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Compare Nicaragua (2001) - United States (2001)

Compare Nicaragua (2001) z United States (2001)

 Nicaragua (2001)United States (2001)
 NicaraguaUnited States
Administrative divisions 15 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento), 2 autonomous regions* (regiones autonomistas, singular - region autonomista); Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales, Esteli, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia, Rio San Juan, Rivas, Atlantico Norte*, Atlantico Sur* 50 states and 1 district*; Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia*, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Age structure 0-14 years:
38.98% (male 976,087; female 941,141)

15-64 years:
58.08% (male 1,418,555; female 1,438,096)

65 years and over:
2.94% (male 62,963; female 81,551) (2001 est.)
0-14 years:
21.12% (male 30,034,674; female 28,681,253)

15-64 years:
66.27% (male 91,371,753; female 92,907,199)

65 years and over:
12.61% (male 14,608,948; female 20,455,054) (2001 est.)
Agriculture - products coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products wheat, other grains, corn, fruits, vegetables, cotton; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; forest products; fish
Airports 182 (2000 est.) 14,720 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total:
11

2,438 to 3,047 m:
2

1,524 to 2,437 m:
3

914 to 1,523 m:
3

under 914 m:
3 (2000 est.)
total:
5,174

over 3,047 m:
182

2,438 to 3,047 m:
220

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1,331

914 to 1,523 m:
2,440

under 914 m:
1,001 (2000 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
171

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
25

under 914 m:
145 (2000 est.)
total:
9,546

over 3,047 m:
3

2,438 to 3,047 m:
6

1,524 to 2,437 m:
164

914 to 1,523 m:
1,675

under 914 m:
7,698 (2000 est.)
Area total:
129,494 sq km

land:
120,254 sq km

water:
9,240 sq km
total:
9,629,091 sq km

land:
9,158,960 sq km

water:
470,131 sq km

note:
includes only the 50 states and District of Columbia
Area - comparative slightly smaller than the state of New York about one-half the size of Russia; about three-tenths the size of Africa; about one-half the size of South America (or slightly larger than Brazil); slightly larger than China; about two and one-half times the size of Western Europe
Background Settled as a colony of Spain in the 1520s, Nicaragua gained its independence in 1821. 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 and again in 1996 saw the Sandinistas defeated. The country has slowly rebuilt its economy during the 1990s, but was hard hit by Hurricane Mitch in 1998. The United States became the world's first modern democracy after its break with Great Britain (1776) and the adoption of a constitution (1789). During the 19th century, many new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65) and the Great Depression of the 1930s. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation-state. The economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.
Birth rate 27.64 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 14.2 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Budget revenues:
$734 million

expenditures:
$836 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)
revenues:
$1.828 trillion

expenditures:
$1.703 trillion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999)
Capital Managua Washington, DC
Climate tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains
Coastline 910 km 19,924 km
Constitution 9 January 1987, with reforms in 1995 and 2000 17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789
Country name conventional long form:
Republic of Nicaragua

conventional short form:
Nicaragua

local long form:
Republica de Nicaragua

local short form:
Nicaragua
conventional long form:
United States of America

conventional short form:
United States

abbreviation:
US or USA
Currency gold cordoba (NIO) US dollar (USD)
Death rate 4.82 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 8.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Debt - external $6.4 billion (2000 est.) $862 billion (1995 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Oliver P. GARZA

embassy:
Apartado Postal 327, Kilometer 4.5 Carretera Sur, Managua

mailing address:
APO AA 34021

telephone:
[505] (2) 662298, 666010, 666012, 666013, 666015, 666018, 666026, 666027, 666032, 666033

