Compare Nicaragua (2007) - Spain (2007)

Compare Nicaragua (2007) z Spain (2007)

	Nicaragua (2007)	Spain (2007)

Administrative divisions	15 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 2 autonomous regions* (regiones autonomistas, singular - region autonoma); Atlantico Norte, Atlantico Sur, Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales, Esteli, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia, Rio San Juan, Rivas	17 autonomous communities (comunidades autonomas, singular - comunidad autonoma)and 2 autonomous cities* (ciudades autonomas, singular - ciudad autonoma); Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Baleares (Balearic Islands), Ceuta, Canarias (Canary Islands), Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y Leon, Cataluna, Comunidad Valenciana, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Melilla, Murcia, Navarra, Pais Vasco (Basque Country) note: the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla plus three small islands of Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera, administered directly by the Spanish central government, are all along the coast of Morocco and are collectively referred to as Places of Sovereignty (Plazas de Soberania)
Age structure	0-14 years: 35.5% (male 1,025,426/female 988,148) 15-64 years: 61.3% (male 1,734,153/female 1,746,574) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 79,589/female 101,466) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 14.4% (male 3,005,818/female 2,826,805) 15-64 years: 67.8% (male 13,758,869/female 13,661,295) 65 years and over: 17.8% (male 3,002,585/female 4,192,819) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products; shrimp, lobsters	grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish
Airports	163 (2007)	154 (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 (2007)	total: 96 over 3,047 m: 18 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 25 under 914 m: 24 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 152 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 135 (2007)	total: 58 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 42 (2007)
Area	total: 129,494 sq km land: 120,254 sq km water: 9,240 sq km	total: 504,782 sq km land: 499,542 sq km water: 5,240 sq km note: there are two autonomous cities - Ceuta and Melilla - and 17 autonomous communities including Balearic Islands and Canary Islands, and three small Spanish possessions off the coast of Morocco - Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than the state of New York	slightly more than twice the size of Oregon
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 2001, saw the Sandinistas defeated, but voting in 2006 announced the return of former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra. Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt.	Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power. Spain remained neutral in World Wars I and II but suffered through a devastating civil war (1936-39). A peaceful transition to democracy following the death of dictator Francisco FRANCO in 1975, and rapid economic modernization (Spain joined the EU in 1986) have given Spain one of the most dynamic economies in Europe and made it a global champion of freedom. Continuing challenges include Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) terrorism and relatively high unemployment.
Birth rate	24.12 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	9.98 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $996.7 million expenditures: $1.211 billion (2006 est.)	revenues: $495.8 billion expenditures: $473.6 billion (2006 est.)
Capital	name: Managua geographic coordinates: 12 09 N, 86 17 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: Madrid geographic coordinates: 40 24 N, 3 41 W time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Spain is divided into two time zones including the Canary Islands
Climate	tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands	temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast
Coastline	910 km	4,964 km
Constitution	9 January 1987; reforms in 1995, 2000, and 2005	approved by legislature 31 October 1978; passed by referendum 6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978
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: Kingdom of Spain conventional short form: Spain local long form: Reino de Espana local short form: Espana
Death rate	4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	9.81 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$3.918 billion (2006 est.)	$996.7 billion (2006 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Paul A. TRIVELLI embassy: Kilometer 4.5 Carretera Sur, Managua mailing address: P.O. Box 327 telephone: [505] 266-6010 FAX: [505] 266-3861	chief of mission: Ambassador Eduardo AGUIRRE, Jr. embassy: Serrano 75, 28006 Madrid mailing address: PSC 61, APO AE 09642 telephone: [34] (91) 587-2200 FAX: [34] (91) 587-2303 consulate(s) general: Barcelona
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Arturo CRUZ Sequeira, Jr. 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 Carlos WESTENDORP chancery: 2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0100, 728-2340 FAX: [1] (202) 833-5670 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico)
Disputes - international	memorials and countermemorials were filed by the parties in Nicaragua's 1999 and 2001 proceedings against Honduras and Colombia at the ICJ over the maritime boundary and territorial claims in the western Caribbean Sea, final public hearings are scheduled for 2007; 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	in 2002, Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum to remain a British colony and against a "total shared sovereignty" arrangement while demanding participation in talks between the UK and Spain; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomy; Morocco protests Spain's control over the coastal enclaves of Ceuta, Melilla, and the islands of Penon de Velez de la Gomera, Penon de Alhucemas and Islas Chafarinas, and surrounding waters; Morocco serves as the primary launching site of illegal migration into Spain from North Africa; Portugal does not recognize Spanish sovereignty over the territory of Olivenza based on a difference of interpretation of the 1815 Congress of Vienna and the 1801 Treaty of Badajoz
Economic aid - donor	-	ODA, $1.33 billion (1999)
Economic aid - recipient	$471 million (2006 est.)	-
