Nigeria (2001) | Argentina (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Abuja Federal Capital Territory*, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara | 23 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia), and 1 autonomous city* (distrito federal); Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Capital Federal*, Catamarca, Chaco, Chubut, Cordoba, Corrientes, Entre Rios, Formosa, Jujuy, La Pampa, La Rioja, Mendoza, Misiones, Neuquen, Rio Negro, Salta, San Juan, San Luis, Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santiago del Estero, Tierra del Fuego - Antartida e Islas del Atlantico Sur, Tucuman
note: the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
43.71% (male 27,842,225; female 27,514,197) 15-64 years: 53.47% (male 34,456,738; female 33,259,194) 65 years and over: 2.82% (male 1,780,862; female 1,782,410) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.3% (male 5,090,046; female 4,854,761)
15-64 years: 63.2% (male 11,968,135; female 11,937,709) 65 years and over: 10.5% (male 1,636,332; female 2,325,834) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava (tapioca), yams, rubber; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs; timber; fish | sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock |
Airports | 70 (2000 est.) | 1,369 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
36 over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 145
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 62 914 to 1,523 m: 44 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
34 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 18 (2000 est.) |
total: 1,197 1,225
over 3,047 m: 2 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 50 53 914 to 1,523 m: 572 598 under 914 m: 571 570 (2002) |
Area | total:
923,768 sq km land: 910,768 sq km water: 13,000 sq km |
total: 2,766,890 sq km
land: 2,736,690 sq km water: 30,200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of California | slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US |
Background | Following nearly 16 years of military rule, a new constitution was adopted in 1999 and a peaceful transition to civilian government completed. The new president faces the daunting task of rebuilding a petroleum-based economy, whose revenues have been squandered through corruption and mismanagement, and institutionalizing democracy. In addition, the OBASANJO administration must defuse longstanding ethnic and religious tensions, if it is to build a sound foundation for economic growth and political stability. | Following independence from Spain in 1816, Argentina experienced periods of internal political conflict between conservatives and liberals and between civilian and military factions. After World War II, a long period of Peronist authoritarian rule and interference in subsequent governments was followed by a military junta that took power in 1976. Democracy returned in 1983, and numerous elections since then have underscored Argentina's progress in democratic consolidation. |
Birth rate | 39.69 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.23 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$3.4 billion expenditures: $3.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $44 billion
expenditures: $48 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Abuja; note - on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially transferred from Lagos to Abuja; most federal government offices have now made the move to Abuja | Buenos Aires |
Climate | varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north | mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest |
Coastline | 853 km | 4,989 km |
Constitution | NA 1999 new constitution adopted | 1 May 1853; revised August 1994 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Federal Republic of Nigeria conventional short form: Nigeria |
conventional long form: Argentine Republic
conventional short form: Argentina local long form: Republica Argentina local short form: Argentina |
Currency | naira (NGN) | Argentine peso (ARS) |
Death rate | 13.91 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.57 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $32 billion (2000 est.) | $155 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Howard Franklin JETER embassy: 8 Mambilla Drive, Abuja mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos telephone: [234] (1) 261-0050, -0078 FAX: [234] (1) 261-0257 |
chief of mission: Ambassador James D. WALSH
embassy: Avenida Colombia 4300, C1425GMN Buenos Aires mailing address: international mail: use street address; APO address: Unit 4334, APO AA 34034 telephone: [54] (11) 5777-4533 FAX: [54] (11) 5777-4240 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Jibril AMINU chancery: 1333 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400 FAX: [1] (202) 775-1385 consulate(s) general: Atlanta and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Eduardo AMADEO
chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 238-6400 FAX: [1] (202) 332-3171 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York |
Disputes - international | delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, has been completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria; dispute with Cameroon over land and maritime boundaries around the Bakasi Peninsula is currently before the ICJ; tripartite maritime boundary and economic zone dispute with Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon is currently before the ICJ | claims UK-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); claims UK-administered South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica partially overlaps British and Chilean claims |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA $250 million (1998) | $10 billion (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | The oil-rich Nigerian economy, long hobbled by political instability, corruption, and poor macroeconomic management, is undergoing substantial economic reform under the new civilian administration. Nigeria's former military rulers