Background: The Maya civilization flourished in Guatemala and surrounding regions during the first millennium A.D. After almost three centuries as a Spanish colony Guatemala won its independence in 1821. During the second half of the 20th century it experienced a variety of military and civilian governments as well as a 36-year guerrilla war. In 1996 the government signed a peace agreement formally ending the internal conflict which had left more than 200,000 people dead and had created by some estimates about 1 million refugees.

Geographic coordinates: 15 30 N 90 15 W

Map reference: Central America and the Caribbean

Area
Total: 108,889 km²
Land: 107,159 km²
Water: 1730 km²
Rank: 107
Comparative: slightly smaller than Pennsylvania

Land boundaries
Total: 1667 km
Border countries: (4) Belize 266 km; El Salvador 199 km; Honduras 244 km; Mexico 958 km

Coastline: 400 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate: tropical; hot humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands

Terrain: mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling limestone plateau

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Volcan Tajumulco 4,211 m
Extremes note: highest point in Central America

Natural resources: petroleum nickel rare woods fish chicle hydropower

Land use
Agricultural land: 41.2%
Forest: 33.6%
Other: 25.2%

Irrigated land: 3,121 km² (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 111.3 km³ (2011)

Natural hazards: numerous volcanoes in mountains with occasional violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast extremely susceptible to hurricanes and other tropical storms
Volcanism: significant volcanic activity in the Sierra Madre range; Santa Maria has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; Pacaya (elev. 2,552 m) which erupted in May 2010 causing an ashfall on Guatemala City and prompting evacuations is one of the country's most active volcanoes with frequent eruptions since 1965; other historically active volcanoes include Acatenango Almolonga Atitlan Fuego and Tacana

Geography
Note: no natural harbors on west coast

Population: 14,918,999 (July 2015 est.)
Rank: 70
Growth rate: 1.82% (2015 est.)
Growth rate rank: 63
Below poverty line: 54% (2011 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Guatemalan
Adjective: Guatemalan

Ethnic groups: Mestizo (mixed Amerindian-Spanish - in local Spanish called Ladino) and European 59.4% K'iche 9.1% Kaqchikel 8.4% Mam 7.9% Q'eqchi 6.3% other Mayan 8.6% indigenous non-Mayan 0.2% other 0.1% (2001 census)

Languages: Spanish (official) 60% Amerindian languages 40%
Note: there are 23 officially recognized Amerindian languages including Quiche Cakchiquel Kekchi Mam Garifuna and Xinca

Religions: Roman Catholic Protestant indigenous Mayan beliefs

Demographic profile:

Age structure
0-14 years: 35.57%
15-24 years: 21.99%
25-54 years: 32.93%
55-64 years: 5.2%
65 years and over: 4.31% (2015 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 70.9%
Youth dependency ratio: 62.6%
Elderly dependency ratio: 8.3%
Potential support ratio: 12.1%

Median age
Total: 21.4 years
Male: 20.7 years
Female: 22 years

Population growth rate: 1.82% (2015 est.)
Rank: 63

Birth rate: 24.89 births/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 53

Death rate: 4.77 deaths/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 196

Net migration rate: -1.97 migrant(s)/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 165

Urbanization
Urban population: 51.6% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 3.4% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: GUATEMALA CITY (capital) 2.918 million (2015)

Environment
Current issues: deforestation in the Peten rainforest; soil erosion; water pollution
International agreements party to: 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 Wetlands Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
0-14 years: 1.04 male/female
15-24 years: 1.01 male/female
25-54 years: 0.91 male/female
55-64 years: 0.91 male/female
65 years and over: 0.87 male/female
Total population: 0.97 male/female

Infant mortality rate
Total: 22.73 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 24.73 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 20.62 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 77

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 72.02 years
Male: 70.07 years
Female: 74.06 years
Rank: 145

Total fertility rate: 2.9 children born/woman (2015 est.)
Rank: 57

Drinking water source:

Physicians density: 0.93 physicians/1000 population (2009)

Hospital bed density: 0.6 beds/1000 population (2011)

Sanitation facility access:

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.54% (2014 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 64
People living with hivaids: 49,100 (2014 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 56
Deaths: 1700 (2014 est.)
Deaths rank: 58

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea hepatitis A and typhoid fever
Vectorborne disease: dengue fever and malaria

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 16.4% (2014)
Rank: 100

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 13% (2009)
Rank: 57

Education expenditures: 2.8% of GDP (2013)
Rank: 139

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 81.5%
Male: 87.4%
Female: 76.3%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 11 years
Male: 11 years
Female: 10 years

