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Nicaragua
Area: 130,688 sq km; 50,446 sq miles
Population: 5,142,098 2005: Source: Nicaraguan Statistics and Census Institute
Capital City: Managua (1.1 million)
People: Ethnic groups: Mestizo (mixed European and indigenous) 69%, white 17%, black (mainly Jamaican origin) 9%, indigenous 5%
Languages: The official language is Spanish spoken by 98% of the population. Other languages spoken include English, Miskito, Creole, Mayanga, Garifuna, Rama.
Religion(s): Roman Catholic 75%, Evangelical Protestants 15%
Currency: Cordoba (C\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\$) which is divided into 100 centavos.
Major Political Parties: Liberal Constitutionalist Party (PLC); Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN), Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance-Conservative Party (ALN-PC), Sandinista Renovation Movement (MRS) Blue and White Faction of PLC.
Government: The 1987 Sandinista-era constitution was changed in 1995 to provide for a more even distribution of power among the four branches of government. It was amended again in 2000 to increase the number of members of the Supreme Court and the Controller General's Office and to make changes to the electoral laws.
Branches: Executive: President and Vice-President. Legislative: National Assembly. Judicial: Supreme Court; subordinate appeals, district and local courts; separate labour and administrative tribunals. Electoral: Supreme Electoral Council, responsible for organising and holding elections. Administrative sub-divisions: 15 departments and two autonomous regions on the Atlantic coast; 145 municipalities.
Head of State: President Daniel Ortega Saavedra
Prime Minister/Premier: Not applicable
Foreign Minister: Samuel Santos Lopez
Membership of international groups/organisations
Nicaragua belongs to the UN and to several specialized and related agencies, including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Trade Organisation (WTO), UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), World Health Organisation (WHO), Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the UN Human Rights Commission (UNHRC). Nicaragua is also a member of the Organisation of American States (OAS), the Non-aligned Movement (NAM), International Atomic Energy Commission (IAEA), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Central American Common Market (CACM) and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), ( SICA) is the Central American Regional Integration System made up by El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama and Belize and was founded in 1993. (ALBA) is the The Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas and was spearheaded by Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez and has Venezuela, Cuba, Bolivia and Nicaragua as members.
GEOGRAPHYNicaragua is the largest of the Central American States, with an area of 147,950 sq km. It is bordered to the north by Honduras, to the south by Costa Rica, to the east by the Caribbean and to the west by the Pacific. There are three distinct regions. The Pacific coastal region is a fertile lowland plain, broken by active volcanoes and lakes (Lake Nicaragua is the second largest in Latin America and one of the largest in the world). The North Central region is mountainous, cooler and also very fertile, while the Atlantic region which comprises 60% of the country’s territory, is a large lowland plain characterised by tropical rain forests and rivers.
HISTORYApproximately 30,000 years ago - earliest evidence of human habitation in Nicaragua.
800 A.D. Chorotegas and Nicaraos arrive in Nicaragua from Mexico.
1200 Nicaraos partially displace the Chorotegas from the Pacific basin. The Nicaraos develop a successful agricultural and trade society conducting business with tribes from Mexico to Peru with trading partners.
1502 Christopher Columbus arrives on the Caribbean shores of Nicaragua on his fourth and final voyage.
1522 Spanish explorer Gil Gonzalez de Avila names Nicaragua after a local Indian chief, Nicarao.
1523-24 Francisco Hernandez de Cordoba completes conquest of Nicaragua.
17th-18th Centuries British arrive and extend their influence over the inhabitants of Nicaragua's Caribbean coast.
1821 Nicaragua becomes independent but is incorporated into the Mexican empire.
1823 Nicaragua becomes part of the United Provinces of Central America which also comprise Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.
1838 Nicaragua becomes fully independent.
1860 Great Britain signs treaty with Nicaragua establishing Managua’s autonomy over the Miskito Kingdom which was downgraded to status of reservation.
