Equatorial Guinea (2004) | Mexico (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas | 31 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Colima, Distrito Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro de Arteaga, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz-Llave, Yucatan, Zacatecas |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42% (male 110,268; female 109,222)
15-64 years: 54.3% (male 136,370; female 147,431) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,745; female 11,015) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 31.6% (male 16,913,290; female 16,228,552)
15-64 years: 62.9% (male 31,975,391; female 34,090,440) 65 years and over: 5.5% (male 2,618,713; female 3,133,208) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber | corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; beef, poultry, dairy products; wood products |
Airports | 3 (2003 est.) | 1,827 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 less than 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 233
over 3,047 m: 12 2,438 to 3,047 m: 28 1,524 to 2,437 m: 84 914 to 1,523 m: 80 under 914 m: 29 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 1,600
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 69 914 to 1,523 m: 454 under 914 m: 1,075 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 28,051 sq km
land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1,972,550 sq km
land: 1,923,040 sq km water: 49,510 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly less than three times the size of Texas |
Background | Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President OBIANG NGUEM MBASOGO has ruled the country for over two decades since seizing power from his uncle, then President MACIAS, in a 1979 coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 legislative elections - were widely seen as being flawed. The president controls most opposition parties through the judicious use of patronage. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the country's living standards. | The site of advanced Amerindian civilizations, Mexico came under Spanish rule for three centuries before achieving independence early in the 19th century. A devaluation of the peso in late 1994 threw Mexico into economic turmoil, triggering the worst recession in over half a century. The nation continues to make an impressive recovery. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities for the largely Amerindian population in the impoverished southern states. Elections held in July 2000 marked the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that the opposition defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) was sworn in on 1 December 2000 as the first chief executive elected in free and fair elections. |
Birth rate | 36.56 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 21.44 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $708.5 million
expenditures: $317.6 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues: $148.3 billion
expenditures: $152.4 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | Malabo | Mexico (Distrito Federal) |
Climate | tropical; always hot, humid | varies from tropical to desert |
Coastline | 296 km | 9,330 km |
Constitution | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995 | 5 February 1917 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea
conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea |
conventional long form: United Mexican States
conventional short form: Mexico local long form: Estados Unidos Mexicanos local short form: Mexico |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States | Mexican peso (MXN) |
Death rate | 12.27 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 4.73 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $248 million (2000 est.) | $159.8 billion (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); the US ambassador to Cameroon is accredited to Equatorial Guinea; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo | chief of mission: Ambassador Antonio O. GARZA
embassy: Paseo de la Reforma 305, Colonia Cuauhtemoc, 06500 Mexico, Distrito Federal mailing address: P. O. Box 9000, Brownsville, TX 78520-0900 telephone: [52] (55) 5080-2000 FAX: [52] (55) 5525-5040 consulate(s) general: Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Tijuana consulate(s): Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida, Nogales, Nuevo, Laredo |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Teodoro Biyogo NSUE
chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 518-5252 |
chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Carlos Alberto de ICAZA Gonzalez
chancery: 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 728-1600 FAX: [1] (202) 728-1698 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Laredo (Texas), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Nogales (Arizona), Phoenix, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico) consulate(s): Albuquerque, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Indianapolis (Indiana), Kansas City (Missouri), Las Vegas, McAllen (Texas), Omaha, Orlando, Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon), Presidio (Texas), Raleigh, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, Santa Ana (California), Seattle, Tucson, Yuma (Arizona) |
Disputes - international | in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River, imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision, and the unresolved Bakasi allocation contribute to the delay in implementation; creation of a maritime boundary in hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay with Gabon is hampered by dispute over Mbane Island, administered and occupied by Gabon since the 1970s | prolonged drought, population growth, and outmoded practices and infrastructure in the border region have strained water-sharing arrangements with the US; nationals from Central America slip into Mexico seeking work or transit into the US; undocumented Mexican nationals continue to enter the United States |
Economic aid - recipient | $33.8 million (1995) | $1.166 billion (1995) |
Economy - overview | The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been unsuccessfully trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth will remain strong in 2004, led by oil. | Mexico has a free market economy with a mixture of modern and outmoded industry and agriculture, increasingly dominated by the private sector. Recent administrations have expanded competition in seaports, railroads, telecommunications, electricity generation, natural gas distribution, and airports. Per capita income is one-fourth that of the US; income distribution remains highly unequal. Trade with the US and Canada has tripled since the implementation of NAFTA in 1994. Real GDP growth was a weak -0.3% in 2001, 0.9% in 2002, and 1.2% in 2003, with the US slowdown the principal cause. Mexico implemented free trade agreements with Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and the European Free Trade Area in 2001, putting more than 90% of trade under free trade agreements. The government is cognizant of the need to upgrade infrastructure, modernize the tax system and labor laws, and provide incentives to invest in the energy sector, but progress is slow. |
Electricity - consumption | 21.91 million kWh (2001) | 186.7 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 77 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 2.068 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 23.56 million kWh (2001) | 198.6 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m |
lowest point: Laguna Salada -10 m
highest point: Volcan Pico de Orizaba 5,700 m |
Environment - current issues | tap water is not potable; deforestation | scarcity of hazardous waste disposal facilities; rural to urban migration; natural fresh water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; raw sewage and industrial effluents polluting rivers in urban areas; deforestation; widespread erosion; desertification; deteriorating agricultural lands; serious air and water pollution in the national capital and urban centers along US-Mexico border; land subsidence in Valley of Mexico caused by groundwater depletion
note: the government considers the lack of clean water and deforestation national security issues |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish | mestizo (Amerindian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%, white 9%, other 1% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999) | Mexican pesos per US dollar - 10.789 (2003), 9.656 (2002), 9.3423 (2001), 9.4556 (2000), 9.5604 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup)
head of government: Prime Minister Miguel Abia BITEO BORICO (since 14 June 2004); First Deputy Prime Minister Miguel OYONO NDONG (since NA January 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Demetrio Elo NDONG NZE FUMU (since NA January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud |
chief of state: President Vicente FOX Quesada (since 1 December 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Vicente FOX Quesada (since 1 December 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; note - appointment of attorney general requires consent of the Senate elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held 2 July 2006) election results: Vicente FOX Quesada elected president; percent of vote - Vicente FOX Quesada (PAN) 42.52%, Francisco LABASTIDA Ochoa (PRI) 36.1%, Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (PRD) 16.64%, other 4.74% |
Exports | NA (2001) | 1.881 million bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa | manufactured goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits, vegetables, coffee, cotton |
Exports - partners | US 33.6%, Spain 25.8%, China 14.4%, Canada 11.8%, Italy 6.4% (2003) | US 87.6%, Canada 1.8%, Germany 1.2% (2003) |
Fiscal year | 1 January - 31 December | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice) | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake in its beak) is centered in the white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.27 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $941.2 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 20%
industry: 60% services: 2.4% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 4%
industry: 26.4% services: 69.6% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9,000 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 20% (2002 est.) | 1.3% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 N, 10 00 E | 23 00 N, 102 00 W |
Geography - note | insular and continental regions rather widely separated | strategic location on southern border of US; corn (maize), one of the world's major grain crops, is thought to have originated in Mexico |
Heliports | - | 2 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total: 2,880 km (1999 est.) | total: 329,532 km
paved: 108,087 km (including 6,429 km of expressways) unpaved: 221,445 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 35.6% (2002) |
Illicit drugs | - | illicit cultivation of opium poppy (cultivation in 2001 - 4,400 hectares; potential heroin production - 7 metric tons) and of cannabis (in 2001 - 4,100 hectares); government eradication efforts have been key in keeping illicit crop levels low; major supplier of heroin and largest foreign supplier of marijuana and methamphetamine to the US market; continues as the primary transshipment country for US-bound cocaine from South America, accounting for about 70 percent of estimated annual cocaine movement to the US; major drug syndicates control majority of drug trafficking throughout the country; producer and distributor of ecstasy; significant money-laundering center |
Imports | NA (2001) | 374,700 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum sector equipment, other equipment | metalworking machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts |
Imports - partners | US 30.6%, UK 16%, France 15.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 11.9%, Spain 8.1%, Norway 5.9%, Italy 5.3% (2003) | US 61.8%, China 5.5%, Japan 4.5% (2003) |
Independence | 12 October 1968 (from Spain) | 16 September 1810 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 30% (2002 est.) | -0.7% (2003 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas | food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 87.08 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 93.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 21.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.63 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6% (2003 est.) | 4.5% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | APEC, BCIE, BIS, CDB, CE (observer), EBRD, FAO, G-3, G-6, G-15, G-19, G-24, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM (observer), NEA, OAS, OECD, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMOVIC, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 65,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Tribunal | Supreme Court of Justice or Suprema Corte de Justicia Nacional (justices or ministros are appointed by the president with consent of the Senate) |
Labor force | NA (October 2000) | 34.11 million (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 18%, industry 24%, services 58% (2003) |
Land boundaries | total: 539 km
border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km |
total: 4,353 km
border countries: Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,141 km |
Land use | arable land: 4.63%
permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (2001) |
arable land: 12.99%
permanent crops: 1.31% other: 85.7% (2001) |
Languages | Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo | Spanish, various Mayan, Nahuatl, and other regional indigenous languages |
