Map of Nicaragua | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: 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. After losing free and fair elections in 1990 1996 and 2001 former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra was elected president in 2006 and reelected in 2011. The 2008 municipal elections 2010 regional elections 2011 presidential elections 2012 municipal elections and 2013 regional elections were marred by widespread irregularities. Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt but democratic institutions have been weakened under the ORTEGA administration.


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Location: Central America bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean between Costa Rica and Honduras

Geographic coordinates: 13 00 N 85 00 W

Map reference

Area
Rank: 98
Land: 119,990 km²
Water: 10,380 km²

Land boundaries
Border countries: (2) Costa Rica 309 km; Honduras 922 km

Coastline: 910 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Continental shelf: natural prolongation

Climate: tropical in lowlands cooler in highlands

Terrain: extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes

Elevation
Extremes highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m

Natural resources: gold silver copper tungsten lead zinc timber fish

Land use
Permanent crops: 1.76%
Other: 83.66% (2011)

Irrigated land: 942.4 km² (2003)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources: 196.6 km³ (2011)

Natural hazards: destructive earthquakes; volcanoes; landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes
Volcanism: significant volcanic activity; Cerro Negro (elev. 728 m) which last erupted in 1999 is one of Nicaragua's most active volcanoes; its lava flows and ash have been known to cause significant damage to farmland and buildings; other historically active volcanoes include Concepcion Cosiguina Las Pilas Masaya Momotombo San Cristobal and Telica

Geography
Note: largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America Lago de Nicaragua


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Population: 5,848,641 (July 2014 est.)
Rank: 111
Growth rate: 1.02% (2014 est.)
Growth rate rank: 118
Below poverty line: 42.5% (2009)

Nationality
Adjective: Nicaraguan

Ethnic groups: mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69% white 17% black 9% Amerindian 5%

Languages: Spanish (official) 95.3% Miskito 2.2% Mestizo of the Caribbean coast 2% other 0.5%

Religions: Roman Catholic 58.5% Protestant 23.2% (Evangelical 21.6% Moravian 1.6%) Jehovah's Witnesses 0.9% other 1.6% none 15.7% (2005 est.)

Demographic profile:

Age structure
15-24 years: 22.4% (male 657,076/female 652,856)
25-54 years: 38% (male 1,051,656/female 1,173,084)
55-64 years: 5.4% (male 147,405/female 169,618)
65 years and over: 4.7% (male 127,699/female 155,849) (2014 est.)

Dependency ratios
Youth dependency ratio: 51.4 %
Elderly dependency ratio: 7.4 %
Potential support ratio: 13.4 (2014 est.)

Median age
Male: 23.3 years
Female: 25.1 years (2014 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.02% (2014 est.)
Rank: 118

Birth rate: 18.41 births/1000 population (2014 est.)
Rank: 103

Death rate: 5.07 deaths/1000 population (2014 est.)
Rank: 184

Net migration rate: -3.13 migrant(s)/1000 population (2014 est.)
Rank: 179

Population distribution

Urbanization
Rate of urbanization: 1.94% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Major urban areas
Population: MANAGUA (capital) 970,000 (2011)

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.9 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2014 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth: 19.7

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Rank: 88
Male: 23.36 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 17.2 deaths/1000 live births (2014 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Rank: 130
Male: 70.57 years
Female: 74.98 years (2014 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.99 children born/woman (2014 est.)
Rank: 128

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 72.4% (2006/07)

Drinking water source:

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 0.37 physicians/1000 population (2003)

Hospital bed density: 1.1 beds/1000 population (2011)

Sanitation facility access:

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.3% (2012 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 100
People living with hivaids: 9,600 (2012 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 106
Deaths: 100 (2012 est.)
Deaths rank: 137

Major infectious diseases
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea hepatitis A and typhoid fever
Vectorborne disease: dengue fever and malaria (2013)

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 22.2% (2008)
Rank: 81

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 5.7% (2007)
Rank: 85

Education expenditures: 4.6% of GDP (2010)
Rank: 88

Literacy
Total population: 78%
Male: 78.1%
Female: 77.9% (2005 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Male: 10 years
Female: 11 years (2002)

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional short form: Nicaragua
Local long form: Republica de Nicaragua
Local short form: Nicaragua

Government type: republic

Capital
Geographic coordinates: 12 08 N 86 15 W
Time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions: 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

