1992 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1992 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands
Coastline
400 km
Comparative area
slightly smaller than Tennessee
Continental shelf
not specific
Disputes
claims Belize, but boundary negotiations to resolve the dispute have begun
Environment
numerous volcanoes in mountains, with frequent violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast subject to hurricanes and other tropical storms; deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution
Exclusive economic zone
200 nm
Land area
108,430 km2
Land boundaries
1,687 km; 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%
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)
Territorial sea
12 nm
Total area
108,890 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
34 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate
8 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Ethnic divisions
Ladino (mestizo - mixed Indian and European ancestry) 56%, Indian 44%
Infant mortality rate
56 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Labor force
2,500,000; agriculture 60%, services 13%, manufacturing 12%, commerce 7%, construction 4%, transport 3%, utilities 0.8%, mining 0.4% (1985)
Languages
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 (1992)
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 (1992)
Organized labor
8% of labor force (1988 est.)
Population
9,784,275 (July 1992), growth rate 2.4% (1992)
Religions
predominantly Roman Catholic; also Protestant, traditional Mayan
Total fertility rate
4.6 children born/woman (1992)
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
Chief of State and Head of Government
President Jorge SERRANO Elias (since 14 January 1991); Vice President Gustavo ESPINA Salguero (since 14 January 1991)
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
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 38, DCG 27, MAS 18, PAN 12, Pro - Rios Montt 10, MLN 4, PR 1, PSD/AP-5 1, independent 5
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 AA 34024); telephone [502] (2) 31-15-41
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)
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, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA, 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; Democratic Institutional Party (PID), Oscar RIVAS; Nationalist United Front (FUN), Gabriel GIRON; Guatemalan Republican Front (FRG), Efrain RIOS Montt
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%
Suffrage
universal at age 18
Type
republic
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 26% of GDP; most important sector of economy and contributes two-thirds of 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 (1970-89), $7.92 billion
Electricity
802,600 kW capacity; 2,461 million kWh produced, 266 kWh per capita (1991)
Exchange rates
free market quetzales (Q) per US$1 - 5.0854 (January 1992), 5.0289 (1991), 2.8161 (1989), 2.6196 (1988), 2.500 (1987); note - black-market rate 2.800 (May 1989)
Exports
$1.16 billion (f.o.b., 1990) commodities: coffee 26%, sugar 13%, bananas 7%, beef 2% partners: US 39%, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Germany, Honduras
External debt
$2.6 billion (December 1990 est.)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
exchange rate conversion - $11.7 billion, per capita $1,260; real growth rate 3% (1991 est.)
Illicit drugs
illicit producer of opium poppy and cannabis for the international drug trade; the government has an active eradication program for cannabis and opium poppy; transit country for cocaine shipments
Imports
$1.66 billion (c.i.f., 1990) commodities: fuel and petroleum products, machinery, grain, fertilizers, motor vehicles partners: US 40%, Mexico, Venezuela, Japan, Germany
Industrial production
growth rate NA; accounts for 18% of GDP
Industries
sugar, textiles and clothing, furniture, chemicals, petroleum, metals, rubber, tourism
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
40% (1991 est.)
Overview
The economy is based on family and corporate agriculture, which accounts for 26% of GDP, employs about 60% of the labor force, and supplies two-thirds of exports. Manufacturing, predominantly in private hands, accounts for about 18% of GDP and 12% of the labor force. In both 1990 and 1991, the economy grew by 3%, the fourth and fifth consecutive years of mild growth. Inflation at 40% in 1990-91 was more than double the 1987-89 level.
Unemployment rate
6.7%, with 30-40% underemployment (1989 est.)
Communications
Airports
448 total, 400 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
8 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
884 km 0.914-meter gauge, single track; 782 km government owned, 102 km privately owned
Telecommunications
fairly modern network centered in Guatemala [city]; 97,670 telephones; broadcast 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
exchange rate conversion - $113 million, 1% of GDP (1990)
Manpower availability
males 15-49, 2,169,073; 1,420,116 fit for military service; 107,239 reach military age (18) annually