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Compare Guatemala (2004) - Southern Ocean (2007)

Compare Guatemala (2004) z Southern Ocean (2007)

 Guatemala (2004)Southern Ocean (2007)
 GuatemalaSouthern Ocean
Administrative divisions 22 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Chiquimula, El Progreso, Escuintla, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Izabal, Jalapa, Jutiapa, Peten, Quetzaltenango, Quiche, Retalhuleu, Sacatepequez, San Marcos, Santa Rosa, Solola, Suchitepequez, Totonicapan, Zacapa -
Age structure 0-14 years: 42.6% (male 3,118,396; female 2,970,729)


15-64 years: 54% (male 3,898,939; female 3,817,435)


65 years and over: 3.3% (male 221,154; female 253,943) (2004 est.)
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Agriculture - products sugarcane, corn, bananas, coffee, beans, cardamom; cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens -
Airports 452 (2003 est.) -
Airports - with paved runways total: 11


2,438 to 3,047 m: 3


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)
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Airports - with unpaved runways total: 441


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 8


914 to 1,523 m: 109


under 914 m: 323 (2004 est.)
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Area total: 108,890 sq km


land: 108,430 sq km


water: 460 sq km
total: 20.327 million sq km


note: includes Amundsen Sea, Bellingshausen Sea, part of the Drake Passage, Ross Sea, a small part of the Scotia Sea, Weddell Sea, and other tributary water bodies
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Tennessee slightly more than twice the size of the US
Background The Maya civilization flourished in Guatemala and surrounding regions during the first millennium A.D. After almost three centuries as a Spanish colony, Guatemala won its independence in 1821. During the second half of the 20th century, it experienced a variety of military and civilian governments as well as a 36-year guerrilla war. In 1996, the government signed a peace agreement formally ending the conflict, which had led to the death of more than 100,000 people and had created some 1 million refugees. A large body of recent oceanographic research has shown that the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), an ocean current that flows from west to east around Antarctica, plays a crucial role in global ocean circulation. The region where the cold waters of the ACC meet and mingle with the warmer waters of the north defines a distinct border - the Antarctic Convergence - which fluctuates with the seasons, but which encompasses a discrete body of water and a unique ecologic region. The Convergence concentrates nutrients, which promotes marine plant life, and which in turn allows for a greater abundance of animal life. In the spring of 2000, the International Hydrographic Organization decided to delimit the waters within the Convergence as a fifth world ocean - the Southern Ocean - by combining the southern portions of the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean. The Southern Ocean extends from the coast of Antarctica north to 60 degrees south latitude, which coincides with the Antarctic Treaty Limit and which approximates the extent of the Antarctic Convergence. As such, the Southern Ocean is now the fourth largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and Indian Ocean, but larger than the Arctic Ocean). It should be noted that inclusion of the Southern Ocean does not imply recognition of this feature as one of the world's primary oceans by the US Government.
Birth rate 34.58 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) -
Budget revenues: $2.741 billion


expenditures: $3.316 billion, including capital expenditures of $750 million (2003 est.)
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Capital Guatemala -
Climate tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands sea temperatures vary from about 10 degrees Celsius to -2 degrees Celsius; cyclonic storms travel eastward around the continent and frequently are intense because of the temperature contrast between ice and open ocean; the ocean area from about latitude 40 south to the Antarctic Circle has the strongest average winds found anywhere on Earth; in winter the ocean freezes outward to 65 degrees south latitude in the Pacific sector and 55 degrees south latitude in the Atlantic sector, lowering surface temperatures well below 0 degrees Celsius; at some coastal points intense persistent drainage winds from the interior keep the shoreline ice-free throughout the winter
Coastline 400 km 17,968 km
Constitution 31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986; note - suspended 25 May 1993 by former President SERRANO; reinstated 5 June 1993 following ouster of president; amended November 1993 -
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Guatemala


conventional short form: Guatemala


local long form: Republica de Guatemala


local short form: Guatemala
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Currency quetzal (GTQ), US dollar (USD), others allowed -
Death rate 6.79 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) -
Debt - external $4.957 billion (2003 est.) -
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador John R. HAMILTON


embassy: 7-01 Avenida Reforma, Zone 10, Guatemala City


mailing address: APO AA 34024


telephone: [502] 2331-1541/55


FAX: [502] 2334-8477
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Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Guillermo CASTILLO