Dependent areas

Independence: 15 September 1821 (from Spain)

National holiday: Independence Day 15 September (1821)

Constitution: several previous; latest adopted 19 November 1986 effective 9 January 1987; amended several times last in 2014 (2014)

Legal system: civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship

Suffrage: 16 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Head of government: President Jose Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (since 10 January 2007); Vice President Moises Omar HALLESLEVENS Acevedo (since 10 January 2012)
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 on 6 November 2011 (next to be held by November 2016)
Election results: Jose Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra reelected president; percent of vote - Jose Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra 62.5% Fabio GADEA 31% Arnoldo ALEMAN 5.9% other 0.6%

Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (92 seats; 90 members 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 on 6 November 2011 (next to be held by November 2016)
Election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FSLN 62 PLI/MRS 26 PLC 2

Judicial branch
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges elected by the National Assembly to serve 5-year staggered terms
Subordinate courts: Appeals Court; first instance civil criminal and military courts

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: BCIE CACM CD CELAC FAO G-77 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO (correspondent) ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) LAES LAIA LAIA (observer) MIGA NAM OAS OPANAL OPCW PCA Petrocaribe SICA UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO Union Latina UNWTO UPU WCO WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chancery: 1627 New Hampshire Avenue NW Washington DC 20,009
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 939-6,570 6,573
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 939-6,545
In the us consulate general: Houston Los Angeles Miami New York San Francisco
From the us embassy: Kilometer 5.5 Carretera Sur Managua
From the us mailing address: American Embassy Managua APO AA 34,021
From the us telephone: [505] 2,252-7,100 2,252-7,888; 2,252-7,634 (after hours)
From the us FAX: [505] 2,252-7,250

Flag description: 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; the banner is based on the former blue-white-blue flag of the Federal Republic of Central America; the blue bands symbolize the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea while the white band represents the land between the two bodies of water

National symbols: turquoise-browed motmot (bird)

National anthem
Lyrics and music: Salomon Ibarra MAYORGA/traditional arranged by Luis Abraham DELGADILLO

National heritage


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Economy overview: Nicaragua the poorest country in Central America and the second poorest in the Western Hemisphere has widespread underemployment and poverty. The Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) has been in effect since April 2006 and has expanded export opportunities for many agricultural and manufactured goods. Textiles and agriculture combined account for nearly 50% of Nicaragua's exports. In 2013 the government granted a 100-year concession to a newly formed Chinese-run company to finance and build an inter-oceanic canal and related projects at an estimated cost of $40 billion. The economy grew 4.6% in 2013 despite a 33% decline in coffee export revenues due to a coffee rust fungus.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 119

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 66

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 166

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use
Government consumption: 10.3%
Investment in fixed capital: 34.4%
Exports of goods and services: 38.6%
Imports of goods and services: -69.5%: (2013 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Industry: 25.5%
Services: 57.5% (2013 est.)

Agriculture products: coffee bananas sugarcane rice corn tobacco sesame soya beans; beef veal pork poultry dairy products; shrimp lobsters cotton

Industries: food processing chemicals machinery and metal products knit and woven apparel petroleum refining and distribution beverages footwear wood electric wire harness manufacturing mining

Industrial production growth rate: 3% (2013 est.)
Rank: 107

Labor force: 3.039 million (2013 est.)
Rank: 103
By occupation industry: 18%
By occupation services: 50% (2011 est.)

Unemployment rate: 5.9% (2012 est.)
Rank: 77

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 42.5% (2009)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Highest 10: 41.8% (2005)

Distribution of family income gini index: 60.3 (1998)
Rank: 56

Budget
Expenditures: $1.656 billion (2013 est.)
Surplus or deficit: -0.3% of GDP (2013 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 51

Taxes and other revenues: 25.6% of GDP (2013 est.)
Rank: 120

Public debt: 51.5% of GDP (2012 est.)
Rank: 66

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 6.6% (2012 est.)
Rank: 166

Central bank discount rate: 3% (31 December 2010 est.)

