four red five-pointed stars edged in white centered in the outer half of the
flag; the stars represent the Southern Cross constellation
- Economy
Overview: Since 1984 the government has been reorienting an
agrarian economy dependent on a guaranteed British market to an open
free market economy that can compete on the global scene. The government
has hoped that dynamic growth would boost real incomes, reduce
inflationary pressures, and permit the expansion of welfare benefits. The
results have been mixed: inflation is down from double-digit levels
but growth has been sluggish and unemployment, always a highly sensitive
issue, has been at a record high 7.4%. In 1988 GDP fell by 1% and in
1989 grew by a moderate 2.4%.
GDP: $39.1 billion, per capita $11,600; real growth rate 2.4% (1989 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5% (1989)
Unemployment rate: 7.4% (1989)
Budget: revenues $18.6 billion; expenditures $19.1 billion, including
capital expenditures of $NA (FY90 est.)
Exports: $8.9 billion (f.o.b., FY89); commodities--wool, lamb,
mutton, beef, fruit, fish, cheese, manufactures, chemicals, foresty products;
partners--EC 18.3%, Japan 17.9%, Australia 17.5%, US 13.5%, China 3.6%,
South Korea 3.1%
Imports: $7.5 billion (c.i.f., FY89); commodities--petroleum,
consumer goods, motor vehicles, industrial equipment;
partners--Australia 19.7%, Japan 16.9%, EC 16.9%, US 15.3%,
Taiwan 3.0%
External debt: $17.0 billion (1989)
Industrial production: growth rate - 1.6% (FY88)
Electricity: 7,800,000 kW capacity; 27,600 million kWh produced,
8,190 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: food processing, wood and paper products, textiles, machinery,
transportation equipment, banking and insurance, tourism, mining
Agriculture: accounts for about 9% of GNP and 10% of the
work force; livestock predominates--wool, meat, dairy products all export
earners; crops--wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses, fruits, and
vegetables; surplus producer of farm products; fish catch reached a
record 431,000 metric tons in 1987
Aid: donor--ODA and OOF commitments (1970-87), $448 million
Currency: New Zealand dollar (plural--dollars);
1 New Zealand dollar (NZ$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: New Zealand dollars (NZ$) per US$1--1.6581 (January 1990),
1.6708 (1989), 1.5244 (1988), 1.6886 (1987), 1.9088 (1986),
2.0064 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June
- Communications
Railroads: 4,716 km total; all 1.067-meter gauge; 274 km double track;
113 km electrified; over 99% government owned
Highways: 92,648 km total; 49,547 km paved, 43,101 km gravel or
crushed stone
Inland waterways: 1,609 km; of little importance to transportation
Pipelines: 1,000 km natural gas; 160 km refined products; 150 km
condensate
Ports: Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Wellington, Tauranga
Merchant marine: 18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 190,553 GRT/257,782
DWT; includes 1 cargo, 2 container, 4 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 1 railcar carrier,
4 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 1 liquefied gas, 5 bulk
Civil air: about 40 major transport aircraft
Airports: 157 total, 157 usable; 33 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 47 with
runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: excellent international and domestic systems;
2,110,000 telephones; stations 64 AM, 2 FM, 14 TV; submarine cables extend
to Australia and Fiji; 2 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth stations
- Defense Forces
Branches: Royal New Zealand Navy, New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand
Air Force
Military manpower: males 15-49, 872,336; 740,207 fit for military service;
29,532 reach military age (20) annually
Defense expenditures: 2.1% of GDP, or $820 million (1989 est.)
