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This page was last updated on 15 March, 2007


Map of Nicaragua



Legend: DefinitionDefinition Field ListingField Listing Rank OrderRank Order
   Introduction    Nicaragua Top of Page
Background:
Definition Field Listing
The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. Free elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001, saw the Sandinistas defeated, but voting in 2006 announced the return of former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra. Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt.
   Geography    Nicaragua Top of Page
Location:
Definition Field Listing
Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras
Geographic coordinates:
Definition Field Listing
13 00 N, 85 00 W
Map references:
Definition Field Listing
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 129,494 sq km
land: 120,254 sq km
water: 9,240 sq km
Area - comparative:
Definition Field Listing
slightly smaller than the state of New York
Land boundaries:
Definition Field Listing
total: 1,231 km
border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km
Coastline:
Definition Field Listing
910 km
Maritime claims:
Definition Field Listing
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: natural prolongation
Climate:
Definition Field Listing
tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands
Terrain:
Definition Field Listing
extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes
Elevation extremes:
Definition Field Listing
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m
Natural resources:
Definition Field Listing
gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish
Land use:
Definition Field Listing
arable land: 14.81%
permanent crops: 1.82%
other: 83.37% (2005)
Irrigated land:
Definition Field Listing
610 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
Definition Field Listing
destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes
Environment - current issues:
Definition Field Listing
deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution
Environment - international agreements:
Definition Field Listing
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
Geography - note:
Definition Field Listing
largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua
   People    Nicaragua Top of Page
Population:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
5,570,129 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
Definition Field Listing
0-14 years: 36.4% (male 1,031,897/female 994,633)
15-64 years: 60.5% (male 1,677,633/female 1,691,353)
65 years and over: 3.1% (male 76,758/female 97,855) (2006 est.)
Median age:
Definition Field Listing
total: 20.9 years
male: 20.5 years
female: 21.4 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
1.89% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
24.51 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
4.45 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
Definition Field Listing
-1.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
Definition Field Listing
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 (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 28.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.51 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 24.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total population: 70.63 years
male: 68.55 years
female: 72.81 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.75 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0.2% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
6,400 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
less than 500 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
Definition Field Listing
noun: Nicaraguan(s)
adjective: Nicaraguan
Ethnic groups:
Definition Field Listing
mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5%
Religions:
Definition Field Listing
Roman Catholic 72.9%, Evangelical 15.1%, Moravian 1.5%, Episcopal 0.1%, other 1.9%, none 8.5% (1995 census)
Languages:
Definition Field Listing
Spanish 97.5% (official), Miskito 1.7%, other 0.8% (1995 census)
note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast
Literacy:
Definition Field Listing
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 67.5%
male: 67.2%
female: 67.8% (2003 est.)
   Government    Nicaragua Top of Page
Country name:
Definition Field Listing
conventional long form: Republic of Nicaragua
conventional short form: Nicaragua
local long form: Republica de Nicaragua
local short form: Nicaragua
Government type:
Definition Field Listing
republic
Capital:
Definition Field Listing
name: Managua
geographic coordinates: 12 09 N, 86 17 W
time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
Definition Field Listing
15 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 2 autonomous regions* (regiones autonomistas, singular - region autonoma); Atlantico Norte*, Atlantico Sur*, Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales, Esteli, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia, Rio San Juan, Rivas
Independence:
Definition Field Listing
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
National holiday:
Definition Field Listing
Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Constitution:
Definition Field Listing
9 January 1987; reforms in 1995, 2000, and 2005
Legal system:
Definition Field Listing
civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
Definition Field Listing
16 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
Definition Field Listing
chief of state: President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (since 10 January 2007); Vice President Jaime MORALES Carazo (since 10 January 2007); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (since 10 January 2007); Vice President Jaime MORALES Carazo (since 10 January 2007)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term so long as it is not consecutive); election last held 5 November 2006 (next to be held by November 2011)
election results: Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra elected president - 38.07%, Eduardo MONTEALEGRE 29%, Jose RIZO 26.21%, Edmundo JARQUIN 6.44%
Legislative branch:
Definition Field Listing
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (92 seats; members are elected by proportional representation and party lists to serve five-year terms; 1 seat for the previous president, 1 seat for the runner-up in previous presidential election)
elections: last held 5 November 2006 (next to be held by November 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FSLN 38, PLC 25, ALN 23 (22 plus one for presidential candidate Eduardo MONTEALEGRE, runner-up in the 2006 presidential election), MRS 5, APRE 1 (outgoing President Enrique BOLANOS)
Judicial branch:
Definition Field Listing
Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly)
Political parties and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Alliance for the Republic or APRE [Miguel LOPEZ Baldizon]; Central American Unionist Party or PUCA [Blanca ROJAS]; Christian Alternative Party or AC [Orlando TARDENCILLA Espinoza]; Conservative Party or PC [Azalia AVILES Salmeron]; Independent Liberal Party or PLI [Anibal MARTINEZ Nunez, Pedro REYES Vallejos]; Independent Liberal Party for National Unity or PLIUN [Carlos GUERRA Gallardo]; Liberal Constitutional Party or PLC [Jorge CASTILLO Quant]; Liberal Salvation Movement or MSL [Eliseo NUNEZ Hernandez]; New Liberal Party or PALI [Adolfo GARCIA Esquivel]; Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance or ALN [Eduardo MONTEALEGRE]; Nicaraguan Party of the Christian Path or PCCN [Guillermo OSORNO Molina]; Nicaraguan Resistance Party or PRN [Salvador TALAVERA]; Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN [Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra]; Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS [Dora Maria TELLEZ]; Unity Alliance or AU
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
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
International organization participation:
Definition Field Listing
BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Arturo CRUZ Sequeira, Jr.
