Compare Nicaragua (2003) - Oman (2004)

Compare Nicaragua (2003) z Oman (2004)

	Nicaragua (2003)	Oman (2004)

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	5 regions (manaatiq, singular - mintaqat) and 3 governorates* (muhaafazaat, singular - muhaafaza) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al Batinah, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat, Musandam, Zufar*
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: 42.4% (male 628,078; female 603,829) 15-64 years: 55.1% (male 955,765; female 643,687) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 38,761; female 33,045) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products	dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish
Airports	176 (2002)	135 (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: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2002)	total: 6 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
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: 130 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 52 914 to 1,523 m: 34 under 914 m: 35 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 129,494 sq km land: 120,254 sq km water: 9,240 sq km	total: 212,460 sq km land: 212,460 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than the state of New York	slightly smaller than Kansas
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.	In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al Said ousted his father and has ruled as sultan ever since. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world and has preserved a long-standing political and military relationship with the UK. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries.
Birth rate	26.29 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)	37.12 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $726 million expenditures: $908 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)	revenues: $8.218 billion expenditures: $7.766 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)
Capital	Managua	Muscat
Climate	tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands	dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south
Coastline	910 km	2,092 km
Constitution	9 January 1987, with reforms in 1995 and 2000	none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a basic law considered by the government to be a constitution which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens
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: Sultanate of Oman conventional short form: Oman local long form: Saltanat Uman local short form: Uman former: Muscat and Oman
Currency	gold cordoba (NIO)	Omani rial (OMR)
Death rate	4.69 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)	3.91 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$5.8 billion (2002 est.)	$5.973 billion (2003 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 Richard Lewis BALTIMORE III embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat mailing address: P. O. Box 202, P.C. 115, Madinat Al-Sultan Qaboos, Muscat telephone: [968] 24-698989 FAX: [968] 24-699771
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 Muhammad bin Ali bin Thani al-KHUSSAIBY chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1981, 1988 FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933
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	boundary agreement signed and ratified with UAE in 2003 for entire border, including Oman's Musandam Peninsula and Al Madhah enclaves
Economic aid - recipient	Substantial foreign support	$76.4 million (1995)
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.	Oman is a small, well-off middle Eastern economy with large oil and gas resources, a substantial trade surplus, and low inflation. The government is moving ahead with privatization of its utilities, the development of a body of commercial law to facilitate foreign investment, and increased budgetary outlays. Oman continues to liberalize its markets and joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in November 2000. In order to reduce unemployment and limit dependence on foreign countries, the government is encouraging the replacement of expatriate workers with local people, i.e., the process of Omanization. Training in information technology, business management, and English support this objective. Industrial development plans focus on gas resources.
Electricity - consumption	2.388 billion kWh (2001)	8.625 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	17 million kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	2.549 billion kWh (2001)	9.274 billion kWh (2001)
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: Arabian Sea 0 m highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution	rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources
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, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5%	Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African
Exchange rates	gold cordobas per US dollar - 14.25 (2002), 13.37 (2001), 12.68 (2000), 11.81 (1999), 10.58 (1998)	Omani rials per US dollar - 0.3845 (2003), 0.3845 (2002), 0.3845 (2001), 0.3845 (2000), 0.3845 (1999)
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: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary
Exports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	coffee, shrimp and lobster, cotton, tobacco, bananas, beef, sugar, gold	petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles
Exports - partners	US 59.4%, El Salvador 7.5%, Honduras 4.8% (2002)	South Korea 18.7%, China 18.5%, Japan 16.2%, Thailand 12.2%, UAE 7.8%, Iran 4.1% (2003)
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 horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered near the top of the vertical band
GDP	purchasing power parity - $11.16 billion (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $36.7 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 30% industry: 26% services: 44% (2002 est.)	agriculture: 3.1% industry: 42.1% services: 54.8% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $2,200 (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $13,100 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	1.1% (2002 est.)	1.1% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	13 00 N, 85 00 W	21 00 N, 57 00 E
Geography - note	largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua	strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil
Heliports	-	1 (2003 est.)
Highways	total: 19,032 km paved: 2,094 km unpaved: 16,938 km (2000)	total: 34,965 km paved: 9,673 km (including 550 km of expressways) unpaved: 25,292 km (2001)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 0.7% highest 10%: 48.8% (1998)	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing	-
