Greenland (2008) | Argentina (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu (Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland)
note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland |
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 - Antartida e Islas del Atlantico Sur, Tucuman
note: the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 24% (male 6,926/female 6,597)
15-64 years: 69.1% (male 20,901/female 18,012) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 1,873/female 2,035) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.3% (male 5,090,046; female 4,854,761)
15-64 years: 63.2% (male 11,968,135; female 11,937,709) 65 years and over: 10.5% (male 1,636,332; female 2,325,834) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep, reindeer; fish | sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock |
Airports | 14 (2007) | 1,369 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2007) |
total: 145
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 62 914 to 1,523 m: 44 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 1,197 1,225
over 3,047 m: 2 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 50 53 914 to 1,523 m: 572 598 under 914 m: 571 570 (2002) |
Area | total: 2,166,086 sq km
land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.) |
total: 2,766,890 sq km
land: 2,736,690 sq km water: 30,200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than three times the size of Texas | slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US |
Background | Greenland, the world's largest island, is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the EU) with Denmark in 1973, but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute centered on stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament; the law went into effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of Greenland's foreign affairs in consultation with Greenland's Home Rule Government. | 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 authoritarian rule and interference in subsequent governments 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 | 16.01 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 18.23 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.36 billion
expenditures: $1.27 billion (2005) |
revenues: $44 billion
expenditures: $48 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Nuuk (Godthab)
geographic coordinates: 64 11 N, 51 45 W time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Greenland is divided into four time zones |
Buenos Aires |
Climate | arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters | mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest |
Coastline | 44,087 km | 4,989 km |
Constitution | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution) | 1 May 1853; revised August 1994 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Greenland local long form: none local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat |
conventional long form: Argentine Republic
conventional short form: Argentina local long form: Republica Argentina local short form: Argentina |
Currency | - | Argentine peso (ARS) |
Death rate | 7.93 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 7.57 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $25 million (1999) | $155 billion (2001 est.) |
Dependency status | part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) | chief of mission: Ambassador James D. WALSH
embassy: Avenida Colombia 4300, C1425GMN Buenos Aires mailing address: international mail: use street address; APO address: Unit 4334, APO AA 34034 telephone: [54] (11) 5777-4533 FAX: [54] (11) 5777-4240 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) | chief of mission: Ambassador Eduardo AMADEO
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 | managed dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Canada's Ellesmere Island and Greenland | 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 | $512 million; note - subsidy from Denmark (2005) | $10 billion (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | The economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish and a substantial subsidy from the Danish Government, which supplies about half of government revenues. The public sector, including publicly-owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in the economy. Several interesting hydrocarbon and mineral exploration activities are ongoing. Press reports in early 2007 indicated that two international aluminum companies were considering building smelters in Greenland to take advantage of local hydropower potential. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential, and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. Air Greenland began summer-season direct flights to the U.S. east coast in May 2007, potentially opening a major new tourism market. | Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. Over the past decade, however, the country has suffered recurring economic problems of inflation, hugh external debt, capital flight, and budget deficits. Growth in 2000 was a negative 0.5%, as both domestic and foreign investors remained skeptical of the government's ability to pay debts and maintain the peso's fixed exchange rate with the US dollar. The economic situation worsened in 2001 with the widening of spreads on Argentine bonds, massive withdrawals from the banks, and a further decline in consumer and investor confidence. Government efforts to achieve a "zero deficit", to stabilize the banking system, and to restore economic growth proved inadequate in the face of the mounting economic problems. The peso's peg to the dollar was abandoned in January 2002, and the peso was floated in February; the exchange rate plunged and inflation picked up rapidly, but by mid-2002 the economy had stabilized, albeit at a lower level. Output was 14.7% below the previous year's figure, and unemployment remained high, at 21.5%. In order to reverse the crisis some economists recently have advocated that Argentina adopt the US dollar as the national currency, however, others argue tieing the economy closely to the dollar was precisely what led to Argentina's current problems. |
Electricity - consumption | 279 million kWh (2005) | 80.806 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 3.7 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 7.5 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 300 million kWh (2005) | 82.802 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 52%
hydro: 41% nuclear: 7% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunnbjorn 3,700 m |
lowest point: Salinas Chicas -40 m (located on Peninsula Valdes)
highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m |
Environment - current issues | protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting | environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as deforestation, 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: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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: Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (2000) | white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo, Amerindian, or other nonwhite groups 3% |
Exchange rates | Danish kroner per US dollar - 5.4797 (2007), 5.9468 (2006), 5.9969 (2005), 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003) | Argentine pesos per US dollar - 1.33325 (January 2002), 1.000 (1997-2001); note - fixed rate pegged to the US dollar was abandoned in January 2002; peso now floats |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Soren MOLLER (since April 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN (since 14 December 2002) cabinet: Home Rule Government is elected by the parliament (Landstinget) on the basis of the strength of parties elections: the monarchy is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; prime minister is elected by parliament (usually the leader of the majority party); election results: Hans ENOKSEN reelected prime minister note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit |
chief of state: President Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE (since 2 January 2002); note - selected by National Congress in aftermath of resignation of former President DE LA RUA on 20 December 2001 and resignations of others who briefly held the office following DE LA RUA's departure; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and the post remains vacant; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE (since 2 January 2002); note - selected by National Congress in aftermath of resignation of former President DE LA RUA on 20 December 2001 and resignations of others who briefly held the office following DE LA RUA's departure; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and the post remains vacant; 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% ; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and a replacement was not named; DE LA RUA resigned 20 December 2001; following a series of interim presidents, Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE was selected president by the National Congress on 1 January 2002 |
Exports | 149.1 bbl/day (2004) | $26.7 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