FAX:
[505] (2) 669074
-
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Alfonso ORTEGA Urbina

chancery:
1627 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009

telephone:
[1] (202) 939-6570

FAX:
[1] (202) 939-6542

consulate(s) general:
Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York
-
Disputes - international territorial disputes with Colombia over the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank; with respect to the maritime boundary question in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua likely would be required; maritime boundary dispute with Honduras in the Caribbean Sea is before the ICJ; legal dispute over navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica maritime boundary disputes with Canada (Dixon Entrance, Beaufort Sea, Strait of Juan de Fuca, Machias Seal Island); US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased from Cuba and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease; Haiti claims Navassa Island; US has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation; Marshall Islands claims Wake Island
Economic aid - donor - ODA, $6.9 billion (1997)
Economic aid - recipient NA -
Economy - overview Nicaragua, one of the hemisphere's poorest countries, faces low per capita income, flagging socio-economic indicators, and huge external debt. While the country has made progress toward macro-economic stabilization over the past few years, a banking crisis and scandal has shaken the economy. Managua will continue to be dependent on international aid and debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Donors have made aid conditional on improving governability, the openness of government financial operation, poverty alleviation, and human rights. Nicaragua met the conditions for additional debt service relief in December 2000. Growth should remain moderate to high in 2001. The US has the largest and most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $36,200. In this market-oriented economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the decisions, and government buys needed goods and services predominantly in the private marketplace. US business firms enjoy considerably greater flexibility than their counterparts in Western Europe and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant, lay off surplus workers, and develop new products. At the same time, they face higher barriers to entry in their rivals' home markets than the barriers to entry of foreign firms in US markets. US firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances, especially in computers and in medical, aerospace, and military equipment, although their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War II. The onrush of technology largely explains the gradual development of a "two-tier labor market" in which those at the bottom lack the education and the professional/technical skills of those at the top and, more and more, fail to get comparable pay raises, health insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households. The years 1994-2000 witnessed solid increases in real output, low inflation rates, and a drop in unemployment to below 5%. Long-term problems include inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical costs of an aging population, sizable trade deficits, and stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups. Growth weakened in the fourth quarter of 2000; growth for the year 2001 almost certainly will be substantially lower than the strong 5% of 2000. The outlook for 2001 is further clouded by the continued economic problems of Japan, Russia, Indonesia, Brazil, and many other countries.
Electricity - consumption 2.265 billion kWh (1999) 3.45 trillion kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports 20 million kWh (1999) 14 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports 100 million kWh (1999) 43 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - production 2.349 billion kWh (1999) 3.678 trillion kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
67.26%

hydro:
17.71%

nuclear:
0%

other:
15.03% (1999)
fossil fuel:
69.64%

hydro:
8.31%

nuclear:
19.8%

other:
2.25% (1999)
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m

highest point:
Mogoton 2,438 m
lowest point:
Death Valley -86 m

highest point:
Mount McKinley 6,194 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; Hurricane Mitch damage air pollution resulting in acid rain in both the US and Canada; the US is the largest single emitter of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels; water pollution from runoff of pesticides and fertilizers; very limited natural fresh water resources in much of the western part of the country require careful management; desertification
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:
Environmental Modification
party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:
Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Hazardous Wastes
Ethnic groups mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5% white 83.5%, black 12.4%, Asian 3.3%, Amerindian 0.8% (1992)

note:
a separate listing for Hispanic is not included because the US Census Bureau considers Hispanic to mean a person of Latin American descent (especially of Cuban, Mexican, or Puerto Rican origin) living in the US who may be of any race or ethnic group (white, black, Asian, etc.)
Exchange rates gold cordobas per US dollar - 12.96 (November 2000), 12.69 (2000 est.), 11.81 (1999), 10.58 (1998), 9.45 (1997), 8.44 (1996) British pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); Canadian dollars per US dollar - 1.5032 (January 2001), 1.4851 (2000), 1.4857 (1999), 1.4835 (1998), 1.3846 (1997), 1.3635 (1996); French francs per US dollar - 5.65 (January 1999), 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997), 5.1155 (1996), 4.9915 (1995), 5.5520 (1994); Italian lire per US dollar - 1,668.7 (January 1999), 1,763.2 (1998), 1,703.1 (1997), 1,542.9 (1996), 1,628.9 (1995), 1,612.4 (1994); Japanese yen per US dollar - 117.10 (January 2001), 107.77 (2000), 113.91 (1999), 130.91 (1998), 120.99 (1997), 108.78 (1996); German deutsche marks per US dollar - 1.69 (January 1999), 1.9692 (1998), 1.7341 (1997), 1.5048 (1996), 1.4331 (1995), 1.6228 (1994); euros per US dollar - 1.06594 (January 2001), 1.08540 (2000), 0.93863 (1999)

