Aminet 6/Aminet 6 - June 1995.iso/Aminet/docs/misc/wfbook93_texi.lha/texi/10.data

Text File | 1995-03-27 | 11.9 KB | 413 lines

@node Geography (Argentina)
@section Geography (Argentina)

@display

Location:
  Eastern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean between Chile and
  Uruguay
Map references:
  South America, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
 total area:
  2,766,890 km2
 land area:
  2,736,690 km2
 comparative area:
  slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US
Land boundaries:
  total 9,665 km, 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 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation
 exclusive economic zone:
  not specified
 territorial sea:
  200 nm; overflight and navigation permitted beyond 12 nm
International disputes:
  short section of the boundary with Uruguay is in dispute; short section of
  the boundary with Chile is indefinite; claims British-administered Falkland
  Islands (Islas Malvinas); claims British-administered South Georgia and the
  South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica
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
Natural resources:
  fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese,
  petroleum, uranium
Land use:
 arable land:
  9%
 permanent crops:
  4%
 meadows and pastures:
  52%
 forest and woodland:
  22%
 other:
  13%
Irrigated land:
  17,600 km2 (1989 est.)
Environment:
  Tucuman and Mendoza areas in Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are
  violent windstorms that can strike Pampas and northeast; irrigated soil
  degradation; desertification; air and water pollution in Buenos Aires



@end display

@node Geography (Argentina 2. usage)
@section Geography (Argentina 2. usage)

@display

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)



@end display

@node People (Argentina)
@section People (Argentina)

@display

Population:
  33,533,256 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
  1.13% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
  19.75 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
  8.64 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
  0.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
  30 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
 total population:
  71.19 years
 male:
  67.91 years
 female:
  74.65 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
  2.72 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality:
 noun:
  Argentine(s)
 adjective:
  Argentine
Ethnic divisions:
  white 85%, mestizo, Indian, or other nonwhite groups 15%
Religions:
  nominally Roman Catholic 90% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%,
  Jewish 2%, other 6%
Languages:
  Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French
Literacy:
  age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
 total population:
  95%
 male:
  96%
 female:
  95%
Labor force:
  10.9 million
 by occupation:
  agriculture 12%, industry 31%, services 57% (1985 est.)



@end display

@node Government (Argentina)
@section Government (Argentina)

@display

Names:
 conventional long form:
  Argentine Republic
 conventional short form:
  Argentina
 local long form:
  Republica Argentina
 local short form:
  Argentina
Digraph:
  AR
Type:
  republic
Capital:
  Buenos Aires
Administrative divisions:
  23 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia), and 1 federal district*,   (distrito federal);
Buenos Aires, Catamarca, Chaco, Chubut, Cordoba,
  Corrientes, Distrito Federal*, Entre Rios, Formosa, Jujuy, La Pampa, La,   Rioja, Mendoza,
Misiones, Neuquen, Rio Negro, Salta, San Juan, San Luis,
  Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santiago del Estero, Tierra del Fuego (Territorio
  Nacional de la Tierra del Fuego, Antartida e Islas del Atlantico Sur),
  Tucuman
 note:
  the national territory is in the process of becoming a province; the US does
  not recognize claims to Antarctica
Independence:   9 July 1816 (from Spain)
Constitution:
  1 May 1853
Legal system:
  mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory
  ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday:
  Revolution Day, 25 May (1810)
Political parties and leaders:
  Justicialist Party (JP), Carlos Saul MENEM, Peronist umbrella political
  organization; Radical Civic Union (UCR), Mario LOSADA, moderately
  left-of-center party; Union of the Democratic Center (UCD), Jorge AGUADO,
  conservative party; Intransigent Party (PI), Dr. Oscar ALENDE, leftist
  party; Dignity and Independence Political Party (MODIN), Aldo RICO,
  right-wing party; several provincial parties
Other political or pressure groups:
  Peronist-dominated labor movement; General Confederation of Labor (CGT;
  Peronist-leaning umbrella labor organization); Argentine Industrial Union
  (manufacturers' association); Argentine Rural Society (large landowners'
  association); business organizations; students; the Roman Catholic Church;
  the Armed Forces
Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal
Elections:
 Chamber of Deputies:
  last held in three phases during late 1991 for half of 254 seats; seats (254
  total) - JP 122, UCR 85, UCD 10, other 37 (1993)
 President:
  last held 14 May 1989 (next to be held NA May 1995); results - Carlos Saul
  MENEM was elected



@end display

@node Government (Argentina 2. usage)
@section Government (Argentina 2. usage)

@display

 Senate:
  last held May 1989, but provincial elections in late 1991 set the stage for
  indirect elections by provincial senators for one-third of 46 seats in the
  national senate in May 1992; seats (46 total) - JP 27, UCR 14, others 5
Executive branch:
  president, vice president, Cabinet
Legislative branch:
  bicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional) consists of an upper chamber
  or Senate (Senado) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara de
  Diputados)
Judicial branch:
  Supreme Court (Corte Suprema)
Leaders:
 Chief of State and Head of Government:
  President Carlos Saul MENEM (since 8 July 1989); Vice President (position
  vacant)
Member of:
  AG (observer), Australian Group, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-6, G-11, G-15, G-19,
  G-24, AfDB, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
  ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA,
  LORCS, MERCOSUR, MINURSO, OAS, PCA, RG, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
  UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNOMOZ, UNPROFOR, UNTAC, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO,
  WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
 chief of mission:
  Ambassador Carlos ORTIZ DE ROZAS
 chancery:
  1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
 telephone:
  [phone] through 6403
 consulates general:
  Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto
  Rico)
 consulates:
  Baltimore, Chicago, and Los Angeles
US diplomatic representation:
 chief of mission:
  Ambassador James CHEEK (since 28 May 1993)
 embassy:
  4300 Colombia, 1425 Buenos Aires
 mailing address:
  APO AA 34034
 telephone:
  [54] (1) 774-7611 or 8811, 9911
 FAX:
  [54] (1) 775-4205
Flag:
  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



@end display

@node Economy (Argentina)
@section Economy (Argentina)

@display

Overview:
  Argentina is rich in natural resources and has a highly literate population,
  an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base.
  Nevertheless, following decades of mismanagement and statist policies, the
  economy in the late 1980s was plagued with huge external debts and recurring
  bouts of hyperinflation. Elected in 1989, in the depths of recession,
  President MENEM has implemented a comprehensive economic restructuring
  program that shows signs of putting Argentina on a path of stable,
  sustainable growth. Argentina's currency has traded at par with the US
  dollar since April 1991, and inflation has fallen to its lowest level in 20
  years. Argentines have responded to the relative price stability by
  repatriating flight capital and investing in domestic industry. Much remains
  to be done in the 1990s in dismantling the old statist barriers to growth
  and in solidifying the recent economic gains.
National product:
  GDP - exchange rate conversion - $112 billion (1992 est.)
National product real growth rate:
  7% (1992 est.)
National product per capita:
  $3,400 (1992 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  17.7% (1992)
Unemployment rate:
  6.9% (1992)
Budget:
  revenues $33.1 billion; expenditures $35.8 billion, including capital
  expenditures of $3.5 billion (1992)
Exports:
  $12.3 billion (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
 commodities:
  meat, wheat, corn, oilseed, hides, wool
 partners:
  US 12%, Brazil, Italy, Japan, Netherlands
Imports:
  $14.0 billion (c.i.f., 1992 est.)
 commodities:
  machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, fuels and lubricants,
  agricultural products
 partners:
  US 22%, Brazil, Germany, Bolivia, Japan, Italy, Netherlands
External debt:
  $54 billion (June 1992)
Industrial production:
  growth rate 10% (1992 est.); accounts for 26% of GDP
Electricity:
  17,911,000 kW capacity; 51,305 million kWh produced, 1,559 kWh per capita
  (1992)
Industries:
  food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and
  petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel
Agriculture:
  accounts for 8% of GDP (including fishing); produces abundant food for both
  domestic consumption and exports; among world's top five exporters of grain
  and beef; principal crops - wheat, corn, sorghum, soybeans, sugar beets
Illicit drugs:
  increasing use as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for the US and
  Europe



@end display

@node Economy (Argentina 2. usage)
@section Economy (Argentina 2. usage)

@display

Economic aid:
  US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.0 billion; Western (non-US)
  countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $4.4 billion;
  Communist countries (1970-89), $718 million
Currency:
  1 peso = 100 centavos
Exchange rates:
  pesos per US$1 - 0.99000 (January1993), 0.99064 (1992), 0.95355 (1991),
  0.48759 (1990), 0.04233 (1989), 0.00088 (1988)
Fiscal year:
  calendar year



@end display

@node Communications (Argentina)
@section Communications (Argentina)

@display

Railroads:
  34,172 km total (includes 209 km electrified); includes a mixture of
  1.435-meter standard gauge, 1.676-meter broad gauge, 1.000-meter narrow
  gauge, and 0.750-meter narrow gauge
Highways:
  208,350 km total; 47,550 km paved, 39,500 km gravel, 101,000 km improved
  earth, 20,300 km unimproved earth
Inland waterways:
  11,000 km navigable
Pipelines:
  crude oil 4,090 km; petroleum products 2,900 km; natural gas 9,918 km
Ports:
  Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia, La Plata, Rosario, Santa Fe
Merchant marine:
  60 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,695,420 GRT/1,073,904 DWT; includes
  30 cargo, 5 refrigerated cargo, 4 container, 1 railcar carrier, 14 oil
  tanker, 1 chemical tanker, 4 bulk, 1 roll-on/roll-off
Airports:
 total:
  1,700
 usable:
  1,451
 with permanet-surface runways:
  137
 with runways over 3,659 m:
  1
 with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
  31
 with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
  326
Telecommunications:
  extensive modern system; 2,650,000 telephones (12,000 public telephones);
  microwave widely used; broadcast stations - 171 AM, no FM, 231 TV, 13
  shortwave; 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations; domestic satellite
  network has 40 earth stations



@end display

@node Defense Forces (Argentina)
@section Defense Forces (Argentina)

@display

Branches:
  Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic, Argentine Air Force,
  National Gendarmerie, Argentine Naval Prefecture (Coast Guard only),
  National Aeronautical Police Force
Manpower availability:
  males age 15-49 8,267,316; fit for military service 6,702,303; reach
  military age (20) annually 284,641 (1993 est.)
Defense expenditures:
  exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GDP



@end display