Uganda (2002) | Venezuela (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 45 districts; Adjumani, Apac, Arua, Bugiri, Bundibugyo, Bushenyi, Busia, Gulu, Hoima, Iganga, Jinja, Kabale, Kabarole, Kalangala, Kampala, Kamuli, Kapchorwa, Kasese, Katakwi, Kibale, Kiboga, Kisoro, Kitgum, Kotido, Kumi, Lira, Luwero, Masaka, Masindi, Mbale, Mbarara, Moroto, Moyo, Mpigi, Mubende, Mukono, Nakasongola, Nebbi, Ntungamo, Pallisa, Rakai, Rukungiri, Sembabule, Soroti, Tororo
note: there may be eleven more districts: Kaberamaido, Kamwenge, Kanungu, Kayunga, Kyenjojo, Mayngc, Nakapiripiti, Pader, Sironko, Wakiso, Yumbe |
23 states (estados, singular - estado),1 federal district* (distrito federal), and 1 federal dependency** (dependencia federal); Amazonas, Anzoategui, Apure, Aragua, Barinas, Bolivar, Carabobo, Cojedes, Delta Amacuro, Dependencias Federales**, Distrito Federal*, Falcon, Guarico, Lara, Merida, Miranda, Monagas, Nueva Esparta, Portuguesa, Sucre, Tachira, Trujillo, Vargas, Yaracuy, Zulia
note: the federal dependency consists of 11 federally controlled island groups with a total of 72 individual islands |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 50.9% (male 6,314,371; female 6,265,681)
15-64 years: 47% (male 5,803,430; female 5,789,713) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 247,798; female 278,080) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
32.11% (male 3,962,517; female 3,716,880) 15-64 years: 63.17% (male 7,581,589; female 7,526,467) 65 years and over: 4.72% (male 515,687; female 613,670) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, cotton, tobacco, cassava (tapioca), potatoes, corn, millet, pulses; beef, goat meat, milk, poultry, cut flowers | corn, sorghum, sugarcane, rice, bananas, vegetables, coffee; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish |
Airports | 27 (2001) | 371 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
124 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 32 914 to 1,523 m: 59 under 914 m: 17 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 23
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 7 (2002) |
total:
247 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 97 under 914 m: 140 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 236,040 sq km
land: 199,710 sq km water: 36,330 sq km |
total:
912,050 sq km land: 882,050 sq km water: 30,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly more than twice the size of California |
Background | Uganda achieved independence from the UK in 1962. The dictatorial regime of Idi AMIN (1971-79) was responsible for the deaths of some 300,000 opponents; guerrilla war and human rights abuses under Milton OBOTE (1980-85) claimed another 100,000 lives. During the 1990s the government promulgated non-party presidential and legislative elections. | Venezuela was one of the three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Colombia and Ecuador). For most of the first half of the 20th century, Venezuela was ruled by generally benevolent military strongmen, who promoted the oil industry and allowed for some social reforms. Democratically elected governments have held sway since 1959. Current concerns include: drug-related conflicts along the Colombian border, increasing internal drug consumption, overdependence on the petroleum industry with its price fluctuations, and irresponsible mining operations that are endangering the rain forest and indigenous peoples. |
Birth rate | 47.15 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 20.65 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $959 million
expenditures: $1.04 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
revenues:
$26.4 billion expenditures: $27 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Kampala | Caracas |
Climate | tropical; generally rainy with two dry seasons (December to February, June to August); semiarid in northeast | tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 2,800 km |
Constitution | 8 October 1995; adopted by the interim, 284-member Constituent Assembly, charged with debating the draft constitution that had been proposed in May 1993; the Constituent Assembly was dissolved upon the promulgation of the constitution in October 1995 | 30 December 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Uganda
conventional short form: Uganda |
conventional long form:
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela conventional short form: Venezuela local long form: Republica Bolivariana de Venezuela local short form: Venezuela |
Currency | Ugandan shilling (UGX) | bolivar (VEB) |
Death rate | 17.53 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 4.92 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.4 billion (2001 est.) | $34 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jimmy KOLKER
embassy: 1577 Ggaba Rd., Kampala mailing address: P. O. Box 7007, Kampala telephone: [256] (41) 234-142 FAX: [256] (41) 258-451 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Donna J. HRINAK embassy: Calle F con Calle Suapure, Urbanizacion Colinas de Valle Arriba, Caracas 1080 mailing address: P. O. Box 62291, Caracas 1060-A; APO AA 34037 telephone: [58] (2) 975-6411 FAX: [58] (2) 975-6710 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Edith Grace SSEMPALA
chancery: 5911 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-7100 through 7102, 0416 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1727 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Alfredo TORO Hardy chancery: 1099 30th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 342-2214 FAX: [1] (202) 342-6820 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | Tutsi, Hutu, and other ethnic groups, political rebels, and various government forces continue fighting in Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda | claims all of Guyana west of the Essequibo (river); maritime boundary dispute with Colombia in the Gulf of Venezuela |
Economic aid - recipient | $1.4 billion (2000) (2000) | $35 million with more assistance likely as a result of flooding (1999) |