1893 General Jose Santos Zelaya, a Liberal, seizes power and establishes dictatorship.
Miskito Reservation abolished, Caribbean Coast is incorporated into Nicaragua. Miskito Reservation abolished, Caribbean Coast is incorporated into Nicaragua
1905 Treaty signed between Great Britain and Nicaragua recognising the absolute sovereignty of Nicaragua over the Miskito Shore while guaranteeing citizens of the region certain privileges for 50-year period.
1909 US troops help depose Zelaya.
1912-25 US establishes military bases.
1927-33 Guerrillas led by Augusto Cesar Sandino campaign against US military presence. 1934 Sandino assassinated on the orders of the National Guard commander, General Anastasio Somoza Garcia.
1956 General Somoza assassinated but is succeeded as president by his son, Luis Somoza Debayle.
1961 Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) founded.
1967 Luis Somoza dies and is succeeded as president by his brother, Anastasio Somoza.
1972 Earthquake in Managua leaves 16,000 dead and city centre destroyed.
1978 Assassination of the leader of the opposition Democratic Liberation Union, Pedro Joaquin Chamorro, triggers general strike and brings together moderates and the FSLN in a united front to oust Somoza.
1979 FSLN military offensive ends with the ousting of Somoza. Estimated 50,000 people killed leading up to his overthrow.
1980 Somoza assassinated in Paraguay; FSLN government led by Daniel Ortega nationalises and turns into cooperatives lands held by the Somoza family.
1982 US-sponsored attacks by Contra rebels based in Honduras and Costa Rica begin; state of emergency declared by Nicaraguan government.
1984 Daniel Ortega elected President. US mines Nicaraguan harbours and is condemned by the World Court for doing so.
1986 Nicaragua appeals to the World Court in The Hague to end US efforts to destabilise its government and court rules in Nicaragua’s favour.
1987 The International Court of Justice (ICJ) decides on the amount owed by the US to Nicaragua \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\$17 billion. The US disregards the ruling.
1987-88 Nicaraguan leadership signs peace agreement and subsequently holds talks with Contras and war winds down. Hurricane leaves 180,000 people homeless.
1990 US-backed centre-right National Opposition Union defeats FSLN in elections. Violeta Chamorro becomes President.
1991 Nicaragua formally withdraws its International Court of Justice case thereby abandoning all claims to the judgement.
1996 Arnoldo Aleman (PLC) elected President.
1998 Hurricane Mitch causes massive devastation.
2000 FSLN win Managua municipal elections.
2001 Liberal party candidate Enrique Bolanos beats his Sandinista party counterpart, former President Daniel Ortega, in the Presidential Election.
January 2002 Inauguration of President Bolanos.
March 2002 Opposition Sandinista party re-elects Daniel Ortega as its leader.
August 2002 Former president and PLC leader Arnoldo Aleman is charged with money laundering and embezzlement during his term in office.
2004 FSLN win 91 of 152 municipalities including Managua in municipal elections.
2005 Having spent various stints in prison, under house arrest and in hospital, Aleman is released from custody under the "family co-existence" law allowing him unrestricted movement within the department of Managua.
April 2006 - Free trade deal with the US comes into effect. Nicaragua's Congress approved the Central American Free Trade Agreement (Cafta) in October 2005. November 2006 - Ex-president Daniel Ortega wins Presidential elections. 2007 (10 January) Daniel Ortega inaugurated as President for the second time.
April 2006 Nicaragua's Congress approved the Central American Free Trade Agreement (Cafta) in October 2005.
December 2006 Ex-president Daniel Ortega wins Presidential elections with 38% of the vote.