Exports - commodities | fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%) | edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed, motor vehicles |
Exports - partners | Denmark 67.1%, Japan 12.1%, China 5.6% (2006) | Brazil 26.5%, US 11.8%, Chile 10.6%, Spain 3.5% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white | 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 - $391 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 28% services: 66% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $10,200 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2005 est.) | -14.7% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 72 00 N, 40 00 W | 34 00 S, 64 00 W |
Geography - note | dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe; sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap | second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Cerro Aconcagua is South America's tallest mountain, while the Valdes Peninsula is the lowest point on the continent |
Highways | - | 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%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | used as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for Europe and the US; some money-laundering activity, especially in the Tri-Border Area; domestic consumption of drugs in urban centers is increasing |
Imports | 4,013 bbl/day (2004) | $20.3 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics |
Imports - partners | Denmark 69.9%, Sweden 16.3%, Norway 3.7% (2006) | Brazil 25.1%, US 18.7%, Germany 5%, China 4.6% (2000) |
Independence | none (extensive self-rule as part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland) | 9 July 1816 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1% (2000 est.) |
Industries | fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold, niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining; handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards | food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel |
Infant mortality rate | total: 14.98 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
17.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2005 est.) | 4% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | Arctic Council, NC, NIB, UPU | AfDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, 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, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 33 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | 15,610 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen) | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (the nine Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president with approval by the Senate) |
Labor force | 32,120 (2004) | 15 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 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: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land: 9.14%
permanent crops: 0.8% other: 90.06% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English | Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French |
Legal system | the laws of Denmark, where applicable, apply | mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Landstinget (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 15 November 2005 (next to be held by December 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Siumut 30.7%, Demokratiit 22.8%, IA 22.6%, Atassut Party 19.1%; Katusseqatigiit 4.1%, other 0.7%; seats by party - Siumut 10, Demokratiit 7, IA 7, Atassut 6, Katusseqatigiit 1 note: two representatives were elected to the Danish Parliament or Folketing on 13 November 2007 (next to be held in November 2011); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1 |
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 - last held 14 October 2001 (next to be held NA October 2003); Chamber of Deputies - last held 14 October 2001 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Justicialist (Peronist) 40, UCR 24, provincial parties 6, Frepaso 1, ARI 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Justicialist (Peronist) 113, UCR 74, provincial parties 27, Frepaso 17, ARI 17, AR 9 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.23 years
male: 66.65 years female: 73.9 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 75.48 years
male: 72.1 years female: 79.03 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2001 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.2% male: 96.2% female: 96.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay |
Map references | Arctic Region | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line |
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 | total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,422 GRT/2,340 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger 1 registered in other countries: 1 (Denmark 1) (2007) |
total: 24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 147,505 GRT/222,500 DWT
ships by type: cargo 9, petroleum tanker 10, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: United Arab Emirates 1, Uruguay 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Denmark | - |
Military branches | - | Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic (includes naval aviation and Marines), Coast Guard, Argentine Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Aeronautical Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $4.3 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.3% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 9,521,633 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 7,721,219 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 335,085 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | June 21 (longest day) | Revolution Day, 25 May (1810) |
Nationality | noun: Greenlander(s)
adjective: Greenlandic |
noun: Argentine(s)
adjective: Argentine |
Natural hazards | continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island | 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 | coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, diamonds, gold, platinum, niobium, tantalite, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas | fertile plains of the Pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium |
Net migration rate | -8.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 4,090 km; petroleum products 2,900 km; natural gas 9,918 km |
Political parties and leaders | Atassut Party (Solidarity) [Finn KARLSEN] (a conservative party favoring continuing close relations with Denmark); Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood) [Josef MOTZFELDT] (a leftist party favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than home rule); Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List) (an independent right-of-center party with no official platform); Siumut (Forward Party) [Hans ENOKSEN] (a social democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic identity and greater autonomy from Denmark) | Action for the Republic or AR [Domingo CAVALLO]; Alternative for a Republic of Equals or ARI [Elisa CARRIO]; Front for a Country in Solidarity or Frepaso (a four-party coalition) [Dario Pedro ALESSANDRO]; Justicialist Party or PJ [Carlos Saul MENEM] (Peronist umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Angel ROZAS]; several provincial parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | 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 | 56,344 (July 2007 est.) | 37,812,817 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 37% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.03% (2007 est.) | 1.13% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | 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 5, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM NA (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998) |
Radios | - | 24.3 million (1997) |
Railways | - | 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 est.) |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran | nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.115 male(s)/female (2007 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 (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and mandatory |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate domestic and international service provided by satellite, cables and microwave radio relay; totally digitalized in 1995
domestic: microwave radio relay and satellite international: country code - 299; satellite earth stations - 12 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 2 Americom GE-2 (all Atlantic Ocean) (2000) |
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 | 25,300 (2002) | 7.5 million (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 32,200 (2004) | 3 million (December 1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus some local low-power stations, and 3 Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS) stations (1997) | 42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast | rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border |
Total fertility rate | 2.4 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.41 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.3% (2005 est.) | 25% (yearend 2001) |
Waterways | - | 10,950 km |