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Guatemala
Conventional short form: Guatemala
Local long form: Republica de Guatemala
Local short form: Guatemala

Government type: constitutional democratic republic

Capital
Name: Guatemala City
Geographic coordinates: 14 37 N 90 31 W
Time difference: UTC-6

Administrative divisions: 22 departments (departamentos singular - departamento); Alta Verapaz Baja Verapaz Chimaltenango Chiquimula El Progreso Escuintla Guatemala Huehuetenango Izabal Jalapa Jutiapa Peten Quetzaltenango Quiche Retalhuleu Sacatepequez San Marcos Santa Rosa Solola Suchitepequez Totonicapan Zacapa

Independence: 15 September 1821 (from Spain)

National holiday: Independence Day 15 September (1821)

Constitution: several previous; latest adopted 31 May 1985 effective 14 January 1986; suspended reinstated and amended in 1993 (2013)

Legal system: civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal; note - active duty members of the armed forces and police by law cannot vote and are restricted to their barracks on election day

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Alejandro Maldonado AGUIRRE ; Vice President (vacant) (since 14 May 2015); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; President Otto Fernando PEREZ MOLINA resigned 2 September 2015 and Vice President Ingrid Roxana BALDETTI Elias resigned 8 May 2015
Head of government: President Alejandro Maldonado AGUIRRE ; Vice President (vacant); President Otto Fernando PEREZ MOLINA resigned 2 September 2015 and Vice President Ingrid Roxana BALDETTI Elias resigned 8 May 2015
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
Electionsappointments: president and vice president directly elected on the same ballot by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 4-year term ; election last held in 2 rounds on 11 September and 6 November 2011 (next to be held in September 2015)
Election results: Otto Fernando PEREZ MOLINA elected president; percent of vote in second round - Otto Fernando PEREZ MOLINA 53.7% Manuel BALDIZON (LIDER) 46.3%

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Congress of the Republic or Congreso de la Republica
Elections: last held on 11 September 2011
Election results: percent of vote by party - PP 26.62% UNE-GANA 22.67% UNC 9.50% LIDER 8.87% CREO 8.67% VIVA-EG 7.87% Winaq-URNG-ANN 3.23% PAN 3.12% FRG 2.74% PU 2.70% other 3.59%; seats by party - PP 57 UNE-GANA 48 LIDER 14 UCN 14 CREO 12 VIVA-EG 6 PAN 2 Winaq-URNG-ANN 2 FRG 1 PU 1 Victoria 1; note - changes in party affiliation now reflect the following seat distribution: as of 1 May 2015 - LIDER 62 PP 37 UNE 23 TODOS 10 CREO 8 EG 3 PRI 2 PU 1 UCN 1 URNG 1 Victoria 1 VIVA 1 Winaq 1 independents 7

Judicial branch
Highest court: Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia ; note - the court president also supervises trial judges countrywide; Constitutional Court or Corte de Constitucionalidad (consists of 5 judges and 5 alternates)
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court magistrates elected by the Congress of the Republic from candidates proposed by the Postulation Committee an independent body of deans of the country's university law schools representatives of the country's law associations and representatives of the Courts of Appeal; magistrates elected for concurrent renewable 5-year terms; Constitutional Court judges - 1 elected by the Congress of the Republic 1 by the Supreme Court 1 by the president of the republic 1 by the University of San Carlos and 1 by the lawyers bar association; judges elected for concurrent renewable 5-year terms; the presidency of the court rotates among the magistrates for a single 1-year term
Subordinate courts: numerous first instance and appellate courts

Political parties and leaders: Winaq [Rigoberta MENCHU]

International organization participation: BCIE CACM CD CELAC EITI (compliant country) FAO G-24 G-77 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC (national committees) ICCt (signatory) ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO (correspondent) ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) LAES LAIA (observer) MIGA MINUSTAH MONUSCO NAM OAS OPANAL OPCW Pacific Alliance (observer) PCA Petrocaribe SICA UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UNIFIL Union Latina UNISFA UNITAR UNMISS UNOCI UNWTO UPU WCO WFTU (NGOs) WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Jose Julio Alejandro LIGORRIA Carballido
In the us chancery: 2,220 R Street NW Washington DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] 745-4,952
In the us FAX: [1] 745-1908
In the us consulate general: Atlanta Chicago Denver Houston Los Angeles McAllen Miami New York Phoenix Providence (RI) San Francisco Silver Spring (MD) Tucson (AZ)
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Todd D. ROBINSON
From the us embassy: 7-01 Avenida Reforma Zone 10 Guatemala City
From the us mailing address: DPO AA 34,024
From the us telephone: [502] 2,326-4,000
From the us FAX: [502] 2,326-4,654