chancery: 2220 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 745-4952


FAX: [1] (202) 745-1908


consulate(s) general: Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco
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Disputes - international Guatemalan squatters continue to settle in Belize border region; OAS brokered Differendum in 2002 creating small adjustment to land boundary, large Guatemalan maritime corridor in Caribbean, joint ecological park for disputed Sapodilla Cays, and substantial US-UK financial package, but agreement was not brought to popular referendum leaving Guatemala to continue to claim the southern half of Belize intact; numbers of Guatemalans enter Mexico seeking work or transit to the US Antarctic Treaty defers claims (see Antarctica entry), but Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, NZ, Norway, and UK assert claims (some overlapping), including the continental shelf in the Southern Ocean; several states have expressed an interest in extending those continental shelf claims under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to include undersea ridges; the US and most other states do not recognize the land or maritime claims of other states and have made no claims themselves (the US and Russia have reserved the right to do so); no formal claims exist in the waters in the sector between 90 degrees west and 150 degrees west
Economic aid - recipient $250 million (2000 est.) -
Economy - overview Guatemala is the largest and most populous of the Central American countries with a GDP per capita roughly one-half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile. The agricultural sector accounts for about one-fourth of GDP, two-thirds of exports, and half of the labor force. Coffee, sugar, and bananas are the main products. The 1996 signing of peace accords, which ended 36 years of civil war, removed a major obstacle to foreign investment, but widespread political violence and corruption scandals continue to dampen investor confidence. The distribution of income remains highly unequal, with perhaps 75% of the population below the poverty line. Ongoing challenges include increasing government revenues, negotiating further assistance from international donors, upgrading both government and private financial operations, curtailing drug trafficking, and narrowing the trade deficit. Fisheries in 2003-04 landed 136,262 metric tons, of which 87% (118,166 tons) was krill and 8% (11,182 tons) Patagonian toothfish, compared to 142,555 tons in 2002-03 of which 83% (117,728 tons) was krill and 12% (16,479 tons) Patagonian toothfish (estimated fishing from the area covered by the Convention of the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which extends slightly beyond the Southern Ocean area). International agreements were adopted in late 1999 to reduce illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, which in the 2000-01 season landed, by one estimate, 8,376 metric tons of Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish. In the 2004-05 Antarctic summer, 28,202 tourists, most of them seaborne (approximately 97%), visited the Southern Ocean and Antarctica, compared to 14,762 in 1999-2000.
Electricity - consumption 5.559 billion kWh (2001) -
Electricity - exports 336 million kWh (2001) -
Electricity - imports 95 million kWh (2001) -
Electricity - production 6.237 billion kWh (2001) -
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: Volcan Tajumulco 4,211 m
lowest point: -7,235 m at the southern end of the South Sandwich Trench


highest point: sea level 0 m
Environment - current issues deforestation in the Peten rainforest; soil erosion; water pollution increased solar ultraviolet radiation resulting from the Antarctic ozone hole in recent years, reducing marine primary productivity (phytoplankton) by as much as 15% and damaging the DNA of some fish; illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing in recent years, especially the landing of an estimated five to six times more Patagonian toothfish than the regulated fishery, which is likely to affect the sustainability of the stock; large amount of incidental mortality of seabirds resulting from long-line fishing for toothfish


note: the now-protected fur seal population is making a strong comeback after severe overexploitation in the 18th and 19th centuries
Environment - international agreements party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
the Southern Ocean is subject to all international agreements regarding the world's oceans; in addition, it is subject to these agreements specific to the Antarctic region: International Whaling Commission (prohibits commercial whaling south of 40 degrees south [south of 60 degrees south between 50 degrees and 130 degrees west]); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (limits sealing); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (regulates fishing)


note: many nations (including the US) prohibit mineral resource exploration and exploitation south of the fluctuating Polar Front (Antarctic Convergence), which is in the middle of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and serves as the dividing line between the cold polar surface waters to the south and the warmer waters to the north
Ethnic groups Mestizo (mixed Amerindian-Spanish or assimilated Amerindian - in local Spanish called Ladino), approximately 55%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian, approximately 43%, whites and others 2% -
Exchange rates quetzales per US dollar - 7.9409 (2003), 7.8216 (2002), 7.8586 (2001), 7.7632 (2000), 7.3856 (1999) -
Executive branch chief of state: President Oscar Jose Rafael BERGER Perdomo (since 14 January 2004); Vice President Eduardo STEIN Barillas (since 14 January 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Oscar Jose Rafael BERGER Perdomo (since 14 January 2004); Vice President Eduardo STEIN Barillas (since 14 January 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 9 November 2003; runoff held 28 December 2003 (next to be held NA November 2007)


