1991 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1991 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
varies from tropical to desert
Coastline
9,330 km
Comparative area
slightly less than three times the size of Texas
Disputes
claims Clipperton Island (French possession)
Environment
subject to tsunamis along the Pacific coast and destructive earthquakes in the center and south; natural water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; deforestation; erosion widespread; desertification; serious air pollution in Mexico City and urban centers along US-Mexico border
Land boundaries
4,538 km total; Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,326 km
Land use
arable land 12%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures 39%; forest and woodland 24%; other 24%; includes irrigated 3%
Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 nm; Continental shelf: natural prolongation of continental margin or 200 nm; Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; Territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
crude oil, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber
Note
strategic location on southern border of US
Terrain
high, rugged mountains, low coastal plains, high plateaus, and desert
Total area
1,972,550 km2; land area: 1,923,040 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
29 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate
5 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Ethnic divisions
mestizo (Indian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%, white or predominantly white 9%, other 1%
Infant mortality rate
29 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Labor force
26,100,000 (1988); services 31.4%, agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing 26%, commerce 13.9%, manufacturing 12.8%, construction 9.5%, transportation 4.8%, mining and quarrying 1.3%, electricity 0.3% (1986)
Language
Spanish
Life expectancy at birth
68 years male, 76 years female (1991)
Literacy
87% (male 90%, female 85%) age 15 and over can read and write (1985 est.)
Nationality
noun--Mexican(s); adjective--Mexican
Net migration rate
- 1 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Organized labor
35% of labor force
Population
90,007,304 (July 1991), growth rate 2.2% (1991)
Religion
nominally Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3%
Total fertility rate
3.4 children born/woman (1991)
Government
Administrative divisions
31 states (estados, singular--estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Distrito Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Yucatan, Zacatecas
Capital
Mexico
Constitution
5 February 1917
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador Gustavo PETRICIOLI Iturbide; Chancery at 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington DC 20006; telephone (202) 728-1600; there are Mexican Consulates General in Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Antonio, San Diego, and Consulates in Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Kansas City (Missouri), Laredo, McAllen (Texas), Miami, Nogales (Arizona), Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Phoenix, Presidio (Texas), Sacramento, St. Louis, St. Paul (Minneapolis), Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Seattle; US--Ambassador John D. NEGROPONTE, Jr.; Embassy at Paseo de la Reforma 305, 06500 Mexico, D.F. (mailing address is P. O. Box 3087, Laredo, TX 78044-3087); telephone [52] (5) 211-0042; there are US Consulates General in Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Tijuana, and Consulates in Hermosillo, Matamoros, Mazatlan, Merida, and Nuevo Laredo
Elections
President--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held September 1994); results--Carlos SALINAS de Gortari (PRI) 50.74%, Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (FDN) 31.06%, Manuel CLOUTHIER (PAN) 16.81%; other 1.39%; note--several of the smaller parties ran a common candidate under a coalition called the National Democratic Front (FDN); Senate--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held mid-year 1991); results--PRI 94%, FDN (now PRD) 6%; seats--(64 total) number of seats by party NA; Chamber of Deputies--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held mid-year 1991); results--PRI 53%, PAN 20%, PFCRN 10%, PPS 6%, PARM 7%, PMS (now part of PRD) 4%; seats--(500 total) number of seats by party NA
Executive branch
president, Cabinet
Flag
three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake is its beak) is centered in the white band
Independence
16 September 1810 (from Spain)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court of Justice (Suprema Corte de Justicia)
Leaders
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Carlos SALINAS de Gortari (since 1 December 1988)
Legal system
mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch
bicameral National Congress (Congreso de la Union) consists of an upper chamber or Senate (Camara de Senadores) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados)
Long-form name
United Mexican States
Member of
AG (observer), CCC, CDB, CG, EBRD, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-6, G-11, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, LORCS, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
National holiday
Independence Day, 16 September (1810)
Other political or pressure groups
