Nicaragua (2008) | Pakistan (2001) | |
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 | 4 provinces, 1 territory*, and 1 capital territory**; Balochistan, Federally Administered Tribal Areas*, Islamabad Capital Territory**, North-West Frontier Province, Punjab, Sindh
note: the Pakistani-administered portion of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region includes Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas |
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:
40.47% (male 30,131,400; female 28,391,891) 15-64 years: 55.42% (male 40,977,543; female 39,164,663) 65 years and over: 4.11% (male 2,918,872; female 3,032,270) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products; shrimp, lobsters | cotton, wheat, rice, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; milk, beef, mutton, eggs |
Airports | 163 (2007) | 117 (2000 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 (2007) |
total:
82 over 3,047 m: 12 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 32 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
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:
35 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 17 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 129,494 sq km
land: 120,254 sq km water: 9,240 sq km |
total:
803,940 sq km land: 778,720 sq km water: 25,220 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than the state of New York | slightly less than twice the size of California |
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. | The separation in 1947 of British India into the Muslim state of Pakistan (with two sections West and East) and largely Hindu India was never satisfactorily resolved. A third war between these countries in 1971 resulted in East Pakistan seceding and becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. A dispute over the state of Kashmir is ongoing. In response to Indian nuclear weapons testing, Pakistan conducted its own tests in 1998. |
Birth rate | 24.12 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 31.21 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.027 billion
expenditures: $1.336 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues:
$8.9 billion expenditures: $11.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY00/01 est.) |
Capital | name: Managua
geographic coordinates: 12 09 N, 86 17 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Islamabad |
Climate | tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands | mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north |
Coastline | 910 km | 1,046 km |
Constitution | 9 January 1987; reforms in 1995, 2000, and 2005 | 10 April 1973, suspended 5 July 1977, restored with amendments 30 December 1985; suspended 15 October 1999 |
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:
Islamic Republic of Pakistan conventional short form: Pakistan former: West Pakistan |
Currency | - | Pakistani rupee (PKR) |
Death rate | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.26 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.702 billion (31 December 2007 est.) | $38 billion (2000 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 William B. MILAM embassy: Diplomatic Enclave, Ramna 5, Islamabad mailing address: P. O. Box 1048, Unit 62200, APO AE 09812-2200 telephone: [92] (51) 2080-0000 FAX: [92] (51) 2276427 consulate(s) general: Karachi consulate(s): Lahore, Peshawar |
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 Maleeha LODHI chancery: 2315 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6200 FAX: [1] (202) 387-0484 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York |
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 | status of Kashmir with India; water-sharing problems with India over the Indus River (Wular Barrage) |
Economic aid - recipient | $471 million (2006 est.) | $2 billion (FY99/00) |
Economy - overview | Nicaragua has widespread underemployment, one of the highest degrees of income inequality in the world, and the third lowest per capita income in the Western Hemisphere. While the country has progressed toward macroeconomic stability in the past few years, annual GDP 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. In early 2004, Nicaragua secured some $4.5 billion in foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, and in October 2007, the IMF approved a new poverty reduction and growth facility (PRGF) program that should create fiscal space for social spending and investment. The continuity of a relationship with the IMF reinforces donor confidence, despite private sector concerns surrounding Ortega, which has dampened investment. The US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) has been in effect since April 2006 and has expanded export opportunities for many agricultural and manufactured goods. Energy shortages fueled by high oil prices, however, are a serious bottleneck to growth. | Pakistan is a poor, heavily populated country, suffering from internal political disputes, lack of foreign investment, and a costly confrontation with neighboring India. Pakistan's economic outlook continues to be marred by its weak foreign exchange position, which relies on international creditors for hard currency inflows. The MUSHARRAF government will face an estimated $21 billion in foreign debt coming due in 2000-03, despite having rescheduled nearly $2 billion in debt with Paris Club members. Foreign loans and grants provide approximately 25% of government revenue, but debt service obligations total nearly 50% of government expenditure. Although Pakistan successfully negotiated a $600 million IMF Stand-By Arrangement, future loan installments will be jeopardized if Pakistan misses critical IMF benchmarks on revenue collection and the fiscal deficit. MUSHARRAF has complied largely with IMF recommendations to raise petroleum prices, widen the tax net, privatize public sector assets, and improve the balance of trade. However, Pakistan's economic prospects remain uncertain; too little has changed despite the new administration's intentions. Foreign exchange reserves hover at roughly $1 billion, GDP growth hinges on crop performance, the import bill has been hammered by high oil prices, and both foreign and domestic investors remain wary of committing to projects in Pakistan. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.929 billion kWh (2006) | 57.732 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 8 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 69.34 million kWh (2006) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 2.778 billion kWh (2006) | 62.078 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
63.38% hydro: 36.51% nuclear: 0.11% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m |
lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: K2 (Mt. Godwin-Austen) 8,611 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution | water pollution from raw sewage, industrial wastes, and agricultural runoff; limited natural fresh water resources; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water; deforestation; soil erosion; 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:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban |
Ethnic groups | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5% | Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun (Pathan), Baloch, Muhajir (immigrants from India at the time of partition and their descendants) |
Exchange rates | gold cordobas per US dollar - 18.457 (2007), 17.582 (2006), 16.733 (2005), 15.937 (2004), 15.105 (2003) | Pakistani rupees per US dollar - 59.152 (January 2001), 52.814 (2000), 49.118 (1999), 44.943 (1998), 40.918 (1997), 35.909 (1996) |
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% |
note:
following a military takeover on 12 October 1999, Chief of Army Staff and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF suspended Pakistan's constitution and assumed the additional title of Chief Executive; exercising the powers of the head of the government, he appointed an eight-member National Security Council to function as Pakistan's supreme governing body; President Mohammad Rafiq TARAR remains the ceremonial chief of state; on 12 May 2000, Pakistan's Supreme Court unanimously validated the October 1999 coup and granted MUSHARRAF executive and legislative authority for three years from the coup date chief of state: President Mohammad Rafiq TARAR (since 31 December 1997) head of government: Chief Executive Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF (since 12 October 1999) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the chief executive elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 31 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by the National Assembly; election last held 3 February 1997 (next to be held NA); note - Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF overthrew the government of Prime Minister Mohammad Nawaz SHARIF in the military takeover of 12 October 1999; in May 2000, the Supreme Court validated the October 1999 coup and set a three-year limit in office for Chief Executive MUSHARRAF election results: Rafiq TARAR elected president; percent of Parliament and provincial vote - NA%; results are for the last election for prime minister prior to the military takeover of 12 October 1999 - Mohammad Nawaz SHARIF elected prime minister; percent of National Assembly vote - NA% |
Exports | 1,397 bbl/day (2004) | $8.6 billion (f.o.b., FY99/00) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts | textiles (garments, cotton cloth, and yarn), rice, other agricultural products |
Exports - partners | US 65.2%, El Salvador 6.9%, Honduras 3.8% (2006) | US 24%, Hong Kong 7%, UK 7%, Germany 6%, UAE 6% (FY99/00) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | green with a vertical white band (symbolizing the role of religious minorities) on the hoist side; a large white crescent and star are centered in the green field; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $282 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 17.1%
industry: 25.9% services: 56.9% (2007 est.) |
agriculture:
25.4% industry: 24.9% services: 49.7% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.9% (2007 est.) | 4.8% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 00 N, 85 00 W | 30 00 N, 70 00 E |
Geography - note | largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua | controls Khyber Pass and Bolan Pass, traditional invasion routes between Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent |
Heliports | - | 8 (2000 est.) |
Highways | - | total:
247,811 km paved: 141,252 km (including 339 km of expressways) unpaved: 106,559 km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 33.8% (2001) |
lowest 10%:
4.1% highest 10%: 27.7% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing | key transit area for Southwest Asian heroin moving to Western markets; narcotics still move from Afghanistan into Balochistan Province |
Imports | 15,560 bbl/day (2005 est.) | $9.6 billion (f.o.b., FY99/00) |
Imports - commodities | consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products | machinery, petroleum, petroleum products, chemicals, transportation equipment, edible oils, grains, pulses, flour |