election results: Oscar BERGER Perdomo elected president; percent of vote - Oscar BERGER Perdomo (GANA) 54.1%, Alvaro COLOM (UNE) 45.9%
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Exports NA (2001) -
Exports - commodities coffee, sugar, bananas, fruits and vegetables, cardamom, meat, apparel, petroleum, electricity -
Exports - partners US 56.7%, El Salvador 10.8%, Nicaragua 3.6% (2003) -
Fiscal year calendar year -
Flag description three equal vertical bands of light blue (hoist side), white, and light blue with the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms includes a green and red quetzal (the national bird) and a scroll bearing the inscription LIBERTAD 15 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 1821 (the original date of independence from Spain) all superimposed on a pair of crossed rifles and a pair of crossed swords and framed by a wreath -
GDP purchasing power parity - $56.5 billion (2003 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 22.5%


industry: 18.9%


services: 58.5% (2003 est.)
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GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $4,100 (2003 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 2.1% (2003 est.) -
Geographic coordinates 15 30 N, 90 15 W 60 00 S, 90 00 E (nominally), but the Southern Ocean has the unique distinction of being a large circumpolar body of water totally encircling the continent of Antarctica; this ring of water lies between 60 degrees south latitude and the coast of Antarctica and encompasses 360 degrees of longitude
Geography - note no natural harbors on west coast the major chokepoint is the Drake Passage between South America and Antarctica; the Polar Front (Antarctic Convergence) is the best natural definition of the northern extent of the Southern Ocean; it is a distinct region at the middle of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current that separates the cold polar surface waters to the south from the warmer waters to the north; the Front and the Current extend entirely around Antarctica, reaching south of 60 degrees south near New Zealand and near 48 degrees south in the far South Atlantic coinciding with the path of the maximum westerly winds
Highways total: 14,118 km


paved: 4,871 km (including 74 km of expressways)


unpaved: 9,247 km (1999)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 1.6%


highest 10%: 46% (1998)
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Illicit drugs major transit country for cocaine and heroin; minor producer of illicit opium poppy and cannabis for mostly domestic consumption; proximity to Mexico makes Guatemala a major staging area for drugs (particularly for cocaine); money laundering is a serious problem; corruption is a major problem; remains on Financial Action Task Force Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories List for continued failure to address deficiencies in money-laundering control regime -
Imports NA (2001) -
Imports - commodities fuels, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, grain, fertilizers, electricity -
Imports - partners US 34.1%, Mexico 8.8%, South Korea 7.8%, El Salvador 6.4%, China 4.6% (2003) -
Independence 15 September 1821 (from Spain) -
Industrial production growth rate 4.1% (1999) -
Industries sugar, textiles and clothing, furniture, chemicals, petroleum, metals, rubber, tourism -
Infant mortality rate total: 36.91 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 37.71 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 36.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices) 5.5% (2003 est.) -
International organization participation BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, ONUB, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO -
Irrigated land 1,250 sq km (1998 est.) -
Judicial branch Constitutional Court or Corte de Constitutcionalidad is Guatemala's highest court (five judges are elected for concurrent five-year terms by Congress, each serving one year as president of the Constitutional Court; one is elected by Congress, one elected by the Supreme Court of Justice, one appointed by the President, one elected by Superior Counsel of Universidad San Carlos de Guatemala, and one by Colegio de Abogados); Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (thirteen members serve concurrent five-year terms and elect a president of the Court each year from among their number; the president of the Supreme Court of Justice also supervises trial judges around the country, who are named to five-year terms) -
Labor force 3.84 million (2003 est.) -
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 50%, industry 15%, services 35% (1999 est.) -
Land boundaries total: 1,687 km


border countries: Belize 266 km, El Salvador 203 km, Honduras 256 km, Mexico 962 km
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Land use arable land: 12.54%


permanent crops: 5.03%


other: 82.43% (2001)
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Languages Spanish 60%, Amerindian languages 40% (23 officially recognized Amerindian languages, including Quiche, Cakchiquel, Kekchi, Mam, Garifuna, and Xinca) -
Legal system civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction -
Legislative branch unicameral Congress of the Republic or Congreso de la Republica (158 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 9 November 2003 (next to be held NA November 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - GANA 49, FRG 41, UNE 33, PAN 17, other 18


note: for the 9 November 2003 election, the number of congressional seats increased from 113 to 158
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Life expectancy at birth total population: 65.19 years


male: 64.3 years


female: 66.13 years (2004 est.)
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Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 70.6%


