Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of (2003) | Nicaragua (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 123 municipalities (opstini, singular - opstina); Aracinovo, Bac, Belcista, Berovo, Bistrica, Bitola, Blatec, Bogdanci, Bogomila, Bogovinje, Bosilovo, Brvenica, Cair (Skopje), Capari, Caska, Cegrane, Centar (Skopje), Centar Zupa, Cesinovo, Cucer-Sandevo, Debar, Delcevo, Delogozdi, Demir Hisar, Demir Kapija, Dobrusevo, Dolna Banjica, Dolneni, Dorce Petrov (Skopje), Drugovo, Dzepciste, Gazi Baba (Skopje), Gevgelija, Gostivar, Gradsko, Ilinden, Izvor, Jegunovce, Kamenjane, Karbinci, Karpos (Skopje), Kavadarci, Kicevo, Kisela Voda (Skopje), Klecevce, Kocani, Konce, Kondovo, Konopiste, Kosel, Kratovo, Kriva Palanka, Krivogastani, Krusevo, Kuklis, Kukurecani, Kumanovo, Labunista, Lipkovo, Lozovo, Lukovo, Makedonska Kamenica, Makedonski Brod, Mavrovi Anovi, Meseista, Miravci, Mogila, Murtino, Negotino, Negotino-Polosko, Novaci, Novo Selo, Oblesevo, Ohrid, Orasac, Orizari, Oslomej, Pehcevo, Petrovec, Plasnica, Podares, Prilep, Probistip, Radovis, Rankovce, Resen, Rosoman, Rostusa, Samokov, Saraj, Sipkovica, Sopiste, Sopotnica, Srbinovo, Star Dojran, Staravina, Staro Nagoricane, Stip, Struga, Strumica, Studenicani, Suto Orizari (Skopje), Sveti Nikole, Tearce, Tetovo, Topolcani, Valandovo, Vasilevo, Velesta, Veles, Vevcani, Vinica, Vitoliste, Vranestica, Vrapciste, Vratnica, Vrutok, Zajas, Zelenikovo, Zeleno, Zitose, Zletovo, Zrnovci
note: the seven municipalities followed by Skopje in parentheses collectively constitute "greater Skopje" |
15 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 2 autonomous regions* (regiones autonomistas, singular - region autonomista); Atlantico Norte*, Atlantico Sur*, Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales, Esteli, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia, Rio San Juan, Rivas |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.9% (male 235,102; female 217,574)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 700,929; female 691,552) 65 years and over: 10.6% (male 96,039; female 121,926) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 37.2% (male 1,036,487/female 999,226)
15-64 years: 59.7% (male 1,623,065/female 1,638,017) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 73,935/female 94,370) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, tobacco, wheat, corn, millet, cotton, sesame, mulberry leaves, citrus, vegetables; beef, pork, poultry, mutton | coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products |
Airports | 18 (2002) | 176 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 under 914 m: 8 (2002) |
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
total: 165
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 141 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 25,333 sq km
land: 24,856 sq km water: 477 sq km |
total: 129,494 sq km
land: 120,254 sq km water: 9,240 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Vermont | slightly smaller than the state of New York |
Background | International recognition of The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia's (F.Y.R.O.M.) independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 was delayed by Greece's objection to the new state's use of what it considered a Hellenic name and symbols. Greece finally lifted its trade blockade in 1995, and the two countries agreed to normalize relations, despite continued disagreement over F.Y.R.O.M.'s use of "Macedonia." F.Y.R.O.M.'s large Albanian minority, an ethnic Albanian armed insurgency in F.Y.R.O.M. in 2001, and the status of neighboring Kosovo continue to be sources of ethnic tension. | The Pacific Coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. Free elections in 1990, 1996, and again in 2001 saw the Sandinistas defeated. The country has slowly rebuilt its economy during the 1990s, but was hard hit by Hurricane Mitch in 1998. |
Birth rate | 13.2 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 24.88 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.13 billion
expenditures: $1.02 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $725.5 million
expenditures: $1.039 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Skopje | Managua |
Climate | warm, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall | tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 910 km |
Constitution | adopted 17 November 1991, effective 20 November 1991
note: in November of 2001, the Macedonian Parliament approved a series of new constitutional amendments strengthening minority rights |
9 January 1987; reforms in 1995 and 2000 |
Country name | conventional long form: The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
conventional short form: none local long form: Republika Makedonija local short form: Makedonija abbreviation: F.Y.R.O.M. |
conventional long form: Republic of Nicaragua
conventional short form: Nicaragua local long form: Republica de Nicaragua local short form: Nicaragua |
Currency | Macedonian denar (MKD) | - |
Death rate | 7.78 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 4.49 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (2001 est.) | $4.573 billion (2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Laurence Edward BUTLER
embassy: Bul. Ilinden bb, 91000 Skopje mailing address: American Embassy Skopje, Department of State, 7120 Skopje Place, Washington, DC 20521-7120 (pouch) telephone: [389] 116-180 FAX: [389] 117-103 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Barbara Calandra MOORE
embassy: Kilometer 4.5 Carretera Sur, Managua mailing address: APO AA 34021 telephone: [505] 266-6010 FAX: [505] 266-9074 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Nikola DIMITROV
