Background: Following independence from Spain in 1816 Argentina experienced periods of internal political conflict between conservatives and liberals and between civilian and military factions. After World War II a long period of Peronist dictatorship was followed by a military junta that took power in 1976. Democracy returned in 1983 and numerous elections since then have underscored Argentina's progress in democratic consolidation.

Geographic coordinates: 34 00 S 64 00 W

Map reference: South America

Area
Total: 2,766,890 km²
Land: 2,736,690 km²
Water: 30,200 km²
Comparative: slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US

Land boundaries
Total: 9,665 km
Border countries: (5) Bolivia 832 km; , Brazil 1,224 km; , Chile 5,150 km; , Paraguay 1,880 km; , Uruguay 579 km

Coastline: 4,989 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 NM
Continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
Exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest

Terrain: rich plains of the Pampas in northern half flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south rugged Andes along western border

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Salinas Chicas -40 m (located on Peninsula Valdes)
Extremes highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m

Natural resources: fertile plains of the Pampas lead zinc tin copper iron ore manganese petroleum uranium

Land use
Arable land: 9%
Permanent crops: 1%
Permanent pastures: 52%
Forests and woodland: 19%
Other: 19% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 17,000 km² (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the Pampas and northeast; heavy flooding

Geography
Note: second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between South Atlantic and South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan Beagle Channel Drake Passage)

Population: 37,384,816 (July 2001 est.)
Growth rate: 1.15% (2001 est.)
Below poverty line: 37% (1999 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Argentine
Adjective: Argentine

Ethnic groups: white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97% mestizo Amerindian or other nonwhite groups 3%

Languages: Spanish (official) English Italian German French

Religions: nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing) Protestant 2% Jewish 2% other 4%

Age structure
0-14 years: 26.54% (male 5,077,593; female 4,842,811)
15-64 years: 63.04% (male 11,795,282; female 11,773,855)
65 years and over: 10.42% (male 1,609,672; female 2,285,603) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.15% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: 18.41 births/1000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: 7.58 deaths/1000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.64 migrant(s)/1000 population (2001 est.)

Environment
Current issues note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets
International agreements party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.05 male/female
15-64 years: 1 male/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male/female
Total population: 0.98 male/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 17.75 deaths/1000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 75.26 years
Male: 71.88 years
Female: 78.82 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.44 children born/woman (2001 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.69% (1999 est.)
People living with hivaids: 130,000 (1999 est.)
Deaths: 1800 (1999 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 96.2%
Male: 96.2%
Female: 96.2% (1995 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Argentine Republic
Conventional short form: Argentina
Local long form: Republica Argentina
Local short form: Argentina

Government type: republic

Capital: Buenos Aires

Administrative divisions
Note: the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica

Independence: 9 July 1816 (from Spain)

National holiday: Revolution Day 25 May (1810)

Constitution: 1 May 1853; revised August 1994

Legal system: mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and mandatory

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Fernando DE LA RUA (since 10 December 1999); Vice President Carlos 'Chacho' ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and a replacement has not yet been named; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Fernando DE LA RUA (since 10 December 1999); Vice President Carlos 'Chacho' ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and a replacement has not yet been named; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
Elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2003)
Election results: Fernando DE LA RUA elected president; percent of vote - 48.5%

Legislative branch
Elections: Senate - transition phase will begin in the 2001 elections when all seats will be fully contested; winners will randomly draw to determine whether they will serve a two-year, four-year, or full six-year term, beginning a rotating cycle renovating one-third of the body every two years; Chamber of Deputies - last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2001)
Election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Peronist 40, UCR 20, Frepaso 1, other 11; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Alliance 124 (UCR 85, Frepaso 36, others 3), Peronist 101, AR 12, other 20

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (the nine Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president with approval by the Senate)

Political parties and leaders: Action for the Republic or AR [Domingo CAVALLO]; Front for a Country in Solidarity or Frepaso (a four-party coalition) [Carlos ALVAREZ]; Justicialist Party or PJ [Carlos Saul MENEM] (Peronist umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Raul ALFONSIN]; several provincial parties

International organization participation: AfDB Australia Group BCIE BIS CCC ECLAC FAO G-6 G-11 G-15 G-19 G-24 G-77 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC ICFTU ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO Inmarsat Intelsat Interpol IOC IOM ISO ITU LAES LAIA Mercosur MINURSO MIPONUH MTCR NSG OAS OPANAL OPCW PCA RG UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNFICYP UNHCR UNIDO UNIKOM UNMEE UNMIBH UNMIK UNMOP UNTSO UNU UPU WCL WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Guillermo Enrique GONZALEZ
In the us chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,009
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 238-6,400
In the us fax: [1] (202) 332-3,171
In the us consulates general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador James D. WALSH
From the us embassy: Avenida Colombia 4,300, 1425 Buenos Aires
From the us mailing address: international mail: use street address; APO address: Unit 4,334, APO AA 34,034
From the us telephone: [54] (11) 4,777-4,533/4,534
From the us fax: [54] (11) 4,511-4,997

