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Compare Nicaragua (2003) - Mexico (2007)

Compare Nicaragua (2003) z Mexico (2007)

 Nicaragua (2003)Mexico (2007)
 NicaraguaMexico
Administrative divisions 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 31 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Colima, Distrito Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro de Arteaga, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz-Llave, Yucatan, Zacatecas
Age structure 0-14 years: 37.7% (male 984,719; female 949,282)


15-64 years: 59.2% (male 1,510,352; female 1,527,991)


65 years and over: 3% (male 68,332; female 87,841) (2003 est.)
0-14 years: 30.1% (male 16,696,089/female 16,011,563)


15-64 years: 64% (male 33,624,812/female 35,925,372)


65 years and over: 5.9% (male 2,917,563/female 3,525,492) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; beef, poultry, dairy products; wood products
Airports 176 (2002) 1,834 (2007)
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: 3


under 914 m: 3 (2002)
total: 231


over 3,047 m: 12


2,438 to 3,047 m: 29


1,524 to 2,437 m: 84


914 to 1,523 m: 77


under 914 m: 29 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 165


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 23


under 914 m: 141 (2002)
total: 1,603


over 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 63


914 to 1,523 m: 408


under 914 m: 1,131 (2007)
Area total: 129,494 sq km


land: 120,254 sq km


water: 9,240 sq km
total: 1,972,550 sq km


land: 1,923,040 sq km


water: 49,510 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than the state of New York slightly less than three times the size of Texas
Background 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. The site of advanced Amerindian civilizations, Mexico came under Spanish rule for three centuries before achieving independence early in the 19th century. A devaluation of the peso in late 1994 threw Mexico into economic turmoil, triggering the worst recession in over half a century. The nation continues to make an impressive recovery. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities for the largely Amerindian population in the impoverished southern states. The elections held in 2000 marked the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that an opposition candidate - Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) - defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). He was succeeded in 2006 by another PAN candidate Felipe CALDERON.
Birth rate 26.29 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 20.36 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $726 million


expenditures: $908 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
revenues: $207.7 billion


expenditures: $206.9 billion (2006 est.)
Capital Managua name: Mexico (Distrito Federal)


geographic coordinates: 19 26 N, 99 08 W


time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in April; ends last Sunday in October


note: Mexico is divided into four time zones
Climate tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands varies from tropical to desert
Coastline 910 km 9,330 km
Constitution 9 January 1987, with reforms in 1995 and 2000 5 February 1917
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 Mexican States


conventional short form: Mexico


local long form: Estados Unidos Mexicanos


local short form: Mexico
Currency gold cordoba (NIO) -
Death rate 4.69 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) 4.76 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $5.8 billion (2002 est.) $164.7 billion (2006 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Barbara Calandra MOORE


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


mailing address: APO AA 34021


telephone: [505] 266-6010, 266-2298, 266-6013


FAX: [505] 266-9074
chief of mission: Ambassador Antonio O. GARZA, Jr.


embassy: Paseo de la Reforma 305, Colonia Cuauhtemoc, 06500 Mexico, Distrito Federal


mailing address: P. O. Box 9000, Brownsville, TX 78520-9000


telephone: [52] (55) 5080-2000


FAX: [52] (55) 5511-9980


consulate(s) general: Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Tijuana


consulate(s): Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida, Nogales, Nuevo Laredo
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Salvador STADTHAGEN (since 5 December 2003)


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
chief of mission: Ambassador Arturo SARUKHAN Casamitjana


chancery: 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006


telephone: [1] (202) 728-1600


FAX: [1] (202) 728-1698


consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Nogales (Arizona), Omaha, Orlando, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico)