chancery: Suite 302, 1101 30th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 337-3063 FAX: [1] (202) 337-3093 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Salvador STADTHAGEN (since 5 December 2003)
chancery: 1627 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6570, [1] (202) 939-6573 FAX: [1] (202) 939-6545 consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco |
Disputes - international | the Albanian government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians in F.Y.R.O.M. while continuing to seek regional cooperation; ethnic Albanians in Kosovo continue to protest 2000 F.Y.R.O.M.-Serbia and Montenegro boundary treaty, which transfers small tracts of land to F.Y.R.O.M.; dispute with Greece over country's name persists | Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over disputed maritime boundary involving 50,000 sq km in the Caribbean Sea, including the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank; the 1992 ICJ ruling for El Salvador and Honduras advised a tripartite resolution to establish a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca, which considers Honduran access to the Pacific; legal dispute over navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica |
Economic aid - recipient | $150 million (2001 est.) | $541.8 million (2003) |
Economy - overview | At independence in November 1991, Macedonia was the least developed of the Yugoslav republics, producing a mere 5% of the total federal output of goods and services. The collapse of Yugoslavia ended transfer payments from the center and eliminated advantages from inclusion in a de facto free trade area. An absence of infrastructure, UN sanctions on Yugoslavia, one of its largest markets, and a Greek economic embargo over a dispute about the country's constitutional name and flag hindered economic growth until 1996. GDP subsequently rose each year through 2000. However, the leadership's commitment to economic reform, free trade, and regional integration was undermined by the ethnic Albanian insurgency of 2001. The economy shrank 4.5% because of decreased trade, intermittent border closures, increased deficit spending on security needs, and investor uncertainty. Growth barely recovered in 2002 to 0.3%, then rose to 2.8% in 2003. Unemployment at one-third of the workforce remains the most critical economic problem. But even this issue is overshadowed by the fragile political situation. | Nicaragua, one of the hemisphere's poorest countries, faces low per capita income, massive unemployment, and huge external debt. Distribution of income is one of the most unequal on the globe. While the country has made progress toward macroeconomic stability over the past few years, GDP annual growth has been far too low to meet the country's needs. As a result of successful performance under its International Monetary Fund policy program and other efforts, Nicaragua qualified in early 2004 for some $4 billion in foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Even after this reduction, however, the government continues to bear a significant foreign and domestic debt burden. If ratified, the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) will provide an opportunity for Nicaragua to attract investment, create jobs, and deepen economic development. While President BOLANOS enjoys the support of the international financial bodies, his internal political base is meager. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.112 billion kWh (2001) | 2.318 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 6.8 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 100 million kWh (2001) | 15.3 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 6.465 billion kWh (2001) | 2.553 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 83.7%
hydro: 16.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Vardar River 50 m
highest point: Golem Korab (Maja e Korabit) 2,753 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from metallurgical plants | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
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, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | Macedonian 64.2%, Albanian 25.2%, Turkish 3.8%, Roma 2.7%, Serb 1.8%, other 2.3% (1994) | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5% |
Exchange rates | Macedonian denars per US dollar - 64.35 (2002), 68.04 (2001), 65.9 (2000), 56.9 (1999), 54.46 (1998) | gold cordobas per US dollar - 15.937 (2004), 15.105 (2003), 14.251 (2002), 13.372 (2001), 12.684 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Boris TRAJKOVSKI (since 15 December 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Branko CRVENKOVSKI (since 1 November 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the majority vote of all the deputies in the Assembly; note - current cabinet formed by the government coalition parties SDSM, LDP, and DUI (or BDI) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 November 1999 (next to be held NA October 2004); prime minister elected by the Assembly; election last held 1 November 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Boris TRAJKOVSKI elected president on second-round ballot; percent of vote - Boris TRAJKOVSKI 52.4%, Tito PETKOVSKI 46.2%; Branko CRVENKOVSKI elected prime minister by Parliament with 72% of the vote |
chief of state: President Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (since 10 January 2002); Vice President Jose RIZO Castellon (since 10 January 2002); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (since 10 January 2002); Vice President Jose RIZO Castellon (since 10 January 2002); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 4 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (PLC) elected president - 56.3%, Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (FSLN) 42.3%, Alberto SABORIO (PCN) 1.4%; Jose RIZO Castellon elected vice president |
Exports | NA (2001) | 738 bbl/day (2003) |