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Nicaragua
- Geography
Total area: 129,494 km2; land area: 120,254 km2
Comparative area: slightly larger than New York State
Land boundaries: 1,231 km total; Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km
Coastline: 910 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 25 nm security zone (status of claim uncertain);
Continental shelf: not specified;
Territorial sea: 200 nm
Disputes: territorial disputes with Colombia over the Archipelago de
San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank
Climate: tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands
Terrain: extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior
mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes
Natural resources: gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber,
fish
Land use: 9% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 43% meadows and
pastures; 35% forest and woodland; 12% other; including 1% irrigated
Environment: subject to destructive earthquakes, volcanoes,
landslides, and occasional severe hurricanes; deforestation; soil erosion;
water pollution
- People
Population: 3,722,683 (July 1990), growth rate 2.8% (1990)
Birth rate: 40 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 9 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: - 3 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 68 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 61 years male, 62 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 5.0 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Nicaraguan(s); adjective--Nicaraguan
Ethnic divisions: 69% mestizo, 17% white, 9% black, 5% Indian
Religion: 95% Roman Catholic, 5% Protestant
Language: Spanish (official); English- and Indian-speaking minorities on
Atlantic coast
Literacy: 88% (1981)
Labor force: 1,086,000; 43% service, 44% agriculture, 13% industry (1986)
Organized labor: 35% of labor force
- Government
Long-form name: Republic of Nicaragua
Type: republic
Capital: Managua
Administrative divisions: 9 administrative regions encompassing 17
departments (departamentos, singular--departamento); North, Atlantic Coast,
South, Atlantic Coast, Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales, Esteli,
Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia,
Rio San Juan, Rivas
Independence: 15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Constitution: January 1987
Legal system: civil law system; Supreme Court may review
administrative acts
National holiday: Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Executive branch: president, vice president, Cabinet
Legislative branch: National Assembly (Asamblea Nacional)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Corte Suprema) and municipal courts
Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government--President-Elect Violeta
Barios de CHAMORRO (since 25 February 1990; takes office 25 April 1990);
Vice President-elect Virgilio GODOY (since 25 February 1990; takes office
25 April 1990)
Political parties and leaders:
Ruling coalition: National Opposition Union (UNO)--14 party
alliance: National Conservative Party (PNC), Silviano Matamoros;
Conservative Popular Alliance Party (PAPC), Miriam Arguello;
National Conservative Action Party (PANC), Hernaldo Zuniga;
National Democratic Confidence Party (PDCN), Augustin Jarquin;
Independent Liberal Party (PLI), Virgilio Godoy;
Neo-Liberal Party (PALI), Andres Zuniga;
Liberal Constitutionalist Party (PLC), Jose Ernesto Somarriba;
National Action Party (PAN), Eduardo Rivas;
Nicaraguan Socialist Party (PSN), Gustavo Tablada;
Communist Party of Nicaragua (PCdeN), Eli Altimirano;
Popular Social Christian Party (PPSC), Luis Humberto;
Nicaraguan Democratic Movement (MDN), Roberto Urroz;
Social Democratic Party (PSD), Guillermo Potoy;
Central American Integrationist Party (PIAC), Alejandro Perez;
Opposition parties: Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN),
Daniel Ortega;
Central American Unionist Party (PUCA), Blanca Rojas;
Democratic Conservative Party of Nicaragua (PCDN), Jose Brenes;
Liberal Party of National Unity (PLUIN), Eduardo Coronado;
Movement of Revolutionary Unity (MUR), Francisco Samper;
Social Christian Party (PSC), Erick Ramirez;
Revolutionary Workers' Party (PRT), Bonifacio Miranda;
Social Conservative Party (PSOC), Fernando Aguerro;
Popular Action Movement--Marxist-Leninist (MAP-ML), Isidro Tellez;
Popular Social Christian Party (PPSC), Mauricio Diaz
Suffrage: universal at age 16
Elections:
President--last held on 25 February 1990 (next to be held February
1996);
results--Violeta Barrios de Chamorro (UNO) 54.7%, Daniel Ortega Saavedra
(FSLN) 40.8%, others 4.5%;
National Constituent Assembly--last held on 25 February 1990
(next to be held February 1996);
results--UNO 53.9%, FSLN 40.8%, PSC 1.6%, MUR 1.0%;
seats--(92 total) UNO 51, FSLN 39, PSC 1, MUR 1
Communists: FSLN--35,000; other Communists--15,000-20,000
Other political or pressure groups: Permanent Congress of Workers
(CPT), Confederation of Labor Unification (CUS), Autonomous Nicaraguan
Workers' Central (CTN-A), Independent General Confederation of Workers
(CTG-I), Communist Labor Action and Unity Central (CAUS), Nicaraguan
Workers' Central (CST); Superior Council of Private Enterprise (COSEP) is
an umbrella group of 11 different business groups, including the Chamber of
Commerce, the Chamber of Industry, and the Nicaraguan Development Institute
(INDE)
Member of: CACM, CEMA (observer), FAO, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC,
ICAO, ICO, IDA, IDB--Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO,
INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, IRC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS, ODECA, PAHO, SELA, UN,
UNESCO, UPEB, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation: Charge d'Affaires Leonor Arguello de HUPER;
Chancery at 1627 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone
(202) 387-4371 or 4372;
US--Charge d'Affaires John P. LEONARD; Embassy at Kilometer 4.5
Carretera Sur, Managua (mailing address is APO Miami 34021); telephone [505]
(2) 66010 or 66013, 66015 through 66018, 66026, 66027, 66032 through 66034;
note--Nicaragua expelled the US Ambassador on 11 July 1988, and the US expelled
the Nicaraguan Ambassador on 12 July 1988
Flag: 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
Overview: Government control of the economy historically has been
extensive, although the new government has pledged to reduce it.
