World Facts Index
 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 of Nicaragua
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Location:
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Middle America, bordering
both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica
and Honduras |
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Coordinates:
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13 00 N, 85 00 W |
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Area:
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total: 129,494 sq km
water: 9,240 sq km
land: 120,254 sq km |
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Area comparative:
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slightly smaller than the
state of New York |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 1,231 km
border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km |
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Coastline:
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910 km |
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Maritime claims:
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continental shelf:
natural prolongation
territorial sea: 200 NM |
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Climate:
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tropical in lowlands,
cooler in highlands |
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Terrain:
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extensive Atlantic coastal
plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal
plain interrupted by volcanoes |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m |
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Natural resources:
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gold, silver, copper,
tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish |
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Natural hazards:
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destructive earthquakes,
volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes |
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Environment current issues:
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deforestation; soil
erosion; water pollution |
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Geography - note:
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largest country in Central
America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago
de Nicaragua
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Population of Nicaragua
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Population:
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5,785,846 (July 2008 est.) |
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Age structure:
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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) |
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Median age:
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20.9 years |
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Growth rate:
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1.89% |
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Infant mortality:
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28.11 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 70.63 years
male: 68.55 years
female: 72.81 years |
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Fertility rate:
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2.75 children born/woman |
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Nationality:
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noun: Nicaraguan(s)
adjective: Nicaraguan |
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Ethnic groups:
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mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%,
white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5% |
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic 72.9%, Evangelical 15.1%, Moravian 1.5%,
Episcopal 0.1%, other 1.9%, none 8.5% |
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Languages:
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Spanish 97.5% (official), Miskito 1.7%, other 0.8%
note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast |
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read
and write
total population: 67.5%
male: 67.2%
female: 67.8%
|
Government
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Republic of
Nicaragua
local long form: Republica de Nicaragua |
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Government type:
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republic |
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Capital:
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Managua |
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Administrative divisions:
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15 departments (departamentos, singular -
departamento) and 2 autonomous regions* (regiones autonomistas, singular - region
autonomista); Atlantico Norte*, Atlantico Sur*, Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales,
Esteli, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia, Rio
San Juan, Rivas |
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Independence:
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15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
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Constitution:
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9 January 1987, with reforms in 1995 and
2000 |
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Legal system:
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civil law system; Supreme Court may review
administrative acts |
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Suffrage:
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16 years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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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). |
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Legislative branch:
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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); note - current Assembly has only 91 seats |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges
elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly) |
Economy
Nicaragua has widespread underemployment, one of the highest degrees of
income inequality in the world, and the third lowest per capita income in the
Western Hemisphere. While the country has progressed toward macroeconomic
stability in the past few years, annual GDP 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. In early
2004, Nicaragua secured some $4.5 billion in foreign debt reduction under the
Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, and in October 2007, the
IMF approved a new poverty reduction and growth facility (PRGF) program that
should create fiscal space for social spending and investment. The continuity
of a relationship with the IMF reinforces donor confidence, despite private
sector concerns surrounding ORTEGA, which has dampened investment. The
US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) has been in effect since April
2006 and has expanded export opportunities for many agricultural and
manufactured goods. Energy shortages fueled by high oil prices, however, are a
serious bottleneck to growth.
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GDP:
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$16.17 billion (2007 est.) |
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GDP growth rate:
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4% |
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GDP per capita:
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$2,800 |
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GDP composition by sector:
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agriculture: 16.5%
industry: 27.5%
services: 56% |
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Inflation rate:
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9.6% |
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Labor force:
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2.01 million |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture: 30.5%
industry: 17.3%
services: 52.2% |
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Unemployment:
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5.6% plus underemployment of 46.5% |
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Electricity production by source:
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fossil fuel: 83.9%
hydro: 7.7%
other: 8.4%
nuclear: 0% |
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Industries:
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food processing, chemicals, machinery and
metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages,
footwear, wood |
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Agriculture:
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coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice,
corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products |
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Exports:
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coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold,
peanuts |
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Export partners:
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US 64.3%, El Salvador 7%, Mexico 3.6% |
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Imports:
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consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials,
petroleum products |
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Import partners:
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US 20.4%, Venezuela 9.1%, Costa Rica 8.8%, Guatemala 7%,
Mexico 5.9%, El Salvador 5%, South Korea 4.6% |
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Currency:
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gold cordoba (NIO) |
SOURCES: The CIA World Factbook, U.S. Department of State, Area Handbook of the US Library of Congress
Copyright 2004 - 2008 worldfacts.us |