Economy - overview	Nicaragua has widespread underemployment and the third lowest per capita income in the Western Hemisphere. Distribution of income is one of the most unequal on the globe. While the country has progressed toward macroeconomic stability in the past few years, GDP annual growth has been far too low to meet the country's needs, forcing the country to rely on international economic assistance to meet fiscal and debt financing obligations. Nicaragua qualified in early 2004 for some $4.5 billion in foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative and in November 2006 obtained over $800 million in debt relief from the Inter-American Development Bank. In October 2005, Nicaragua ratified the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), which will provide an opportunity for Nicaragua to attract investment, create jobs, and deepen economic development. Energy shortages, however, are a serious bottleneck to growth.	The Spanish economy boomed from 1986 to 1990 averaging 5% annual growth. After a European-wide recession in the early 1990s, the Spanish economy resumed moderate growth starting in 1994. Spain's mixed capitalist economy supports a GDP that on a per capita basis is 80% that of the four leading West European economies. The center-right government of former President AZNAR successfully worked to gain admission to the first group of countries launching the European single currency (the euro) on 1 January 1999. The AZNAR administration continued to advocate liberalization, privatization, and deregulation of the economy and introduced some tax reforms to that end. Unemployment fell steadily under the AZNAR administration but remains high at 8.1%. Growth averaging 3% annually during 2003-06 was satisfactory given the background of a faltering European economy. The Socialist president, RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO, has made mixed progress in carrying out key structural reforms, which need to be accelerated and deepened to sustain Spain's strong economic growth. Despite the economy's relative solid footing significant downside risks remain including Spain's continued loss of competitiveness, the potential for a housing market collapse, the country's changing demographic profile, and a decline in EU structural funds.
Electricity - consumption	2.929 billion kWh (2006)	243 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	8 million kWh (2005)	11.56 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	69.34 million kWh (2006)	10.21 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	2.778 billion kWh (2006)	270.3 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico de Teide (Tenerife) on Canary Islands 3,718 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution	pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas; water quality and quantity nationwide; air pollution; deforestation; desertification
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, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Ethnic groups	mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5%	composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types
Exchange rates	gold cordobas per US dollar - 17.582 (2006), 16.733 (2005), 15.937 (2004), 15.105 (2003), 14.251 (2002)	euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (since 10 January 2007); Vice President Jaime MORALES Carazo (since 10 January 2007); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (since 10 January 2007); Vice President Jaime MORALES Carazo (since 10 January 2007) 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 (eligible for a second term so long as it is not consecutive); election last held 5 November 2006 (next to be held by November 2011) election results: Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra elected president - 38.07%, Eduardo MONTEALEGRE 29%, Jose RIZO 26.21%, Edmundo JARQUIN 6.44%	chief of state: King JUAN CARLOS I (since 22 November 1975); Heir Apparent Prince FELIPE, son of the monarch, born 30 January 1968 head of government: President of the Government (Prime Minister equivalent) Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (since 17 April 2004); First Vice President and Deputy Prime Minister (and Minister of the Presidency) Maria Teresa FERNANDEZ DE LA VEGA (since 18 April 2004) and Second Vice President (and Minister of Economy and Finance) Pedro SOLBES (since 18 April 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers designated by the president note: there is also a Council of State that is the supreme consultative organ of the government, but its recommendations are non-binding elections: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually proposed president by the monarch and elected by the National Assembly; election last held on 14 March 2004 (next to be held in March 2008); vice presidents appointed by the monarch on the proposal of the president election results: Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 52.29%
Exports	1,397 bbl/day (2004)	175,200 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts	machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, medicines, other consumer goods
Exports - partners	US 65.2%, El Salvador 6.9%, Honduras 3.8% (2006)	France 18.9%, Germany 11%, Portugal 8.9%, Italy 8.6%, UK 7.8%, US 4.5% (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 horizontal bands of red (top), yellow (double width), and red with the national coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band; the coat of arms includes the royal seal framed by the Pillars of Hercules, which are the two promontories (Gibraltar and Ceuta) on either side of the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 17.2% industry: 25.9% services: 56.9% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 3.9% industry: 29.7% services: 66.4% (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.7% (2006 est.)	3.9% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	13 00 N, 85 00 W	40 00 N, 4 00 W
Geography - note	largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua	strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar
Heliports	-	8 (2007)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.2% highest 10%: 33.8% (2001)	lowest 10%: 2.6% highest 10%: 26.6% (2000)
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing	despite rigorous law enforcement efforts, North African, Latin American, Galician, and other European traffickers take advantage of Spain's long coastline to land large shipments of cocaine and hashish for distribution to the European market; consumer for Latin American cocaine and North African hashish; destination and minor transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin; money-laundering site for Colombian narcotics trafficking organizations and organized crime
Imports	15,560 bbl/day (2005 est.)	1.714 million bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products	machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, measuring and medical control instruments
Imports - partners	US 20.1%, Mexico 13.9%, Venezuela 9.4%, Costa Rica 6.9%, Guatemala 5.4%, China 4.3% (2006)	Germany 14.7%, France 13.2%, Italy 8.1%, UK 5%, Netherlands 4.8%, China 4.8% (2006)
Independence	15 September 1821 (from Spain)	the Iberian peninsula was characterized by a variety of independent kingdoms prior to the Muslim occupation that began in the early 8th century A.D. and lasted nearly seven centuries; the small Christian redoubts of the north began the reconquest almost immediately, culminating in the seizure of Granada in 1492; this event completed the unification of several kingdoms and is traditionally considered the forging of present-day Spain
Industrial production growth rate	2.4% (2005 est.)	0.6% (2006 est.)