Exports - commodities | food, beverages, tobacco; miscellaneous manufactures, iron and steel | coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts |
Exports - partners | Germany 19.2%, Italy 9.2%, US 6.7%, Croatia 5.5%, Greece 4.6% (2002) | US 64.8%, El Salvador 7%, Mexico 3.6% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | a yellow sun with eight broadening rays extending to the edges of the red field | 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 triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on the top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; similar to the flag of El Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10.57 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11%
industry: 31% services: 58% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 20.7%
industry: 24.7% services: 54.6% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,100 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.7% (2002 est.) | 4% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 41 50 N, 22 00 E | 13 00 N, 85 00 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; major transportation corridor from Western and Central Europe to Aegean Sea and Southern Europe to Western Europe | largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua |
Highways | total: 8,684 km
paved: 5,540 km (including 133 km of expressways) unpaved: 3,144 km (1999 est.) |
total: 18,712 km
paved: 2,126 km unpaved: 16,586 km (2002) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 45% (2001) |
Illicit drugs | major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish; minor transit point for South American cocaine destined for Europe; while money laundering is a problem on a local level due to organized crime activities, the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center | transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing |
Imports | NA (2001) | 27,950 bbl/day (2003) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; food products | consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Greece 19.4%, Germany 14.4%, Bulgaria 7.5%, Slovenia 6.9%, Italy 6.9%, Turkey 5.9%, Ukraine 5%, Austria 4.1% (2002) | US 22.6%, Costa Rica 8.5%, Venezuela 8.4%, Guatemala 6.8%, Mexico 5.8%, El Salvador 4.9%, South Korea 4.5% (2004) |
Independence | 8 September 1991 referendum by registered voters endorsing independence (from Yugoslavia) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | -5% (2002 est.) | 4.4% (2000 est.) |
Industries | coal, metallic chromium, lead, zinc, ferronickel, textiles, wood products, tobacco, food processing, buses | food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.14 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.08 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 29.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 32.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.1% (2002 est.) | 9.3% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 550 sq km (1998 est.) | 880 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court - Parliament appoints the judges; Constitutional Court - Parliament appoints the judges; Republican Judicial Council - Parliament appoints the judges | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly) |
Labor force | 1.1 million (2000 est.) | 1.93 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 30.5%, industry 17.3%, services 52.2% (2003 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 766 km
border countries: Albania 151 km, Bulgaria 148 km, Greece 246 km, Serbia and Montenegro 221 km |
total: 1,231 km
border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km |
Land use | arable land: 23.59%
permanent crops: 1.85% other: 74.56% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 15.94%
permanent crops: 1.94% other: 82.12% (2001) |
Languages | Macedonian 70%, Albanian 21%, Turkish 3%, Serbo-Croatian 3%, other 3% | Spanish 97.5% (official), Miskito 1.7%, other 0.8% (1995 census)
note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast |
Legal system | based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts | civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts |
Legislative branch | unicameral Assembly or Sobranie (120 seats - 85 members are elected by popular vote, 35 members come from lists of candidates submitted by parties based on the percentage that a party gains from the overall vote; all serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 September 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Together for Macedonia coalition (SDSM and LDP) 60, VMRO-DPMNE 33, Democratic Union for Integration 16, Democratic Party of Albanians 7, Party for Democratic Prosperity 2, National Democratic Party 1, Socialist Party of Macedonia 1 |
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (92 seats; members are elected by proportional representation and party lists to serve five-year terms; one seat for previous President, one seat for runner-up in previous Presidential election
elections: last held 4 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - Liberal Alliance (ruling party - includes PCCN, PLC, PALI, PLIUN, and PUCA) 46.03%, FSLN 36.55%, PCN 2.12%; seats by party - Liberal Alliance 53, FSLN 38, PCN 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.49 years
male: 72.23 years female: 76.94 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 70.33 years
male: 68.27 years female: 72.49 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 67.5% male: 67.2% female: 67.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, north of Greece | Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 200 nm
continental shelf: natural prolongation |
