1991 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1991 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands
Coastline
400 km
Comparative area
slightly smaller than Tennessee
Disputes
claims Belize, but boundary negotiations to resolve the dispute are underway
Environment
numerous volcanoes in mountains, with frequent violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast subject to hurricanes and other tropical storms; deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution
Land boundaries
1,687 km total; Belize 266 km, El Salvador 203 km, Honduras 256 km, Mexico 962 km
Land use
arable land 12%; permanent crops 4%; meadows and pastures 12%; forest and woodland 40%; other 32%; includes irrigated 1%
Maritime claims
Continental shelf: not specific; Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; Territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
crude oil, nickel, rare woods, fish, chicle
Note
no natural harbors on west coast
Terrain
mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling limestone plateau (Peten)
Total area
108,890 km2; land area: 108,430 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
35 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate
8 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Ethnic divisions
Ladino (mestizo--mixed Indian and European ancestry) 56%, Indian 44%
Infant mortality rate
58 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Labor force
2,500,000; agriculture 60%, services 13%, manufacturing 12%, commerce 7%, construction 4%, transport 3%, utilities 0.8%, mining 0.4% (1985)
Language
Spanish, but over 40% of the population speaks an Indian language as a primary tongue (18 Indian dialects, including Quiche, Cakchiquel, Kekchi)
Life expectancy at birth
61 years male, 66 years female (1991)
Literacy
55% (male 63%, female 47%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Nationality
noun--Guatemalan(s); adjective--Guatemalan
Net migration rate
- 2 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Organized labor
8% of labor force (1988 est.)
Population
9,266,018 (July 1991), growth rate 2.5% (1991)
Religion
predominantly Roman Catholic; also Protestant, traditional Mayan
Total fertility rate
4.8 children born/woman (1991)
Government
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
Capital
Guatemala
Communists
Guatemalan Labor Party (PGT); main radical left guerrilla groups--Guerrilla Army of the Poor (EGP), Revolutionary Organization of the People in Arms (ORPA), Rebel Armed Forces (FAR), and PGT dissidents
Constitution
31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador Juan Jose CASO Fanjul; Chancery at 2220 R Street NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 745-4952 through 4954; there are Guatemalan Consulates General in Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco; US--Ambassador Thomas F. STROOCK; Embassy at 7-01 Avenida de la Reforma, Zone 10, Guatemala City (mailing address is APO Miami 34024); telephone [502] (2) 31-15-41
Elections
President--runoff held on 11 January 1991 (next to be held 11 November 1995); results--Jorge SERRANO Elias (MAS) 68.1%, Jorge CARPIO Nicolle (UCN) 31.9%; Congress--last held on 11 November 1990 (next to be held 11 November 1995); results--UCN 25.6%, MAS 24.3%, DCG 17.5%, PAN 17.3%, MLN 4.8%, PSD/AP-5 3.6%, PR 2.1%; seats--(116 total) UCN 41, DCG 28, MAS 18, PAN 12, Alliance for '90 11, MLN 4, PR 1, PSD/AP-5 1
Executive branch
president, vice president, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
Flag
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) 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 and a pair of crossed swords and framed by a wreath
Independence
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justicia)
Leaders
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Jorge SERRANO Elias (since 14 January 1991); Vice President Gustavo ESPINA Salguero (since 14 January 1991)
Legal system
civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
unicameral Congress of the Republic (Congreso de la Republica)
Long-form name
Republic of Guatemala
Member of
BCIE, CACM, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), LORCS, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
National holiday
Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Other political or pressure groups
Federated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CACIF), Mutual Support Group (GAM), Unity for Popular and Labor Action (UASP), Agrarian Owners Group (UNAGRO), Committee for Campesino Unity (CUC)
Political parties and leaders
National Centrist Union (UCN), Jorge CARPIO Nicolle; Solidarity Action Movement (MAS), Jorge SERRANO Elias; Christian Democratic Party (DCG), Alfonso CABRERA Hidalgo; National Advancement Party (PAN), Alvaro ARZU Irigoyen; National Liberation Movement (MLN), Mario SANDOVAL Alarcon; Social Democratic Party (PSD), Mario SOLARZANO Martinez; Popular Alliance 5 (AP-5), Max ORLANDO Molina; Revolutionary Party (PR), Carlos CHAVARRIA; National Authentic Center (CAN), Hector MAYORA Dawe; Alliance for '90 led by Rios MONTT, consisting of three parties--Democratic Institutional Party (PID), Oscar RIVAS; Nationalist United Front (FUN), Gabriel GIRON; Guatemalan Republican Front (FRG), Berna ROLANDO Mendez
Suffrage
universal at age 18
Type
republic
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 26% of GDP; most important sector of economy and contributes two-thirds to export earnings; principal crops--sugarcane, corn, bananas, coffee, beans, cardamom; livestock--cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens; food importer
Budget
revenues $1.05 billion; expenditures $1.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $270 million (1989 est.)
Currency
quetzal (plural--quetzales); 1 quetzal (Q) = 100 centavos
Economic aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-90), $1.1 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $7.8 billion
Electricity
819,000 kW capacity; 2,594 million kWh produced, 280 kWh per capita (1990)
Exchange rates
free market quetzales (Q) per US$1--5.4 (April 1991), 4.4858 (1990), 2.8161 (1989), 2.6196 (1988), 2.500 (1987), 1.875 (1986), 1.000 (1985); note--black-market rate 2.800 (May 1989)
Exports
$1.24 billion (f.o.b., 1990); commodities--coffee 24%, sugar 9%, bananas 8%, beef 4%; partners--US 28%, El Salvador, FRG, Costa Rica, Italy
External debt
$2.8 billion (December 1990 est.)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
$11.1 billion, per capita $1,180; real growth rate 3.5% (1990 est.)
Illicit drugs
illicit producer of opium poppy and cannabis for the international drug trade; the government has engaged in aerial eradication of opium poppy; transit country for cocaine shipments
Imports
$1.77 billion (c.i.f., 1990); commodities--fuel and petroleum products, machinery, grain, fertilizers, motor vehicles; partners--US 40%, Mexico, FRG, Japan, El Salvador
Industrial production
growth rate 4.0% (1988); accounts for 18% of GDP
Industries
sugar, textiles and clothing, furniture, chemicals, petroleum, metals, rubber, tourism
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
60% (1990 est.)
Overview
The economy is based on agriculture, which accounts for 26% of GDP, employs about 60% of the labor force, and supplies two-thirds of exports. Manufacturing accounts for about 15% of GDP and 12% of the labor force. In 1990 the economy grew by 3.5%, the fourth consecutive year of mild growth. Government economic policies, however, were erratic in 1990--an election year--and inflation shot up to 60%, the highest level in modern times.
Unemployment rate
13%, with 30-40% underemployment (1989 est.)
Communications
Airports
430 total, 381 usable; 11 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 19 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
10 major transport aircraft
Highways
26,429 km total; 2,868 km paved, 11,421 km gravel, and 12,140 unimproved
Inland waterways
260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during high-water season
Merchant marine
1 cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,129 GRT/6,450 DWT
Pipelines
crude oil, 275 km
Ports
Puerto Barrios, Puerto Quetzal, Santo Tomas de Castilla
Railroads
870 km 0.914-meter gauge, single track; 780 km government owned, 90 km privately owned
Telecommunications
fairly modern network centered in Guatemala [city]; 97,670 telephones; stations--91 AM, no FM, 25 TV, 15 shortwave; connection into Central American Microwave System; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
Military and Security
Branches
Army, Navy, Air Force
Defense expenditures
$113 million, 1% of GDP (1990) _%_
Manpower availability
males 15-49, 2,097,234; 1,372,623 fit for military service; 110,949 reach military age (18) annually