Industries	food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood	textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages, metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles, machine tools, tourism, clay and refractory products, footwear, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment
Infant mortality rate	total: 27.14 deaths/1,000 live births male: 30.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 23.67 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 4.31 deaths/1,000 live births male: 4.7 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	9.1% (2006 est.)	3.5% (2006 est.)
International organization participation	BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNMEE, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	610 sq km (2003)	37,800 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly)	Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo
Labor force	2.204 million (2006 est.)	21.58 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 29% industry: 19% services: 52% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 5.3% industry: 30.1% services: 64.6% (2004 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 1,231 km border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km	total: 1,917.8 km border countries: Andorra 63.7 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km, Portugal 1,214 km, Morocco (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Morocco (Melilla) 9.6 km
Land use	arable land: 14.81% permanent crops: 1.82% other: 83.37% (2005)	arable land: 27.18% permanent crops: 9.85% other: 62.97% (2005)
Languages	Spanish 97.5% (official), Miskito 1.7%, other 0.8% (1995 census) note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast	Castilian Spanish (official) 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%, are official regionally
Legal system	civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	civil law system, with regional applications; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Legislative branch	unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (92 seats; 90 members are elected by proportional representation and party lists to serve five-year terms; 1 seat for the previous president, 1 seat for the runner-up in previous presidential election) elections: last held 5 November 2006 (next to be held by November 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FSLN 38, PLC 25, ALN 23 (22 plus one for presidential candidate Eduardo MONTEALEGRE, runner-up in the 2006 presidential election), MRS 5, APRE 1 (outgoing President Enrique BOLANOS)	bicameral; General Courts or National Assembly or Las Cortes Generales consists of the Senate or Senado (259 seats; 208 members directly elected by popular vote and the other 51 appointed by the regional legislatures; to serve four-year terms) and the Congress of Deputies or Congreso de los Diputados (350 seats; members are elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional representation to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held on 14 March 2004 (next to be held in March 2008); Congress of Deputies - last held on 14 March 2004 (next to be held in March 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PP 49%, PSOE 38%, Entesa Catalona de Progress 5.7%, PNV 2.8%, CC 2.4%, CiU 2%; seats by party - PP 102, PSOE 81, Entesa Catalona de Progress 12, PNV 6, CiU 4, CC 3; Congress of Deputies - percent of vote by party - PSOE 43.3%, PP 37.8%, CiU 3.2%, IU 3.2%, ERC 2.5%, PNV 1.6%, CC 0.9%, other 7.5%; seats by party - PSOE 164, PP 148, CiU 10, ERC 8, PNV 7, IU 5, CC 3, other 5
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 70.92 years male: 68.82 years female: 73.13 years (2007 est.)	total population: 79.78 years male: 76.46 years female: 83.32 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: 97.9% male: 98.7% female: 97.2% (2003 est.)