Military branches | Army (ARM), Air and Air Defense Forces, Police Force | Army (includes Navy, Air Force) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $200 million (FY01/02 est.) | $32.8 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 6% (FY01/02 est.) | 0.7% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 553,988 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 446,726 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 17,909 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Uprising Day, 2 August (1903); note - also known as Saint Elijah's Day and Ilinden | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
Nationality | noun: Macedonian(s)
adjective: Macedonian |
noun: Nicaraguan(s)
adjective: Nicaraguan |
Natural hazards | high seismic risks | destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes |
Natural resources | chromium, lead, zinc, manganese, tungsten, nickel, low-grade iron ore, asbestos, sulfur, timber, arable land | gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish |
Net migration rate | -1.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -1.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 268 km; oil 120 km (2003) | oil 54 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Alternative or DA [Vasil TUPURKOVSKI, president]; Democratic Union for Integration or DUI (also BDI) [Ali AHMETI]; Democratic Party of Albanians or PDSH [Arben XHAFERI, president]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity or VMRO-DPMNE [Ljubco GEORGIEVSKI, president]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-True Macedonian Reform Option or VMRO-VMRO [Boris ZMEJKOVSKI]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Macedonian [Boris STOJMENOV]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Risto PENOV]; Liberal Party [Stojan ANDOV]; National Democratic Party or PDK [Kastriot HAXHIREXHA]; Party for Democratic Prosperity or PPD [Abdurrahman HALITI]; Social-Democratic Alliance of Macedonia or SDSM [Branko CRVENKOVSKI, president]; Socialist Party of Macedonia or SP [Ljubisav IVANOV, president]; Together for Macedonia coalition (including the SDSM and LDP) [Branko CRVENKOVSKI]; Union of Romanies of Macedonia or SRM [leader NA] | Alliance for the Republic or APRE [Miguel LOPEZ Baldizon, Oscar WENDOLYN Vargas, Karla WHITE]; Central American Unionist Party or PUCA [leader NA]; Christian Alternative Party or AC [Orlando TARDENCILLA Espinoza]; Conservative Party of Nicaragua or PCN [Mario RAPPACCIOLI]; Independent Liberal Party or PLI [Anibal MARTINEZ Nunez, Pedro REYES Vallejos]; Independent Liberal Party for National Unity or PLIUN [leader NA]; Liberal Constitutional Party or PLC [Jorge CASTILLO Quant]; Liberal Salvation Movement or MSL [Eliseo NUNEZ Hernandez]; New Liberal Party or PALI [leader NA]; Nicaraguan Party of the Christian Path or PCCN [Guillermo OSORNO Molina]; Nicaraguan Resistance Party or PRN [Salvador TALAVERA]; Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN [Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra]; Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS [leader NA]; Unity Alliance or AU [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | National Workers Front or FNT is a Sandinista umbrella group of eight labor unions including - Farm Workers Association or ATC, Health Workers Federation or FETASALUD, Heroes and Martyrs Confederation of Professional Associations or CONAPRO, National Association of Educators of Nicaragua or ANDEN, National Union of Employees or UNE, National Union of Farmers and Ranchers or UNAG, Sandinista Workers Central or CST, and Union of Journalists of Nicaragua or UPN; Permanent Congress of Workers or CPT is an umbrella group of four non-Sandinista labor unions including - Autonomous Nicaraguan Workers Central or CTN-A, Confederation of Labor Unification or CUS, Independent General Confederation of Labor or CGT-I, and Labor Action and Unity Central or CAUS; Nicaraguan Workers' Central or CTN is an independent labor union; Superior Council of Private Enterprise or COSEP is a confederation of business groups |
Population | 2,063,122
note: a census was taken 1-15 November 2002, but results are not yet available (July 2003 est.) |
5,465,100 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 24% (2001 est.) | 50% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.4% (2003 est.) | 1.92% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 29, FM 20, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | total: 699 km
standard gauge: 699 km 1.435-m gauge (233 km electrified) (2002) |
total: 6 km
narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Macedonian Orthodox 67%, Muslim 30%, other 3% | Roman Catholic 72.9%, Evangelical 15.1%, Moravian 1.5%, Episcopal 0.1%, other 1.9%, none 8.5% (1995 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 16 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: NA |
general assessment: inadequate system being upgraded by foreign investment
domestic: low-capacity microwave radio relay and wire system being expanded; connected to Central American Microwave System international: country code - 505; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 408,000 (1997) | 171,600 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 12,362 (1997) | 202,800 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 31 (plus 166 repeaters) (1995) | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mountainous territory covered with deep basins and valleys; three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line; country bisected by the Vardar River | extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes |
Total fertility rate | 1.75 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.81 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 37% (2002 est.) | 7.8% plus underemployment of 46.5% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | note: lake transport only, on the Greek and Albanian borders | 2,220 km (including lakes Managua and Nicaragua) (1997) |