Match 160 DB Rec# - 7,612 Dataset-WOFACT
Title :Mexico
Text :
Mexico
Geography
Location:
Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, between
Belize and the US and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatamala
and the US
Map references:
North America
Area:
total area:
1,972,550 sq km
land area:
1,923,040 sq km
comparative area:
slightly less than three times the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total 4,538 km, Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,326 km
Coastline:
9,330 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:
claims Clipperton Island (French possession)
Climate:
varies from tropical to desert
Terrain:
high, rugged mountains, low coastal plains, high plateaus, and desert
Natural resources:
petroleum, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber
Land use:
arable land:
12%
permanent crops:
1%
meadows and pastures:
39%
forest and woodland:
24%
other:
24%
Irrigated land:
51,500 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
natural fresh water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and
poor quality in center and extreme southeast; raw sewage and industrial
effluents polluting rivers in urban areas; deforestation; widespread
erosion; desertification; serious air pollution in the national capital and
urban centers along US-Mexico border
natural hazards:
tsunamis along the Pacific coast, destructive earthquakes in the center and
south, and hurricanes on the Gulf and Caribbean coasts
Geography
international agreements:
party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear
Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling; signed,
but not ratified - Desertification
Note:
strategic location on southern border of US
People
Population:
93,985,848 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years:
37% (female 17,028,091; male 17,631,110)
15-64 years:
59% (female 28,429,663; male 26,866,886)
65 years and over:
4% (female 2,184,998; male 1,845,100) (July 1995 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.9% (1995 est.)
Birth rate:
26.64 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate:
4.64 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate:
-3.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
26 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
73.34 years
male:
69.74 years
female:
77.11 years (1995 est.)
Total fertility rate:
3.09 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Mexican(s)
adjective:
Mexican
Ethnic divisions:
mestizo (Indian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%,
Caucasian or predominantly Caucasian 9%, other 1%
Religions:
nominally Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 6%
Languages:
Spanish, various Mayan dialects
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
total population:
88%
male:
90%
female:
85%
Labor force:
26.2 million (1990)
by occupation:
services 31.7%, agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing 28%, commerce
14.6%, manufacturing 11.1%, construction 8.4%, transportation 4.7%, mining
and quarrying 1.5%
Government
Names:
conventional long form:
United Mexican States
conventional short form:
Mexico
local long form:
Estados Unidos Mexicanos
local short form:
Mexico
Digraph:
MX
Type:
federal republic operating under a centralized government
Capital:
Mexico
Administrative divisions:
31 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito
federal); Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche,
Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Colima, Distrito Federal*,
Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan de
Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro de Arteaga,
Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas,
Tlaxcala, Veracruz-Llave, Yucatan, Zacatecas
Independence:
16 September 1810 (from Spain)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 16 September (1810)
Constitution:
5 February 1917
Legal system:
mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system; judicial review of
legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal and compulsory (but not enforced)
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
President Ernesto ZEDILLO Ponce de Leon (since 1 December 1994); election
last held on 21 August 1994 (next to be held NA); results - Ernesto ZEDILLO
Ponce de Leon (PRI) 50.18%, Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (PRD) 17.08%,
Diego FERNANDEZ de Cevallos (PAN) 26.69%; other 6.049%
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the president
Legislative branch:
bicameral National Congress (Congreso de la Union)
Senate (Camara de Senadores):
elections last held on 21 August 1994 (next to be held NA); results -
percent of vote by party NA; seats in full Senate - (128 total; Senate
expanded from 64 seats at the last election) PRI 93, PRD 25, PAN 10
Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados):
elections last held on 24 August 1994 (next to be held NA); results -
percent of vote by party NA; seats - (500 total) PRI 300, PAN 119, PRD 71,
PFCRN 10
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justicia)
Government
Political parties and leaders:
(recognized parties) Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Maria de los
Angeles MORENO; National Action Party (PAN), Carlos CASTILLO; Popular
Socialist Party (PPS), Indalecio SAYAGO Herrera; Democratic Revolutionary
Party (PRD), Porfirio MUNOZ Ledo; Cardenist Front for the National
Reconstruction Party (PFCRN), Rafael AGUILAR Talamantes; Authentic Party of
the Mexican Revolution (PARM), Rosa Maria MARTINEZ Denagri; Democratic Forum
Party (PFD), Pablo Emilio MADERO; Mexican Green Ecologist Party (PVEM),
Jorge GONZALEZ Torres
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); Revolutionary
Workers Party (PRT); 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); Coordinator for Foreign Trade
Business Organizations (COECE); Federation of Unions Providing Goods and
Services (FESEBES)
Member of:
AG (observer), APEC, BCIE, CARICOM (observer), CCC, CDB, CG, EBRD, ECLAC,
FAO, G- 6, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM (observer), OAS, OECD,
ONUSAL, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNU, UPU, WCL,
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Jesus SILVA HERZOG Flores
chancery:
1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006
telephone:
[1] (202) 728-1600
consulate(s) general:
Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New
Orleans, New York, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto
Rico)
consulate(s):
Albuquerque, Austin, Boston, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California),
Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno
(California), Loredo, McAllen (Texas), Midland (Texas), Nogales (Arizona),
Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Phoenix, Sacramento, St. Louis, Salt Lake
City, San Bernardino, San Jose, Santa Ana, Seattle
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador James R. JONES
embassy:
Paseo de la Reforma 305, Colonia Cuauhtemoc, 06500 Mexico, Distrito Federal
mailing address:
P. O. Box 3087, Laredo, TX 78044-3087
telephone:
[52] (5) 211-0042
FAX:
[52] (5) 511-9980, 208-3373
consulate(s) general:
Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Tijuana
consulate(s):
Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida, Nuevo Laredo
Government
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 in its beak) is centered
in the white band
Economy
Overview:
Mexico, under the guidance of new President Ernesto ZEDILLO, entered 1995 in
the midst of a severe financial crisis. Mexico's membership in the North
American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with the United States and Canada, its
solid record of economic reforms, and its strong growth in the second and
third quarters of 1994 - at an annual rate of 3.8% and 4.5% respectively -
seemed to augur bright prospects for 1995. However, an overvalued exchange
rate and widening current account deficits created an imbalance that
ultimately proved unsustainable. To finance the trade gap, Mexico City had
become increasingly reliant on volatile portfolio investment. A series of
political shocks in 1994 - an uprising in the southern state of Chiapas, the
assassination of a presidential candidate, several high profile kidnappings,
the killing of a second high-level political figure, and renewed threats
from the Chiapas rebels - combined with rising international interest rates
and concerns of a devaluation to undermine investor confidence and prompt
massive outflows of capital. The dwindling of foreign exchange reserves,
which the central bank had been using to defend the currency, forced the new
administration to change the exchange rate policy and allow the currency to
float freely in the last days of 1994. The adjustment roiled Mexican
financial markets, leading to a 30% to 40% weakening of the peso relative to
the dollar. ZEDILLO announced an emergency economic program that included
federal budget cuts and plans for more privatizations, but it failed to
restore investor confidence quickly. While the devaluation is likely to help
Mexican exporters, whose products are now cheaper, it also raises the
specter of an inflationary spiral if domestic producers increase their
prices and workers demand wage hikes. Although strong economic fundamentals
bode well for Mexico's longer-term outlook, prospects for solid growth and
low inflation have deteriorated considerably, at least through 1995.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power parity - $728.7 billion (1994 est.)
National product real growth rate:
3.5% (1994 est.)
National product per capita:
$7,900 (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
7.1% (1994 est.)
Unemployment rate:
9.8% (1994 est.)
Budget:
revenues:
$96.99 billion (1994 est.)
expenditures:
$96.51 billion (1994 est.), including capital expenditures of $NA (1994
est.)
Exports:
$60.8 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.), includes in-bond industries
commodities:
crude oil, oil products, coffee, silver, engines, motor vehicles, cotton,
consumer electronics
partners:
US 82%, Japan 1.4%, EC 5% (1993 est.)
Imports:
$79.4 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.), includes in-bond industries
commodities:
metal-working machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery,
electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor
vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts
partners:
US 74%, Japan 4.7%, EC 11% (1993 est.)
Economy
External debt:
$128 billion (1994 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate 4.5% (1994 est.)
Electricity:
capacity:
28,780,000 kW
production:
122 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
1,239 kWh (1993)
Industries:
food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining,
textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, tourism
Agriculture:
accounts for 7% of GDP; large number of small farms at subsistence level;
major food crops - corn, wheat, rice, beans; cash crops - cotton, coffee,
fruit, tomatoes
Illicit drugs:
illicit cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis continues in spite of
government eradication program; major supplier of heroin and marijuana to
the US market; continues as the primary transshipment country for US-bound
cocaine and marijuana from South America; increasingly involved in the
production and distribution of methamphetamine
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $3.1 billion; Western (non-US)
countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $7.7 billion;
Communist countries (1970-89), $110 million
Currency:
1 New Mexican peso (Mex$) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates:
market rate of Mexican pesos (Mex$) per US$1 - 6.736 (average in March
1995), 5.5133 (January 1995), 3.3751 (1994), 3.1156 (1993), 3,094.9 (1992),
3,018.4 (1991), 2,812.6 (1990)
note:
the new peso replaced the old peso on 1 January 1993; 1 new peso = 1,000 old
pesos
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Transportation
Railroads:
total:
24,500 km
standard gauge:
24,410 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge:
93 km 0.914-m gauge
Highways:
total:
242,300 km
paved:
84,800 km (including 3,166 km of expressways)
unpaved:
gravel and earth 157,500 km
Inland waterways:
2,900 km navigable rivers and coastal canals
Pipelines:
crude oil 28,200 km; petroleum products 10,150 km; natural gas 13,254 km;
petrochemical 1,400 km
Ports:
Acapulco, Altamira, Coatzacoalcos, Ensenada, Guaymas, La Paz, Lazaro
Cardenas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Progreso, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Topolobampo,
Tuxpan, Veracruz
Merchant marine:
total:
59 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 949,271 GRT/1,340,595 DWT
ships by type:
bulk 1, cargo 2, chemical tanker 4, container 7, liquefied gas tanker 7, oil
tanker 30, refrigerated cargo 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 2, short-sea
passenger 4
Airports:
total:
2,055
with paved runways over 3,047 m:
9
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m:
25
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m:
82
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m:
75
with paved runways under 914 m:
1,262
with unpaved runways over 3,047 m:
1
with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m:
2
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m:
60
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m:
539
Communications
Telephone system:
6,410,000 telephones; highly developed system with extensive microwave radio
relay links; privatized in December 1990
local:
adequate phone service for business and government, but, at a density of
less than 7 telephones/100 persons, the population is poorly served
intercity:
includes 120 domestic satellite terminals and an extensive network of
microwave radio relay links
international:
5 INTELSAT (4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean) earth stations; connected
into Central America Microwave System; launched Solidarity I satellite in
November 1993
Radio:
broadcast stations:
AM 679, FM 0, shortwave 22
radios:
NA
Television:
broadcast stations:
238
televisions:
NA
Defense Forces
Branches:
National Defense (includes Army and Air Force), Navy (includes Marines)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 23,354,445; males fit for military service 17,029,788; males
reach military age (18) annually 1,054,513 (1995 est.)
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GDP
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SuDoc No: PREX 3.15:995
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