Portugal (2004) | Netherlands Antilles (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 18 districts (distritos, singular - distrito) and 2 autonomous regions* (regioes autonomas, singular - regiao autonoma); Aveiro, Acores (Azores)*, Beja, Braga, Braganca, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Evora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria, Lisboa, Madeira*, Portalegre, Porto, Santarem, Setubal, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real, Viseu | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
note: each island has its own government |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 16.7% (male 916,106; female 840,574)
15-64 years: 66.4% (male 3,454,970; female 3,535,108) 65 years and over: 16.9% (male 735,407; female 1,041,980) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 23.6% (male 27,020/female 25,726)
15-64 years: 67.4% (male 72,449/female 78,259) 65 years and over: 9% (male 8,243/female 11,955) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, olives, grapes; sheep, cattle, goats, poultry, beef, dairy products | aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit |
Airports | 66 (2003 est.) | 5 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 42
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.) |
total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 23
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 22 (2004 est.) |
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Area | total: 92,391 sq km
land: 91,951 sq km water: 440 sq km note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands |
total: 960 sq km
land: 960 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin) |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Indiana | more than five times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Following its heyday as a world power during the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal lost much of its wealth and status with the destruction of Lisbon in a 1755 earthquake, occupation during the Napoleonic Wars, and the independence in 1822 of Brazil as a colony. A 1910 revolution deposed the monarchy; for most of the next six decades, repressive governments ran the country. In 1974, a left-wing military coup installed broad democratic reforms. The following year, Portugal granted independence to all of its African colonies. Portugal is a founding member of NATO and entered the EC (now the EU) in 1986. | Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is shared with France; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles; its northern portion, called Saint Martin, is an overseas collectivity of France. |
Birth rate | 10.9 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 14.56 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $64.81 billion
expenditures: $69.09 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues: $757.9 million
expenditures: $949.5 million (2004) |
Capital | Lisbon | name: Willemstad (on Curacao)
geographic coordinates: 12 06 N, 68 56 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south | tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 1,793 km | 364 km |
Constitution | 25 April 1976; revised 30 October 1982, 1 June 1989, 5 November 1992, 3 September 1997, 12 December 2001, and 24 July 2004 | 29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended |
Country name | conventional long form: Portuguese Republic
conventional short form: Portugal local long form: Republica Portuguesa local short form: Portugal |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Netherlands Antilles local long form: none local short form: Nederlandse Antillen former: Curacao and Dependencies |
Currency | euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
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Death rate | 10.37 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $250.7 billion (2003 est.) | $2.68 billion (2004) |
Dependency status | - | an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 1954; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Adrienne S. O'NEAL
embassy: Avenida das Forcas Armadas, 1600-081 Lisbon mailing address: Apartado 4258, 1507 Lisboa Codex; PSC 83, APO AE 09726 telephone: [351] (21) 727-3300 FAX: [351] (21) 726-9109 consulate(s): Ponta Delgada (Azores) |
chief of mission: Consul General Robert E. SORENSON
consulate(s) general: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Willemstad, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 4613066 FAX: [599] (9) 4616489 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Pedro Manuel Dos Reis Alves CATARINO
chancery: 2125 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-8610 FAX: [1] (202) 462-3726 consulate(s) general: Boston, New York, Newark (New Jersey), and San Francisco consulate(s): Los Angeles, New Bedford (Massachusetts), Providence (Rhode Island) |
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands); note - Mr. Jeffrey CORRION, Minister Plenipotentiary for Aruba at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Disputes - international | some Portuguese groups assert dormant claims to territories ceded to Spain around the town of Olivenza | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $271 million (1995) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $21.32 million
note: IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its support with $40 million (2004) |
Economy - overview | Portugal has become a diversified and increasingly service-based economy since joining the European Community in 1986. Over the past decade, successive governments have privatized many state-controlled firms and liberalized key areas of the economy, including the financial and telecommunications sectors. The country qualified for the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in 1998 and began circulating the euro on 1 January 2002 along with 11 other EU member economies. Economic growth has been above the EU average for much of the past decade, but fell back in 2001-03. GDP per capita stands at 70% of that of the leading EU economies. A poor educational system, in particular, has been an obstacle to greater productivity and growth. Portugal has been increasingly overshadowed by lower-cost producers in Central Europe and Asia as a target for foreign direct investment. The coalition government faces tough choices in its attempts to boost Portugal's economic competitiveness and to keep the budget deficit within the 3% EU ceiling. | Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP has declined or grown slightly in each of the past eight years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Most of the oil Netherlands Antilles imports for its refineries come from Venezuela. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. Budgetary problems hamper reform of the health and pension systems of an aging population. |
Electricity - consumption | 41.48 billion kWh (2001) | 891 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 3.479 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 3.743 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 44.32 billion kWh (2001) | 1.175 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Ponta do Pico (Pico or Pico Alto) on Ilha do Pico in the Azores 2,351 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Scenery 862 m |
Environment - current issues | soil erosion; air pollution caused by industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution, especially in coastal areas | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Environmental Modification |
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Ethnic groups | homogeneous Mediterranean stock; citizens of black African descent who immigrated to mainland during decolonization number less than 100,000; since 1990 East Europeans have entered Portugal | mixed black 85%, other 15% (includes Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian) |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999) | Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - NA (2007), 1.79 (2006), 1.79 (2005), 1.79 (2004), 1.79 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Jorge SAMPAIO (since 9 March 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Pedro SANTANA LOPES (since 17 July 2004); note - Prime Minister Jose Manuel DURAO BARROSO resigned 5 July 2004 to take over the Presidency of the European Commission; Prime Minister Pedro SANTANA LOPES and his government resigned 11 December 2004, but will stay on in a caretaker capacity until February 2005 elections cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister note: there is also a Council of State that acts as a consultative body to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 January 2001 (next to be held NA January 2006); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Jorge SAMPAIO reelected president; percent of vote - Jorge SAMPAIO (Socialist) 55.8%, Joaquim FERREIRA Do Amaral (Social Democrat) 34.5%, Antonio ABREU (Communist) 5.1% |
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980); represented by Governor General Frits GOEDGEDRAG (since 1 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Emily de JONGH-ELHAGE (since 26 March 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the Staten (legislature) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch for a six-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the Staten; election last held 27 January 2006 (next to be held by 2010) note: government coalition - PAR, PNP, DP-St. M, UPB, WIPM Saba, DP-St. E |
Exports | 28,830 bbl/day (2001) | 217,800 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | clothing and footwear, machinery, chemicals, cork and paper products, hides | petroleum products |
Exports - partners | Spain 22.7%, Germany 15.2%, France 12.9%, UK 10.5%, US 5.8%, Italy 4.8%, Belgium 4.6% (2003) | US 27.2%, Panama 11.4%, Mexico 9%, Germany 6.2%, Haiti 5.3%, Singapore 4.8%, Bahamas, The 4.2% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two vertical bands of green (hoist side, two-fifths) and red (three-fifths) with the Portuguese coat of arms centered on the dividing line | white, with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band, also centered; five white, five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $181.8 billion (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 5.8%
industry: 30.7% services: 63.2% (2003) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 15% services: 84% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $18,000 (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | -1.3% (2003 est.) | 1% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 39 30 N, 8 00 W | 12 15 N, 68 45 W |
Geography - note | Azores and Madeira Islands occupy strategic locations along western sea approaches to Strait of Gibraltar | the five islands of the Netherlands Antilles are divided geographically into the Leeward Islands (northern) group (Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten) and the Windward Islands (southern) group (Bonaire and Curacao); the island of Saint Martin is the smallest landmass in the World shared by two independent states, the French territory of Saint Martin and the Dutch territory of Sint Maarten |
Highways | total: 68,732 km