male: 78%


female: 63.3% (2003 est.)
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Location Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Mexico, and bordering the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) between Honduras and Belize body of water between 60 degrees south latitude and Antarctica
Map references Central America and the Caribbean Antarctic Region
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
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Merchant marine none -
Military branches Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force -
Military expenditures - dollar figure $202.6 million (2003) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 0.8% (2003) -
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 3,421,682 (2004 est.) -
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 2,233,562 (2004 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 156,865 (2004 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, 15 September (1821) -
Nationality noun: Guatemalan(s)


adjective: Guatemalan
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Natural hazards numerous volcanoes in mountains, with occasional violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast extremely susceptible to hurricanes and other tropical storms huge icebergs with drafts up to several hundred meters; smaller bergs and iceberg fragments; sea ice (generally 0.5 to 1 m thick) with sometimes dynamic short-term variations and with large annual and interannual variations; deep continental shelf floored by glacial deposits varying widely over short distances; high winds and large waves much of the year; ship icing, especially May-October; most of region is remote from sources of search and rescue
Natural resources petroleum, nickel, rare woods, fish, chicle, hydropower probable large and possible giant oil and gas fields on the continental margin, manganese nodules, possible placer deposits, sand and gravel, fresh water as icebergs; squid, whales, and seals - none exploited; krill, fish
Net migration rate -1.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) -
Pipelines oil 480 km (2004) -
Political parties and leaders Authentic Integral Development or DIA [Eduardo SUGER]; Democratic Union or UD [Rodolfo PAIZ Andrade]; Grand National Alliance or GANA [Oscar BERGER Perdomo]; Green Party or LOV [Rodolfo ROSALES Garcis-Salaz]; Guatemalan Christian Democracy or DCG [Vinicio CEREZO Arevalo]; Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity or URNG [Alba ESTELA Maldonado, secretary general]; Guatemalan Republican Front or FRG [Efrain RIOS Montt]; Movement for Guatemalan Unity or MGU [Jacobo ARBENZ Villanueva]; Movement for Principals and Values or MPV [Francisco BIANCHI]; National Advancement Party or PAN [Leonel LOPEZ Rodas, secretary general]; National Unity for Hope or UNE [Alvarado COLOM Caballeros]; New Nation Alliance or ANN, formed by an alliance of DIA, URNG, and several splinter groups most of whom subsequently defected [led by three co-equal partners - Nineth Varenca MONTENEGRO Cottom, Rodolfo BAUER Paiz, and Jorge Antonio BALSELLS TUT]; Patriot Party or PP [retired General Otto PEREZ Molina]; Progressive Liberator Party or PLP [Acisclo VALLADARES Molina]; Reform Movement or MR [Alfredo SKINNER-KLEE, secretary general]; Unionista Party [leader NA] -
Political pressure groups and leaders Agrarian Owners Group or UNAGRO; Alliance Against Impunity or AAI; Committee for Campesino Unity or CUC; Coordinating Committee of Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial, and Financial Associations or CACIF; Mutual Support Group or GAM -
Population 14,280,596 (July 2004 est.) -
Population below poverty line 75% (2002 est.) -
Population growth rate 2.61% (2004 est.) -
Ports and harbors Champerico, Puerto Barrios, Puerto Quetzal, San Jose, Santo Tomas de Castilla -
Radio broadcast stations AM 130, FM 487, shortwave 15 (2000) -
Railways total: 886 km


narrow gauge: 886 km 0.914-m gauge (2003)
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Religions Roman Catholic, Protestant, indigenous Mayan beliefs -
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female


total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
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Suffrage 18 years of age; universal (active duty members of the armed forces may not vote and are restricted to their barracks on election day) -
Telephone system general assessment: fairly modern network centered in the city of Guatemala


domestic: NA


international: country code - 502; connected to Central American Microwave System; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
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Telephones - main lines in use 846,000 (2002) -
Telephones - mobile cellular 1,577,100 (2002) -
Television broadcast stations 26 (plus 27 repeaters) (1997) -
Terrain mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling limestone plateau (Peten) the Southern Ocean is deep, 4,000 to 5,000 m over most of its extent with only limited areas of shallow water; the Antarctic continental shelf is generally narrow and unusually deep, its edge lying at depths of 400 to 800 m (the global mean is 133 m); the Antarctic icepack grows from an average minimum of 2.6 million sq km in March to about 18.8 million sq km in September, better than a sixfold increase in area; the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (21,000 km in length) moves perpetually eastward; it is the world's largest ocean current, transporting 130 million cubic meters of water per second - 100 times the flow of all the world's rivers
Total fertility rate 4.6 children born/woman (2004 est.) -
Transportation - note - Drake Passage offers alternative to transit through the Panama Canal
Unemployment rate 7.5% (2003 est.) -
Waterways 990 km


note: 260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during high-water season (2004)
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