Sudan (2003) | Nicaragua (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 26 states (wilayat, singular - wilayah); A'ali an Nil, Al Bahr al Ahmar, Al Buhayrat, Al Jazirah, Al Khartum, Al Qadarif, Al Wahdah, An Nil al Abyad, An Nil al Azraq, Ash Shamaliyah, Bahr al Jabal, Gharb al Istiwa'iyah, Gharb Bahr al Ghazal, Gharb Darfur, Gharb Kurdufan, Janub Darfur, Janub Kurdufan, Junqali, Kassala, Nahr an Nil, Shamal Bahr al Ghazal, Shamal Darfur, Shamal Kurdufan, Sharq al Istiwa'iyah, Sinnar, Warab | 15 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 2 autonomous regions* (regiones autonomistas, singular - region autonomista); Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales, Esteli, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia, Rio San Juan, Rivas, Atlantico Norte*, Atlantico Sur* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 44% (male 8,562,412; female 8,195,201)
15-64 years: 53.8% (male 10,260,581; female 10,246,045) 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 468,898; female 381,023) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 38.3% (male 980,621; female 945,386)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 1,464,468; female 1,483,082) 65 years and over: 3% (male 65,610; female 84,651) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, groundnuts (peanuts), sorghum, millet, wheat, gum arabic, sugarcane, cassava (tapioca), mangos, papaya, bananas, sweet potatoes, sesame; sheep, livestock | coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products |
Airports | 63 (2002) | 182 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2002) |
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 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 51
1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 24 under 914 m: 10 (2002) |
total: 165
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 141 (2002) |
Area | total: 2,505,810 sq km
land: 2.376 million sq km water: 129,810 sq km |
total: 129,494 sq km
land: 120,254 sq km water: 9,240 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than one-quarter the size of the US | slightly smaller than the state of New York |
Background | Military regimes favoring Islamic-oriented governments have dominated national politics since independence from the UK in 1956. Sudan has been embroiled in a civil war for all but 10 years of this period (1972-82). The wars are rooted in northern economic, political, and social domination of non-Muslim, non-Arab southern Sudanese. Since 1983, the war and war- and famine-related effects have led to more than 2 million deaths and over 4 million people displaced. The ruling regime is a mixture of military elite and an Islamist party that came to power in a 1989 coup. Some northern opposition parties have made common cause with the southern rebels and entered the war as a part of an anti-government alliance. Peace talks gained momentum in 2002-03 with the signing of several accords, including a cease-fire agreement. | The Pacific Coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. Free elections in 1990, 1996, and again in 2001 saw the Sandinistas defeated. The country has slowly rebuilt its economy during the 1990s, but was hard hit by Hurricane Mitch in 1998. |
Birth rate | 36.48 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 26.98 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.6 billion
expenditures: $1.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $726 million
expenditures: $908 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Khartoum | Managua |
Climate | tropical in south; arid desert in north; rainy season varies by region (April to November) | tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands |
Coastline | 853 km | 910 km |
Constitution | 12 April 1973, suspended following coup of 6 April 1985; interim constitution of 10 October 1985 suspended following coup of 30 June 1989; new constitution implemented on 30 June 1998 partially suspended 12 December 1999 by President BASHIR | 9 January 1987, with reforms in 1995 and 2000 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of the Sudan
conventional short form: Sudan local long form: Jumhuriyat as-Sudan local short form: As-Sudan former: Anglo-Egyptian Sudan |
conventional long form: Republic of Nicaragua
conventional short form: Nicaragua local long form: Republica de Nicaragua local short form: Nicaragua |
Currency | Sudanese dinar (SDD) | gold cordoba (NIO) |
Death rate | 9.59 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 4.76 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $15.8 billion (2002 est.) | $6.1 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | US Embassy in Khartoum is located on Sharia Abdul Latif Avenue; mailing address - P. O. Box 699, Khartoum; APO AE 09829; telephone - [249] (11) 774611 or 774700; FAX - [249] (11) 774137 | chief of mission: Ambassador Barbara Calandra MOORE
embassy: Apartado Postal 327, Kilometer 4.5 Carretera Sur, Managua mailing address: APO AA 34021 telephone: [505] 268-0123 FAX: [505] 266-9943 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge D'Affairs, Ad Interim Khidir Haroun AHMED (since April 2001)
chancery: 2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 338-8565 FAX: [1] (202) 667-2406 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Carlos J. ULVERT
chancery: 1627 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6570 FAX: [1] (202) 939-6542 consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York |