chancery: 1627 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 939-6570, [1] (202) 939-6573
FAX: [1] (202) 939-6545
consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Paul A. TRIVELLI
embassy: Kilometer 4.5 Carretera Sur, Managua
mailing address: P.O. Box 327
telephone: [505] 266-6010
FAX: [505] 266-3861
Flag description:
Definition Field Listing
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
   Economy    Nicaragua Top of Page
Economy - overview:
Definition Field Listing
Nicaragua, the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, has low per capita income and widespread underemployment. Distribution of income is one of the most unequal on the globe. While the country has progressed toward macroeconomic stability in the past few years, GDP annual growth has been far too low to meet the country's needs, forcing the country to rely on international economic assistance to meet fiscal and debt financing obligations. Nicaragua qualified in early 2004 for some $4.5 billion in foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative and in November 2006 obtained over $800 million in debt relief from the Inter-American Development Bank. In October 2005, Nicaragua ratified the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), which will provide an opportunity for Nicaragua to attract investment, create jobs, and deepen economic development. Energy shortages, however, are a serious bottleneck to growth.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$16.83 billion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
Definition Field Listing
$5.37 billion (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.7% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$3,000 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture: 17.3%
industry: 25.8%
services: 56.8% (2006 est.)
Labor force:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.261 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture: 29%
industry: 19%
services: 52% (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.8% plus underemployment of 46.5% (2006 est.)
Population below poverty line:
Definition Field Listing
48% (2005)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Definition Field Listing
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 45% (2001)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
Definition Field Listing
55.1 (2001)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
9.4% (2006 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
29.8% of GDP (2006 est.)
Budget:
Definition Field Listing
revenues: $1.1 billion
expenditures: $1.3 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)
Public debt:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
82.7% of GDP (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products:
Definition Field Listing
coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products; shrimp, lobsters
Industries:
Definition Field Listing
food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood
Industrial production growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.4% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.778 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.929 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - exports:
Definition Field Listing
0 kWh (2006)
Electricity - imports:
Definition Field Listing
69.34 million kWh (2006)
Oil - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
14,300 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
25,200 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
758.9 bbl/day (2004)
Oil - imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
15,560 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Natural gas - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0 cu m (2004 est.)
Current account balance:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$-883 million (2006 est.)
Exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$1.714 billion f.o.b.; note - includes free trade zones (2006 est.)
Exports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts
Exports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
US 34.1%, El Salvador 14.3%, Honduras 7.9%, Costa Rica 6.1%, Guatemala 5.2%, Mexico 5.1%, Spain 4.2% (2005)
Imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$3.202 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products
Imports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
US 20.1%, Venezuela 11.9%, Costa Rica 8.9%, Mexico 8.3%, Guatemala 7%, El Salvador 5.1%, Japan 4.5%, Ecuador 4.2% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$903.5 million (January 2007 est.)
Debt - external:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$3.763 billion (2006 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
Definition Field Listing
$471 million (2006 est.)
Currency (code):
Definition Field Listing
gold cordoba (NIO)
Exchange rates:
Definition Field Listing
gold cordobas per US dollar - 17.582 (2006), 16.733 (2005), 15.937 (2004), 15.105 (2003), 14.251 (2002)
Fiscal year:
Definition Field Listing
calendar year
   Communications    Nicaragua Top of Page
Telephones - main lines in use:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
220,900 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.119 million (2005)
Telephone system:
Definition Field Listing
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: country code - 505; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
3 (plus 7 repeaters) (1997)
Internet country code:
Definition Field Listing
.ni
Internet hosts:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
24,452 (2006)
Internet users:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
140,000 (2005)
   Transportation    Nicaragua Top of Page
Airports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
176 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways:
Definition Field Listing
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 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 165
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 23
under 914 m: 141 (2006)
Pipelines:
Definition Field Listing
oil 54 km (2006)
Railways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 6 km
narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2005)
Roadways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 19,036 km
paved: 2,299 km
unpaved: 16,737 km (2005)
Waterways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2,220 km (including lakes Managua and Nicaragua) (2005)
Ports and terminals:
Definition Field Listing
Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff
   Military    Nicaragua Top of Page
Military branches:
Definition Field Listing
Army (includes Navy, Air Force) (2007)
Military service age and obligation:
Definition Field Listing
17 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)
Manpower available for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 17-49: 1,309,970
females age 17-49: 1,315,186 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 17-49: 1,051,425
females age 17-49: 1,129,649 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
Definition Field Listing
males age 18-49: 65,170
females age 17-49: 63,133 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0.7% (2006 est.)
   Transnational Issues    Nicaragua Top of Page
Disputes - international:
Definition Field Listing
memorials and countermemorials were filed by the parties in Nicaragua's 1999 and 2001 proceedings against Honduras and Colombia at the ICJ over the maritime boundary and territorial claims in the western Caribbean Sea, final public hearings are scheduled for 2007; the 1992 ICJ ruling for El Salvador and Honduras advised a tripartite resolution to establish a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca, which considers Honduran access to the Pacific; legal dispute over navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica
Illicit drugs:
Definition Field Listing
transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing

This page was last updated on 15 March, 2007


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