failed to diversify the economy away from overdependence on the capital-intensive oil sector, which provides 20% of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings, and about 65% of budgetary revenues. The largely subsistence agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid population growth, and Nigeria, once a large net exporter of food, now must import food. Following the signing of an IMF stand-by agreement in August 2000, Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club and a $1 billion loan from the IMF, both contingent on economic reforms. Increases in foreign investment and oil production combined with high world oil prices should push growth over 4% in 2001-02. | Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. Over the past decade, however, the country has suffered recurring economic problems of inflation, hugh external debt, capital flight, and budget deficits. Growth in 2000 was a negative 0.5%, as both domestic and foreign investors remained skeptical of the government's ability to pay debts and maintain the peso's fixed exchange rate with the US dollar. The economic situation worsened in 2001 with the widening of spreads on Argentine bonds, massive withdrawals from the banks, and a further decline in consumer and investor confidence. Government efforts to achieve a "zero deficit", to stabilize the banking system, and to restore economic growth proved inadequate in the face of the mounting economic problems. The peso's peg to the dollar was abandoned in January 2002, and the peso was floated in February; the exchange rate plunged and inflation picked up rapidly, but by mid-2002 the economy had stabilized, albeit at a lower level. Output was 14.7% below the previous year's figure, and unemployment remained high, at 21.5%. In order to reverse the crisis some economists recently have advocated that Argentina adopt the US dollar as the national currency, however, others argue tieing the economy closely to the dollar was precisely what led to Argentina's current problems. |
Electricity - consumption | 17.372 billion kWh (1999) | 80.806 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 19 million kWh (1999) | 3.7 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 7.5 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 18.7 billion kWh (1999) | 82.802 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
52.94% hydro: 47.06% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 52%
hydro: 41% nuclear: 7% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Chappal Waddi 2,419 m |
lowest point: Salinas Chicas -40 m (located on Peninsula Valdes)
highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m |
Environment - current issues | soil degradation; rapid deforestation; desertification | environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as deforestation, soil degradation, desertification, air pollution, and water pollution
note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Nigeria, which is Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than 250 ethnic groups; the following are the most populous and politically influential: Hausa and Fulani 29%, Yoruba 21%, Igbo (Ibo) 18%, Ijaw 10%, Kanuri 4%, Ibibio 3.5%, Tiv 2.5% | white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo, Amerindian, or other nonwhite groups 3% |
Exchange rates | nairas per US dollar - 110.005 (January 2001), 101.697 (2000), 92.338 (1999), 21.886 (1998), 21.886 (1997), 21.884 (1996) | Argentine pesos per US dollar - 1.33325 (January 2002), 1.000 (1997-2001); note - fixed rate pegged to the US dollar was abandoned in January 2002; peso now floats |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Federal Executive Council elections: president is elected by popular vote for no more than two four-year terms; election last held 27 February 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 62.8%, Olu FALAE (APP-AD) 37.2% |
chief of state: President Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE (since 2 January 2002); note - selected by National Congress in aftermath of resignation of former President DE LA RUA on 20 December 2001 and resignations of others who briefly held the office following DE LA RUA's departure; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and the post remains vacant; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE (since 2 January 2002); note - selected by National Congress in aftermath of resignation of former President DE LA RUA on 20 December 2001 and resignations of others who briefly held the office following DE LA RUA's departure; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and the post remains vacant; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Fernando DE LA RUA elected president; percent of vote - 48.5% ; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and a replacement was not named; DE LA RUA resigned 20 December 2001; following a series of interim presidents, Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE was selected president by the National Congress on 1 January 2002 |
Exports | $22.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $26.7 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products 95%, cocoa, rubber | edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed, motor vehicles |
Exports - partners | US 36%, India 9%, Spain 8%, Brazil 6%, France 6%, (1999) | Brazil 26.5%, US 11.8%, Chile 10.6%, Spain 3.5% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green | three equal horizontal bands of light blue (top), white, and light blue; centered in the white band is a radiant yellow sun with a human face known as the Sun of May |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $117 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $391 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
40% industry: 40% services: 20% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 28% services: 66% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $950 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10,200 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2000 est.) | -14.7% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 10 00 N, 8 00 E | 34 00 S, 64 00 W |
Geography - note | - | second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Cerro Aconcagua is South America's tallest mountain, while the Valdes Peninsula is the lowest point on the continent |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
194,394 km paved: 60,068 km (including 1,194 km of expressways) unpaved: 134,326 km note: many of the roads reported as paved may be graveled; because of poor maintenance and years of heavy freight traffic - in part the result of the failure of the railroad system - much of the road system is barely usable (1997) |
total: 215,434 km
paved: 63,553 km (including 734 km of expressways) unpaved: 151,881 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.6% highest 10%: 40.8% (1996-97) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | facilitates movement of heroin en route from Southeast and Southwest Asia to Western Europe and North America; increasingly a transit route for cocaine from South America intended for European, East Asian, and North American markets | used as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for Europe and the US; some money-laundering activity, especially in the Tri-Border Area; domestic consumption of drugs in urban centers is increasing |
Imports | $10.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $20.3 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics |
Imports - partners | UK 11%, Germany 10%, US 9%, France 8%, China 6% (1999) | Brazil 25.1%, US 18.7%, Germany 5%, China 4.6% (2000) |
Independence | 1 October 1960 (from UK) | 9 July 1816 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1.5% (2000 est.) | 1% (2000 est.) |
Industries | crude oil, coal, tin, columbite, palm oil, peanuts, cotton, rubber, wood, hides and skins, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food products, footwear, chemicals, fertilizer, printing, ceramics, steel | food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel |
Infant mortality rate | 73.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 17.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.5% (2000 est.) | 4% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | AfDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MTCR, NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 11 (2000) | 33 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 9,570 sq km (1993 est.) | 15,610 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the Provisional Ruling Council); Federal Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee) | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (the nine Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president with approval by the Senate) |
Labor force | 66 million (1999 est.) | 15 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 70%, industry 10%, services 20% (1999 est.) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total:
4,047 km border countries: Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad 87 km, Niger 1,497 km |
total: 9,665 km
border countries: Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,224 km, Chile 5,150 km, Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 579 km |
Land use | arable land:
33% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 44% forests and woodland: 12% other: 8% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 9.14%
permanent crops: 0.8% other: 90.06% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani | Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French |
Legal system | based on English common law, Islamic Shariah law (only in some northern states), and traditional law | mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly consists of Senate (109 seats, three from each state and one from the Federal Capital Territory; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (360 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 20-24 February 1999 (next to be held NA 2003); House of Representatives - last held 20-24 February 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 58%, APP 23%, AD 19%; seats by party - PDP 67, APP 23, AD 19; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 58%, APP 30%, AD 12%; seats by party - PDP 221, APP 70, AD 69 |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate (72 seats; formerly, three members appointed by each of the provincial legislatures; presently transitioning to one-third of the members being elected every two years to six-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies (257 seats; one-half of the members elected every two years to four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 14 October 2001 (next to be held NA October 2003); Chamber of Deputies - last held 14 October 2001 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Justicialist (Peronist) 40, UCR 24, provincial parties 6, Frepaso 1, ARI 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Justicialist (Peronist) 113, UCR 74, provincial parties 27, Frepaso 17, ARI 17, AR 9 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
51.07 years male: 51.07 years female: 51.07 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.48 years
male: 72.1 years female: 79.03 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 57.1% male: 67.3% female: 47.3% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.2% male: 96.2% female: 96.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and Cameroon | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay |
Map references | Africa | South America |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
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:
41 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 357,372 GRT/636,254 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 10, chemical tanker 4, petroleum tanker 24, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 147,505 GRT/222,500 DWT
