Background: A land of vast distances and rich natural resources Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 while retaining ties to the British crown. Economically and technologically the nation has developed in parallel with the US its neighbor to the south across an unfortified border. Canada faces the political challenges of meeting public demands for quality improvements in health care and education services as well as responding to separatist concerns in predominantly francophone Quebec. Canada also aims to develop its diverse energy resources while maintaining its commitment to the environment.

Geographic coordinates: 60 00 N 95 00 W

Map reference: North America

Area
Total: 9,984,670 km²
Rank: 2
Land: 9,093,507 km²
Water: 891,163 km²
Comparative: somewhat larger than the US

Land boundaries
Total: 8,893 km
Border countries: (1) US 8,893 km; (includes 2,477 km

Coastline: 202,080 km

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

Climate: varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in north

Terrain: mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in southeast

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Mount Logan 5,959 m

Natural resources: iron ore nickel zinc copper gold lead molybdenum potash diamonds silver fish timber wildlife coal petroleum natural gas hydropower

Land use
Arable land: 4.57%
Permanent crops: 0.65%
Other: 94.78% (2005)

Irrigated land: 7,850 km² (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 3,300 km³ (1985)

Natural hazards: continuous permafrost in north is a serious obstacle to development; cyclonic storms form east of the Rocky Mountains a result of the mixing of air masses from the Arctic Pacific and North American interior and produce most of the country's rain and snow east of the mountains

Geography
Note: second-largest country in world (after Russia); strategic location between Russia and US via north polar route; approximately 90% of the population is concentrated within 160 km of the US border

Population: 33,487,208 (July 2009 est.)
Rank: 37
Growth rate: 0.817% (2009 est.)
Growth rate rank: 138
Below poverty line: 10.8%; note - this figure is the Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) a calculation that results in higher figures than found in many comparable economies; Canada does not have an official poverty line (2005)

Nationality
Noun: Canadian
Adjective: Canadian

Ethnic groups: British Isles origin 28% French origin 23% other European 15% Amerindian 2% other mostly Asian African Arab 6% mixed background 26%

Languages: English (official) 58.8% French (official) 21.6% other 19.6% (2006 Census)

Religions: Roman Catholic 42.6% Protestant 23.3% (including United Church 9.5% Anglican 6.8% Baptist 2.4% Lutheran 2%) other Christian 4.4% Muslim 1.9% other and unspecified 11.8% none 16% (2001 census)

Age structure
0-14 years: 16.1%
15-64 years: 68.7% (male 11,633,950/female 11,381,735)
65 years and over: 15.2% (male 2,220,189/female 2,862,787) (2009 est.)

Median age
Total: 40.4 years
Male: 39.3 years
Female: 41.5 years (2009 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.817% (2009 est.)
Rank: 138

Birth rate: 10.28 births/1000 population (2009 est.)
Rank: 192

Death rate: 7.74 deaths/1000 population (July 2009 est.)
Rank: 116

Net migration rate: 5.63 migrant(s)/1000 population (2009 est.)
Rank: 18

Urbanization
Urban population: 80% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 1% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)

Environment
Current issues: air pollution and resulting acid rain severely affecting lakes and damaging forests; metal smelting coal-burning utilities and vehicle emissions impacting on agricultural and forest productivity; ocean waters becoming contaminated due to agricultural industrial mining and forestry activities
International agreements party to: Air Pollution Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants Air Pollution-Sulfur 85 Air Pollution-Sulfur 94 Antarctic-Environmental Protocol Antarctic-Marine Living Resources Antarctic Seals Antarctic Treaty Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Endangered Species Environmental Modification Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Marine Dumping Ozone Layer Protection Ship Pollution Tropical Timber 83 Tropical Timber 94 Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds Marine Life Conservation

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.06 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2009 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 5.04 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 189
Male: 5.37 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 4.69 deaths/1000 live births (2009 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 81.23 years
Rank: 8
Male: 78.69 years
Female: 83.91 years (2009 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.58 children born/woman (2009 est.)
Rank: 181