note:
financial institutions in France, Italy, and Germany and eight other European countries started using the euro on 1 January 1999 with the euro replacing the local currency in consenting countries for all transactions in 2002
Executive branch chief of state:
President Arnoldo ALEMAN Lacayo (since 10 January 1997); Vice President Leopoldo NAVARRO (since 24 October 2000); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government:
President Arnoldo ALEMAN Lacayo (since 10 January 1997); Vice President Leopoldo NAVARRO (since 24 October 2000); 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 20 October 1996 (next to be held 4 November 2001); note - in July 1995 the term of the office of the president was amended to five years

election results:
Arnoldo ALEMAN Lacayo (Liberal Alliance - ruling party - includes PLC, PALI, PLIUN, and PUCA) 51.03%, Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (FSLN) 37.75%, Guillermo OSORNO (PCCN) 4.10%, Noel VIDAURRE (PCN) 2.26%, Benjamin LANZAS (PRONAL) 0.53%, other (18 other candidates) 4.33%
chief of state:
President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001) and Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:
President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001) and Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

cabinet:
Cabinet appointed by the president with Senate approval

elections:
president and vice president elected on the same ticket by a college of representatives who are elected directly from each state; president and vice president serve four-year terms; election last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004)

election results:
George W. BUSH elected president; percent of popular vote - George W. BUSH (Republican Party) 48%, Albert A. GORE, Jr. (Democratic Party) 48%, Ralph NADER (Green Party) 3%, other 1%
Exports $631 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $776 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Exports - commodities coffee, shrimp and lobster, cotton, tobacco, beef, sugar, bananas; gold capital goods, automobiles, industrial supplies and raw materials, consumer goods, agricultural products
Exports - partners US 37.7%, El Salvador 12.5%, Germany 9.8%, Costa Rica 5.1%, Spain 2.5%, France 2.1% (1999) Canada 23%, Mexico 14%, Japan 8%, UK 5%, Germany 4%, France, Netherlands (2000)
Fiscal year calendar year 1 October - 30 September
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a 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 thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing 50 small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of five stars; the 50 stars represent the 50 states, the 13 stripes represent the 13 original colonies; known as Old Glory; the design and colors have been the basis for a number of other flags, including Chile, Liberia, Malaysia, and Puerto Rico
GDP purchasing power parity - $13.1 billion (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $9.963 trillion (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
31.6%

industry:
22.8%

services:
45.6% (1999)
agriculture:
2%

industry:
18%

services:
80% (1999)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $36,200 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 5% (2000 est.) 5% (2000 est.)
Geographic coordinates 13 00 N, 85 00 W 38 00 N, 97 00 W
Geography - note - world's third-largest country (after Russia and Canada)
Heliports - 131 (2000 est.)
Highways total:
16,382 km

paved:
1,818 km

unpaved:
14,564 km (1998)
total:
6,370,031 km

paved:
5,733,028 km (including 74,091 km of expressways)

unpaved:
637,003 km (1997)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
1.6%

