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Compare Nicaragua (2003) - Vietnam (2004)

Compare Nicaragua (2003) z Vietnam (2004)

 Nicaragua (2003)Vietnam (2004)
 NicaraguaVietnam
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 59 provinces (tinh, singular and plural) and 5 municipalities (thu do, singular and plural)

provinces: An Giang, Bac Giang, Bac Kan, Bac Lieu, Bac Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Binh Dinh, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Ca Mau, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Dac Nong, Dien Bien, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Ha Nam, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hau Giang, Hoa Binh, Hung Yen, Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Kon Tum, Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Long An, Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Thuan, Phu Tho, Phu Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Tri, Soc Trang, Son La, Tay Ninh, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Thanh Hoa, Thua Thien-Hue, Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Tuyen Quang, Vinh Long, Vinh Phuc, Yen Bai

municipalities: Can Tho, Da Nang, Hai Phong, Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh
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: 29.4% (male 12,524,098; female 11,807,763)


15-64 years: 65% (male 26,475,156; female 27,239,543)


65 years and over: 5.6% (male 1,928,568; female 2,714,390) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products paddy rice, corn, potatoes, rubber, soybeans, coffee, tea, bananas, sugar; poultry, pigs, fish
Airports 176 (2002) 19 (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: 16


over 3,047 m: 6


2,438 to 3,047 m: 4


1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 (2003 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: 3


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.)
Area total: 129,494 sq km


land: 120,254 sq km


water: 9,240 sq km
total: 329,560 sq km


land: 325,360 sq km


water: 4,200 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than the state of New York slightly larger than New Mexico
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 conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Independence was declared after World War II, but the French continued to rule until 1954 when they were defeated by Communist forces under Ho Chi Minh, who took control of the North. US economic and military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973. Two years later, North Vietnamese forces overran the South. Despite the return of peace, for over two decades the country experienced little economic growth because of conservative leadership policies. Since 2001, Vietnamese authorities have committed to economic liberalization and enacted structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The country continues to experience protests from the Montagnard ethnic minority population of the Central Highlands over loss of land to Vietnamese settlers and religious persecution.
Birth rate 26.29 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 19.58 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget revenues: $726 million


expenditures: $908 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
revenues: $8.689 billion


expenditures: $9.718 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (2003 est.)
Capital Managua Hanoi
Climate tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)
Coastline 910 km 3,444 km (excludes islands)
Constitution 9 January 1987, with reforms in 1995 and 2000 15 April 1992
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: Socialist Republic of Vietnam


conventional short form: Vietnam


local long form: Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam


local short form: Viet Nam


abbreviation: SRV
Currency gold cordoba (NIO) dong (VND)
Death rate 4.69 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) 6.14 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external $5.8 billion (2002 est.) $14.69 billion (2003)
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 Michael W. MARINE


embassy: 7 Lang Ha Road, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi


mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002


telephone: [84] (4) 772-1500


FAX: [84] (4) 772-1510


consulate(s) general: Ho Chi Minh City
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 Nguyen Tam Chien


chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036


telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737


FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917


consulate(s) general: San Francisco
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 demarcation of the land boundary with China continues, but maritime boundary and joint fishing zone agreement remains unimplemented; Cambodia and Laos protest Vietnamese squatters and armed encroachments along border; China occupies Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; involved in complex dispute with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Brunei over the Spratly Islands; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants
Economic aid - recipient Substantial foreign support $2.8 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 (2004)
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. Vietnam is a poor, densely-populated country that has had to recover from the ravages of war, the loss of financial support from the old Soviet Bloc, and the rigidities of a centrally-planned economy. Substantial progress was achieved from 1986 to 1996 in moving forward from an extremely low starting point - growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997 Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems in the Vietnamese economy, but rather than prompting reform, reaffirmed the government's belief that shifting to a market-oriented economy would lead to disaster. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in 1999. Growth then rose to 6% to 7% in 2000-02 even against the background of global recession. These numbers mask some major difficulties in economic performance. Many domestic industries, including coal, cement, steel, and paper, have reported large stockpiles of inventory and tough competition from more efficient foreign producers. Since the Party elected new leadership in 2001, Vietnamese authorities have reaffirmed their commitment to economic liberalization and have moved to implement the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement entered into force near the end of 2001 and is expected to significantly increase Vietnam's exports to the US. The US is assisting Vietnam with implementing the legal and structural reforms called for in the agreement.
Electricity - consumption 2.388 billion kWh (2001) 27.71 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) 29.8 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: South China Sea 0 m


highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution logging and slash-and-burn agricultural practices contribute to deforestation and soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing threaten marine life populations; groundwater contamination limits potable water supply; growing urban industrialization and population migration are rapidly degrading environment in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City
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, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5% Vietnamese 85%-90%, Chinese, Hmong, Thai, Khmer, Cham, mountain groups
Exchange rates gold cordobas per US dollar - 14.25 (2002), 13.37 (2001), 12.68 (2000), 11.81 (1999), 10.58 (1998) dong per US dollar - 15,279.5 (2003), 15,279.5 (2002), 14,725.2 (2001), 14,167.7 (2000), 13,943.2 (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: President Tran Duc Luong (since 24 September 1997)


head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van Khai (since 25 September 1997); First Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung (since 29 September 1997); Deputy Prime Ministers Vu Khoan (8 August 2002) and Pham Gia Khiem (since 29 September 1997)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime minister and ratification of the National Assembly


elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for a five-year term; election last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in 2007); prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister


election results: Tran Duc Luong elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA
Exports NA (2001) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities coffee, shrimp and lobster, cotton, tobacco, bananas, beef, sugar, gold crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes
Exports - partners US 59.4%, El Salvador 7.5%, Honduras 4.8% (2002) US 21.9%, Japan 13.8%, Australia 6.8%, China 6.5%, Germany 5.8%, Singapore 4.6%, UK 4.4% (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 red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center
GDP purchasing power parity - $11.16 billion (2002 est.) purchasing power parity - $203.7 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 30%


industry: 26%


services: 44% (2002 est.)
agriculture: 21.8%


industry: 39.7%


services: 38.5% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,200 (2002 est.) purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 1.1% (2002 est.) 7.2% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates 13 00 N, 85 00 W 16 00 N, 106 00 E
Geography - note largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point
Highways total: 19,032 km


paved: 2,094 km


unpaved: 16,938 km (2000)
total: 93,300 km


paved: 23,418 km


unpaved: 69,882 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 0.7%


highest 10%: 48.8% (1998)
lowest 10%: 3.6%


highest 10%: 29.9% (1998)
Illicit drugs transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems
Imports NA (2001) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products, consumer goods machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles
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) China 13.7%, Taiwan 11.4%, Japan 11.3%, South Korea 11%, Singapore 10.4%, US 5.7%, Thailand 5.4%, Hong Kong 4.2% (2003)
Independence 15 September 1821 (from Spain) 2 September 1945 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate 4.4% (2000 est.) 16% (2003 est.)
Industries food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper
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: 29.88 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 33.71 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 25.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3.7% (2002 est.) 3.1% (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 ACCT (observer), APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 3 (2000) -
Irrigated land 880 sq km (1998 est.) 30,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly) Supreme People's Court (chief justice is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president)
Labor force 1.7 million (1999) 45.74 million (2003 est.)
Labor force - by occupation services 43%, agriculture 42%, industry 15% (1999 est.) agriculture 63%, industry and services 37% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries total: 1,231 km


border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km
total: 4,639 km


border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km
Land use arable land: 20.24%


permanent crops: 2.38%


other: 77.38% (1998 est.)
arable land: 19.97%


permanent crops: 5.95%


other: 74.08% (2001)
Languages Spanish (official)


note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast
Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)
Legal system civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts based on communist legal theory and French civil law system
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
unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (498 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held 19 May 2002 (next to be held 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - CPV 90%, other 10% (the 10% are not CPV members but are approved by the CPV to stand for election); seats by party - CPV 447, CPV-approved 51
Life expectancy at birth total population: 69.68 years


male: 67.68 years


female: 71.79 years (2003 est.)
total population: 70.35 years


male: 67.86 years


female: 73.02 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: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 90.3%


male: 93.9%


female: 86.9% (2002)
Location Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia
Map references Central America and the Caribbean Southeast Asia
Maritime claims continental shelf: natural prolongation


territorial sea: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine none (2002 est.) total: 194 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,170,621 GRT/1,798,376 DWT


by type: bulk 16, cargo 135, chemical tanker 1, container 8, liquefied gas 4, petroleum tanker 25, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1


foreign-owned: Cambodia 1, Germany 1, Japan 2, South Korea 1, United Kingdom 3


registered in other countries: 11 (2004 est.)
Military branches Army, Navy, Air Force People's Army of Vietnam: Ground Forces, People's Navy Command (including Naval Infantry), Air and Air Defense Force, Coast Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure $26 million (FY98) $650 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.2% (FY98) 2.5% (FY98)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 1,347,033 (2003 est.) males age 15-49: 23,438,858 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 825,906 (2003 est.) males age 15-49: 14,694,574 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age (2003 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 59,903 (2003 est.) males: 853,197 (2004 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 15 September (1821) Independence Day, 2 September (1945)
Nationality noun: Nicaraguan(s)


adjective: Nicaraguan
noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)


adjective: Vietnamese
Natural hazards destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta
Natural resources gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower
Net migration rate -1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) -0.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines oil 54 km (2003) condensate/gas 432 km; gas 210 km; oil 3 km; refined products 206 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] only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc Manh, general secretary]
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.) 82,689,518 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line 50% (2001 est.) 37% (1998 est.)
Population growth rate 2.03% (2003 est.) 1.3% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff, Puerto Cabezas, Puerto Sandino, Rama, San Juan del Sur Cam Ranh, Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ha Long, Quy Nhon, Nha Trang, Vinh, Vung Tau
Radio broadcast stations AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999)
Railways total: 6 km


narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2002)
total: 2,600 km


standard gauge: 178 km 1.435-m gauge


narrow gauge: 2,169 km 1.000-m gauge


dual gauge: 253 km three-rail track combining 1.435-m and 1.000-m gauges (2003)
Religions Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant Buddhist, Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, Christian (predominantly Roman Catholic, some Protestant), indigenous beliefs, Muslim
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: 1.08 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female


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


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 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: Vietnam is putting considerable effort into modernization and expansion of its telecommunication system, but its performance continues to lag behind that of its more modern neighbors


domestic: all provincial exchanges are digitalized and connected to Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City by fiber-optic cable or microwave radio relay networks; main lines have been substantially increased, and the use of mobile telephones is growing rapidly


international: country code - 84; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
Telephones - main lines in use 140,000 (1996) 4.402 million (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 7,911 (1997) 2.742 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) at least 7 (plus 13 repeaters) (1998)
Terrain extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest
Total fertility rate 3 children born/woman (2003 est.) 2.22 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 24% plus considerable underemployment (2002 est.) 6.1% (2003 est.)
Waterways 2,220 km (including 2 large lakes) 17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2004)
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