The financial system is directly controlled by the state, which also
regulates wholesale purchasing, production, sales, foreign trade, and
distribution of most goods. Over 50% of the agricultural and industrial
firms are state owned. Sandinista economic policies and the war have
produced a severe economic crisis. The foundation of the economy
continues to be the export of agricultural commodities, largely coffee
and cotton. Farm production fell by roughly 7% in 1989, the fifth
successive year of decline. The agricultural sector employs 44%
of the work force and accounts for 23% of GDP and 86% of export earnings.
Industry, which employs 13% of the work force and contributes 26% to GDP,
showed a sharp drop of - 23% in 1988 and remains below pre-1979 levels.
External debt is one of the highest in the world on a per capita basis.
In 1989 the annual inflation rate was 1,700%, down from a record
16,000% in 1988. Shortages of basic consumer goods are widespread.
GDP: $1.7 billion, per capita $470; real growth rate - 5.0% (1989
est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1,700% (1989)
Unemployment rate: 25% (1989)
Budget: revenues $0.9 billion; expenditures $1.4 billion, including
capital expenditures of $0.15 billion (1987)
Exports: $250 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.); commodities--coffee,
cotton, sugar, bananas, seafood, meat, chemicals; partners--CEMA 15%,
OECD 75%, others 10%
Imports: $550 million (c.i.f., 1989 est.); commodities--petroleum,
food, chemicals, machinery, clothing; partners--CEMA 55%, EC 20%,
Latin America 10%, others 10%
External debt: $8 billion (year end 1988)
Industrial production: growth rate - 23% (1988 est.)
Electricity: 415,000 kW capacity; 1,340 million kWh produced,
380 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: food processing, chemicals, metal products, textiles,
clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear
Agriculture: accounts for 23% of GDP and 44% of work force; cash
crops--coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton; food crops--rice, corn,
cassava, citrus fruit, beans; variety of animal products--beef, veal,
pork, poultry, dairy; while normally self-sufficient in food, war-induced
shortages now exist
Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-82), $290 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $981 million;
Communist countries (1970-88), $3.3 billion
Currency: cordoba (plural--cordobas); 1 cordoba (C$) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates: cordobas (C$) per US$1--65,000 (February 1990)
is the free market rate; official rate is 46,000 (February 1990),
270 (1988), 0.103 (1987), 0.097 (1986), 0.039 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
- Communications
Railroads: 373 km 1.067-meter gauge, government owned; majority of system
not operating; 3 km 1.435-meter gauge line at Puerto Cabezas (does not connect
with mainline)
Highways: 25,930 km total; 4,000 km paved (includes all 2,170 km
gravel or crushed stone, 5,425 km earth or graded earth, 14,335 km
unimproved, 368.5 km of the Pan-American highway)
Inland waterways: 2,220 km, including 2 large lakes
Pipelines: crude oil, 56 km
Ports: Corinto, El Bluff, Puerto Cabezas, Puerto Sandino, Rama
Merchant marine: 2 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,161
GRT/2,500 DWT
Civil air: 12 major transport aircraft
Airports: 261 total, 169 usable; 9 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
12 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: low-capacity radio relay and wire system being
expanded; connection into Central American Microwave System; 60,000 telephones;
stations--45 AM, no FM, 7 TV, 3 shortwave; satellite earth stations--1
Intersputnik and 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT
- Defense Forces
Branches: Sandinista Popular Army, Sandinista Navy, Sandinista Air
Force/Air Defense, Sandinista People's Militia
Military manpower: males 15-49, 747,144; 459,333 fit for military service;
44,213 reach military age (18) annually
Defense expenditures: NA
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Niger
- Geography
Total area: 1,267,000 km2; land area: 1,266,700 km2
Comparative area: slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries: 5,697 km total; Algeria 956 km, Benin 266 km,