January 2007 Daniel Ortega inaugurated as President for the second time, Nicaragua signs on to ALBA, the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas
POLITICS
Nicaragua is a constitutional democracy with executive, legislative, judicial and electoral branches of government. In 1995, the executive and legislative branches negotiated a reform of the 1987 Sandinista constitution which gave extensive new powers and independence to the legislature – the National Assembly. These include permitting the Assembly to override a presidential veto with a simple majority vote and eliminating the President's ability to veto a bill. Both the President and the members of the unicameral National Assembly are elected to concurrent 5-year terms. The National Assembly consists of 90 deputies elected from party lists drawn at the department and national level, plus the out-going President and runner-up in the Presidential race, for a total of 92.
The final results of the 5 November Nicaraguan Presidential and National Assembly elections were declared on 15 November. The Presidential election saw Daniel Ortega, Frente Sandinista (FSLN) win in the first round with 37.99%, with Eduardo Montealegre, Alianza Liberal Nicaraguense (ALN) 28.30%, Jose Rizo, Partido Liberal Constitutionalista (PLC) 27.11%, Edmundo Jarquin, Movimiento Renovador Sandinista (MRS) 6.29% and Eden Pastora, Alternativa por el Cambio (AC) 0.29%. Voter turnout was estimated at 70%.
The Supreme Court supervises the functioning of a rather stretched judicial system. As part of the 1995 constitutional reforms, the independence of the Supreme Court was strengthened by increasing the number of magistrates. Supreme Court Justices are nominated by the political parties and elected to 5-year terms by the National Assembly.
In January 2005 the National Assembly controlled by Liberals and Sandinistas, passed a 'law to partially reform the constitution,' which stripped the Presidency of many of its powers and transferred them to the National Assembly, forming a quasi-parliamentary system. The law came into force in February 2005. A National Dialogue began between President Bolanos and the two opposition parties to avoid the political impasse caused by these constitutional reforms.
In April 2005, the Central American Court of Justice ruled in favour of President Bolaños and ordered the National Assembly to freeze constitutional reforms. However, Nicaragua's Supreme Court ruled against the Central American Court decision.
In December 2005, Daniel Ortega, then head of the Sandinista/FSLN party agreed to suspend the constitutional reforms until after President Bolanos' administration had been completed and announced the end of the pact with Aleman.
The final results of the 5 November 2006 Nicaraguan Presidential and National Assembly elections were declared on 15 November. The Presidential election saw Daniel Ortega, Frente Sandinista (FSLN) win in the first round with 37.99%, with Eduardo Montealegre, Alianza Liberal Nicaraguense (ALN) 28.30%, Jose Rizo, Partido Liberal Constitutionalista (PLC) 27.11%, Edmundo Jarquin, Movimiento Renovador Sandinista (MRS) 6.29% and Eden Pastora, Alternativa por el Cambio (AC) 0.29%. Voter turnout was estimated at 70%. Daniel Ortega was sworn in as president on 10 January 2007.
ECONOMYNicaragua is the poorest of the Central American countries and the second poorest in Latin America. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) decreased in 1998 by 4% due to Hurricane Mitch which devastated many parts of the country. Powered by post-hurricane reconstruction, real growth in 1999 reached more than 7%. Growth fell back in 2001/2 due in part to uncertainty about the outcome of the elections and weak external demand for agricultural exports.
Nicaragua is also the poorest country in Latin America with half of her 5.4 million people below the World Bank poverty line. During the Presidency of Enrique Bolaños Geyer, progress was made on fulfilling IMF poverty reduction and growth facility (PRGF) targets, completing structural reforms, and improving governmental transparency. Nicaragua reached completion point under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative in January 2004, resulting in a 80% reduction in its external multilateral and bilateral debt.
Moves towards regional economic integration in Central America are continuing. In early 2004, the five Central American countries concluded negotiations with the USA on the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). Known in Spanish as the TLC (Tratado de Libre Comercio), the agreement was signed between the USA and Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. El Salvador was the first country to ratify the agreement in December 2004, followed by Honduras and Guatemala. Violent protests greeted the ratification in Guatemala and Honduras.