Location	Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras	Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains, southwest of France
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Europe
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: natural prolongation	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm (applies only to the Atlantic Ocean)
Merchant marine	-	total: 167 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,365,450 GRT/2,282,245 DWT by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 13, chemical tanker 13, container 25, liquefied gas 10, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 52, petroleum tanker 15, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 17, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 5 foreign-owned: 33 (Cuba 1, Denmark 2, Germany 9, Italy 1, Mexico 3, Norway 6, US 9, Uruguay 2) registered in other countries: 106 (Angola 1, Bahamas 11, Belize 2, Brazil 4, Cape Verde 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 7, Irland 1, Malta 1, Marshall Islands 3, Nigeria 1, Panama 61, Portugal 10, St Kitts and Nevis 1, Venezuela 1) (2007)
Military branches	National Army of Nicaragua (ENN; includes Navy, Air Force) (2007)	Spanish Armed Forces: Army (Ejercito de Tierra), Spanish Navy (Armada Espanola, AE; includes Marine Corps), Spanish Air Force (Ejercito del Aire Espanola, EdA) (2006)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	0.6% (2006)	1.2% (2005 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 15 September (1821)	National Day, 12 October (1492); year when Columbus first set foot in the Americas
Nationality	noun: Nicaraguan(s) adjective: Nicaraguan	noun: Spaniard(s) adjective: Spanish
Natural hazards	destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes	periodic droughts
Natural resources	gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish	coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten, mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land
Net migration rate	-1.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	oil 54 km (2006)	gas 7,962 km; oil 622 km; refined products 3,447 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Alliance for the Republic or APRE [Miguel LOPEZ Baldizon]; Central American Unionist Party or PUCA [Blanca ROJAS]; Christian Alternative Party or AC [Orlando TARDENCILLA Espinoza]; Conservative Party or PC [Azalia AVILES Salmeron]; Independent Liberal Party or PLI [Anibal MARTINEZ Nunez, Pedro REYES Vallejos]; Independent Liberal Party for National Unity or PLIUN [Carlos GUERRA Gallardo]; Liberal Constitutional Party or PLC [Jorge CASTILLO Quant]; Liberal Salvation Movement or MSL [Eliseo NUNEZ Hernandez]; New Liberal Party or PALI [Adolfo GARCIA Esquivel]; Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance or ALN [Eduardo MONTEALEGRE]; 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 [Dora Maria TELLEZ]; Unity Alliance or AU	Aragonese Party or CHA [Bizen FUSTER]; Basque Nationalist Party or PNV [Josu Jon IMAZ]; Basque Solidarity or EA [Begona ERRAZTI]; Canarian Coalition or CC [Paulino RIVERO Baute] (a coalition of five parties); Convergence and Union or CiU [Artur MAS i Gavarro] (a coalition of the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia or CDC [Artur MAS i Gavarro] and the Democratic Union of Catalonia or UDC [Josep Antoni DURAN i LLEIDA]); Entesa Catalonia de Progress (a Senate coalition grouping four Catalan parties - PSC, ERC, ICV, EUA); Galician Nationalist Bloc or BNG [Anxo Manuel QUINTANA Gonzalez]; Initiative for Catalonia Greens or ICV [Joan SAURA i Laporta]; Navarra yes or Na Bai [Uxue BARKOS Berruezo] (a coalition of four Navarran parties); Popular Party or PP [Mariano RAJOY Brey]; Republican Left of Catalonia or ERC [Josep-Lluis CAROD-ROVIRA]; Spanish Socialist Workers Party or PSOE [Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO]; United Left or IU [Gaspar LLAMAZARES Trigo] (a coalition of parties including the PCE and other small parties)
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	business and landowning interests; Catholic Church; free labor unions (authorized in April 1977); Socialist General Union of Workers or UGT and the smaller independent Workers Syndical Union or USO; university students; Trade Union Confederation of Workers' Commissions or CC.OO.
Population	5,675,356 (July 2007 est.)	40,448,191 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	48% (2005)	19.8% (2005)
Population growth rate	1.855% (2007 est.)	0.116% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 208, FM 715, shortwave 1 (1998)
Railways	total: 6 km narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2006)	total: 14,974 km broad gauge: 11,919 km 1.668-m gauge (6,950 km electrified) standard gauge: 1,099 km 1.435-m gauge (1,054 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,928 km 1.000-m gauge (815 km electrified); 28 km 0.914-m gauge (28 km electrified) (2006)
Religions	Roman Catholic 72.9%, Evangelical 15.1%, Moravian 1.5%, Episcopal 0.1%, other 1.9%, none 8.5% (1995 census)	Roman Catholic 94%, other 6%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.038 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.993 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.784 male(s)/female total population: 1.001 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.063 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.007 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.716 male(s)/female total population: 0.956 male(s)/female (2007 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: country code - 505; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: generally adequate, modern facilities; teledensity is 45 main lines for each 100 persons domestic: NA international: country code - 34; 22 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to adjacent countries
Telephones - main lines in use	247,900 (2006)	18.385 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1.83 million (2006)	46.152 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	3 (plus 7 repeaters) (1997)	224 (plus 2,105 repeaters; includes 11 television broadcast stations and 88 repeaters in the Canary Islands) (1995)
Terrain	extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes	large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees in north
Total fertility rate	2.69 children born/woman (2007 est.)	1.29 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	3.8% plus underemployment of 46.5% (2006 est.)	8.1% (2006 est.)
Waterways	2,220 km (including lakes Managua and Nicaragua) (2007)	1,000 km (2003)

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