Economy - overview | Uganda has substantial natural resources, including fertile soils, regular rainfall, and sizable mineral deposits of copper and cobalt. Agriculture is the most important sector of the economy, employing over 80% of the work force. Coffee is the major export crop and accounts for the bulk of export revenues. Since 1986, the government - with the support of foreign countries and international agencies - has acted to rehabilitate and stabilize the economy by undertaking currency reform, raising producer prices on export crops, increasing prices of petroleum products, and improving civil service wages. The policy changes are especially aimed at dampening inflation and boosting production and export earnings. During 1990-2001, the economy turned in a solid performance based on continued investment in the rehabilitation of infrastructure, improved incentives for production and exports, reduced inflation, gradually improved domestic security, and the return of exiled Indian-Ugandan entrepreneurs. Ongoing Ugandan involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, corruption within the government, and slippage in the government's determination to press reforms raise doubts about the continuation of strong growth. In 2000, Uganda qualified for enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt relief worth $1.3 billion and Paris Club debt relief worth $145 million. These amounts combined with the original HIPC debt relief added up to about $2 billion. Growth for 2001 was held back because of a continued decline in the price of coffee, Uganda's principal export. | The petroleum sector dominates the economy, accounting for roughly a third of GDP, around 80% of export earnings, and more than half of government operating revenues. Venezuelan officials estimate that GDP grew by 3.2% in 2000. A strong rebound in international oil prices fueled the recovery from the steep recession in 1999. Nevertheless, a weak nonoil sector and capital flight undercut the recovery. The bolivar is widely believed to be overvalued by as much as 50%. The government is still rebuilding after massive flooding and landslides in December 1999 caused an estimated $15 billion to $20 billion in damage. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.314 billion kWh (2000) | 75.53 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 174 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 1 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.599 billion kWh (2000) | 81.215 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 1%
hydro: 99% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
32.16% hydro: 67.84% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lake Albert 621 m
highest point: Margherita Peak on Mount Stanley 5,110 m |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Pico Bolivar (La Columna) 5,007 m |
Environment - current issues | draining of wetlands for agricultural use; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; water hyacinth infestation in Lake Victoria; poaching is widespread | sewage pollution of Lago de Valencia; oil and urban pollution of Lago de Maracaibo; deforestation; soil degradation; urban and industrial pollution, especially along the Caribbean coast; threat to the rainforest ecosystem from irresponsible mining operations |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
party to:
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Baganda 17%, Ankole 8%, Basoga 8%, Iteso 8%, Bakiga 7%, Langi 6%, Rwanda 6%, Bagisu 5%, Acholi 4%, Lugbara 4%, Batoro 3%, Bunyoro 3%, Alur 2%, Bagwere 2%, Bakonjo 2%, Jopodhola 2%, Karamojong 2%, Rundi 2%, non-African (European, Asian, Arab) 1%, other 8% | Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Arab, German, African, indigenous people |
Exchange rates | Ugandan shillings per US dollar - 1,738.7 (January 2002), 1,755.7 (2001), 1,644.5 (2000), 1,454.8 (1999), 1,240.2 (1998), 1,083.0 (1997) | bolivares per US dollar - 699.700 (January 2001), 679.960 (2000), 605.717 (1999), 547.556 (1998), 488.635 (1997), 417.333 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since seizing power 29 January 1986); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since seizing power 29 January 1986); Prime Minister Apollo NSIBAMBI (since 5 April 1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; the prime minister assists the president in the supervision of the cabinet cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among elected legislators elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 12 March 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); note - first popular election for president since independence in 1962 was held in 1996; prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI elected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI 69.3%, Kizza BESIGYE 27.8% |
chief of state:
President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias (since 3 February 1999); Vice President Adina BASTIDAS Castillo; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias (since 3 February 1999); Vice President Adina BASTIDAS Castillo; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 30 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Hugo CHAVEZ Frias elected president; percent of vote - 60% note: government coalition - Patriotic Pole or Polo Patriotico consists of MVR, MAS, and PPT |
Exports | $367 million f.o.b. (2001) | $32.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, fish and fish products, tea; gold, cotton, flowers, horticultural products | petroleum, bauxite and aluminum, steel, chemicals, agricultural products, basic manufactures |
Exports - partners | Germany 12.0%, Netherlands 10.2%, US 8.7%, Spain 8.0%, Belgium 7.1% (2000) | US and Puerto Rico 57%, Colombia, Brazil, Japan, Germany, Netherlands, Italy (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | six equal horizontal bands of black (top), yellow, red, black, yellow, and red; a white disk is superimposed at the center and depicts a red-crested crane (the national symbol) facing the hoist side | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), blue, and red with the coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band and an arc of seven white five-pointed stars centered in the blue band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $29 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $146.2 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 44%