Basic Economic FactsEconomic Growth: 4.0% (2005) ( source UKTI)
Per Capita GDP: US\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\$799 (2005)
Main exports 2005: Total: US \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\$860m. Coffee, shrimp and lobster, cotton, tobacco, bananas, beef, sugar and gold Main Imports 2005: Total: US \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\$2.440m. Machinery and transport equipment, food and live animals, consumer goods, mineral fuels and lubricants
UK Exports to Nicaragua: £2.29m (2005) (source UKTI)
Nicaraguan exports to the UK: £6.7m (2005)
External debt US\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\$5.4bn (2004) Nominal GDP: 4.3 billion US dollars (2004)
Nominal GDP per head: 750 US dollars (2004)
Annual growth: 4.2% (2004)
Inflation: 9.3% (2004)
Major industries: Coffee, seafood, beef, sugar, industrial goods, gold, bananas, sesame
Top 10 Import Partners (2004)
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONSNicaragua's Relations with NeighboursNicaragua has an uneasy relationship with Costa Rica, due primarily to disputes over navigational rights on the San Juan River and whether Costa Rican patrol vessels should be permitted to carry arms. Costa Rica’s decision – in September 2005 – to take the case to the International Court in the Hague for arbitration, led to a further deterioration in relations between the two countries. The large number of Nicaraguan residents in Costa Rica (many having entered illegally) also adds tension to the relationship. In March 2007 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights dismissed a case brought by the previous Nicaragua administration accusing Costa Rica of state-sponsored xenophobia against Nicaraguan immigrants.
In November 1999, a maritime dispute with Honduras flared up. The basis for the dispute was the ratification by Honduras of the 1986 Ramirez-Lopez Treaty whereby Colombia's right to the San Andreas and Providencia islands in the Caribbean was recognised. Nicaragua, which has laid claim to 30,000 square kilometres of territorial sea, was outraged by the Honduran action. Both countries agreed to take the dispute to the International Court of Justice (ICJ). In the meantime, the Organisation of American States (OAS) has supported confidence-building measures including visits by an International Verification Mission to the border between Honduras and Nicaragua. In December 2001, Foreign Ministers from both countries signed an agreement at the headquarters of the OAS establishing the framework for a Binational Border Development Plan. A Nicaraguan surcharge of 35% on Honduran and Colombian imports was judged 'illegal' by the Central American Court but has still to be withdrawn.
Nicaragua has submitted its case to the International Court at The Hague for resolution of a territorial dispute with Colombia over the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia in the Caribbean. According to a 1928 treaty between the two countries, Colombia owns San Andres and its territorial waters. Nicaragua has declared the treaty invalid. The Colombian government claimed in July 2003 that the International Court did not have jurisdiction in this territorial dispute between Nicaragua and Colombia. The International Court has suspended proceedings on the case while it reviews Colombia's objection.
Nicaragua's Relations with the International CommunityA participant of the Central American Security Commission (CASC), Nicaragua has taken a leading role in pressing for regional demilitarisation and peaceful settlement of disputes within states in the region. At the 1994 Summit of the Americas, Nicaragua joined six Central American neighbours in signing the Alliance for Sustainable Development known as the Conjunta Centroamerica-USA or CONCAUSA, to promote sustainable economic development in the region. On 10 October 2005, the Nicaraguan congress ratified the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) between the US, the Dominican Republic and other Central American Countries. The congressional approval of the Free Trade Agreement, after a year of intense internal debate including street protests, signalled a move toward regional economic integration in Central America. Nicaragua's ratification of CAFTA now leaves Costa Rica as the only country not to approve it. After Sandinista president Daniel Ortega took office in January 2006 Nicaragua joined ALBA which led to an aid package being received from Venezuela. Ortega also began strengthening ties with Iran.
Nicaragua and its neighbours also successfully negotiated a Political Dialogue and Co-operation Agreement with the EU which was signed in Rome on 15 December 2003. Negotiations on an Association Agreement with the European Union are expected to begin in early 2007.
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