278 lines
22 KiB
Plaintext
278 lines
22 KiB
Plaintext
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ARGENTINA
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 2,766,890 km2; land area: 2,736,690 km2
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Comparative area: slightly more than four times the size of Texas
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Land boundaries: 9,665 km total; Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,224 km,
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Chile 5,150 km, Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 579 km
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Coastline: 4,989 km
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Maritime claims:
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Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation;
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Territorial sea: 200 nm (overflight and navigation permitted beyond
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12 nm)
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Disputes: short section of the boundary with Uruguay is in dispute;
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short section of the boundary with Chile is indefinite; claims
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British-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); claims
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British-administered South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands;
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territorial claim in Antarctica
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Climate: mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in
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southwest
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Terrain: rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to
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rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border
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Natural resources: fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc,
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tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, crude oil, uranium
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Land use: arable land 9%; permanent crops 4%; meadows and
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pastures 52%; forest and woodland 22%; other 13%; includes irrigated
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1%
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Environment: Tucuman and Mendoza areas in Andes subject to
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earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike Pampas and
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northeast; irrigated soil degradation; desertification; air and water
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pollution in Buenos Aires
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Note: second-largest country in South America (after Brazil);
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strategic location relative to sea lanes between South Atlantic and
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South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage)
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PEOPLE
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Population: 32,663,983 (July 1991), growth rate 1.1% (1991)
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Birth rate: 20 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 9 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: NEGL migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 31 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 68 years male, 74 years female (1991)
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Total fertility rate: 2.7 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Argentine(s); adjective--Argentine
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Ethnic divisions: white 85%; mestizo, Indian, or other nonwhite
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groups 15%
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Religion: nominally Roman Catholic 90% (less than 20% practicing),
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Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 6%
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Language: Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French
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Literacy: 95% (male 96%, female 95%) age 15 and over can
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read and write (1990 est.)
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Labor force: 10,900,000; agriculture 12%, industry 31%, services
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57% (1985 est.)
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Organized labor: 3,000,000; 28% of labor force
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: Argentine Republic
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Type: republic
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Capital: Buenos Aires (tentative plans to move to Viedma by
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1990 indefinitely postponed)
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Administrative divisions: 22 provinces (provincias,
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singular--provincia), 1 national territory* (territorio nacional), and 1
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district** (distrito); Buenos Aires, Catamarca, Chaco, Chubut, Cordoba,
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Corrientes, Distrito Federal**, Entre Rios, Formosa, Jujuy, La Pampa,
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La Rioja, Mendoza, Misiones, Neuquen, Rio Negro, Salta, San Juan, San
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Luis, Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santiago del Estero, Tierra del Fuego,
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Antartida e Islas del Atlantico Sur*, Tucuman; note--the national
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territory is in the process of becoming a province; the US does not
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recognize claims to Antarctica
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Independence: 9 July 1816 (from Spain)
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Constitution: 1 May 1853
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Legal system: mixture of US and West European legal systems; has
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not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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National holiday: Revolution Day, 25 May (1810)
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Executive branch: president, vice president, Cabinet
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Legislative branch: bicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional)
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consists of an upper chamber or Senate (Senado) and a lower chamber or
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Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados)
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Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Corte Suprema)
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Leaders:
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Chief of State and Head of Government--President Carlos Saul
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MENEM (since 8 July 1989); Vice President Eduardo DUHALDE (since 8 July
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1989)
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Political parties and leaders:
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Justicialist Party (JP), Carlos Saul MENEM, Peronist umbrella political
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organization;
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Radical Civic Union (UCR), Raul ALFONSIN, moderately left of center;
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Union of the Democratic Center (UCD), Alvaro ALSOGARAY, conservative
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party;
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Intransigent Party (PI), Dr. Oscar ALENDE, leftist party;
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several provincial parties
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Suffrage: universal at age 18
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Elections:
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President--last held 14 May 1989 (next to be held May 1995);
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results--Carlos Saul MENEM was elected;
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Chamber of Deputies--last held 14 May 1989 (next to be
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held October 1991); results--JP 47%, UCR 30%, UCD 7%, other 16%;
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seats--(254 total); JP 122, UCR 93, UCD 11, other 28
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Communists: some 70,000 members in various party organizations,
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including a small nucleus of activists
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Other political or pressure groups: Peronist-dominated labor
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movement, General Confederation of Labor (Peronist-leaning umbrella labor
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organization), Argentine Industrial Union (manufacturers' association),
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Argentine Rural Society (large landowners' association), business
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organizations, students, the Roman Catholic Church, the Armed Forces
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Member of: AfDB, AG (observer), CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-6, G-11,
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G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD,
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IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
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LAES, LAIA, LORCS, NAM, OAS, PCA, RG, UN, UNAVEM, UNCTAD,
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UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIIMOG, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
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WTO
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Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Ortiz de ROZAS;
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Chancery at 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone
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(202) 939-6400 through 6403; there are Argentine Consulates General in
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Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan
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(Puerto Rico), and Consulates in Baltimore, Chicago, and Los Angeles;
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US--Ambassador Terence A. TODMAN; Embassy at 4300 Colombia,
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1425 Buenos Aires (mailing address is APO Miami 34034);
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telephone 54 (1) 774-7611 or 8811, 9911
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Flag: three equal horizontal bands of light blue (top), white, and
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light blue; centered in the white band is a radiant yellow sun with a
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human face known as the Sun of May
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ECONOMY
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Overview: Argentina is rich in natural resources and has a highly
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literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a
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diversified industrial base. Nevertheless, following decades of
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mismanagement and statist policies, the economy has encountered
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major problems in recent years, leading to escalating inflation and
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a recession in 1988-90. A widening public-sector deficit and a
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multidigit inflation rate have dominated the economy over the past
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three years; retail prices rose nearly 5,000% in 1989 and another
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1,345% in 1990. Since 1978, Argentina's external debt has nearly doubled
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to $60 billion, creating severe debt-servicing difficulties and hurting
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the country's creditworthiness with international lenders.
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GNP: $82.7 billion, per capita $2,560; real growth rate - 3.5%
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(1990 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1,350% (1990)
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Unemployment rate: 8.6% (May 1990)
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Budget: revenues $12.2 billion; expenditures $17.3 billion,
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including capital expenditures of $2.8 billion (1989)
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Exports: $12.4 billion (f.o.b., 1990);
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commodities--meat, wheat, corn, oilseed, hides, wool;
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partners--US 12%, USSR, Italy, Brazil, Japan, Netherlands
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Imports: $4.1 billion (c.i.f., 1990);
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commodities--machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, fuels and
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lubricants, agricultural products;
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partners--US 22%, Brazil, FRG, Bolivia, Japan, Italy, Netherlands
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External debt: $60 billion (December 1990)
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Industrial production: growth rate 5% (1991 est.); accounts for
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30% of GDP
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Electricity: 16,749,000 kW capacity; 45,580 million kWh produced,
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1,410 kWh per capita (1990)
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Industries: food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables,
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textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel
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Agriculture: accounts for 15% of GNP (including fishing); produces
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abundant food for both domestic consumption and exports; among world's
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top five exporters of grain and beef; principal crops--wheat, corn,
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sorghum, soybeans, sugar beets; 1987 fish catch estimated at 500,000 tons
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Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.0
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billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
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(1970-88), $4.0 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $718 million
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Currency: austral (plural--australes); 1 austral (A) = 100
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centavos
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Exchange rates: australes (A) per US$1--9,900 (April 1991),
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4,707 (1990), 423 (1989), 8.7526 (1988), 2.1443 (1987), 0.9430 (1986),
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0.6018 (1985)
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Fiscal year: calendar year
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Railroads: 34,172 km total (includes 169 km electrified); includes
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a mixture of 1.435-meter standard gauge, 1.676-meter broad gauge,
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1.000-meter gauge, and 0.750-meter gauge
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Highways: 208,350 km total; 47,550 km paved, 39,500 km gravel,
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101,000 km improved earth, 20,300 km unimproved earth
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Inland waterways: 11,000 km navigable
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Pipelines: 4,090 km crude oil; 2,900 km refined products; 9,918 km
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natural gas
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Ports: Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Necochea, Rio Gallegos, Rosario,
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Santa Fe
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Merchant marine: 129 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,663,884
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GRT/2,689,645 DWT; includes 42 cargo, 7 refrigerated cargo, 6 container,
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1 railcar carrier, 47 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker,
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4 chemical tanker, 4 liquefied gas, 18 bulk; additionally, 2 naval
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tankers and 1 military transport are sometimes used commercially
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Civil air: 54 major transport aircraft
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Airports: 1,763 total, 1,575 usable; 135 with permanent-surface
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runways; 1 with runways over 3,659 m; 31 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 336
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with runways 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: extensive modern system; 2,650,000 telephones
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(12,000 public telephones); radio relay widely used; stations--171 AM,
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no FM, 231 TV, 13 shortwave; 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations;
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domestic satellite network has 40 stations
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic, Argentine
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Air Force, National Gendarmerie, Argentine Naval Prefecture (Coast Guard
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only), National Aeronautical Police Force
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Manpower availability: males 15-49, 7,992,140; 6,478,730 fit for
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military service; 285,047 reach military age (20) annually
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Defense expenditures: $700 million, 1% of GNP (1990)
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