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.4% (2007 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 80
People living with hivaids: 73,000 (2007 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 55
Deaths: fewer than 500 (2007 est.)
Deaths rank: 83

Education expenditures: 5.2% of GDP (2002)
Rank: 63

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 99%
Male: 99%
Female: 99% (2003 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 17 years
Male: 17 years
Female: 17 years (2004)

Country name
Conventional long form: none
Conventional short form: Canada

Government type: a parliamentary democracy a federation and a Commonwealth realm

Capital
Name: Ottawa
Geographic coordinates: 45 25 N 75 42 W
Time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington DC during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November
Note: Canada is divided into six time zones

Administrative divisions: 10 provinces and 3 territories*; Alberta British Columbia Manitoba New Brunswick Newfoundland and Labrador Northwest Territories* Nova Scotia Nunavut* Ontario Prince Edward Island Quebec Saskatchewan Yukon Territory*

Independence: 1 July 1867 (union of British North American colonies); 11 December 1931 (recognized by UK)

National holiday: Canada Day 1 July (1867)

Constitution: made up of unwritten and written acts customs judicial decisions and traditions; the written part of the constitution consists of the Constitution Act of 29 March 1867 which created a federation of four provinces and the Constitution Act of 17 April 1982 which transferred formal control over the constitution from Britain to Canada and added a Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as procedures for constitutional amendments

Legal system: based on English common law except in Quebec where civil law system based on French law prevails; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Head of state: Queen ELIZABETH II ; represented by Governor General Michaelle JEAN (since 27 September 2005)
Head of government: Prime Minister Stephen HARPER (since 6 February 2006)
Cabinet: Federal Ministry chosen by the prime minister usually from among the members of his own party sitting in Parliament
Elections: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister for a five-year term; following legislative elections the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Commons is automatically designated prime minister by the governor general

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of the Senate or Senat (105 seats; members appointed by the governor general with the advice of the prime minister and serve until reaching 75 years of age) and the House of Commons or Chambre des Communes (308 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve a maximum of five-year terms starting in 2009 elections)
Elections: House of Commons - last held 14 October 2008 (next to be held no later than 19 October 2012)
Election results: House of Commons - percent of vote by party - Conservative Party 37.6% Liberal Party 26.2% New Democratic Party 18.2% Bloc Quebecois 10% Greens 6.8% other 1%; seats by party - Conservative Party 143 Liberal Party 77 New Democratic Party 37 Bloc Quebecois 49 other 2

Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Canada (judges are appointed by the prime minister through the governor general); Federal Court of Canada; Federal Court of Appeal; Provincial Courts (these are named variously Court of Appeal Court of Queens Bench Superior Court Supreme Court and Court of Justice)

Political parties and leaders: Bloc Quebecois [Gilles DUCEPPE]; Conservative Party of Canada [Stephen HARPER] (a merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party); Green Party [Elizabeth MAY]; Liberal Party [Michael IGNATIEFF]; New Democratic Party [Jack LAYTON]

International organization participation: ACCT ADB (nonregional member) AfDB (nonregional member) APEC Arctic Council ARF ASEAN (dialogue partner) Australia Group BIS C CDB CE (observer) EAPC EBRD ESA (cooperating state) FAO G-20 G-7 G-8 G-10 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC ICCt ICRM IDA IEA IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO ITSO ITU ITUC MIGA MINUSTAH MONUC NAFTA NAM (guest) NATO NEA NSG OAS OECD OIF OPCW OSCE Paris Club PCA PIF (partner) SECI (observer) UN UNAMID UNCTAD UNDOF UNESCO UNFICYP UNHCR UNMIS UNRWA UNTSO UNWTO UPU WCL WCO WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WTO ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Gary DOER
In the us chancery: 501 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington DC 20,001
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 682-1740
In the us fax: [1] (202) 682-7,701
In the us consulate general: Atlanta Boston Buffalo Chicago Dallas Denver Detroit Los Angeles Miami Minneapolis New York Phoenix San Diego San Francisco Seattle Tucson
In the us consulate: Anchorage Houston Philadelphia Princeton (New Jersey) Raleigh San Jose (California) Tucson
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador David H. WILKINS
From the us embassy: 490 Sussex Drive Ottawa Ontario K1N 1G8
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 5,000 Ogdensburg NY 13,669-0430; P.O. Box 866 Station B Ottawa Ontario K1P 5T1
From the us telephone: [1] (613) 688-5,335
From the us fax: [1] (613) 688-3,082
From the us consulate general: Calgary Halifax Montreal Quebec Toronto Vancouver Winnipeg

