ARGENTINA
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ARGENTINA
@Argentina:Geography
Location: Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean,
between Chile and Uruguay
Map references: South America
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ARGENTINA - MAJOR CITIES
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Latitude, Internat'l Time
Population Longitude Phone Code Zone
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BUENOS AIRES 2,923,000 34.40S, 58.30W 54-1 GMT-3
Cordoba 984,000 31.25S, 64.11W 54-51 GMT-3
Rosario 957,000 33.00S, 60.40W 54-41 GMT-3
Mendoza 606,000 32.48S, 68.52W 54-61 GMT-3
La Plata 565,000 34.52S, 57.55W 54-21 GMT-3
San Miguel de Tucum n 499,000 26.47S, 65.15W 54-81 GMT-3
Mar del Plata 415,000 38.00S, 57.30W 54-23 GMT-3
Santa Fe 292,000 31.35S, 60.41W 54-42 GMT-3
San Juan 292,000 31.33S, 68.31W 54-64 GMT-3
Salta 261,000 24.46S, 65.28W 54-87 GMT-3
Bahia Blanca 224,000 38.45S, 62.15W 54-91 GMT-3
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Area:
total area: 2,766,890 sq km
land area: 2,736,690 sq km
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 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 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 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: erosion results from inadequate flood controls and
improper land use practices; irrigated soil degradation;
desertification; air pollution in Buenos Aires and other major cites;
water pollution in urban areas; rivers becoming polluted due to
increased pesticide and fertilizer use
natural hazards: Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to
earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the
Pampas and northeast; heavy flooding
international agreements: party to - Antarctic-Environmental Protocol,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear
Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling;
signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine
Life Conservation
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)
@Argentina:People
Population: 34,292,742 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 28% (female 4,706,793; male 4,903,589)
15-64 years: 62% (female 10,680,074; male 10,689,728)
65 years and over: 10% (female 1,922,552; male 1,390,006) (July 1995
est.)
Population growth rate: 1.11% (1995 est.)
Birth rate: 19.51 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate: 8.62 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 28.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.51 years
male: 68.22 years
female: 74.97 years (1995 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.65 children born/woman (1995 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 est.)
total population: 95%
male: 96%
female: 95%
Labor force: 10.9 million
by occupation: agriculture 12%, industry 31%, services 57% (1985 est.)
@Argentina:Government
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, Antartida e Islas del Atlantico
Sur; Tucuman
note: the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica or
Argentina's claims to the Falkland Islands
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
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: President Carlos Saul MENEM
(since 8 July 1989); Vice President (position vacant); election last
held 14 May 1995 (next to be held NA May 1999); results - Carlos Saul
MENEM was reelected
cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the president
Legislative branch: bicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional)
Senate: elections last held May 1989, but provincial elections in late
1991 set the stage for indirect elections by provincial senators for
one-third of 48 seats in the national senate in May 1992; seats (48
total) - PJ 29, UCR 11, others 7, vacant 1
Chamber of Deputies: elections last held 3 October 1993 ( next to be
held October 1995); elections are held every two years and half of the
total membership is elected each time for four year terms; seats -
(257 total) PJ 122, UCR 83, MODIN 7, UCD 5, other 40
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Corte Suprema)
Political parties and leaders: Justicialist Party (PJ), Carlos Saul
MENEM, Peronist umbrella political organization; Radical Civic Union
(UCR),Raul ALFONSIN, moderately left-of-center party; Union of the
Democratic Center (UCD), Jorge AGUADO, conservative party; Dignity and
Independence Political Party (MODIN), Aldo RICO, right-wing party;
Grand Front (Frente Grande), Carlos ALVAREZ, center-left coalition;
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
Member of: AfDB, AG (observer), Australia Group, BCIE, CCC, ECLAC,
FAO, G- 6, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT,
INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, MERCOSUR, MINURSO,
MTCR, NSG (observer), OAS, ONUSAL, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNAVEM II,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIH, UNOMOZ,
UNPROFOR, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Raul Enrique GRANILLO OCAMPO
chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 939-6400 through 6403
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami,
New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador James R. CHEEK
embassy: 4300 Colombia, 1425 Buenos Aires
mailing address: Unit 4334; APO AA 34034
telephone: [54] (1) 777-4533, 4534
FAX: [54] (1) 777-0197
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
Economy
Overview: Argentina, rich in natural resources, benefits also from 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. The
economy registered an impressive 6% advance in 1994, fueled largely by
inflows of foreign capital and strong domestic consumption spending.
The government's major short term objective is encouraging exports,
e.g., by reducing domestic costs of production. At the start of 1995,
the government had to deal with the spillover from international
financial movements associated with the devaluation of the Mexican
peso. In addition, unemployment had become a serious issue for the
government. Despite average annual 7% growth in 1991-94, unemployment
surprisingly has doubled - due mostly to layoffs in government bureaus
and in privatized industrial firms and utilities and, to a lesser
degree, to illegal immigration. Much remains to be done in the 1990s
in dismantling the old statist barriers to growth, extending the
recent economic gains, and bringing down the rate of unemployment.
National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $270.8 billion (1994
est.)
National product real growth rate: 6% (1994 est.)
National product per capita: $7,990 (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.9% (1994 est.)
Unemployment rate: 12% (1994 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $48.46 billion
expenditures: $46.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.5
billion (1994 est.)
Exports: $15.7 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: meat, wheat, corn, oilseed, manufactures
partners: US 12%, Brazil, Italy, Japan, Netherlands
Imports: $21.4 billion (c.i.f., 1994 est.)
commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, fuels and
lubricants, agricultural products
partners: US 22%, Brazil, Germany, Bolivia, Japan, Italy, Netherlands
External debt: $73 billion (April 1994)
Industrial production: growth rate 12.5% accounts for 31% of GDP (1994
est.)
Electricity:
capacity: 17,330,000 kW
production: 54.8 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 1,610 kWh (1993)
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
Economic aid:
recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1 billion;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $4.4 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $718 million
Currency: 1 nuevo peso argentino = 100 centavos
Exchange rates: pesos per US$1 - 0.99870 (December 1994), 0.99901
(1994), 0.99895 (1993), 0.99064 (1992), 0.95355 (1991), 0.48759 (1990)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Argentina:Transportation
Railroads:
total: 34,572 km
broad gauge: NA km 1.676-m gauge
standard gauge: NA km 1.435-m
narrow gauge: 400 km 0.750-m gauge; NA km 1.000-m gauge (209 km
electrified)
Highways:
total: 208,350 km
paved: 57,000 km
unpaved: gravel 39,500 km; improved/unimproved earth 111,850 km
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, Concepcion del
Uruguay, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Necochea, Rio Gallegos, Rosario,
Santa Fe, Ushuaia
Merchant marine:
total: 44 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 434,525 GRT/667,501 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 21, chemical tanker 1, container 4, oil
tanker 8, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 5, roll-on/roll-off
cargo 1
Airports:
total: 1,602
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 5
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 25
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 55
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 48
with paved runways under 914 m: 703
with unpaved runways over 3,047 m: 2
with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 70
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 693
@Argentina:Communications
Telephone system: 2,650,000 telephones; 12,000 public telephones; 78
telephones/1,000 persons; extensive modern system but many families do
not have telephones; microwave widely used; however, during
rainstorms, the telephone system frequently grounds out, even in
Buenos Aires
local: NA
intercity: microwave radio relay and domestic satellite network with
40 earth stations
international: 2 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean) earth stations
Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 171, FM 0, shortwave 13
radios: NA
Television:
broadcast stations: 231
televisions: NA
@Argentina:Defense Forces
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 8,573,780; males fit for
military service 6,954,584; males reach military age (20) annually
301,166 (1995 est.)
Defense expenditures: $NA, NA% of GDP
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