Flag description: three equal vertical bands of light blue (hoist side) white and light blue with the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms includes a green and red quetzal (the national bird) representing liberty and a scroll bearing the inscription LIBERTAD 15 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 1821 (the original date of independence from Spain) all superimposed on a pair of crossed rifles signifying Guatemala's willingness to defend itself and a pair of crossed swords representing honor and framed by a laurel wreath symbolizing victory; the blue bands represent the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea; the white band denotes peace and purity

National symbols: quetzal (bird); national colors: blue white

National anthem
Name: 'Himno Nacional de Guatemala'
Lyrics and music: Jose Joaquin PALMA/Rafael Alvarez OVALLE
Note: adopted 1897 modified lyrics adopted 1934; Cuban poet Jose Joaquin PALMA anonymously submitted lyrics to a public contest calling for a national anthem; his authorship was not discovered until 1911

Economy overview: Guatemala is the most populous country in Central America with a GDP per capita roughly one-half that of the average for Latin America and the Caribbean. The agricultural sector accounts for 13.7% of GDP and 32% of the labor force; key agricultural exports include sugar coffee bananas and vegetables. The 1996 peace accords which ended 36 years of civil war removed a major obstacle to foreign investment and since then Guatemala has pursued important reforms and macroeconomic stabilization. The Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) entered into force in July 2006 spurring increased investment and diversification of exports with the largest increases in ethanol and non-traditional agricultural exports. While CAFTA-DR has helped improve the investment climate concerns over security the lack of skilled workers and poor infrastructure continue to hamper foreign direct investment. The distribution of income remains highly unequal with the richest 20% of the population accounting for more than 51% of Guatemala's overall consumption. More than half of the population is below the national poverty line and 13% of the population lives in extreme poverty. Poverty among indigenous groups which make up more than 40% of the population averages 73% with 22% of the indigenous population living in extreme poverty. Nearly one-half of Guatemala's children under age five are chronically malnourished one of the highest malnutrition rates in the world. Guatemala is the top remittance recipient in Central America as a result of Guatemala's large expatriate community in the United States. These inflows are a primary source of foreign income equivalent to one-half of the country's exports or one-tenth of its GDP. In November 2014 along with his counterparts from El Salvador and Honduras President PEREZ MOLINA announced the “Plan of the Alliance for Prosperity in the Northern Triangle.” This plan seeks to address the challenges facing the three Northern Triangle countries including steps the governments will take to stimulate economic growth increase transparency and fiscal responsibility reduce violence modernize the justice system improve infrastructure and promote educational opportunities over the next several years.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 79

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 93

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 151

Gross national saving:
Rank: 135

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 85.8%
Government consumption: 10.6%
Investment in fixed capital: 14.3%
Investment in inventories: 0.6%
Exports of goods and services: 23.6%
Imports of goods and services: -34.9%: (2014 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 13.3%
Industry: 23.5%
Services: 63.2%

Agriculture products: sugarcane corn bananas coffee beans cardamom; cattle sheep pigs chickens

Industries: sugar textiles and clothing furniture chemicals petroleum metals rubber tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 3% (2014 est.)
Rank: 100

Labor force: 4.576 million (2014 est.)
Rank: 88
By occupation agriculture: 38%
By occupation industry: 14%
By occupation services: 48%

Unemployment rate:
Rank: 35

Population below poverty line: 54% (2011 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 1.3%
Highest 10: 42.4%

Distribution of family income gini index:
Rank: 10

Budget
Revenues: $6.785 billion
Expenditures: $8.137 billion
Surplus or deficit: -2.3% of GDP (2014 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 91

Taxes and other revenues: 11.6% of GDP (2014 est.)
Rank: 203

Public debt:
Rank: 128

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 145

Central bank discount rate: 6.5% (31 December 2010)
Rank: 53

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
Rank: 53

Stock of narrow money:
Rank: 82

Stock of broad money:
Rank: 84

Stock of domestic credit:
Rank: 79

Market value of publicly traded shares: $N/A

Current account balance:
Rank: 138

Exports:
Rank: 94
Commodities: sugar coffee petroleum apparel bananas fruits and vegetables cardamom manufacturing products precious stones and metals electricity
Partners: US 36.1% El Salvador 11.8% Honduras 8.3% Nicaragua 4.8% Mexico 4.1% (2014)