Disputes - international | the north-south civil war has drawn Sudan's neighbors into the fighting, sheltering refugees, and infiltration by rebel groups - Kenya and Uganda have acted as mediators; Sudan accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups; efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Ethiopia have been delayed by fighting in Sudan; Kenya's administrative boundary still extends into the Sudan, creating the "Ilemi triangle"; Egypt and Sudan retain claims to administer the triangular areas that extend north and south of the 1899 Treaty boundary along the 22nd Parallel, but have withdrawn their military presence; Egypt is economically developing the "Hala'ib triangle" | territorial disputes with Colombia over the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank; with respect to the maritime boundary question in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua likely would be required; legal dispute over navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica |
Economic aid - recipient | $187 million (1997) | NA |
Economy - overview | Sudan has turned around a struggling economy with sound economic policies and infrastructure investments, but it still faces formidable economic problems, notably the low level of per capita output. From 1997 to date, Sudan has been implementing IMF macroeconomic reforms. In 1999 Sudan began exporting crude oil and in the last quarter of 1999 recorded its first trade surplus, which, along with monetary policy, has stabilized the exchange rate. Increased oil production, revived light industry, and expanded export processing zones helped maintain GDP growth at 5.1% in 2002. Agriculture production remains Sudan's most important sector, employing 80% of the work force and contributing 43% of GDP, but most farms remain rain-fed and susceptible to drought. Chronic domestic instability, lagging reforms, adverse weather, and weak world agricultural prices - but, above all, the low starting point - ensure that much of the population will remain at or below the poverty line for years. | Nicaragua, one of the hemisphere's poorest countries, faces low per capita income, flagging socio-economic indicators, and huge external debt. Distribution of income is extremely unequal. While the country has made progress toward macroeconomic stabilization over the past few years, a banking crisis and scandal has shaken the economy. Managua will continue to be dependent on international aid and debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Donors have made aid conditional on improving governability, the openness of government financial operation, poverty alleviation, and human rights. Nicaragua met the conditions for additional debt service relief in December 2000. Growth should move up in 2002 because of increased private investment and recovery in the global economy. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.222 billion kWh (2001) | 2.176 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 1 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 100 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 2.389 billion kWh (2001) | 2.233 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 52.1%
hydro: 47.9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 82%
hydro: 9% nuclear: 0% other: 9% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Red Sea 0 m
highest point: Kinyeti 3,187 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; wildlife populations threatened by excessive hunting; soil erosion; desertification; periodic drought | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | black 52%, Arab 39%, Beja 6%, foreigners 2%, other 1% | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5% |
Exchange rates | Sudanese dinars per US dollar - 263.31 (2002), 258.7 (2001), 257.12 (2000), 252.55 (1999), 200.8 (1998) | gold cordobas per US dollar - 13.88 (January 2002), 13.37 (2001), 12.69 (2000), 11.81 (1999), 10.58 (1998), 9.45 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16 October 1993); First Vice President Ali Uthman Muhammad TAHA (since 17 February 1998), Second Vice President Moses MACHAR (since 12 February 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Lt. Gen. Umar Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16 October 1993); First Vice President Ali Uthman Muhammad TAHA (since 17 February 1998), Second Vice President Moses MACHAR (since 12 February 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president; note - the National Congress Party or NCP (formerly the National Islamic Front or NIF) dominates al-BASHIR's cabinet elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 13-23 December 2000 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: Lt. Gen. Umar Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR reelected president; percent of vote - Umar Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR 86.5%, Ja'afar Muhammed NUMAYRI 9.6%, three other candidates received a combined vote of 3.9%; election widely viewed as rigged; all popular opposition parties boycotted elections because of a lack of guarantees for a free and fair election note: Lt. Gen. al-BASHIR assumed supreme executive power in 1989 and retained it through several transitional governments in the early and mid-1990s before being popularly elected for the first time in March 1996 |
chief of state: President Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (since 10 January 2002); Vice President Jose RIZO Castellon (since 10 January 2002); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (since 10 January 2002); Vice President Jose RIZO Castellon (since 10 January 2002); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 4 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (PLC) elected president - 56.3%, Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (FSLN) 42.3%, Alberto SABORIO (PC) 1.4%; Jose RIZO Castellon elected vice president |