Imports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products, consumer goods	machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants
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)	UAE 21.6%, Japan 17.1%, US 6.2%, UK 5.6%, Germany 4.4%, India 4.4% (2003)
Independence	15 September 1821 (from Spain)	1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese)
Industrial production growth rate	4.4% (2000 est.)	0.2% (2003 est.)
Industries	food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood	crude oil production and refining, natural gas production, construction, cement, copper
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: 20.26 deaths/1,000 live births male: 23.18 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3.7% (2002 est.)	-0.3% (2003 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	ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WToO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	3 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	880 sq km (1998 est.)	620 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly)	Supreme Court note: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, has judges who practice secular and Sharia (Islamic) law
Labor force	1.7 million (1999)	920,000 (2002 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	services 43%, agriculture 42%, industry 15% (1999 est.)	agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA
Land boundaries	total: 1,231 km border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km	total: 1,374 km border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km
Land use	arable land: 20.24% permanent crops: 2.38% other: 77.38% (1998 est.)	arable land: 0.12% permanent crops: 0.14% other: 99.74% (2001)
Languages	Spanish (official) note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast	Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects
Legal system	civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts	based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to the monarch; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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 Majlis Oman consists of an upper chamber or Majlis al-Dawla (58 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory powers only) and a lower chamber or Majlis al-Shura (83 seats; members elected by universal suffrage for four-year term; body has some limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory powers) elections: last held 4 October 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: NA
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 69.68 years male: 67.68 years female: 71.79 years (2003 est.)	total population: 72.85 years male: 70.66 years female: 75.16 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 67.5% male: 67.2% female: 67.8% (2003 est.)	definition: NA total population: 75.8% male: 83.1% female: 67.2% (2003 est.)
Location	Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras	Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Middle East
Maritime claims	continental shelf: natural prolongation territorial sea: 200 NM	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	none (2002 est.)	total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 15,430 GRT/6,360 DWT by type: passenger 2 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.)
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force	Royal Omani Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$26 million (FY98)	$242.07 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.2% (FY98)	11.4% (2003)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 1,347,033 (2003 est.)	males age 15-49: 796,792 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 825,906 (2003 est.)	males age 15-49: 443,006 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - military age	18 years of age (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 59,903 (2003 est.)	males: 31,274 (2004 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 15 September (1821)	Birthday of Sultan QABOOS, 18 November (1940)
Nationality	noun: Nicaraguan(s) adjective: Nicaraguan	noun: Omani(s) adjective: Omani
Natural hazards	destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes	summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts
Natural resources	gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish	petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas
Net migration rate	-1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)	0.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines	oil 54 km (2003)	gas 3,754 km; oil 3,212 km (2004)
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]	none
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	none
Population	5,128,517 (July 2003 est.)	2,903,165 note: includes 577,293 non-nationals (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	50% (2001 est.)	NA
Population growth rate	2.03% (2003 est.)	3.35% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff, Puerto Cabezas, Puerto Sandino, Rama, San Juan del Sur	Matrah, Mina' al Fahl, Mina' Raysut
Radio broadcast stations	AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999)
Railways	total: 6 km narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2002)	-
Religions	Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant	Ibadhi Muslim 75%, Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.49 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.17 male(s)/female total population: 1.27 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage	16 years of age; universal	in Oman's most recent Majlis al-Shura elections in 2003, suffrage was universal for all Omanis over age 21 except for members of the military and security forces; the next Majlis al-Shura elections are scheduled for 2007
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: modern system consisting of open-wire, microwave, and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable domestic: open-wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations international: country code - 968; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat
Telephones - main lines in use	140,000 (1996)	233,900 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	7,911 (1997)	464,900 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997)	13 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1999)
Terrain	extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes	central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south
Total fertility rate	3 children born/woman (2003 est.)	5.9 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	24% plus considerable underemployment (2002 est.)	NA
Waterways	2,220 km (including 2 large lakes)	-

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