consulate(s): Albuquerque, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Indianapolis (Indiana), Kansas City (Missouri), Laredo (Texas), Las Vegas, McAllen (Texas), Midland (Texas), Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon), Presidio (Texas), Raleigh, Saint Paul (Minnesota), Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, Santa Ana (California), Seattle, Tucson, Yuma (Arizona)
Disputes - international territorial disputes with Colombia over the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank region; 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; legal dispute over navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica abundant rainfall in recent years along much of the Mexico-US border region has ameliorated periodically strained water-sharing arrangements; the US has intensified security measures to monitor and control legal and illegal personnel, transport, and commodities across its border with Mexico; Mexico must deal with thousands of impoverished Guatemalans and other Central Americans who cross the porous border looking for work in Mexico and the United States
Economic aid - recipient Substantial foreign support $189.4 million (2005)
Economy - overview Nicaragua, one of the hemisphere's poorest countries, faces low per capita income, flagging socio-economic indicators, 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, a banking crisis and scandal has shaken the economy. Nicaragua 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 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 move up moderately in 2003 because of increased private investment and exports. Mexico has a free market economy that recently entered the trillion dollar class. It contains a mixture of modern and outmoded industry and agriculture, increasingly dominated by the private sector. Recent administrations have expanded competition in seaports, railroads, telecommunications, electricity generation, natural gas distribution, and airports. Per capita income is one-fourth that of the US; income distribution remains highly unequal. Trade with the US and Canada has tripled since the implementation of NAFTA in 1994. Mexico has 12 free trade agreements with over 40 countries including, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, the European Free Trade Area, and Japan, putting more than 90% of trade under free trade agreements. The new Felipe CALDERON administration that took office in December 2006 faces many of the same challenges that former President FOX tried to tackle, including the need to upgrade infrastructure, modernize the tax system and labor laws, and allow private investment in the energy sector. CALDERON has stated that his top priorities include reducing poverty and creating jobs. The success of his economic agenda will depend on his ability to garner support from the opposition.
Electricity - consumption 2.388 billion kWh (2001) 183.3 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2001) 1.597 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 17 million kWh (2001) 470.7 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 2.549 billion kWh (2001) 222.4 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 83.9%


hydro: 7.7%


nuclear: 0%


other: 8.4% (2001)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m
lowest point: Laguna Salada -10 m


highest point: Volcan Pico de Orizaba 5,700 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution scarcity of hazardous waste disposal facilities; rural to urban migration; natural fresh water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; raw sewage and industrial effluents polluting rivers in urban areas; deforestation; widespread erosion; desertification; deteriorating agricultural lands; serious air and water pollution in the national capital and urban centers along US-Mexico border; land subsidence in Valley of Mexico caused by groundwater depletion


note: the government considers the lack of clean water and deforestation national security issues
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5% mestizo (Amerindian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%, white 9%, other 1%
Exchange rates gold cordobas per US dollar - 14.25 (2002), 13.37 (2001), 12.68 (2000), 11.81 (1999), 10.58 (1998) Mexican pesos per US dollar - 10.899 (2006), 10.898 (2005), 11.286 (2004), 10.789 (2003), 9.656 (2002)
Executive branch 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 (PC) 1.4%; Jose RIZO Castellon elected vice president
chief of state: President Felipe de Jesus CALDERON Hinojosa (since 1 December 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Felipe de Jesus CALDERON Hinojosa (since 1 December 2006)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; note - appointment of attorney general requires consent of the Senate


elections: president elected by popular vote for a single six-year term; election last held on 2 July 2006 (next to be held 1 July 2012)


election results: Felipe CALDERON elected president; percent of vote - Felipe CALDERON 35.89%, Andres Manuel Lopez OBRADOR 35.31%, Roberto MADRAZO 22.26%, other 6.54%
Exports NA (2001) 2.268 million bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities coffee, shrimp and lobster, cotton, tobacco, bananas, beef, sugar, gold manufactured goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits, vegetables, coffee, cotton
Exports - partners US 59.4%, El Salvador 7.5%, Honduras 4.8% (2002) US 84.7%, Canada 2.1%, Spain 1.3% (2006)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
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 three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake in its beak) is centered in the white band
GDP purchasing power parity - $11.16 billion (2002 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 30%


industry: 26%


services: 44% (2002 est.)
agriculture: 3.9%


industry: 26.7%


services: 69.4% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,200 (2002 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 1.1% (2002 est.) 4.8% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates 13 00 N, 85 00 W 23 00 N, 102 00 W
Geography - note largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua strategic location on southern border of US; corn (maize), one of the world's major grain crops, is thought to have originated in Mexico
Heliports - 1 (2007)
Highways total: 19,032 km


paved: 2,094 km


unpaved: 16,938 km (2000)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 0.7%