Exports | NA (2001) | $609.5 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | oil and petroleum products; cotton, sesame, livestock, groundnuts, gum arabic, sugar | coffee, shrimp and lobster, cotton, tobacco, beef, sugar, bananas; gold |
Exports - partners | China 55.7%, Japan 14%, Saudi Arabia 4.9% (2002) | US 57.7%, Germany 5.3%, Canada 4.2%, Costa Rica 3.3%, Honduras 3% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist side | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $52.9 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $12.3 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 43%
industry: 17% services: 40% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 33%
industry: 23% services: 44% (2000) (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.1% (2002 est.) | 2.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 30 00 E | 13 00 N, 85 00 W |
Geography - note | largest country in Africa; dominated by the Nile and its tributaries | largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua |
Heliports | 2 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 11,900 km
paved: 4,320 km unpaved: 7,580 km (1999 est.) |
total: 16,382 km
paved: 1,818 km unpaved: 14,564 km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 49% (1998) (1998) |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing |
Imports | NA (2001) | $1.6 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods, refinery and transport equipment, medicines and chemicals, textiles, wheat | machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | China 19.7%, Saudi Arabia 7.4%, Germany 5.5%, India 5.5%, UK 5.4%, Indonesia 4.7%, Australia 4% (2002) | US 23.9%, Costa Rica 11.4%, Venezuela 9.9%, Guatemala 7.9%, Mexico 5.9% (2000) |
Independence | 1 January 1956 (from Egypt and UK) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.5% (1999 est.) | 4.4% (2000 est.) |
Industries | oil, cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap distilling, shoes, petroleum refining, pharmaceuticals, armaments, automobile/light truck assembly | food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood |
Infant mortality rate | total: 65.59 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 66.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 64.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
32.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 9.2% (2002 est.) | 7.4% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | BCIE, CACM, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2002) | 3 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 19,500 sq km (1998 est.) | 880 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Special Revolutionary Courts | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly) |
Labor force | 11 million (1996 est.) | 1.7 million (1999) (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80%, industry and commerce 7%, government 13% (1998 est.) | services 43%, agriculture 42%, industry 15% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 7,687 km
border countries: Central African Republic 1,165 km, Chad 1,360 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 628 km, Egypt 1,273 km, Eritrea 605 km, Ethiopia 1,606 km, Kenya 232 km, Libya 383 km, Uganda 435 km |
total: 1,231 km
border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km |
Land use | arable land: 7.03%
permanent crops: 0.08% other: 92.89% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 20.24%
permanent crops: 2.38% other: 77.38% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages, English
note: program of "Arabization" in process |
Spanish (official)
note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast |
Legal system | based on English common law and Islamic law; as of 20 January 1991, the now defunct Revolutionary Command Council imposed Islamic law in the northern states; Islamic law applies to all residents of the northern states regardless of their religion; some separate religious courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (360 seats; 270 popularly elected, 90 elected by supra assembly of interest groups known as National Congress; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 13-22 December 2000 (next to be held NA December 2004) election results: NCP 355, others 5 note: on 12 December 1999, BASHIR dismissed the National Assembly during an internal power struggle between the president and the speaker of the National Assembly Hassan al-TURABI |
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (93 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 4 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - Liberal Alliance (ruling party - includes PLC, PALI, PLIUN, and PUCA) 46.03%, FSLN 36.55%, PCCN 3.73%, PCN 2.12%, MRS 1.33%; seats by party - Liberal Alliance 42, FSLN 36, PCCN 4, PCN 3, PRONAL 2, MRS 1, PRN 1, PC 1, PLI 1, AU 1, UNO-96 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 57.73 years
male: 56.59 years female: 58.93 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 69.37 years
male: 67.39 years female: 71.44 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 61.1% male: 71.8% female: 50.5% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 68.2% (1999) male: 67.1% female: 70.5% (2000 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea | Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 18 NM