Burkina 628 km, Chad 1,175 km, Libya 354 km, Mali 821 km, Nigeria 1,497 km
Coastline: none--landlocked
Maritime claims: none--landlocked
Disputes: Libya claims about 19,400 km2 in northern Niger; exact locations
of the Chad-Niger-Nigeria and Cameroon-Chad-Nigeria tripoints in Lake Chad have
not been determined, so the boundary has not been demarcated and border
incidents have resulted; Burkina and Mali are proceeding with boundary
demarcation, including the tripoint with Niger
Climate: desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south
Terrain: predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to
rolling plains in south; hills in north
Natural resources: uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates
Land use: 3% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 7% meadows and
pastures; 2% forest and woodland; 88% other; includes NEGL% irrigated
Environment: recurrent drought and desertification severely affecting
marginal agricultural activities; overgrazing; soil erosion
Note: landlocked
- People
Population: 7,969,309 (July 1990), growth rate 3.6% (1990)
Birth rate: 52 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 17 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 131 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 48 years male, 53 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 7.4 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Nigerien(s) adjective--Nigerien
Ethnic divisions: 56% Hausa; 22% Djerma; 8.5% Fula; 8% Tuareg; 4.3% Beri
Beri (Kanouri); 1.2% Arab, Toubou, and Gourmantche; about 4,000 French
expatriates
Religion: 80% Muslim, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christians
Language: French (official); Hausa, Djerma
Literacy: 13.9%
Labor force: 2,500,000 wage earners (1982); 90% agriculture, 6% industry
and commerce, 4% government; 51% of population of working age (1985)
Organized labor: negligible
- Government
Long-form name: Republic of Niger
Type: republic; presidential system in which military officers
hold key offices
Capital: Niamey
Administrative divisions: 7 departments (departements,
singular--departement); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey, Tahoua, Zinder
Independence: 3 August 1960 (from France)
Constitution: adopted NA December 1989 after 15 years of
military rule
Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holidays: Republic Day, 18 December (1958)
Executive branch: president, prime minister, Council of Ministers
(cabinet)
Legislative branch: National Development Council
Judicial branch: State Court (Cour d'Etat), Court of Appeal
(Cour d'Apel)
Leaders:
Chief of State--President Brig. Gen. Ali SAIBOU (since 14 November 1987);
Head of Government--Prime Minister ALIOU MAHAMIDA (since 2 March
1990)
Political parties and leaders: only party--National Movement
for the Development Society (MNSD), leader NA
Suffrage: universal adult at age 18
Elections:
President--last held December 1989 (next to be held NA 1996);
results--President Ali Saibou was reelected without opposition;
National Development Council--last held December 1989 (next to be
held NA 1994); results--MNSD is the only party;
seats--(150 total) MNSD 150 (indirectly elected)
Communists: no Communist party; some sympathizers in outlawed Sawaba party
Member of: ACP, AfDB, APC, CCC, CEAO, EAMA, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente,
FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB--Islamic Development Bank,
IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, ITU, Lake Chad Basin
Commission, Niger River Commission, NAM, OAU, OCAM, OIC, UN, UNESCO,
UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Moumouni Adamou DJERMAKOYE;
Chancery at 2204 R Street NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 483-4224
through 4227; US--Ambassador Carl C. CUNDIFF; Embassy at Avenue des
Ambassadeurs, Niamey (mailing address is B. P. 11201, Niamey); telephone
[227] 72-26-61 through 64 and 72-26-70
Flag: three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and green with
a small orange disk (representing the sun) centered in the white band; similar
to the flag of India which has a blue, spoked wheel centered in the white band
- Economy
Overview: About 90% of the population is engaged in farming and
stock rearing, activities which generate almost half of the national income.
The economy also depends heavily on exploitation of large uranium deposits.
Uranium production grew rapidly in the mid-1970s, but tapered off in the
early 1980s, when world prices declined. France is a major customer,
while FRG, Japan, and Spain also make regular purchases. The depressed
demand for uranium has contributed to an overall sluggishness in the
economy, a severe trade imbalance, and a mounting external debt.
GDP: $2.4 billion, per capita $330; real growth rate 7.1% (1988 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): - 1.4% (1988)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues $254 million; expenditures $510 million, including
capital expenditures of $239 million (1988 est.)
Exports: $371 million (f.o.b., 1988 est.); commodities--uranium 76%,
livestock, cowpeas, onions, hides, skins; partners--NA
Imports: $441 million (c.i.f., 1988 est.); commodities--petroleum
products, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, electronic
equipment, pharmaceuticals, chemical products, cereals, foodstuffs
External debt: $1.8 billion (December 1989 est.)
Industrial production: growth rate 4.7% (1989 est.)
Electricity: 102,000 kW capacity; 225 million kWh produced,
30 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: cement, brick, rice mills, small cotton gins, oilseed presses,
slaughterhouses, and a few other small light industries; uranium production
began in 1971
Agriculture: accounts for roughly 40% of GDP and 90% of labor force; cash
crops--cowpeas, cotton, peanuts; food crops--millet, sorghum, cassava, rice;
livestock--cattle, sheep, goats; self-sufficient in food except in drought years
Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $349 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $2.8 billion;
OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $504 million; Communist countries (1970-88),
$61 million
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (plural--francs);
1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF)
per US$1--287.99 (January 1990), 319.01 (1989), 297.85 (1988), 300.54 (1987),
346.30 (1986), 449.26 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 October-30 September
- Communications
Highways: 39,970 km total; 3,170 km bituminous, 10,330 km gravel
and laterite, 3,470 km earthen, 23,000 km tracks
Inland waterways: Niger river is navigable 300 km from Niamey to Gaya on
the Benin frontier from mid-December through March
Civil air: no major transport aircraft
Airports: 31 total, 29 usable; 7 with permanent-surface runways;
1 with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 11 with runways
1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: small system of wire, radiocommunications, and radio
relay links concentrated in southwestern area; 11,900 telephones; stations--15
AM, 5 FM, 16 TV; satellite earth stations--1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian
Ocean INTELSAT, and 4 domestic
- Defense Forces
Branches: Army, Air Force, paramilitary Gendarmerie, paramilitary
Republican Guard, paramilitary Presidential Guard, paramilitary National Police
Military manpower: males 15-49, 1,656,466; 894,095 fit for military
service; 87,478 reach military age (18) annually
Defense expenditures: $20.6 million (1988)
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Nigeria
- Geography
Total area: 923,770 km2; land area: 910,770 km2
Comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of California
Land boundaries: 4,047 km total; Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km,
Chad 87 km, Niger 1,497 km
Coastline: 853 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploitation;
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 30 nm
Disputes: exact locations of the Chad-Niger-Nigeria and
Cameroon-Chad-Nigeria tripoints in Lake Chad have not been determined, so the
boundary has not been demarcated and border incidents have resulted; Nigerian
proposals to reopen maritime boundary negotiations and redemarcate the entire
land boundary have been rejected by Cameroon
Climate: varies--equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north
Terrain: southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus;
mountains in southeast, plains in north
Natural resources: crude oil, tin, columbite, iron ore, coal,
limestone, lead, zinc, natural gas
Land use: 31% arable land; 3% permanent crops; 23% meadows and
pastures; 15% forest and woodland; 28% other; includes NEGL% irrigated