Imports - partners | US 20.1%, Mexico 13.9%, Venezuela 9.4%, Costa Rica 6.9%, Guatemala 5.4%, China 4.3% (2006) | Saudi Arabia 8%, UAE 8%, US 6%, Japan 6%, Malaysia 4% (FY99/00) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 14 August 1947 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2007 est.) | 3.8% (1999 est.) |
Industries | food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood | textiles, food processing, beverages, construction materials, clothing, paper products, shrimp |
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.) |
80.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 9.8% (2007 est.) | 5.2% (2000 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 | AsDB, C (suspended), CCC, CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 30 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 610 sq km (2003) | 171,100 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema de Justicia (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly) | Supreme Court (justices appointed by the president); Federal Islamic or Shari'a Court |
Labor force | 2.262 million (2007 est.) | 40 million
note: extensive export of labor, mostly to the Middle East, and use of child labor (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 29%
industry: 19% services: 52% (2006 est.) |
agriculture 44%, industry 17%, services 39% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,231 km
border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km |
total:
6,774 km border countries: Afghanistan 2,430 km, China 523 km, India 2,912 km, Iran 909 km |
Land use | arable land: 14.81%
permanent crops: 1.82% other: 83.37% (2005) |
arable land:
27% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 5% other: 61% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish 97.5% (official), Miskito 1.7%, other 0.8% (1995 census)
note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast |
Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi variant) 10%, Pashtu 8%, Urdu (official) 8%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%, English (official and lingua franca of Pakistani elite and most government ministries), Burushaski, and other 8% |
Legal system | civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law with provisions to accommodate Pakistan's status as an Islamic state; 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) |
note - Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF dissolved Parliament following the military takeover of 12 October 1999; bicameral Parliament or Majlis-e-Shoora consists of the Senate (87 seats; members indirectly elected by provincial assemblies to serve six-year terms; one-third of the members up for election every two years) and the National Assembly (217 seats - 10 represent non-Muslims; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 12 March 1997 (next to be held NA); National Assembly - last held 3 February 1997 (next to be held NA); note - no timetable has yet been given for elections following the military takeover election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PML/N 30, PPP 17, ANP 7, MQM/A 6, JWP 5, BNP 4, JUI/F 2, PML/J 2, BNM/M 1, PKMAP 1, TJP 1, independents 6, vacant 5; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PML/N 137, PPP 18, MQM/A 12, ANP 10, BNP 3, JWP 2, JUI/F 2, PPP/SB 1, NPP 1, independents 21, minorities 10; note - Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF dismissed Parliament 15 October 1999 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.92 years
male: 68.82 years female: 73.13 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
61.45 years male: 60.61 years female: 62.32 years (2001 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: 42.7% male: 55.3% female: 29% (1998) |
Location | Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras | Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, between India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the west and China in the north |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: natural prolongation |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
17 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 240,605 GRT/367,040 DWT ships by type: cargo 13, container 3, petroleum tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | National Army of Nicaragua (ENN; includes Navy, Air Force) (2007) | Army, Navy, Air Force, Civil Armed Forces, National Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $2.435 billion (FY99/00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (2006) | 3.9% (FY99/00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
35,770,928 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
21,897,366 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 17 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
1,657,723 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Republic Day, 23 March (1956) |
Nationality | noun: Nicaraguan(s)
adjective: Nicaraguan |
noun:
Pakistani(s) adjective: Pakistani |
Natural hazards | destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes | frequent earthquakes, occasionally severe especially in north and west; flooding along the Indus after heavy rains (July and August) |
Natural resources | gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish | land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited petroleum, poor quality coal, iron ore, copper, salt, limestone |
Net migration rate | -1.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.84 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | oil 54 km (2007) | crude oil 250 km; petroleum products 885 km; natural gas 4,044 km (1987) |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for the Republic or APRE [Miguel LOPEZ Baldizon]; Alternative for Change or AC [Orlando TARDENCILLA Espinoza]; Central American Unionist Party or PUCA [Blanca ROJAS]; 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 Constitutionalist 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 Resistance Party or PRN [Salvador TALAVERA]; Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN [Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra]; Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS [Dora Maria TELLEZ] | note:
Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF dissolved Parliament following the military takeover of 12 October 1999, however, political parties have been allowed to operate; Awami National Party or ANP [Wali KHAN]; Balochistan National Movement/Hayee Group or BNM/H [Dr. HAYEE Baluch]; Baluch National Party or BNP [Sardar Akhtar MENGAL]; Jamhoori Watan Party or JWP [Akbar Khan BUGTI]; Jamiat-al-Hadith or JAH [Sajid MIR]; Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Fazlur Rehman faction or JUI/F [Fazlur REHMAN]; Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan, Niazi faction or JUP/NI [Abdul Sattar Khan NIAZI]; Millat Party [Farooq LEGHARI]; Milli Yakjheti Council or MYC is an umbrella organization which includes Jamaat-i-Islami or JI [Qazi Hussain AHMED], Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Sami-ul-Haq faction or JUI/S [Sami ul-HAQ], Tehrik-I-Jafria Pakistan or TJP [Allama Sajid NAQVI], and Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan, Noorani faction or JUP/NO [Shah Ahmad NOORANI]; Mutahida Qaumi Movement, Altaf faction or MQM/A [Altaf HUSSAIN]; National People's Party or NPP [Ghulam Mustapha JATOI]; Pakhtun Khwa Milli Awami Party or PKMAP [Mahmood Khan ACHAKZAI]; Pakhtun Quami Party or PQP [Mohammed AFZAL Khan]; Pakistan Awami Tehrik or PAT [Tahir ul QADRI]; Pakistan Muslim League, Functional Group or PML/F [Pir PAGARO]; Pakistan Muslim League, Junejo faction or PML/J [Hamid Nasir CHATTHA]; Pakistan Muslim League, Nawaz Sharif faction or PML/N [Nawaz SHARIF]; Pakistan National Party or PNP [Hasil BIZENJO]; Pakistan People's Party or PPP [Benazir BHUTTO]; Pakistan People's Party/Shaheed Bhutto or PPP/SB [Ghinva BHUTTO]; Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf or PTI [Imran KHAN] note: political alliances in Pakistan can shift frequently |
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 | military remains important political force; ulema (clergy), landowners, industrialists, and small merchants also influential |
Population | 5,675,356 (July 2007 est.) | 144,616,639 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 48% (2005) | 40% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.855% (2007 est.) | 2.11% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Karachi, Port Muhammad bin Qasim |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 27, FM 1, shortwave 21 (1998) |
Radios | - | 13.5 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 6 km
narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2006) |
total:
8,163 km broad gauge: 7,718 km 1.676-m gauge (293 km electrified; 1,037 km double track) narrow gauge: 445 km 1.000-m gauge (1996 est.) (2000) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 72.9%, Evangelical 15.1%, Moravian 1.5%, Episcopal 0.1%, other 1.9%, none 8.5% (1995 census) | Muslim 97% (Sunni 77%, Shi'a 20%), Christian, Hindu, and other 3% |
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:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 16 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal; separate electorates and reserved parliamentary seats for non-Muslims |
Telephone system | general assessment: system being upgraded by foreign investment; nearly all installed telecommunications capacity now uses digital technology, owing to investments since privatization of the formerly state-owned telecoms company
domestic: since privatization, access to fixed-line and mobile-cellular services has improved but teledensity still lags behind other Central American countries; connected to Central American Microwave System international: country code - 505; the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber optic submarine cable provides connectivity to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
the domestic system is mediocre, but improving; service is adequate for government and business use, in part because major businesses have established their own private systems; since 1988, the government has promoted investment in the national telecommunications system on a priority basis, significantly increasing network capacity; despite major improvements in trunk and urban systems, telecommunication services are still not readily available to the majority of the rural population domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, fiber-optic cable, cellular, and satellite networks international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); 3 operational international gateway exchanges (1 at Karachi and 2 at Islamabad); microwave radio relay to neighboring countries (1999) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 247,900 (2006) | 2.861 million (March 1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.83 million (2006) | 158,000 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus 7 repeaters) (1997) | 22 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes | flat Indus plain in east; mountains in north and northwest; Balochistan plateau in west |
Total fertility rate | 2.69 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 4.41 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.6% plus underemployment of 46.5% (2007 est.) | 6% (FY99/00 est.) |
Waterways | 2,220 km (including lakes Managua and Nicaragua) (2007) | none |