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of light blue (top) white and light blue; centered in the white band is a radiant yellow sun with a human face known as the Sun of May

Economy overview: Argentina benefits from rich natural resources a highly literate population an export-oriented agricultural sector and a diversified industrial base. However when President Carlos MENEM took office in 1989 the country had piled up huge external debts inflation had reached 200% per month and output was plummeting. To combat the economic crisis the government embarked on a path of trade liberalization deregulation and privatization. In 1991 it implemented radical monetary reforms which pegged the peso to the US dollar and limited the growth in the monetary base by law to the growth in reserves. Inflation fell sharply in subsequent years. In 1995 the Mexican peso crisis produced capital flight the loss of banking system deposits and a severe but short-lived recession; a series of reforms to bolster the domestic banking system followed. Real GDP growth recovered strongly reaching 8% in 1997. In 1998 international financial turmoil caused by Russia's problems and increasing investor anxiety over Brazil produced the highest domestic interest rates in more than three years halving the growth rate of the economy. Conditions worsened in 1999 with GDP falling by 3%. President Fernando DE LA RUA who took office in December 1999 sponsored tax increases and spending cuts to reduce the deficit which had ballooned to 2.5% of GDP in 1999. Growth in 2000 was a disappointing 0.8% as both domestic and foreign investors remained skeptical of the government's ability to pay debts and maintain its fixed exchange rate with the US dollar. One bright spot at the start of 2001 was the IMF's offer of $13.7 billion in support.

Real gdp growth rate: 0.8% (2000 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $12,900 (2000 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 6%
Industry: 32%
Services: 62% (2000 est.)

Agriculture products: sunflower seeds lemons soybeans grapes corn tobacco peanuts tea wheat; livestock

Industries: food processing motor vehicles consumer durables textiles chemicals and petrochemicals printing metallurgy steel

Industrial production growth rate: 1% (2000 est.)

Labor force: 15 million (1999)
By occupation agriculture: NA%
By occupation industry: NA%
By occupation services: NA%

Unemployment rate: 15% (December 2000)

Population below poverty line: 37% (1999 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Budget
Revenues: $44 billion
Expenditures: $48 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: -0.9% (2000 est.)

Exports: $26.5 billion (f.o.b. 2000 est.)
Commodities: edible oils fuels and energy cereals feed motor vehicles
Partners: Brazil 24% EU 21% US 11% (1999 est.)

Imports: $25.2 billion (f.o.b. 2000 est.)
Commodities: machinery and equipment motor vehicles chemicals metal manufactures plastics
Partners: EU 28% US 22% Brazil 21% (1999 est.)

Debt external: $154 billion (2000 est.)

Exchange rates: Argentine pesos per US dollar - 1.000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar)

Electricity
Production: 77.087 billion kWh (1999)
Production by source fossil fuel: 60.3%
Production by source hydro: 30.7%
Production by source nuclear: 8.75%
Production by source other: 0.25% (1999)
Consumption: 77.111 billion kWh (1999)
Exports: 1.08 billion kWh (1999)
Imports: 6.5 billion kWh (1999)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 7.5 million (1998)
Mobile cellular: 3 million (December 1999)

Telephone system
General assessment: by opening the telecommunications market to competition and foreign investment with the 'Telecommunications Liberalization Plan of 1998', Argentina encouraged the growth of modern telecommunication technology; fiber-optic cable trunk lines are being installed between all major cities; the major networks are entirely digital and the availability of telephone service is being improved; however, telephone density is presently minimal, and making telephone service universally available will take some time
Domestic: microwave radio relay, fiber-optic cable, and a domestic satellite system with 40 earth stations serve the trunk network; more than 110,000 pay telephones are installed and mobile telephone use is rapidly expanding
International: satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); Atlantis II and Unisur submarine cables; two international gateways near Buenos Aires (1999)

Internet
Country code: .ar
Service providers isps: 33 (2000)
Users: 900,000 (2000)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $4.3 billion (FY99)
Percent of gdp: 1.3% (FY99)

Airports: 1359 (2000 est.)
With paved runways total: 143
With paved runways over 3047 m: 4
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 25
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 57
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 48
With paved runways under 914 m: 9 (2000 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 1,216
With unpaved runways over 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 56
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 601
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 555 (2000 est.)

Pipelines: crude oil 4,090 km; petroleum products 2,900 km; natural gas 9,918 km

Railways
Total: 33,744 km (167 km electrified)
Broad gauge: 20,594 km 1.676-m gauge (141 km electrified)
Standard gauge: 2,739 km 1.435-m gauge (26 km electrified)
Narrow gauge: 10,154 km 1.000-m gauge; 257 km 0.750-m gauge (2000)

Waterways: 10,950 km

Merchant marine
Total: 26 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 185,355 GRT/281,475 DWT
Ships by type: cargo 9, petroleum tanker 11, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 2 (2000 est.)

Disputes international: claims UK-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); claims UK-administered South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica partially overlaps British and Chilean claims