highest 10%: 48.8% (1998)
lowest 10%: 1.6%


highest 10%: 39.4% (2004)
Illicit drugs transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing major drug-producing nation; cultivation of opium poppy in 2005 amounted to 3,300 hectares yielding a potential production of 8 metric tons of pure heroin, or 17 metric tons of "black tar" heroin, the dominant form of Mexican heroin in the western United States; marijuana cultivation decreased 3% to 5,600 hectares in 2005 - just two years after a decade-high cultivation peak in 2003 - and yielded a potential production of 10,100 metric tons; government conducts the largest independent illicit-crop eradication program in the world; continues as the primary transshipment country for US-bound cocaine from South America, with an estimated 90% of annual cocaine movements towards the US stopping in Mexico; major drug syndicates control majority of drug trafficking throughout the country; producer and distributor of ecstasy; significant money-laundering center; major supplier of heroin and largest foreign supplier of marijuana and methamphetamine to the US market
Imports NA (2001) 308,500 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products, consumer goods metalworking machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts
Imports - partners US 23.7%, Costa Rica 10.3%, Venezuela 10.1%, Guatemala 7.8%, Mexico 6.7%, El Salvador 6%, South Korea 4.6% (2002) US 50.9%, China 9.5%, Japan 6%, South Korea 4.2% (2006)
Independence 15 September 1821 (from Spain) 16 September 1810 (declared); 27 September 1821 (recognized by Spain)
Industrial production growth rate 4.4% (2000 est.) 3.6% (2006 est.)
Industries food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, tourism
Infant mortality rate total: 31.39 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 35.08 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 27.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
total: 19.63 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 21.54 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 17.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3.7% (2002 est.) 3.6% (2006 est.)
International organization participation BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, 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), NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO APEC, BCIE, BIS, CAN (observer), Caricom (observer), CDB, CE (observer), CSN (observer), EBRD, FAO, G-3, G-6, G-15, G-24, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, NAFTA, NAM (observer), NEA, OAS, OECD, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNITAR, UNMOVIC, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 3 (2000) -
Irrigated land 880 sq km (1998 est.) 63,200 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly) Supreme Court of Justice or Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nacion (justices or ministros are appointed by the president with consent of the Senate)
Labor force 1.7 million (1999) 44.51 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation services 43%, agriculture 42%, industry 15% (1999 est.) agriculture: 18%


industry: 24%


services: 58% (2003)
Land boundaries total: 1,231 km


border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km
total: 4,353 km


border countries: Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,141 km
Land use arable land: 20.24%


permanent crops: 2.38%


other: 77.38% (1998 est.)
arable land: 12.66%


permanent crops: 1.28%


other: 86.06% (2005)
Languages Spanish (official)


note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast
Spanish, various Mayan, Nahuatl, and other regional indigenous languages
Legal system civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system; 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 4 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2006)


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 1
bicameral National Congress or Congreso de la Union consists of the Senate or Camara de Senadores (128 seats; 96 members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms, and 32 seats are allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote) and the Federal Chamber of Deputies or Camara Federal de Diputados (500 seats; 300 members are elected by popular vote; remaining 200 members are allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote; to serve three-year terms)


elections: Senate - last held 2 July 2006 for all of the seats (next to be held 1 July 2012); Chamber of Deputies - last held 2 July 2006 (next to be held 5 July 2009)


election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PAN 52, PRI 33, PRD 26, PVEM 6, CD 5, PT 5, independent 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PAN 206, PRD 127, PRI 106, PVEM 17, CD 17, PT 12, other 18
Life expectancy at birth total population: 69.68 years


male: 67.68 years


female: 71.79 years (2003 est.)
total population: 75.63 years


male: 72.84 years


female: 78.56 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 67.5%


male: 67.2%


female: 67.8% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 91%


male: 92.4%


female: 89.6% (2004 est.)
Location Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, between Belize and the US and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and the US
Map references Central America and the Caribbean North America
Maritime claims continental shelf: natural prolongation


territorial sea: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine none (2002 est.) total: 60 ships (1000 GRT or over) 802,128 GRT/1,157,971 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 7, chemical tanker 6, liquefied gas 4, passenger/cargo 11, petroleum tanker 25, roll on/roll off 5


foreign-owned: 4 (Denmark 2, Norway 1, UAE 1)


registered in other countries: 14 (Brazil 1, Honduras 1, Liberia 1, Panama 4, Portugal 1, Spain 3, Venezuela 3) (2007)
Military branches Army, Navy, Air Force Secretariat of National Defense (Secretaria de Defensa Nacional, Sedena): Army (Ejercito), Mexican Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Mexicana, FAM); Secretariat of the Navy (Secretaria de Marina, Semar): Mexican Navy (Armada de Mexico, ARM, includes Naval Air Force (FAN) and Marines) (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $26 million (FY98) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.2% (FY98) 0.5% (2006 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 1,347,033 (2003 est.) -
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 825,906 (2003 est.) -
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age (2003 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 59,903 (2003 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, 15 September (1821) Independence Day, 16 September (1810)
Nationality noun: Nicaraguan(s)