industry: 18% services: 38% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
5% industry: 24% services: 71% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,200 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,200 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.1% (2001 est.) | 3.2% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 00 N, 32 00 E | 8 00 N, 66 00 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; fertile, well-watered country with many lakes and rivers | on major sea and air routes linking North and South America |
Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 27,000 km
paved: 1,800 km unpaved: 25,200 km (of which about 4,200 km are all-weather roads) (1990) |
total:
96,155 km paved: 32,308 km unpaved: 63,847 km (1997 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 21% (2000) |
lowest 10%:
1.5% highest 10%: 35.6% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | - | illicit producer of opium for the international drug trade on a small scale; however, large quantities of cocaine, heroin, and marijuana transit the country from Colombia bound for US and Europe; important money-laundering center; active eradication program primarily targeting opium; increasing signs of drug-related activities by Colombian insurgents on border |
Imports | $1.26 billion f.o.b. (2001) | $14.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | capital equipment, vehicles, petroleum, medical supplies; cereals | raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction materials |
Imports - partners | Kenya 43.1%, US 7.0%, India 6.8%, South Africa 6.1%, Japan 3.4% (2000) | US 53%, Japan, Colombia, Italy, Germany, France, Brazil, Canada (1999) |
Independence | 9 October 1962 (from UK) | 5 July 1811 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7% (1999) (1999) | NA |
Industries | sugar, brewing, tobacco, cotton textiles, cement | petroleum, iron ore mining, construction materials, food processing, textiles, steel, aluminum, motor vehicle assembly |
Infant mortality rate | 89.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 25.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.5% (2001 est.) | 13% (2000) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, EADB, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | CAN, Caricom (observer), CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G- 3, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 16 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 90 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,900 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the president and approved by the legislature); High Court (judges are appointed by the president) | Supreme Tribunal of Justice or Tribuna Suprema de Justicia (magistrates are elected by the National Assembly for a single 12-year term) |
Labor force | 12 million (2001 est.) | 9.9 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 82%, industry 5%, services 13% (1999 est.) | services 64%, industry 23%, agriculture 13% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,698 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 765 km, Kenya 933 km, Rwanda 169 km, Sudan 435 km, Tanzania 396 km |
total:
4,993 km border countries: Brazil 2,200 km, Colombia 2,050 km, Guyana 743 km |
Land use | arable land: 25.34%
permanent crops: 8.77% other: 65.89% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
4% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 34% other: 41% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English (official national language, taught in grade schools, used in courts of law and by most newspapers and some radio broadcasts), Ganda or Luganda (most widely used of the Niger-Congo languages, preferred for native language publications in the capital and may be taught in school), other Niger-Congo languages, Nilo-Saharan languages, Swahili, Arabic | Spanish (official), numerous indigenous dialects |
Legal system | in 1995, the government restored the legal system to one based on English common law and customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on organic laws as of July 1999; open, adversarial court system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (303 members - 214 directly elected by popular vote, 81 nominated by legally established special interest groups [women 56, army 10, disabled 5, youth 5, labor 5], 8 ex officio members; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26 June 2001 (next to be held May or June 2006); election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - election campaigning by party was not permitted |
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional; 165 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; three seats reserved for the indigenous peoples of Venezuela
elections: last held 30 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: Pro-government: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MVR 92, MAS 6, indigenous 3, other parties 7; Opposition: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - AD 33, COPEI 6, Justice First 5, other parties 13 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 43.81 years
male: 42.97 years female: 44.67 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
73.31 years male: 70.29 years female: 76.56 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 62.7% male: 74% female: 54% (2000 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 91.1% male: 91.8% female: 90.3% (1995 est.) |
Location | Eastern Africa, west of Kenya | Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, between Colombia and Guyana |
Map references | Africa | South America, Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone:
15 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,091 GRT/8,229 DWT
ships by type: roll on/roll off 3 note: these ships are in cargo and passenger (ferry) service on Uganda's inland waterways (2002 est.) |
total:
36 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 490,160 GRT/897,694 DWT ships by type: bulk 7, cargo 10, liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 8, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Ugandan Peoples' Defense Force (including Army, Marine unit, Air Wing) | National Armed Forces (Fuerzas Armadas Nacionales or FAN) includes Ground Forces or Army (Fuerzas Terrestres or Ejercito), Naval Forces (Fuerzas Navales or Armada), Air Force (Fuerzas Aereas or Aviacion), Armed Forces of Cooperation or National Guard (Fuerzas Armadas de Cooperacion or Guardia Nacional) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $121.3 million (FY01) | $934 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.1% (FY01) | 0.9% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 5,302,787 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
6,524,809 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,879,083 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
4,701,062 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
246,185 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 9 October (1962) | Independence Day, 5 July (1811) |
Nationality | noun: Ugandan(s)
adjective: Ugandan |
noun:
Venezuelan(s) adjective: Venezuelan |
Natural hazards | NA | subject to floods, rockslides, mudslides; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | copper, cobalt, hydropower, limestone, salt, arable land | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, bauxite, other minerals, hydropower, diamonds |
Net migration rate | -0.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: according to the UNHCR, by the end of 2001, Uganda was host to 178,815 refugees from a number of neighboring countries, including: Sudan 155,996, Rwanda 14,375, and Democratic Republic of the Congo 7,459 (2002 est.) |
-0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 6,370 km; petroleum products 480 km; natural gas 4,010 km |
Political parties and leaders | only one political organization, the National Resistance Movement or NRM [President MUSEVENI, chairman] is allowed to operate unfettered; note - the president maintains that the NRM is not a political party, but a movement which claims the loyalty of all Ugandans
note: the new constitution requires the suspension of political parties while the Movement organization is in governance; of the political parties that exist but are prohibited from sponsoring candidates, the most important are the Ugandan People's Congress or UPC [Milton OBOTE]; Democratic Party or DP [Paul SSEMOGERERE]; Conservative Party or CP [Joshua S. MAYANJA-NKANGI]; Justice Forum [Muhammad Kibirige MAYANJA]; and National Democrats Forum [Chapaa KARUHANGA] |
Brave Peoples Alliance or ABP [leader NA]; Democratic Action or AD [Henry RAMOS Allup]; Fifth Republic Movement or MVR [leader Luis MIQUILENA]; Homeland for All or PPT [Pablo MEDINA]; Justice First [leader NA]; Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Felipe MUJICA]; National Convergence or Convergencia [Dr. Rafael CALDERA Rodriguez]; Radical Cause or La Causa R [Andres VELASQUEZ]; Social Christian Party or COPEI [Jose CURIEL]; Venezuela Project or PV [Henrique SALAS Ronier] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | FEDECAMARAS, a conservative business group; VECINOS groups; Venezuelan Confederation of Workers or CTV (labor organization dominated by the Democratic Action) |
Population | 24,699,073
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 2002 est.) |
23,916,810 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 35% (2001 est.) | 67% (1997 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.94% (2002 est.) | 1.56% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Entebbe, Jinja, Port Bell | Amuay, Bajo Grande, El Tablazo, La Guaira, La Salina, Maracaibo, Matanzas, Palua, Puerto Cabello, Puerto la Cruz, Puerto Ordaz, Puerto Sucre, Punta Cardon |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 7, FM 33, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 201, FM NA (20 in Caracas), shortwave 11 (1998) |
Radios | 5 million (2001) | 10.75 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 1,241 km
narrow gauge: 1,241 km 1.000-m gauge note: a program to rehabilitate the railroad is underway (2001) |
total:
584 km (248 km privately owned) standard gauge: 584 km 1.435-m gauge |
Religions | Roman Catholic 33%, Protestant 33%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 18% | nominally Roman Catholic 96%, Protestant 2%, other 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: seriously inadequate; two cellular systems have been introduced, but a sharp increase in the number of main lines is essential; e-mail and Internet services are available
domestic: intercity traffic by wire, microwave radio relay, and radiotelephone communication stations, fixed and mobile cellular systems for short range traffic international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat; analog links to Kenya and Tanzania |
general assessment:
modern and expanding domestic: domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations; recent substantial improvement in telephone service in rural areas; substantial increase in digitalization of exchanges and trunk lines; installation of a national interurban fiber-optic network capable of digital multimedia services international: 3 submarine coaxial cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 PanAmSat; participating with Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia in the construction of an international fiber-optic network |
Telephones - main lines in use | 50,074; however, 80,868 main lines have been installed (1998) | 2,600,000.00; however, 3,500,000 were installed (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 9,000 (1998) | 2 million (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 8 (plus one low-power repeater) (2001) | 66 (plus 45 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly plateau with rim of mountains | Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central plains (llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 6.8 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 2.46 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 14% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | Lake Victoria, Lake Albert, Lake Kyoga, Lake George, Lake Edward, Victoria Nile, Albert Nile | 7,100 km
note: Rio Orinoco and Lago de Maracaibo accept oceangoing vessels |