ships by type: cargo 9, petroleum tanker 10, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: United Arab Emirates 1, Uruguay 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic (includes naval aviation and Marines), Coast Guard, Argentine Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Aeronautical Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $360 million (FY00) | $4.3 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 10% (FY00) | 1.3% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
29,940,922 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 9,521,633 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
17,201,367 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 7,721,219 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 20 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
1,375,112 (2001 est.) |
males: 335,085 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 October (1960) | Revolution Day, 25 May (1810) |
Nationality | noun:
Nigerian(s) adjective: Nigerian |
noun: Argentine(s)
adjective: Argentine |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts | San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the Pampas and northeast; heavy flooding |
Natural resources | natural gas, petroleum, tin, columbite, iron ore, coal, limestone, lead, zinc, arable land | fertile plains of the Pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium |
Net migration rate | 0.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 2,042 km; petroleum products 3,000 km; natural gas 500 km | crude oil 4,090 km; petroleum products 2,900 km; natural gas 9,918 km |
Political parties and leaders | All People's Party or APP [Alhaji Yusuf ALI]; Alliance for Democracy or AD [contested between Yusuf MAMMAN and Alhasi Adamu ABDULKADIR]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Barnabas GEMADE] | Action for the Republic or AR [Domingo CAVALLO]; Alternative for a Republic of Equals or ARI [Elisa CARRIO]; Front for a Country in Solidarity or Frepaso (a four-party coalition) [Dario Pedro ALESSANDRO]; Justicialist Party or PJ [Carlos Saul MENEM] (Peronist umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Angel ROZAS]; several provincial parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Argentine Association of Pharmaceutical Labs (CILFA); Argentine Industrial Union (manufacturers' association); Argentine Rural Society (large landowners' association); business organizations; General Confederation of Labor or CGT (Peronist-leaning umbrella labor organization); Peronist-dominated labor movement; Roman Catholic Church; students |
Population | 126,635,626
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
37,812,817 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 45% (2000 est.) | 37% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.61% (2001 est.) | 1.13% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Calabar, Lagos, Onne, Port Harcourt, Sapele, Warri | Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia, Concepcion del Uruguay, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Necochea, Rio Gallegos, Rosario, Santa Fe, Ushuaia |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 82, FM 35, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM NA (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998) |
Radios | 23.5 million (1997) | 24.3 million (1997) |
Railways | total:
3,557 km narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge standard gauge: 52 km 1.435-m gauge note: years of neglect of both the rolling stock and the right-of-way have seriously reduced the capacity and utility of the system; a project to restore Nigeria's railways is now underway |
total: 33,744 km (167 km electrified)
broad gauge: 20,594 km 1.676-m gauge (141 km electrified) standard gauge: 2,739 km 1.435-m gauge (26 km electrified) narrow gauge: 10,154 km 1.000-m gauge; 257 km 0.750-m gauge (2000 est.) |
Religions | Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10% | nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and mandatory |
Telephone system | general assessment:
an inadequate system, further limited by poor maintenance; major expansion is required and a start has been made domestic: intercity traffic is carried by coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, a domestic communications satellite system with 19 earth stations, and a coastal submarine cable; mobile cellular facilities and the Internet are available international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); coaxial submarine cable SAFE (South African Far East) |
general assessment: by opening the telecommunications market to competition and foreign investment with the "Telecommunications Liberalization Plan of 1998", Argentina encouraged the growth of modern telecommunication technology; fiber-optic cable trunk lines are being installed between all major cities; the major networks are entirely digital and the availability of telephone service is being improved; however, telephone density is presently minimal, and making telephone service universally available will take some time
domestic: microwave radio relay, fiber-optic cable, and a domestic satellite system with 40 earth stations serve the trunk network; more than 110,000 pay telephones are installed and mobile telephone use is rapidly expanding international: satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); Atlantis II and Unisur submarine cables; two international gateways near Buenos Aires (1999) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 500,000 (2000) | 7.5 million (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 26,700 (1997) | 3 million (December 1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 government-controlled; note - in addition, in 1993, 14 licenses to operate private television stations were granted (1999) | 42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains in southeast, plains in north | rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border |
Total fertility rate | 5.57 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.41 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 28% (1992 est.) | 25% (yearend 2001) |
Waterways | 8,575 km
note: consisting of the Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks |
10,950 km |