Legal system | partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom | mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held 24 April 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PDGE 80%, UP 6%, CPDS 5%; seats by party - PDGE 75, UP 4 and CPDS 1 note: Parliament has little power since the constitution vests all executive authority in the president |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso de la Union consists of the Senate or Camara de Senadores (128 seats; 96 are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms, and 32 are allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote) and the Federal Chamber of Deputies or Camara Federal de Diputados (500 seats; 300 members are directly elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; remaining 200 members are allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote, also for three-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 July 2000 for all of the seats (next to be held 2 July 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 6 July 2003 (next to be held 2 July 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRI 60, PAN 46, PRD 16, PVEM 5, unassigned 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRI 222, PAN 151, PRD 95, PVEM 17, PT 6, CD 5, unassigned 4; note - special elections were held in December 2003; the PRI and the PRD each won one seat and were each assigned one additional proportional representation seat |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 55.15 years
male: 53 years female: 57.36 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 74.94 years
male: 72.18 years female: 77.83 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.7% male: 93.3% female: 78.4% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.2% male: 94% female: 90.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon | Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, between Belize and the US and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and the US |
Map references | Africa | North America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,556 GRT/9,704 DWT
by type: cargo 2, passenger/cargo 1 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 50 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 649,389 GRT/942,766 DWT
by type: bulk 1, cargo 3, chemical tanker 3, combination ore/oil 1, liquefied gas 5, petroleum tanker 25, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea/passenger 3 foreign-owned: Denmark 1, Germany 1, Greece 1, Marshall Islands 1, Netherlands 2 registered in other countries: 13 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force | National Defense Secretariat (Sedena) (including Army and Air Force), Navy Secretariat (including Naval Air and Marines) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $75.1 million (2003) | $5,168.3 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.5% (2003) | 0.9% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 120,463 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 27,374,153 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 61,084 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 19,755,614 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 1,055,368 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 October (1968) | Independence Day, 16 September (1810) |
Nationality | noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s)
adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean |
noun: Mexican(s)
adjective: Mexican |
Natural hazards | violent windstorms, flash floods | tsunamis along the Pacific coast, volcanoes and destructive earthquakes in the center and south, and hurricanes on the Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean coasts |
Natural resources | oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium, titanium, iron ore | petroleum, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -4.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 37 km; gas 39 km; liquid natural gas 4 km; oil 24 km (2004) | crude oil 28,200 km; petroleum products 10,150 km; natural gas 13,254 km; petrochemical 1,400 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO] | Convergence for Democracy or CD [Dante DELGADO Ranauro]; Institutional Revolutionary Party or PRI [Roberto MADRAZO Pintado]; Mexican Green Ecological Party or PVEM [Jorge Emilio GONZALEZ Martinez]; National Action Party or PAN [Luis Felipe BRAVO Mena]; Party of the Democratic Revolution or PRD [Leonel GODOY]; Workers Party or PT [Alberto ANAYA Gutierrez] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Confederation of Employers of the Mexican Republic or COPARMEX; Confederation of Industrial Chambers or CONCAMIN; Confederation of Mexican Workers or CTM; Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce or CONCANACO; Coordinator for Foreign Trade Business Organizations or COECE; Federation of Unions Providing Goods and Services or FESEBES; National Chamber of Transformation Industries or CANACINTRA; National Peasant Confederation or CNC; National Union of Workers or UNT; Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers or CROM; Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants or CROC; Roman Catholic Church |
Population | 523,051 (July 2004 est.) | 104,959,594 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 40% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.43% (2004 est.) | 1.18% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bata, Luba, Malabo | Acapulco, Altamira, Bahias de Huatulco, Cabo San Lucas, Coatzacoalcos, Dos Bocas, Ensenada, Guaymas, Lazaro Cardenas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Puerto Progreso, Puerto Madero, Puerto Vallarta, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Topolobampo, Tuxpan, Veracruz (2003) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002) | AM 850, FM 545, shortwave 15 (2003) |
Railways | - | total: 19,510 km
standard gauge: 19,510 km 1.435-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices | nominally Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 6%, other 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal adult | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory (but not enforced) |
Telephone system | general assessment: poor system with adequate government services
domestic: NA international: country code - 240; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: low telephone density with about 15.2 main lines per 100 persons; privatized in December 1990; the opening to competition in January 1997 improved prospects for development, but Telemex remains dominant
domestic: adequate telephone service for business and government, but the population is poorly served; mobile subscribers far outnumber fixed-line subscribers; domestic satellite system with 120 earth stations; extensive microwave radio relay network; considerable use of fiber-optic cable and coaxial cable international: country code - 52; satellite earth stations - 32 Intelsat, 2 Solidaridad (giving Mexico improved access to South America, Central America, and much of the US as well as enhancing domestic communications), numerous Inmarsat mobile earth stations; linked to Central American Microwave System of trunk connections; high capacity Columbus-2 fiber-optic submarine cable with access to the US, Virgin Islands, Canary Islands, Morocco, Spain, and Italy (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 9,600 (2003) | 15,958,700 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 41,500 (2003) | 28.125 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 236 (plus repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic | high, rugged mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus; desert |
Total fertility rate | 4.68 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.49 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 30% (1998 est.) | 3.3% plus underemployment of perhaps 25% (2003) |
Waterways | - | 2,900 km
note: navigable rivers and coastal canals (2004) |