Imports:
Rank: 81
Commodities: fuels machinery and transport equipment construction materials grain fertilizers electricity mineral products chemical products plastic materials and products
Partners: US 40.3% Mexico 10.7% China 9.8% El Salvador 4.6% (2014)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 82

Debt external:
Rank: 93

Exchange rates:

Electricity
Production: 8.361 billion kWh (2011 est.)
Production rank: 99
Consumption: 8.143 billion kWh (2011 est.)
Consumption rank: 96
Exports: 346 million kWh (2012 est.)
Exports rank: 73
Imports: 372 million kWh (2012 est.)
Imports rank: 84
Installed generating capacity: 2.813 million kW (2011 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 95
Generation sources fossil fuels: 55.8% of total installed capacity (2011 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 142
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2011 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 101
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 31.7% of total installed capacity (2011 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 72
Generation sources other renewable sources: 12.5% of total installed capacity (2011 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 25

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 13,990 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 81
Crude oil exports: 10,960 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 58
Crude oil imports: 0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 195
Crude oil proven reserves: 83.07 million bbl (1 January 2014 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 73

Refined petroleum
Products production: 1253 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Products production rank: 110
Products consumption: 80,330 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products consumption rank: 85
Products exports: 4,911 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Products exports rank: 91
Products imports: 71,390 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Products imports rank: 60

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Production rank: 140
Consumption: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Consumption rank: 151
Exports: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Exports rank: 109
Imports: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Imports rank: 202
Proven reserves: 2.96 billion m³ (1 January 2006 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 95

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 13.07 million Mt (2012 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 95

Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 1.72 million
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 12
Fixed lines rank: 65
Mobile cellular total: 16.9 million
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 115
Mobile cellular rank: 63

Telephone system
General assessment: fairly modern network centered in the city of Guatemala
Domestic: state-owned telecommunications company privatized in the late 1990s opening the way for competition; fixed-line teledensity roughly 10 per 100 persons; fixed-line investments are being concentrated on improving rural connectivity; mobile-cellular teledensity approaching 140 per 100 persons
International: country code - 502; landing point for both the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System and the SAM-1 fiber optic submarine cable system that together provide connectivity to South and Central America parts of the Caribbean and the US; connected to Central American Microwave System; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2013)

Broadcast media: 4 privately owned national terrestrial TV channels dominate TV broadcasting; multi-channel satellite and cable services are available; 1 government-owned radio station and hundreds of privately owned radio stations (2007)

Internet
Country code: .gt
Users total: 2.5 million
Users percent of population: 17.1%
Users rank: 90

Military expenditures:
Rank: 129

Military service age and obligation: all male citizens between the ages of 18 and 50 are eligible for military service; in practice most of the force is volunteer however a selective draft system is employed resulting in a small portion of 17-21 year-olds conscripted; conscript service obligation varies from 1 to 2 years; women can serve as officers (2013)

Airports: 291 (2013)
Rank: 23
With paved runways total: 16
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 4
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 6
With paved runways under 914 m: 4
With unpaved runways total: 275
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 77
With unpaved runways: 195 (2013)

Heliports: 1 (2013)

Pipelines: oil 480 km (2013)

Railways
Total: 800 km
Narrow gauge: 800 km 0.914-m gauge
Rank: 119

Roadways
Total: 11,501 km
Paved: 6,797 km
Unpaved: 4,704 km
Rank: 130

Waterways: 990 km (260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during high-water season) (2012)
Rank: 65

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Puerto Quetzal Santo Tomas de Castilla

Disputes international: annual ministerial meetings under the Organization of American States-initiated Agreement on the Framework for Negotiations and Confidence Building Measures continue to address Guatemalan land and maritime claims in Belize and the Caribbean Sea; Guatemala persists in its territorial claim to half of Belize but agrees to Line of Adjacency to keep Guatemalan squatters out of Belize's forested interior; both countries agreed in April 2012 to hold simultaneous referenda scheduled for 6 October 2013 to decide whether to refer the dispute to the ICJ for binding resolution but this vote was suspended indefinitely; Mexico must deal with thousands of impoverished Guatemalans and other Central Americans who cross the porous border looking for work in Mexico and the United States

Refugees and internally displaced persons
IDPs: at least 248,500 (2014) (2011)

Illicit drugs: major transit country for cocaine and heroin; in 2005 cultivated 100 hectares of opium poppy after reemerging as a potential source of opium in 2004; potential production of less than 1 metric ton of pure heroin; marijuana cultivation for mostly domestic consumption; proximity to Mexico makes Guatemala a major staging area for drugs (particularly for cocaine); money laundering is a serious problem; corruption is a major problem