paved: 59,110 km (including 1441 km of expressways) unpaved: 9,622 km (2000) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 28.4% (1995 est.) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | gateway country for Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market (especially from Brazil); transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Europe; consumer of Southwest Asian heroin | transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center |
Imports | 357,300 bbl/day (2001) | 282,500 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum, textiles, agricultural products | crude petroleum, food, manufactures |
Imports - partners | Spain 29.1%, Germany 14.7%, France 9.9%, Italy 6.4%, UK 4.9%, Netherlands 4.6% (2003) | Venezuela 71.1%, US 10.4%, Italy 3.7% (2006) |
Independence | 1143 (Kingdom of Portugal recognized); 5 October 1910 (independent republic proclaimed) | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.4% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | textiles and footwear; wood pulp, paper, and cork; metalworking; oil refining; chemicals; fish canning; wine; tourism | tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao) |
Infant mortality rate | total: 5.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 9.63 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.33 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.3% (2003 est.) | 2.1% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMISET, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | Caricom (observer), ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO |
Irrigated land | 6,320 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal de Justica (judges appointed for life by the Conselho Superior da Magistratura) | Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 5.409 million (2003) | 83,600 (2005) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 30%, services 60% (1999 est.) | agriculture: 1%
industry: 20% services: 79% (2005 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,214 km
border countries: Spain 1,214 km |
total: 15 km
border countries: Saint Martin 15 km |
Land use | arable land: 21.75%
permanent crops: 7.81% other: 70.44% (2001) |
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 0% other: 90% (2005) |
Languages | Portuguese (official), Mirandese (official - but locally used) | Papiamento 65.4% (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect), English 15.9% (widely spoken), Dutch 7.3% (official), Spanish 6.1%, Creole 1.6%, other 1.9%, unspecified 1.8% (2001 census) |
Legal system | civil law system; the Constitutional Tribunal reviews the constitutionality of legislation; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on Dutch civil law system with some English common law influence |
Legislative branch | unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (230 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 March 2002 (next to be held 20 February 2005); note - President SAMPAIO called for early elections after dissolving Parliament on 10 December 2004 because he lacked confidence in the four-month center-right government election results: percent of vote by party - PSD 40.1%, PS 37.8%, PP 8.7%, PCP/PEV 6.9%, The Left Bloc 2.7%; seats by party - PSD 105, PS 96, PP 14, PCP/PEV 12, The Left Bloc 3 |
unicameral States or Staten (22 seats, Curacao 14, Bonaire 3, St. Maarten 3, St. Eustatius 1, Saba 1; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 January 2006 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PAR 5, MAN 3, FOL 2, Forsa Korsou 2, National Alliance 2, PNP 2, UPB 2, DP-St. E 1, DP-St. M 1, PDB 1, WIPM 1 note: the government is a coalition of several parties |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.35 years
male: 74.06 years female: 80.85 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 76.24 years
male: 73.96 years female: 78.65 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.3% male: 95.5% female: 91.3% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.7% male: 96.7% female: 96.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southwestern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Spain | Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - composed of five islands, Curacao and Bonaire located off the coast of Venezuela, and Sint Maarten, Saba, and St. Eustatius lie east of the US Virgin Islands |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 122 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 872,557 GRT/1,236,025 DWT
by type: bulk 12, cargo 49, chemical tanker 19, container 8, liquefied gas 7, multi-functional large load carrier 1, passenger 6, petroleum tanker 7, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 5, short-sea/passenger 5, vehicle carrier 2 foreign-owned: Australia 1, Belgium 1, Cyprus 1, Denmark 7, Germany 21, Greece 2, Guadeloupe 1, Iceland 1, Italy 16, Japan 1, Malta 1, Norway 7, Panama 1, Spain 18, Switzerland 7, Ukraine 1, United Kingdom 1 registered in other countries: 24 (2004 est.) |
total: 138 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,096,005 GRT/1,437,692 DWT
by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 4, cargo 70, carrier 12, chemical tanker 3, container 10, liquefied gas 1, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 25, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 3 foreign-owned: 125 (Belgium 1, Cuba 1, Denmark 1, Germany 48, Netherlands 53, Norway 5, Sweden 3, Turkey 12, US 1) (2007) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Military branches | Army, Navy (PON; including Marines), Air Force (FAP), Republican Guard (including Fiscal Guard) | no regular military forces; National Guard (2008) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3,497.8 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.3% (2003) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,628,892 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,107,502 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 72,821 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Portugal Day, 10 June (1580); note - also called Camoes Day, the day that revered national poet Luis de Camoes (1524-80) died | Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX), 30 April (1909 and 1980) |