adjective: Nicaraguan
noun: Mexican(s)


adjective: Mexican
Natural hazards destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes tsunamis along the Pacific coast, volcanoes and destructive earthquakes in the center and south, and hurricanes on the Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean coasts
Natural resources gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish petroleum, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber
Net migration rate -1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) -4.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines oil 54 km (2003) gas 22,705 km; liquid petroleum gas 1,875 km; oil 8,688 km; oil/gas/water 228 km; refined products 6,520 km (2006)
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] Convergence for Democracy or CD [Luis MALDONADO Venegas]; Institutional Revolutionary Party or PRI [Beatriz PAREDES]; Labor Party or PT [Alberto ANAYA Gutierrez]; Mexican Green Ecological Party or PVEM [Jorge Emilio GONZALEZ Martinez]; National Action Party (Partido Accion Nacional) or PAN [Manuel ESPINO Barrientos]; New Alliance Party (Partido Nueva Alianza) or PNA [Miguel Angel JIMENEZ Godinez]; Party of the Democratic Revolution (Partido de la Revolucion Democratica) or PRD [Leonel COTA Montano]; Social Democratic and Peasant Alternative Party (Partido Alternativa Socialdemocrata y Campesina) or Alternativa [Alberto BEGNE Guerra]
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 Broad Progressive Front or FAP; Businessmen's Coordinating Council or CCE; Confederation of Employers of the Mexican Republic or COPARMEX; Confederation of Industrial Chambers or CONCAMIN; Confederation of Mexican Workers or CTM; Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce or CONCANACO; Coordinator for Foreign Trade Business Organizations or COECE; Federation of Unions Providing Goods and Services or FESEBES; National Chamber of Transformation Industries or CANACINTRA; National Peasant Confederation or CNC; National Small Business Chamber or CANACOPE; National Syndicate of Education Workers or SNTE; National Union of Workers or UNT; Popular Assembly of the People of Oaxaca or APPO; Roman Catholic Church
Population 5,128,517 (July 2003 est.) 108,700,891 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 50% (2001 est.) 17.6% (2004)
Population growth rate 2.03% (2003 est.) 1.153% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff, Puerto Cabezas, Puerto Sandino, Rama, San Juan del Sur -
Radio broadcast stations AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 850, FM 545, shortwave 15 (2003)
Railways total: 6 km


narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2002)
total: 17,665 km


standard gauge: 17,665 km 1.435-m gauge (2006)
Religions Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant Roman Catholic 76.5%, Protestant 6.3% (Pentecostal 1.4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.1%, other 3.8%), other 0.3%, unspecified 13.8%, none 3.1% (2000 census)
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: 0.78 male(s)/female


total population: 1 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.936 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.828 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 16 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal and compulsory (but not enforced)
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: low telephone density with about 18 main lines per 100 persons; privatized in December 1990; the opening to competition in January 1997 improved prospects for development, but Telmex remains dominant


domestic: adequate telephone service for business and government, but the population is poorly served; mobile subscribers far outnumber fixed-line subscribers; domestic satellite system with 120 earth stations; extensive microwave radio relay network; considerable use of fiber-optic cable and coaxial cable


international: country code - 52; satellite earth stations - 32 Intelsat, 2 Solidaridad (giving Mexico improved access to South America, Central America, and much of the US as well as enhancing domestic communications), 1 Panamsat, numerous Inmarsat mobile earth stations; linked to Central American Microwave System of trunk connections; high capacity Columbus-2 fiber-optic submarine cable with access to the US, Virgin Islands, Canary Islands, Morocco, Spain, and Italy (2005)
Telephones - main lines in use 140,000 (1996) 19.861 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 7,911 (1997) 57.016 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) 236 (plus repeaters) (1997)
Terrain extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes high, rugged mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus; desert
Total fertility rate 3 children born/woman (2003 est.) 2.39 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 24% plus considerable underemployment (2002 est.) 3.2% plus underemployment of perhaps 25% (2006 est.)
Waterways 2,220 km (including 2 large lakes) 2,900 km (navigable rivers and coastal canals) (2007)
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