highest 10%:
39.8% (1993)
lowest 10%:
1.8%

highest 10%:
30.5% (1997)
Illicit drugs transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing consumer of cocaine shipped from Colombia through Mexico and the Caribbean; consumer of heroin, marijuana, and increasingly methamphetamine from Mexico; consumer of high-quality Southeast Asian heroin; illicit producer of cannabis, marijuana, depressants, stimulants, hallucinogens, and methamphetamine; money-laundering center
Imports $1.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $1.223 trillion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products, consumer goods crude oil and refined petroleum products, machinery, automobiles, consumer goods, industrial raw materials, food and beverages
Imports - partners US 34.5%, Costa Rica 11.4%, Guatemala 7.3%, Panama 6.9%, Venezuela 5.9%, El Salvador 5.5% (1999) Canada 19%, Japan 11%, Mexico 11%, China 8%, Germany 5%, UK, Taiwan (2000)
Independence 15 September 1821 (from Spain) 4 July 1776 (from Great Britain)
Industrial production growth rate 4.4% (2000 est.) 5.6% (2000 est.)
Industries food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood leading industrial power in the world, highly diversified and technologically advanced; petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, mining
Infant mortality rate 33.66 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) 6.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 11% (2000 est.) 3.4% (2000)
International organization participation BCIE, CACM, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, ESCAP, FAO, G-5, G-7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MIPONUH, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNHCR, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 3 (2000) 7,800 (2000 est.)
Irrigated land 880 sq km (1993 est.) 207,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for seven-year terms by the National Assembly) Supreme Court (its nine justices are appointed for life by the president with confirmation by the Senate); United States Courts of Appeal; United States District Courts; State and County Courts
Labor force 1.7 million (1999) 140.9 million (includes unemployed) (2000)
Labor force - by occupation services 43%, agriculture 42%, industry 15% (1999 est.) managerial and professional 30.2%, technical, sales and administrative support 29.2%, services 13.5%, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and crafts 24.6%, farming, forestry, and fishing 2.5% (2000)

note:
figures exclude the unemployed
Land boundaries total:
1,231 km

border countries:
Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km
total:
12,248 km

border countries:
Canada 8,893 km (including 2,477 km with Alaska), Cuba 29 km (US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay), Mexico 3,326 km

note:
Guantanamo Naval Base is leased by the US and thus remains part of Cuba
Land use arable land:
9%

permanent crops:
1%

permanent pastures:
46%

forests and woodland:
27%

other:
17% (1993 est.)
arable land:
19%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
25%

forests and woodland:
30%

other:
26% (1993 est.)
Languages Spanish (official)

note:
English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast
English, Spanish (spoken by a sizable minority)
Legal system civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (93 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms)

elections:
last held 20 October 1996 (next to be held 4 November 2001)

election results:
percent of vote by party - Liberal Alliance (ruling party - includes PLC, PALI, PLIUN, and PUCA) 46.03%, FSLN 36.55%, PCCN 3.73%, PCN 2.12%, MRS 1.33%; seats by party - Liberal Alliance 42, FSLN 36, PCCN 4, PCN 3, PRONAL 2, MRS 1, PRN 1, PC 1, PLI 1, AU 1, UNO-96 Alliance 1
bicameral Congress consists of Senate (100 seats, one-third are renewed every two years; two members are elected from each state by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and House of Representatives (435 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)

elections:
Senate - last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held 4 November 2002); House of Representatives - last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held 4 November 2002)

election results:
Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 50, Democratic Party 50; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 221, Democratic Party 211, independent 2, vacant 1
Life expectancy at birth total population:
69.05 years

male:
67.1 years

female:
71.11 years (2001 est.)
total population:
77.26 years

male:
74.37 years

female:
80.05 years (2001 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
65.7%

male:
64.6%

female:
66.6% (1995 est.)
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
97%

male:
97%

female:
97% (1979 est.)
Location Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico
Map references Central America and the Caribbean North America
Maritime claims continental shelf:
natural prolongation

territorial sea:
200 NM
contiguous zone:
24 NM

continental shelf:
not specified

exclusive economic zone:
200 NM

territorial sea:
12 NM
Merchant marine none (2000 est.) total:
376 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 10,814,622 GRT/14,416,517 DWT

ships by type:
barge carrier 9, bulk 68, cargo 29, chemical tanker 13, combination bulk 3, container 80, liquefied gas 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 9, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 98, roll on/roll off 49, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 9 (2000 est.)
Military branches Army, Navy, Air Force Department of the Army, Department of the Navy (includes Marine Corps), Department of the Air Force

note:
the Coast Guard is normally subordinate to the Department of Transportation, but in wartime reports to the Department of the Navy
Military expenditures - dollar figure $26 million (FY98) $276.7 billion (FY99 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.2% (FY98) 3.2% (FY99 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
1,269,322 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49:
70,819,436 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
779,267 (2001 est.)
NA
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age 18 years of age
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males:
58,232 (2001 est.)
males:
2,039,414 (2001 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 15 September (1821) Independence Day, 4 July (1776)
Nationality noun:
Nicaraguan(s)

adjective:
Nicaraguan
noun:
American(s)

adjective:
American
Natural hazards destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, and occasionally severe hurricanes tsunamis, volcanoes, and earthquake activity around Pacific Basin; hurricanes along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts; tornadoes in the midwest and southeast; mud slides in California; forest fires in the west; flooding; permafrost in northern Alaska, a major impediment to development
Natural resources gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber
Net migration rate -1.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) 3.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 56 km petroleum products 276,000 km; natural gas 331,000 km (1991)
Political parties and leaders Conservative Party of Nicaragua or PCN [Dr. Fernando AGUERO Rocha]; Independent Liberal Party or PLI [Virgilio GODOY]; Liberal Alliance (ruling alliance including Liberal Constitutional Party or PLC, New Liberal Party or PALI, Independent Liberal Party for National Unity or PLIUN, and Central American Unionist Party or PUCA) [leader NA]; National Conservative Party or PC [Pedro SOLARZANO, Noel VIDAURRE]; National Project or PRONAL [Benjamin LANZAS]; Nicaraguan Party of the Christian Path or PCCN [Guillermo OSORNO, Roberto RODRIGUEZ]; Nicaraguan Resistance Party or PRN [Salvador TALAVERA]; Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN [Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra]; Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS [Sergio RAMIREZ]; Unity Alliance or AU [Alejandro SERRANO]; Union Nacional Opositora 96 or UNO-96 [Alfredo CESAR Aguirre] Democratic Party [Terence McAULIFFE, national committee chairman]; Republican Party [James S. GILMORE III, national committee chairman]; several other groups or parties of minor political significance
Political pressure groups and leaders 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 NA
Population 4,918,393 (July 2001 est.) 278,058,881 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line 50% (2000 est.) 12.7% (1999 est.)
Population growth rate 2.15% (2001 est.) 0.9% (2001 est.)
Ports and harbors Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff, Puerto Cabezas, Puerto Sandino, Rama, San Juan del Sur Anchorage, Baltimore, Boston, Charleston, Chicago, Duluth, Hampton Roads, Honolulu, Houston, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, Port Canaveral, Portland (Oregon), Prudhoe Bay, San Francisco, Savannah, Seattle, Tampa, Toledo
Radio broadcast stations AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 4,762, FM 5,542, shortwave 18 (1998)
Radios 1.24 million (1997) 575 million (1997)
Railways - total:
225,750 km mainline routes

standard gauge:
225,750 km 1.435-m gauge (1999)
Religions Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant Protestant 56%, Roman Catholic 28%, Jewish 2%, other 4%, none 10% (1989)
Sex ratio 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:
0.77 male(s)/female

total population:
1 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.05 male(s)/female

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

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

total population:
0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Suffrage 16 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system 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:
satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
general assessment:
a very large, technologically advanced, multipurpose communications system

domestic:
a large system of fiber-optic cable, microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and domestic satellites carries every form of telephone traffic; a rapidly growing cellular system carries mobile telephone traffic throughout the country

international:
24 ocean cable systems in use; satellite earth stations - 61 Intelsat (45 Atlantic Ocean and 16 Pacific Ocean), 5 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 4 Inmarsat (Pacific and Atlantic Ocean regions) (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use 140,000 (1996) 194 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular 7,911 (1997) 69.209 million (1998)
Television broadcast stations 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) more than 1,500 (including nearly 1,000 stations affiliated with the five major networks - NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, and PBS; in addition, there are about 9,000 cable TV systems) (1997)
Terrain extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii
Total fertility rate 3.18 children born/woman (2001 est.) 2.06 children born/woman (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate 20% plus considerable underemployment (1999 est.) 4% (2000)
Waterways 2,220 km (including 2 large lakes) 41,009 km

note:
navigable inland channels, exclusive of the Great Lakes
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