Flag description: two vertical bands of red (hoist and fly side half width) with white square between them; an 11-pointed red maple leaf is centered in the white square; the official colors of Canada are red and white

Economy overview: As an affluent high-tech industrial society in the trillion-dollar class Canada resembles the US in its market-oriented economic system pattern of production and affluent living standards. Since World War II the impressive growth of the manufacturing mining and service sectors has transformed the nation from a largely rural economy into one primarily industrial and urban. The 1989 US-Canada Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (which includes Mexico) touched off a dramatic increase in trade and economic integration with the US its principle trading partner. Canada enjoys a substantial trade surplus with the US which absorbs nearly 80% of Canadian exports each year. Canada is the US's largest foreign supplier of energy including oil gas uranium and electric power. Given its great natural resources skilled labor force and modern capital plant Canada has enjoyed solid economic growth and prudent fiscal management has produced consecutive balanced budgets from 1997 to 2007. In 2008 growth slowed sharply as a result of the global economic downturn US housing slump plunging auto sector demand and a drop in world commodity prices. Public finances too are set to deteriorate for the first time in a decade. Tight global credit conditions have further restrained business and housing investment despite the conservative lending practices and strong capitalization that made Canada's major banks among the most stable in the world.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 15
Note: data are in 2008 US dollars

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 192

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 22
Note: data are in 2008 US dollars

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 2%
Industry: 28.4%
Services: 69.6% (2008 est.)

Agriculture products: wheat barley oilseed tobacco fruits vegetables; dairy products; forest products; fish

Industries: transportation equipment chemicals processed and unprocessed minerals food products wood and paper products fish products petroleum and natural gas

Industrial production growth rate: -2.8% (2008 est.)
Rank: 159

Labor force: 18.22 million (2008 est.)
Rank: 32
By occupation agriculture: 2%
By occupation manufacturing: 13%
By occupation construction: 6%
By occupation services: 76%
By occupation other: 3% (2006)

Unemployment rate: 6% (2007 est.)
Rank: 76

Population below poverty line: 10.8%; note - this figure is the Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) a calculation that results in higher figures than found in many comparable economies; Canada does not have an official poverty line (2005)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2.6%
Highest 10: 24.8% (2000)

Distribution of family income gini index: 31.5 (1994)
Rank: 100

Budget
Revenues: $594.1 billion
Expenditures: $573.7 billion (2008 est.)

Public debt: 64.2% of GDP (2004 est.)
Rank: 21

Inflation rate consumer prices: 2.1% (2007 est.)
Rank: 23

Central bank discount rate: 4.5% (31 December 2007)
Rank: 112

Commercial bank prime lending rate: 6.1% (31 December 2007)
Rank: 131

Stock of domestic credit: $2.382 trillion (31 December 2007)
Rank: 9

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 7

Current account balance: $14.53 billion (2007 est.)
Rank: 26

Exports: $431.2 billion (2007 est.)
Rank: 11
Commodities: motor vehicles and parts industrial machinery aircraft telecommunications equipment; chemicals plastics fertilizers; wood pulp timber crude petroleum natural gas electricity aluminum
Partners: US 77.7% UK 2.7% Japan 2.3% (2008)

Imports: $386.6 billion (2007 est.)
Rank: 12
Commodities: machinery and equipment motor vehicles and parts crude oil chemicals electricity durable consumer goods
Partners: US 52.4% China 9.8% Mexico 4.1% (2008)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $41.08 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Rank: 29

Debt external: $806.9 billion (31 December 2007)
Rank: 15

Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $506.9 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Rank: 11

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad: $520.7 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Rank: 12

Exchange rates: Canadian dollars (CAD) per US dollar - 1.0364 (2008 est.) 1.0724 (2007) 1.1334 (2006) 1.2118 (2005) 1.301 (2004)

Electricity
Production: 620.7 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Production rank: 7
Consumption: 536.1 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Consumption rank: 8
Exports: 55.73 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Imports: 23.5 billion kWh (2008 est.)