Roman Catholic Church, Confederation of Mexican Workers (CTM), Confederation of Industrial Chambers (CONCAMIN), Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce (CONCANACO), National Peasant Confederation (CNC), UNE (no expansion), Revolutionary Workers Party (PRT), Mexican Democratic Party (PDM), Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants (CROC), Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers (CROM), Confederation of Employers of the Mexican Republic (COPARMEX), National Chamber of Transformation Industries (CANACINTRA), Business Coordination Council (CCE)
Political parties and leaders
(recognized parties) Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Luis Donaldo COLOSIO Murrieta; National Action Party (PAN), Luis ALVAREZ; Popular Socialist Party (PPS), Indalecio SAYAGO Herrera; Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano; Cardenist Front for the National Reconstruction Party (PFCRN), Rafael AGUILAR Talamantes; Authentic Party of the Mexican Revolution (PARM), Carlos Enrique CANTU Rosas
Suffrage
universal and compulsory (but not enforced) at age 18
Type
federal republic operating under a centralized government
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 9% of GDP and over 25% of work force; large number of small farms at subsistence level; major food crops--corn, wheat, rice, beans; cash crops--cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; fish catch of 1.4 million metric tons among top 20 nations (1987)
Budget
revenues $44.3 billion; expenditures $55.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.8 billion (1989)
Currency
Mexican peso (plural--pesos); 1 Mexican peso (Mex$) = 100 centavos
Economic aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $3.1 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $7.1 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $110 million
Electricity
27,600,000 kW capacity; 108,976 million kWh produced, 1,240 kWh per capita (1990)
Exchange rates
market rate of Mexican pesos (Mex$) per US$1--2,940.9 (January 1991), 2,812.6 (1990), 2,461.3 (1989), 2,273.1 (1988), 1,378.2 (1987), 611.8 (1986), 256.9 (1985)
Exports
$26.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990); commodities--crude oil, oil products, coffee, shrimp, engines, cotton; partners--US 66%, EC 16%, Japan 11%
External debt
$96.0 billion (1990)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
$236 billion, per capita $2,680; real growth rate 3.9% (1990)
Illicit drugs
illicit cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis continues in spite of government eradication efforts; major link in chain of countries used to smuggle cocaine from South American dealers to US markets
Imports
$29.8 billion (c.i.f., 1990); commodities--grain, metal manufactures, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment; partners--US 62%, EC 18%, Japan 10%
Industrial production
growth rate 5.3% (1989); accounts for 27% of GDP
Industries
food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, transportation equipment, tourism
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
30% (1990)
Overview
Mexico's economy is a mixture of state-owned industrial plants (notably oil), private manufacturing and services, and both large-scale and traditional agriculture. In the 1980s Mexico experienced severe economic difficulties: the nation accumulated large external debts as world petroleum prices fell; rapid population growth outstripped the domestic food supply; and inflation, unemployment, and pressures to emigrate became more acute. Growth in national output, however, appears to be recovering, rising from 1.4% in 1988 to 3.9% in 1990. The US is Mexico's major trading partner, accounting for two-thirds of its exports and imports. After petroleum, border assembly plants and tourism are the largest earners of foreign exchange. The government, in consultation with international economic agencies, is implementing programs to stabilize the economy and foster growth. In 1991 the government also plans to begin negotiations with the US and Canada on a free trade agreement.
Unemployment rate
15-18% (1990 est.)
Communications
Airports
1,815 total, 1,537 usable; 195 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 33 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 276 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
174 major transport aircraft
Highways
210,000 km total; 65,000 km paved, 30,000 km semipaved or cobblestone, 60,000 km rural roads (improved earth) or roads under construction, 55,000 km unimproved earth roads
Inland waterways
2,900 km navigable rivers and coastal canals
Merchant marine
64 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 999,423 GRT/1,509,939 DWT; includes 4 short-sea passenger, 9 cargo, 2 refrigerated cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 31 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 3 chemical tanker, 7 liquefied gas, 3 bulk, 3 combination bulk
Pipelines
crude oil, 28,200 km; refined products, 10,150 km; natural gas, 13,254 km; petrochemical, 1,400 km
Ports
Acapulco, Coatzacoalcos, Ensenada, Guaymas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Progreso, Puerto Vallarta, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Veracruz
Railroads
20,680 km total; 19,950 km 1.435-meter standard gauge; 730 km 0.914-meter narrow gauge
Telecommunications
highly developed system with extensive radio relay links; connection into Central American Microwave System; 6.41 million telephones; stations--679 AM, no FM, 238 TV, 22 shortwave; 120 domestic satellite terminals; earth stations--4 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT
Military and Security
Branches
National Defense (includes Army and Air Force), Navy (includes Marines)
Defense expenditures
$1 billion, 0.6% of GDP (1988) _%_
Manpower availability
males 15-49, 22,340,628; 16,360,596 fit for military service; 1,107,163 reach military age (18) annually