Workers Union of Electrical Corporation or STCEL; business organizations - National Association of Small Enterprise or ANEP; Salvadoran Assembly Industry Association or ASIC; Salvadoran Industrial Association or ASI | Argentine Association of Pharmaceutical Labs (CILFA); Argentine Industrial Union (manufacturers' association); Argentine Rural Society (large landowners' association); business organizations; General Confederation of Labor or CGT (Peronist-leaning umbrella labor organization); Peronist-dominated labor movement; Roman Catholic Church; students |
Population | 6,237,662 (July 2001 est.) | 37,384,816 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 48% (1999 est.) | 37% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.85% (2001 est.) | 1.15% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco, La Libertad, La Union, Puerto El Triunfo | Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia, Concepcion del Uruguay, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Necochea, Rio Gallegos, Rosario, Santa Fe, Ushuaia |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM NA (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998) |
Radios | 2.75 million (1997) | 24.3 million (1997) |
Railways | total:
562 km narrow gauge: 562 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of route which is operational is reduced to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintainance (2001) |
total:
33,744 km (167 km electrified) broad gauge: 20,594 km 1.676-m gauge (141 km electrified) standard gauge: 2,739 km 1.435-m gauge (26 km electrified) narrow gauge: 10,154 km 1.000-m gauge; 257 km 0.750-m gauge (2000) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 86%
note: there is extensive activity by Protestant groups throughout the country; by the end of 1992, there were an estimated 1 million Protestant evangelicals in El Salvador |
nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and mandatory |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
general assessment:
by opening the telecommunications market to competition and foreign investment with the "Telecommunications Liberalization Plan of 1998", Argentina encouraged the growth of modern telecommunication technology; fiber-optic cable trunk lines are being installed between all major cities; the major networks are entirely digital and the availability of telephone service is being improved; however, telephone density is presently minimal, and making telephone service universally available will take some time domestic: microwave radio relay, fiber-optic cable, and a domestic satellite system with 40 earth stations serve the trunk network; more than 110,000 pay telephones are installed and mobile telephone use is rapidly expanding international: satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); Atlantis II and Unisur submarine cables; two international gateways near Buenos Aires (1999) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 380,000 (1998) | 7.5 million (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 40,163 (1997) | 3 million (December 1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1997) | 42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau | rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border |
Total fertility rate | 3.34 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.44 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (2000 est.) | 15% (December 2000) |
Waterways | Rio Lempa partially navigable | 10,950 km |