Nicaragua Brief

Republica de Nicaragua

Brief History:  The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. The west of the country has a similar culture to other Spanish-speaking Latin American countries and is composed of mostly Mestizos.  The eastern half of the country still holds much of the British influence and English is the first language of most people in this region and its culture resembles other Caribbean nations. There is a large population of people of African descent, as well as a smaller Garifuna population. 

Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. After losing free and fair elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001, former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra was elected president in 2006. The 2008 municipal elections were marred by widespread irregularities. Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt, but democratic institutions have been weakened under the ORTEGA administration

Capital city:  Managua (pop. 934,000)

Country size:  120,254 sq km (slightly smaller than New York state), largest in C. America, but least densely populated

Region:  Located in Central America, Nicaragua borders Honduras to the north, Costa Rica to the south, the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Caribbean Sea to east.  It is a warm and friendly land of lakes and mountains; rivers and volcanoes, sea and sun. Nicaragua has three distinct geographical regions: the Pacific Lowlands, the North-Central Mountains and the Atlantic Lowlands.  Lago de Nicaragua is the largest body of freshwater in Central America. 

Natural disasters:  Twice in the 20^th century Managua was destroyed by earthquakes, 15 faultlines run throughout the city.  There are many active volcanoes in the region.  Flooding and wind damage from hurricanes is common.

States/Provinces:  15 departments - Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales, Esteli, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia, Rio San Juan, and Rivas; 2 autonomous regions - Atlantico Norte and Atlantico Sur

Population:  5,675,356 in 2007

Ethnicity:  Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5%

Languages:  Spanish (official), Miskito, English

Religions:  Roman Catholic 72.9%, Evangelical 15.1%, Moravian 1.5%, other 10%

Per Capita Income:  $3,100 in 2006 (third lowest in the western hemisphere).

Economy:  Distribution of income is one of the most unequal in the world; based mainly on agriculture (coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, seafood, mango, papaya, avocado, tamarindo, cattle), textiles and apparel,  and growing tourism.  Ranked 2^nd poorest nation (behind Haiti) in Latin America and Caribbean.  The incidence of poverty is highest among rural populations, where 46 percent live in poverty and 15.1 percent live in extreme poverty.

Unemployment:  8%

Underemployment:  47%

Population living under poverty line:  48%

Internet users:  90,000

Cell phones:  202,800

Land lines:  171,600

Infant mortality rate:  22.64 deaths/1000 births

Life expectancy:  71.9 years

Environmental issues:  Deforestation, soil erosion, water pollution