Nicaragua (2004) | 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: 38.1% (male 1,038,887; female 1,001,518)
15-64 years: 58.9% (male 1,570,494; female 1,586,706) 65 years and over: 3% (male 71,125; female 91,029) (2004 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 (2003 est.) | 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 (2004 est.) |
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 (2004 est.) |
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 | 25.5 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 37.12 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $672.5 million
expenditures: $954.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003 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 | 4.54 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 3.91 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.833 billion (2003 est.) | $5.973 billion (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Barbara Calandra MOORE
embassy: Kilometer 4.5 Carretera Sur, Managua mailing address: APO AA 34021 telephone: [505] 266-6010 FAX: [505] 266-9074 |
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, [1] (202) 939-6573 FAX: [1] (202) 939-6545 consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco |
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; the 1992 ICJ ruling for El Salvador and Honduras advised a tripartite resolution to establish a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca, which considers Honduran access to the Pacific; legal dispute over navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica | 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 (2001) | $76.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Nicaragua, one of the hemisphere's poorest countries, faces low per capita income, massive unemployment, and huge external debt. Distribution of income is one of the most unequal on the globe. While the country has made progress toward macroeconomic stability over the past few years, GDP annual growth of 1.5% - 2.5% has been far too low to meet the country's need. Nicaragua will continue to be dependent on international aid and debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Nicaragua has undertaken significant economic reforms that are expected to help the country qualify for more than $4 billion in debt relief under HIPC in early 2004. Donors have made aid conditional on the openness of government financial operation, poverty alleviation, and human rights. A three-year poverty reduction and growth plan, agreed to with the IMF in December 2002, guides economic policy. | 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) |
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, 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 - 14.2513 (2003), 14.2513 (2002), 13.3719 (2001), 12.6844 (2000), 11.8092 (1999) | 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 (PCN) 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 35.9%, El Salvador 17.2%, Costa Rica 8.1%, Honduras 7.3%, Mexico 4.6%, Guatemala 4.3% (2003) | 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 - $11.6 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $36.7 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 28.9%
industry: 25.4% services: 45.7% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 3.1%
industry: 42.1% services: 54.8% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $13,100 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.3% (2003 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 24.9%, Venezuela 9.7%, Costa Rica 9%, Mexico 8.4%, Guatemala 7.3%, El Salvador 4.9%, Japan 4.3% (2003) | 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: 30.15 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 33.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 26.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 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) | 5.3% (2003 est.) | -0.3% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | 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 |
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 | 1.91 million (2003) | 920,000 (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 42%, industry 15%, services 43% (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: 15.94%
permanent crops: 1.94% other: 82.12% (2001) |
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 (92 seats; members are elected by proportional representation and party lists to serve five-year terms; one seat for previous President, one seat for runner-up in previous Presidential election
elections: last held 4 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - Liberal Alliance (ruling party - includes PCCN, PLC, PALI, PLIUN, and PUCA) 46.03%, FSLN 36.55%, PCN 2.12%; seats by party - Liberal Alliance 53, FSLN 38, PCN 1 |
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: 70.02 years
male: 67.99 years female: 72.16 years (2004 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 | Central 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 | territorial sea: 200 nm
continental shelf: natural prolongation |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none | 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 (includes Navy), Navy | Royal Omani Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $30.8 million (2003) | $242.07 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (2003) | 11.4% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,399,356 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 796,792 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 858,022 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 443,006 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 61,869 (2004 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 | -1.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | oil 54 km (2004) | gas 3,754 km; oil 3,212 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Conservative Party of Nicaragua or PCN [Mario RAPPACCIOLI]; Independent Liberal Party or PLI [Anibal MARTINEZ Nunez, Pedro REYES Vallejos]; Nicaraguan Party of the Christian Path or PCCN [Guillermo OSORNO Molina]; Nicaraguan Resistance Party or PRN [Salvador TALAVERA]; Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN [Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra]; Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS [leader NA]; Unity Alliance or AU [leader NA]; Liberal Constitutional Party or PLC [Jorge CASTILLO Quant]; Alliance for the Republic or APRE [Miguel LOPEZ Baldizon, Oscar WENDOLYN Vargas, Karla WHITE]; Liberal Salvation Movement or MSL [Eliseo NUNEZ Hernandez]; Christian Alternative Party or AC [Orlando TARDENCILLA Espinoza] | 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 | 5,359,759 (July 2004 est.) | 2,903,165
note: includes 577,293 non-nationals (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 50% (2001 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.97% (2004 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 (2003) |
- |
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 (2004 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: country code - 505; 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 | 171,600 (2002) | 233,900 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 202,800 (2002) | 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 | 2.89 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 5.9 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% plus considerable underemployment (2003 est.) | NA |
Waterways | 2,220 km (including lakes Managua and Nicaragua) (1997) | - |