Commercial bank prime lending rate:

Stock of narrow money: $897.5 million (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 151

Stock of broad money: $4.136 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 132

Stock of domestic credit: $4.567 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 118

Market value of publicly traded shares: $N/A

Current account balance: -$1.362 billion (2012 est.)
Rank: 133

Exports: $4.581 billion (2012 est.)
Rank: 138
Commodities: coffee beef gold sugar peanuts shrimp and lobster tobacco cigars automobile wiring harnesses textiles apparel cotton
Partners: United States 25.2% Venezuela 16% Canada 13.1% El Salvador 8.9% Costa Rica 5% (2013 est.)

Imports: $5.851 billion (2012 est.)
Rank: 122
Commodities: consumer goods machinery and equipment raw materials petroleum products
Partners: Venezuela 18.8% (2013 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $1.887 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 122

Debt external: $4.289 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 123

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Production: 4.159 billion kWh (2013 est.)
Production rank: 123
Consumption: 2.941 billion kWh (2011 est.)
Consumption rank: 132
Exports: 43 million kWh (2010 est.)
Exports rank: 83
Imports: 10 million kWh (2010 est.)
Imports rank: 107
Installed generating capacity: 1.275 million kW (2013 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 120
Generation sources fossil fuels: 57.6% of total installed capacity (2013 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 136
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2013 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 156
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 8.3% of total installed capacity (2013 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 117
Generation sources other renewable sources: 34.1% of total installed capacity (2013 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 4

Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 205
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2011 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 165
Crude oil imports: 12,910 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 74
Crude oil proven reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2013 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 174

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 15,870 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Products production rank: 98
Products consumption: 30,690 bbl/day (2011 est.)
Products consumption rank: 113
Products exports: 1000 bbl/day (2011 est.)
Products exports rank: 106
Products imports: 15,830 bbl/day (2011 est.)
Products imports rank: 118

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Production rank: 178
Consumption: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Consumption rank: 183
Exports: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Exports rank: 160
Imports: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Imports rank: 110
Proven reserves: 0 m³ (1 January 2013 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 181

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 5.035 million Mt (2011 est.)

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 320,000 (2012)
Main lines in use rank: 112
Mobile cellular: 5.346 million (2012)
Mobile cellular rank: 108

Telephone system
Domestic: since privatization access to fixed-line and mobile-cellular services has improved; fixed-line teledensity roughly 5 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone subscribership has increased to roughly 85 per 100 persons
International: country code - 505; the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber optic submarine cable provides connectivity to South and Central America parts of the Caribbean and the US; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2011)

Broadcast media: multiple privately owned terrestrial TV networks supplemented by cable TV in most urban areas; of more than 100 radio stations nearly all are privately owned; Radio Nicaragua is government-owned and Radio Sandino is controlled by the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) (2007)

Internet
Country code: .ni
Hosts: 296,068 (2012)
Hosts rank: 63
Users: 199,800 (2009)
Users rank: 141

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures:
Rank: 120

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 18-30 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription; tour of duty 18-36 months; requires Nicaraguan nationality and 6th-grade education (2012)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 147 (2013)
Rank: 40
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 3
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 3
With paved runways under 914 m: 4 (2013)
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 15
With unpaved runways: 119 (2013)

Heliports

Pipelines: oil 54 km (2013)

Railways

Roadways
Rank: 101
Paved: 3,282 km
Unpaved: 20,615 km (2012)

Waterways: 2,220 km (navigable waterways as well as the use of the large Lake Managua and Lake Nicaragua; rivers serve only the sparsely populated eastern part of the country) (2011)
Rank: 40

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: the 1992 (International Court of Justice) 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; Nicaragua and Costa Rica regularly file border dispute cases over the delimitations of the San Juan River and the northern tip of Calero Island to the ICJ; in 2009 the ICJ ruled that Costa Rican vessels carrying out police activities could not use the river but official Costa Rican vessels providing essential services to riverside inhabitants and Costa Rican tourists could travel freely on the river; in 2011 the ICJ provisionally ruled that both countries must remove personnel from the disputed area; in 2013 the ICJ rejected Nicaragua's 2012 suit to halt Costa Rica's construction of a highway paralleling the river on the grounds of irreparable environmental damage; in 2013 the ICJ regarding the disputed territory ordered that Nicaragua should refrain from dredging or canal construction and refill and repair damage caused by trenches connecting the river to the Caribbean and upheld its 2010 ruling that Nicaragua must remove all personnel; in early 2014 Costa Rica brought Nicaragua to the ICJ over offshore oil concessions in the disputed region

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing