2008 Edition

Background

In 1816, the United Provinces of the Rio Plata declared their independence from Spain. After Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay went their separate ways, the area that remained became Argentina. The country's population and culture were heavily shaped by immigrants from throughout Europe, but most particularly Italy and Spain, which provided the largest percentage of newcomers from 1860 to 1930. Up until about the mid-20th century, much of Argentina's history was dominated by periods of internal political conflict between Federalists and Unitarians and between civilian and military factions. After World War II, an era of Peronist authoritarian rule and interference in subsequent governments was followed by a military junta that took power in 1976. Democracy returned in 1983, and has persisted despite numerous challenges, the most formidable of which was a severe economic crisis in 2001-02 that led to violent public protests and the resignation of several interim presidents. The economy has recovered strongly since bottoming out in 2002.

Area

total: 2,766,890 sq km land: 2,736,690 sq km water: 30,200 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US

Climate

mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest

Coastline

4,989 km

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Laguna del Carbon -105 m (located between Puerto San Julian and Comandante Luis Piedra Buena in the province of Santa Cruz) highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m (located in the northwestern corner of the province of Mendoza)

Environment - current issues

environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as deforestation, soil degradation, desertification, air pollution, and water pollution note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets

Environment - international agreements

party to: 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, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)

total: 29.19 cu km/yr (17%/9%/74%) per capita: 753 cu m/yr (2000)

Geographic coordinates

34 00 S, 64 00 W

Geography - note

second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); diverse geophysical landscapes range from tropical climates in the north to tundra in the far south; Cerro Aconcagua is the Western Hemisphere's tallest mountain, while Laguna del Carbon is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere

Irrigated land

15,500 sq km (2003)

Land boundaries

total: 9,861 km border countries: Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,261 km, Chile 5,308 km, Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 580 km

Land use

arable land: 10.03% permanent crops: 0.36% other: 89.61% (2005)

Location

Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay

Map references

South America

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

Natural hazards

San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the pampas and northeast; heavy flooding

Natural resources

fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium

Terrain

rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border

Total renewable water resources

814 cu km (2000)

Age structure

0-14 years: 25.8% (male 5,341,642/female 5,095,325) 15-64 years: 63.5% (male 12,807,458/female 12,884,745) 65 years and over: 10.8% (male 1,784,652/female 2,568,176) (2008 est.)

Birth rate

18.11 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate

7.43 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Education expenditures

3.8% of GDP (2004)

Ethnic groups

white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry), Amerindian, or other non-white groups 3%

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.7% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

1,500 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

130,000 (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 11.78 deaths/1,000 live births male: 13.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)

Languages

Spanish (official), Italian, English, German, French

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 76.36 years male: 73.11 years female: 79.77 years (2008 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.2% male: 97.2% female: 97.2% (2001 census)

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: intermediate food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A water contact disease: leptospirosis (2008)

Median age

total: 29.7 years male: 28.8 years female: 30.8 years (2008 est.)

Nationality

noun: Argentine(s) adjective: Argentine

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Population

40.482 million (July 2008 est.)

Population growth rate

1.068% (2008 est.)

Religions

nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 15 years male: 14 years female: 16 years (2005)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2008 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.37 children born/woman (2008 est.)

Administrative divisions

23 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 autonomous city* (distrito federal); Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Capital Federal*, Catamarca, Chaco, Chubut, Cordoba, Corrientes, 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

Capital

name: Buenos Aires geographic coordinates: 34 36 S, 58 40 W time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in October; ends third Saturday in March; note - a new policy of daylight saving time was initiated by the government on 30 December 2007

Constitution

1 May 1853; amended many times starting in 1860

Country name

conventional long form: Argentine Republic conventional short form: Argentina local long form: Republica Argentina local short form: Argentina

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Earl Anthony WAYNE embassy: Avenida Colombia 4300, C1425GMN Buenos Aires mailing address: international mail: use embassy street address; APO address: US Embassy Buenos Aires, Unit 4334, APO AA 34034 telephone: [54] (11) 5777-4533

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Hector Marcos TIMERMAN chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 238-6400

Executive branch

chief of state: President Cristina FERNANDEZ DE KIRCHNER (since 10 December 2007); Vice President Julio COBOS (since 10 December 2007); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of

FAX

[1] (202) 332-3171 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York

[54] (11) 5777-4240

Flag description

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

Government type

republic

Independence

9 July 1816 (from Spain)

International organization participation

AfDB (nonregional members), Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CAN (associate), FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina (observer), UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Judicial branch

Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (the nine Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president with approval of the Senate) note: the Supreme Court currently has two unfilled vacancies, and the Argentine Congress is considering a bill to reduce the number of Supreme Court judges to five

Legal system

mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate (72 seats; members are elected by direct vote; presently one-third of the members elected every two years to serve six-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies (257 seats; members are elected by direct vote; one-half of the members elected every two years to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 28 October 2007 (next to be held in 2009); Chamber of Deputies - last held last held 28 October 2007 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA; seats by bloc or party - FV 12, UCR 4, CC 4, other 4; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA; seats by bloc or party - FV 5, UCR 10, PJ 10, PRO 6, CC 16, FJ 2, other 31; note - Senate and Chamber of Deputies seating reflect the number of replaced senators and deputies, rather than the whole Senate and Chamber of Deputies

National holiday

Revolution Day, 25 May (1810)

Political parties and leaders

Coalicion Civica (a broad coalition loosely affiliated with Elisa CARRIO); Front for Victory or FV (a broad coalition, including elements of the UCR and numerous provincial parties) [Cristina FERNANDEZ DE KIRCHNER]; Interbloque Federal or IF (a broad coalition of approximately 12 parties including PRO); Justicialist Front or FJ; Justicialist Party or PJ (Peronist umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Gerardo MORALES]; Republican Proposal or PRO (including Federal Recreate Movement or RECREAR [Ricardo LOPEZ MURPHY] and Commitment for Change or CPC [Mauricio MACRI]); Socialist Party or PS [Ruben GIUSTINIANI]; Union For All [Patricia BULLRICH]; several provincial parties

Political pressure groups and leaders

Argentine Association of Pharmaceutical Labs (CILFA); Argentine Industrial Union (manufacturers' association); Argentine Rural Confederation or CRA (small to medium landowners' association); Argentine Rural Society (large landowners' association); Central of Argentine Workers or CTA (a radical union for employed and unemployed workers); General Confederation of Labor or CGT (Peronist-leaning umbrella labor organization); Roman Catholic Church other: business organizations; Peronist-dominated labor movement; Piquetero groups (popular protest organizations that can be either pro or anti-government); students

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Agriculture - products

sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock

Budget

revenues: $48.99 billion expenditures: $61.23 billion (2007 est.)

Central bank discount rate

NA

Commercial bank prime lending rate

11.05% (31 December 2007)

Currency (code)

Argentine peso (ARS)

Currency code

ARS

Current account balance

$7.438 billion (2007 est.)

Debt - external

$135.8 billion (31 December 2007)

Distribution of family income - Gini index

49 (2006)

Economic aid - recipient

$99.66 million (2005)

Economy - overview

Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. Although one of the world's wealthiest countries 100 years ago, Argentina suffered during most of the 20th century from recurring economic crises, persistent fiscal and current account deficits, high inflation, mounting external debt, and capital flight. A severe depression, growing public and external indebtedness, and a bank run culminated in 2001 in the most serious economic, social, and political crisis in the country's turbulent history. Interim President Adolfo RODRIGUEZ SAA declared a default - the largest in history - on the government's foreign debt in December of that year, and abruptly resigned only a few days after taking office. His successor, Eduardo DUHALDE, announced an end to the peso's decade-long 1-to-1 peg to the US dollar in early 2002. The economy bottomed out that year, with real GDP 18% smaller than in 1998 and almost 60% of Argentines under the poverty line. Real GDP rebounded to grow by an average 9% annually over the subsequent five years, taking advantage of previously idled industrial capacity and labor, an audacious debt restructuring and reduced debt burden, excellent international financial conditions, and expansionary monetary and fiscal policies. Inflation, however, reached double-digit levels in 2006 and the government of President Nestor KIRCHNER responded with "voluntary" price agreements with businesses, as well as export taxes and restraints. Multi-year price freezes on electricity and natural gas rates for residential users stoked consumption and kept private investment away, leading to restrictions on industrial use and blackouts in 2007.

Electricity - consumption

97.72 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity - exports

2.628 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - imports

10.27 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - production

109.4 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel: 52.2% hydro: 40.8% nuclear: 6.7% other: 0.2% (2001)

Exchange rates

Argentine pesos (ARS) per US dollar - 3.1105 (2007), 3.0543 (2006), 2.9037 (2005), 2.9233 (2004), 2.9006 (2003)

Exports

$55.78 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities

soybeans and derivatives, petroleum and gas, vehicles, corn, wheat

Exports - partners

Brazil 19.1%, China 9.4%, US 7.9%, Chile 7.6% (2007)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 9.5% industry: 34% services: 56.5% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$13,100 (2007 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

8.7% (2007 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate)

$260 billion (2007 est.)

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$526.4 billion (2007 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 1% highest 10%: 35% (January-March 2007)

Imports

$42.53 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Imports - commodities

machinery, motor vehicles, petroleum and natural gas, organic chemicals, plastics

Imports - partners

Brazil 34.6%, US 12.6%, China 12%, Germany 5% (2007)

Industrial production growth rate

7.5% (2007 est.)

Industries

food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

8.8% official rate; actual rate may be double the official rate (2007 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

24.2% of GDP (2007 est.)

Labor force

16.03 million note: urban areas only (2007 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture: 1% industry: 23% services: 76% (2007 est.)

Market value of publicly traded shares

$79.73 billion (2006)

Natural gas - consumption

44.1 billion cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - exports

2.6 billion cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - imports

1.9 billion cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - production

44.8 billion cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

446 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)

Oil - consumption

525,100 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - exports

339,900 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - imports

23,380 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - production

790,800 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - proved reserves

2.587 billion bbl (1 January 2008 est.)

Population below poverty line

23.4% (January-June 2007)

Public debt

56.1% of GDP (2007 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$46.12 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad

$26.26 billion (2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home

$65.31 billion (2007 est.)

Stock of domestic credit

$72.55 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of money

$33.93 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of quasi money

$45.92 billion (31 December 2007)

Unemployment rate

8.5% (2007 est.)

Internet country code

.ar

Internet hosts

3.813 million (2008)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

33 (2000)

Internet users

9.309 million (2007)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 260 (includes 10 inactive stations), FM (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998)

Radios

24.3 million (1997)

Telephone system

general assessment: by opening the telecommunications market to competition and foreign investment with the "Telecommunications Liberalization Plan of 1998," Argentina encouraged the growth of modern telecommunications technology; fiber-optic cable trunk lines are being installed between all major cities; major networks are entirely digital and the availability of telephone service is improving; fixed-line telephone density is gradually increasing reaching nearly 25 lines per 100 people in 2007; mobile telephone subscribership has been increasing rapidly and has reached a level of 100 telephones per 100 persons domestic: microwave radio relay, fiber-optic cable, and a domestic satellite system with 40 earth stations serve the trunk network; more than 110,000 pay telephones are installed and mobile telephone use is rapidly expanding; broadband services are gaining ground international: country code - 54; landing point for the Atlantis-2, UNISUR, and South America-1 optical submarine cable systems that provide links to Europe, Africa, South and Central America, and US; satellite earth stations - 112; 2 international gateways near Buenos Aires (2007)

Telephones - main lines in use

9.5 million (2007)

Telephones - mobile cellular

40.402 million (2007)

Television broadcast stations

42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997)

Televisions

7.95 million (1997)

Airports

1,272 (2007)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 154 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 65 914 to 1,523 m: 50 under 914 m: 9 (2007)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 1,118 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 44 914 to 1,523 m: 515 under 914 m: 556 (2007)