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 NM |
continental shelf: natural prolongation
territorial sea: 200 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 29,854 GRT/39,084 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1, livestock carrier 1, roll on/roll off 2 (2002 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Popular Defense Force Militia | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $581 million (2001 est.) | $26 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.5% (1999) | 1.2% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 9,032,834 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,308,430 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 5,558,462 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 802,779 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 429,334 (2003 est.) | males: 58,232 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 January (1956) | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
Nationality | noun: Sudanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Sudanese |
noun: Nicaraguan(s)
adjective: Nicaraguan |
Natural hazards | dust storms and periodic persistent droughts | destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes |
Natural resources | petroleum; small reserves of iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten, mica, silver, gold, hydropower | gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish |
Net migration rate | 0.24 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -1.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 156 km; oil 2,297 km; refined products 810 km (2003) | crude oil 56 km |
Political parties and leaders | the government allows political "associations" under a 1998 law revised in 2000; to obtain government approval parties must accept the constitution and refrain from advocating or using violence against the regime; approved parties include the National Congress Party or NCP [Ibrahim Ahmed UMAR], Popular National Congress or PNC [Hassan al-TURABI], and over 20 minor, pro-government parties | Conservative Party of Nicaragua or PCN [Dr. Fernando AGUERO Rocha]; Independent Liberal Party or PLI [Virgilio GODOY]; Liberal Alliance (ruling alliance including Liberal Constitutional Party or PLC, New Liberal Party or PALI, Independent Liberal Party for National Unity or PLIUN, and Central American Unionist Party or PUCA) [leader NA]; National Conservative Party or PC [Pedro SOLARZANO, Noel VIDAURRE]; National Project or PRONAL [Benjamin LANZAS]; Nicaraguan Party of the Christian Path or PCCN [Guillermo OSORNO, Roberto RODRIGUEZ]; Nicaraguan Resistance Party or PRN [Salvador TALAVERA]; Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN [Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra]; Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS [Sergio RAMIREZ]; Unity Alliance or AU [Alejandro SERRANO]; Union Nacional Opositora 96 or UNO-96 [Alfredo CESAR Aguirre] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Democratic Unionist Party [Muhammed Uthman AL-MIRGHANI]; National Congress Party [Ibrahim Ahmed UMAR]; National Democratic Alliance [Muhammed Uthman AL-MIRGHANI, chairman]; Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army [Dr. John GARANG]; Umma [Sadiq al-MAHDI] | 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 |
Population | 38,114,160 (July 2003 est.) | 5,023,818 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 50% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.71% (2003 est.) | 2.09% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Juba, Khartoum, Kusti, Malakal, Nimule, Port Sudan, Sawakin | Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff, Puerto Cabezas, Puerto Sandino, Rama, San Juan del Sur |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 1.24 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 5,978 km
narrow gauge: 4,578 km 1.067-m gauge; 1,400 km 0.600-m gauge plantation line (2002) |
total: 6 km
narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge note: carries mostly passengers from Chichigalpa to Ingenio San Antonio (2001) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 70% (in north), indigenous beliefs 25%, Christian 5% (mostly in south and Khartoum) | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.23 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 17 years of age; universal, but noncompulsory | 16 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: large, well-equipped system by regional standards and being upgraded; cellular communications started in 1996 and have expanded substantially
domestic: consists of microwave radio relay, cable, radiotelephone communications, tropospheric scatter, and a domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (2000) |
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: satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 400,000 (2000) | 140,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 20,000 (2000) | 7,911 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (1997) | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | generally flat, featureless plain; mountains in far south, northeast and west; desert dominates the north | extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes |
Total fertility rate | 5.1 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.09 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 18.7% (2002 est.) | 23% plus considerable underemployment (2001 est.) |
Waterways | 5,310 km | 2,220 km (including 2 large lakes) |