Nationality | noun: Portuguese (singular and plural)
adjective: Portuguese |
noun: Dutch Antillean(s)
adjective: Dutch Antillean |
Natural hazards | Azores subject to severe earthquakes | Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt and are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October |
Natural resources | fish, forests (cork), iron ore, copper, zinc, tin, tungsten, silver, gold, uranium, marble, clay, gypsum, salt, arable land, hydropower | phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only) |
Net migration rate | 3.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,099 km; oil 8 km; refined products 174 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Green Ecologist Party or PEV [Heloisa APOLONIA]; Popular Party or PP [Paulo PORTAS]; Portuguese Communist Party or PCP [Jeronimo de SOUSA]; Portuguese Socialist Party or PS [Jose SOCRATES Carvalho Pinto de Sousa]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Pedro Miguel SANTANA LOPES]; The Left Bloc or BE [Franciso Anacleto LOUCA] | Bonaire: Democratic Party of Bonaire or PDB [Jopi ABRAHAM]; Patriotic Union of Bonaire or UPB [Ramonsito BOOI]
Curacao: Ban Vota [Norbert GEORGE]; C-93 [Stanley BROWN]; Democratic Party of Curacao or DP [Errol HERNANDEZ]; E Mayoria [Aurelio PEDRO]; Forsa Korsou [Nelson NAVARRO]; Liste Ni'un Paso Atras [Nelson PIERRE]; Movemiento Patriotiko Korsou [Reginald LAK]; New Antilles Movement or MAN [Charles COOPER]; Partido Akshon Pa Prosperidat I Seguridat [Sonja BERKEMEYER]; Partido Laboral Krusada Popular or PLKP [Errol COVA]; Party for the Restructured Antilles or PAR [Emily de JONGH-ELHAGE]; People's National Party or PNP [Ersilia DE LANNOOY]; Pidjin [Jasmin PINEDO]; Pueblo Soberano [Herman WIELS]; Workers' Liberation Front or FOL [Anthony GODETT] Saba: Saba Labor Party [Akilah LEVENSTONE]; Windward Islands People's Movement or WIPM [Ray HASSELL] Sint Eustatius: Democratic Party of Sint Eustatius or DP-St. E [Julian WOODLEY]; Progressive Labor Party [Clyde VAN PUTTEN]; St. Eustatius Alliance [Ingrid HOUTMAN-WHITFIELD] Sint Maarten: Democratic Party of Sint Maarten or DP-St. M [Sarah WESCOTT-WILLIAMS]; Freedom Slate of National Democratic Party [Theophilus PRIEST]; National Alliance or NA [William MARLIN]; People's Progressive Alliance or PPA [Gracita ARRINDELL]; St. Maarten People's Party [Johan LEONARD]; United People's Labor Party [Bienvenido RICHARDSON] note: political parties are indigenous to each island |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Unions (AVBO) and Employers Association (VBC) |
Population | 10,524,145 (July 2004 est.) | 223,652 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.41% (2004 est.) | 0.777% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aveiro, Funchal (Madeira Islands), Horta (Azores), Leixoes, Lisbon, Porto, Ponta Delgada (Azores), Praia da Vitoria (Azores), Setubal, Viana do Castelo | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 47, FM 172 (many are repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 8, FM 19, shortwave 0 (2003) |
Railways | total: 2,850 km
broad gauge: 2,576 km 1.668-m gauge (623 km electrified) narrow gauge: 274 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
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Religions | Roman Catholic 94%, Protestant (1995) | Roman Catholic 72%, Pentecostal 4.9%, Protestant 3.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3.1%, Methodist 2.9%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.7%, other Christian 4.2%, Jewish 1.3%, other or unspecified 1.2%, none 5.2% (2001 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.926 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.929 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: Portugal's telephone system has achieved a state-of-the-art network with broadband, high-speed capabilities and a main line telephone density of 53%
domestic: integrated network of coaxial cables, open-wire, microwave radio relay, and domestic satellite earth stations international: country code - 351; 6 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to Azores; note - an earth station for Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region) is planned |
general assessment: generally adequate facilities
domestic: extensive interisland microwave radio relay links international: country code - 599; the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) and the Americas-2 submarine cable systems provide connectivity to Central America, parts of South America and the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4,278,800 (2003) | 81,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 9,341,400 (2003) | 200,000 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 62 (plus 166 repeaters)
note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands (1995) |
3 (there is also a cable service, which supplies programs received from various US satellite networks and 4 Venezuelan channels) (2003) |
Terrain | mountainous north of the Tagus River, rolling plains in south | generally hilly, volcanic interiors |
Total fertility rate | 1.46 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.99 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.4% (2003 est.) | 17% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 210 km (on Douro River from Porto) (2003) | - |