Heliports

1 (2007)

Merchant marine

total: 46 by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 9, chemical tanker 2, container 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 24, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 14 (Brazil 1, Chile 7, Spain 2, UK 4) registered in other countries: 19 (Liberia 3, Panama 8, Paraguay 5, Uruguay 3) (2008)

Pipelines

gas 28,657 km; liquid petroleum gas 41 km; oil 5,607 km; refined products 3,052 km; unknown (oil/water) 13 km (2007)

Ports and terminals

Arroyo Seco, Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, La Plata, Punta Colorada, Rosario, San Lorenzo-San Martin

Railways

total: 31,902 km broad gauge: 20,858 km 1.676-m gauge (141 km electrified) standard gauge: 2,885 km 1.435-m gauge (26 km electrified) narrow gauge: 7,922 km 1.000-m gauge; 237 km 0.750-m gauge (2006)

Roadways

total: 231,374 km paved: 69,412 km (includes 734 km of expressways) unpaved: 161,962 km (2004)

Waterways

11,000 km (2006)

Manpower available for military service

males age 16-49: 10,029,488 females age 16-49: 9,889,002 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

males age 16-49: 8,352,147 females age 16-49: 8,366,781 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually

male: 348,310 female: 332,944 (2008 est.)

Military - note

the Argentine military is a well-organized force constrained by the country's prolonged economic hardship; the country has recently experienced a strong recovery, and the military is implementing a modernization plan aimed at making the ground forces lighter and more responsive (2008)

Military branches

Argentine Army (Ejercito Argentino), Navy of the Argentine Republic (Armada Republica; includes naval aviation and naval infantry), Argentine Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Argentina, FAA) (2008)

Military expenditures

1.3% of GDP (2005 est.)

Military service age and obligation

18-24 years of age for voluntary military service (18-21 requires parental permission); no conscription (2001)

Disputes - international

Argentina continues to assert its claims to the UK-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), South Georgia, and the South Sandwich Islands in its constitution, forcibly occupying the Falklands in 1982, but in 1995 agreed no longer to seek settlement by force; territorial claim in Antarctica partially overlaps UK and Chilean claims; unruly region at convergence of Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay borders is locus of money laundering, smuggling, arms and illegal narcotics trafficking, and fundraising for extremist organizations; uncontested dispute between Brazil and Uruguay over Braziliera/Brasiliera Island in the Quarai/Cuareim River leaves the tripoint with Argentina in question; in 2006, Argentina went to the ICJ to protest, on environmental grounds, the construction of two pulp mills in Uruguay on the Uruguay River, which forms the boundary; both parties presented their pleadings in 2007 with Argentina's reply in January and Uruguay's rejoinder in July 2008; the joint boundary commission, established by Chile and Argentina in 2001 has yet to map and demarcate the delimited boundary in the inhospitable Andean Southern Ice Field (Campo de Hielo Sur)

Illicit drugs

a transshipment country for cocaine headed for Europe; some money-laundering activity, especially in the Tri-Border Area; law enforcement corruption; a source for precursor chemicals; increasing domestic consumption of drugs in urban centers, especially cocaine base and synthetic drugs This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008

Trafficking in persons

current situation: Argentina is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor; most victims are trafficked within the country, from rural to urban areas; child sex tourism is a problem; foreign women and children, primarily from Paraguay, Brazil, and the Dominican Republic, are trafficked to Argentina for commercial sexual exploitation; Argentine women and girls are also trafficked to neighboring countries, Mexico, and Western Europe for sexual exploitation; a significant number of Bolivians, Peruvians, and Paraguayans are trafficked into the country for forced labor in sweatshops, agriculture, and as domestic servants tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - despite some progress, Argentina remains on the Tier 2 Watch List for the third consecutive year for its failure to show evidence of increasing efforts to combat human trafficking, particularly in terms of providing adequate assistance to victims and curbing official complicity with trafficking activity, especially on the provincial and local levels; the Argentine Congress has demonstrated progress by enacting much-needed and first-ever federal anti-trafficking legislation (2008)