Natural gas
Production: 170.9 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Production rank: 4
Consumption: 82.93 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Consumption rank: 10
Exports: 102.8 billion m³ (2008)
Exports rank: 2
Imports: 14.84 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Imports rank: 16
Proven reserves: 1.64 trillion m³ (1 January 2009 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 21

Telephones
Main lines in use: 18.25 million (2008)
Main lines in use rank: 17
Mobile cellular: 21.455 million (2008)
Mobile cellular rank: 37

Telephone system
General assessment: excellent service provided by modern technology
Domestic: domestic satellite system with about 300 earth stations
International: country code - 1; submarine cables provide links to the US and Europe; satellite earth stations - 7 (5 Intelsat - 4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Intersputnik - Atlantic Ocean region) (2007)

Internet
Country code: .ca
Hosts: 7.193 million (2009)
Hosts rank: 14
Users: 25.086 million (2008)
Users rank: 13

Military expenditures: 1.1% of GDP (2005 est.)
Rank: 132

Military service age and obligation: 17 years of age for male and female voluntary military service (with parental consent); 16 years of age for reserve and military college applicants; Canadian citizenship or permanent residence status required; maximum 34 years of age; service obligation 3-9 years (2008)

Airports: 1388 (2009)
Rank: 4
With paved runways total: 515
With paved runways over 3047 m: 19
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 18
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 148
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 251
With paved runways under 914 m: 79 (2009)
With unpaved runways total: 873
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 73
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 373
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 427 (2009)

Heliports: 12 (2009)

Pipelines: crude and refined oil 23,564 km; liquid petroleum gas 74,980 km (2006)

Railways
Total: 46,688 km
Rank: 5
Standard gauge: 46,688 km 1.435-m gauge (2008)

Roadways
Total: 1,042,300 km
Rank: 6
Paved: 415,600 km (includes 17,000 km of expressways)
Unpaved: 626,700 km (2006)

Waterways: 636 km
Rank: 78
Note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km shared with United States (2008)

Merchant marine
Total: 175
Rank: 38
By type: bulk carrier 60 cargo 13 carrier 1 chemical tanker 10 combination ore/oil 1 container 2 passenger 6 passenger/cargo 64 petroleum tanker 12 roll on/roll off 6
Foreign owned: 17 (Germany 3 Netherlands 1 Norway 3 US 10)
Registered in other countries: 206 (Australia 9 Bahamas 84 Barbados 9 Cambodia 2 Cyprus 2 Denmark 1 Honduras 1 Hong Kong 44 Liberia 7 Malta 1 Marshall Islands 6 Norway 10 Panama 18 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1 Spain 4 Taiwan 2 Vanuatu 5) (2008)

Ports and terminals: Fraser River Port Halifax Hamilton Montreal Port-Cartier Quebec City Saint John (New Brunswick) Sept-Isles Vancouver

Disputes international: managed maritime boundary disputes with the US at Dixon Entrance Beaufort Sea Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Gulf of Maine including the disputed Machias Seal Island and North Rock; Canada the US and other countries dispute the status of the Northwest Passage; US works closely with Canada to intensify security measures for monitoring and controlling legal and illegal movement of people transport and commodities across the international border; sovereignty dispute with Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland; commencing the collection of technical evidence for submission to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in support of claims for continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from its declared baselines in the Arctic as stipulated in Article 76 paragraph 8 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic drug market and export to US; use of hydroponics technology permits growers to plant large quantities of high-quality marijuana indoors; increasing ecstasy production some of which is destined for the US; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering be