Spanish World Academy

Background:

Following independence from Spain in 1816, Argentina experienced periods of internal political conflict between conservatives and liberals and between civilian and military factions. After World War II, a long period of Peronist authoritarian rule and interference in subsequent governments was followed by a military junta that took power in 1976. Democracy returned in 1983, and numerous elections since then have underscored Argentina's progress in democratic consolidation.

Argentina

Geography

Location:

Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay

Geographic coordinates:

34 00 S, 64 00 W

Map references:

South America

Area:

total:  2,766,890 sq km land:  2,736,690 sq km water:  30,200 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US

Land boundaries:

total:  9,665 km border countries:  Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,224 km, Chile 5,150 km, Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 579 km

Coastline:

4,989 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

Climate:

mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest

Terrain:

rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border

Elevation extremes:

lowest point:  Salinas Chicas -40 m (located on Peninsula Valdes) highest point:  Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m

Natural resources:

fertile plains of the Pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium

Land use:

arable land: 10.03% permanent crops: 0.36% other: 89.61% (2005)

Irrigated land:

15,500 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards:

San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the Pampas and northeast; heavy flooding

Environment - current issues:

environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as soil degradation, desertification, air pollution, and water pollution note:  Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets

Environment - international agreements:

party to:  Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified:  Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note:

second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Cerro Aconcagua is South America's tallest mountain, while the Valdes Peninsula is the lowest point on the continent Buenos Aires City

Argentina

People

Population:

39,921,833 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 25.2% (male 5,153,164/female 4,921,625) 15-64 years: 64.1% (male 12,804,376/female 12,798,731) 65 years and over: 10.6% (male 1,740,118/female 2,503,819) (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:

0.96% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:

16.73 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:

7.55 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:

0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 14.73 deaths/1,000 live births male: 16.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 76.12 years male: 72.38 years female: 80.05 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:

2.16 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

0.7% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

130,000 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

1,500 (2003 est.)

Nationality:

noun:  Argentine(s) adjective:  Argentine

Ethnic groups:

white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo, Amerindian, or other nonwhite groups 3%

Religions:

nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%

Languages:

Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.1% male: 97.1% female: 97.1% (2003 est.) Mar del plata

Argentina

Government

Country name:

conventional long form:  Argentine Republic conventional short form:  Argentina local long form:  Republica Argentina local short form:  Argentina

Government type:

republic

Capital:

Buenos Aires

Administrative divisions:

23 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia), and 1 autonomous city* (distrito federal); Buenos Aires; Buenos Aires Capital Federal*; Catamarca; Chaco; Chubut; Cordoba; Corrientes; Entre Rios; Formosa; Jujuy; La Pampa; La Rioja; Mendoza; Misiones; Neuquen; Rio Negro; Salta; San Juan; San Luis; Santa Cruz; Santa Fe; Santiago del Estero; Tierra del Fuego, Antartica e Islas del Atlantico Sur; Tucuman note:  the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica

Independence:

9 July 1816 (from Spain)

National holiday:

Revolution Day, 25 May (1810)

Constitution:

1 May 1853; revised August 1994

Legal system:

mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal and mandatory

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Nestor KIRCHNER (since 25 May 2003); Vice President Daniel SCIOLI (since 25 May 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Nestor KIRCHNER (since 25 May 2003); Vice President Daniel SCIOLI (since 25 May 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 27 April 2003 (next election to be held in 2007) election results: results of the presidential election of 27 April 2003: Carlos Saul MENEM 24.3%, Nestor KIRCHNER 22%, Ricardo Lopez MURPHY 16.4%, Adolfo Rodriguez SAA 14.4%, Elisa CARRIO 14.2%, other 8.7%; the subsequent runoff election slated for 25 May 2003 was awarded to KIRCHNER by default after MENEM withdrew his candidacy on the eve of the election

Legislative branch:

bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate (72 seats; members are elected by direct vote; presently one-third of the members elected every two years to a six-year term) and the Chamber of Deputies (257 seats; members are elected by direct vote; one-half of the members elected every two years to a four-year term) elections: Senate - last held 23 October 2005 (next to be held in 2007); Chamber of Deputies - last held last held 23 October 2005 (next to be held in 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - FV 45.1%, FJ 17.2%, UCR 7.5%, other 30.2%; seats by bloc or party - FV 14, FJ 3, UCR 2, other 5; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - FV 29.9%, UCR 8.9%, ARI 7.2%, PJ 6.7%, PRO 6.2%, FJ 3.9%, other 37.2%; seats by bloc or party - FV 50, UCR 10, ARI 8, PJ 9, PRO 9, FJ 7, other 34

Judicial branch:

Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (the nine Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president with approval by the Senate)

Political parties and leaders:

Alternative for a Republic of Equals or ARI [Elisa CARRIO]; Front for Victory or FV [Nestor KIRCHNER]; Interbloque Federal or IF (a broad coalition of approximately 12 parties including RECREAR); Justicialist Front or FJ [Eduardo DUHALDE]; Justicialist Party or PJ (Peronist umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Roberto IGLESIAS]; Republican Initiative Alliance or PRO (including Federal Recreate Movement or RECREAR [Ricardo LOPEZ MURPHY] and Commitment for Change or CPC [Mauricio MACRI]); Socialist Party or PS [Ruben GIUSTINIANI]; Union For All [Patricia BULLRICH]; several provincial parties

Political pressure groups and leaders:

Argentine Association of Pharmaceutical Labs (CILFA); Argentine Industrial Union (manufacturers' association); Argentine Rural Society (large landowners' association); business organizations; General Confederation of Labor or CGT (Peronist-leaning umbrella labor organization); Peronist-dominated labor movement; Roman Catholic Church; students

International organization participation:

AfDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-6, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MTCR, NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Jose Octavio BORDON chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 238-6400 FAX: [1] (202) 332-3171 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Earl Anthony WAYNE embassy: Avenida Colombia 4300, C1425GMN Buenos Aires mailing address: international mail: use street address; APO address: Unit 4334, APO AA 34034 telephone: [54] (11) 5777-4533 FAX: [54] (11) 5777-4240

Flag description:

three equal horizontal bands of light blue (top), white, and light blue; centered in the white band is a radiant yellow sun with a human face known as the Sun of May Cataratas del Iguazu

Argentina

Economy

Economy - overview:

Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. However, when President Carlos MENEM took office in 1989, the country had piled up huge external debts, inflation had reached 200% per month, and output was plummeting. To combat the economic crisis, the government embarked on a path of trade liberalization, deregulation, and privatization. In 1991, it implemented radical monetary reforms which pegged the peso to the US dollar and limited the growth in the monetary base by law to the growth in reserves. Inflation fell sharply in subsequent years. In 1995, the Mexican peso crisis produced capital flight, the loss of banking system deposits, and a severe, but short-lived, recession; a series of reforms to bolster the domestic banking system followed. Real GDP growth recovered strongly, reaching 8% in 1997. In 1998, international financial turmoil caused by Russia's problems and increasing investor anxiety over Brazil produced the highest domestic interest rates in more than three years, halving the growth rate of the economy. Conditions worsened in 1999 with GDP falling by 3%. President Fernando DE LA RUA, who took office in December 1999, sponsored tax increases and spending cuts to reduce the deficit, which had ballooned to 2.5% of GDP in 1999. Growth in 2000 was a disappointing 0.8%, as both domestic and foreign investors remained skeptical of the government's ability to pay debts and maintain its fixed exchange rate with the US dollar. One bright spot at the start of 2001 was the IMF's offer of $13.7 billion in support.

GDP:	$543.4 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:

9.2% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita:

$13,700 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: 9.5% industry: 35.8% services: 54.7% (2004 est.)

Population below poverty line:

38.5% (June 2005)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%:  NA% highest 10%:  NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

9.6% (2005 est.)

Labor force:

15.34 million (2005 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%

Unemployment rate:

11.6% (2005 est.)

Budget:

revenues: $42.63 billion expenditures: $39.98 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)

Industries:

food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel

Industrial production growth rate:

7.7% (2005 est.)

Electricity - production:

87.16 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - production by source:

fossil fuel: 52.2% hydro: 40.8% nuclear: 6.7% other: 0.2% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:

82.97 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - exports:

2.07 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - imports:

1.561 billion kWh (2004)

Agriculture - products:

sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock

Exports:

$40 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - commodities:

machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics

Exports - partners:

Brazil 24%, EU 21%, US 11% (1999 est.)

Imports:

$25.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Imports - commodities:

machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics

Imports - partners:

Brazil 34.6%, US 16.8%, China 5.4%, Germany 5.3% (2005)

Debt - external:

$118.2 billion (2005 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:

$10 billion (2001 est.)

Currency:

Argentine peso (ARS)

Currency code:

ARS

Exchange rates:

Argentine pesos per US dollar - 2.9037 (2005), 2.9233 (2004), 2.9006 (2003), 3.0633 (2002), 0.9995 (2001)

Fiscal year:

calendar year Glaciar Upsula

Argentina

Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:

8.8 million (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

22.1 million (2005)

Telephone system:

general assessment:  by opening the telecommunications market to competition and foreign investment with the "Telecommunications Liberalization Plan of 1998", Argentina encouraged the growth of modern telecommunication technology; fiber-optic cable trunk lines are being installed between all major cities; the major networks are entirely digital and the availability of telephone service is being improved; however, telephone density is presently minimal, and making telephone service universally available will take some time domestic:  microwave radio relay, fiber-optic cable, and a domestic satellite system with 40 earth stations serve the trunk network; more than 110,000 pay telephones are installed and mobile telephone use is rapidly expanding international: country code - 54; satellite earth stations - 112; Atlantis II and Unisur submarine cables; two international gateways near Buenos Aires (2005)

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM NA (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998)

Radios:

24.3 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:

42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997)

Televisions:

7.95 million (1997)

Internet country code:

.ar

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):

33 (2000)

Internet users:

10 million (2005) Ciudad de la Plata

Argentina

Transportation

Railways:

total: 229,144 km paved: 68,809 km (including 734 km of expressways) unpaved: 160,335 km (2004)

Highways:

total:  215,434 km paved:  63,553 km (including 734 km of expressways) unpaved:  151,881 km (1998 est.)

Waterways:

11,000 km (2005)

Pipelines:

gas 29,804 km; liquid petroleum gas 41 km; oil 10,373 km; refined products 8,540 km; unknown (oil/water) 13 km (2006)

Ports and harbors:

Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia, Concepcion del Uruguay, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Necochea, Rio Gallegos, Rosario, Santa Fe, Ushuaia

Merchant marine:

total: 41 ships (1000 GRT or over) 435,969 GRT/707,767 DWT by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 10, chemical tanker 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 21, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 11 (Chile 6, UK 4, Uruguay 1) registered in other countries: 24 (Bolivia 1, Chile 1, Liberia 7, Panama 9, Paraguay 3, Uruguay 3) (2006)

Airports:

1,381 (2006)

Airports - with paved runways:

total: 154 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 65 914 to 1,523 m: 50 under 914 m: 9 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways:

total: 1,227 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 49 914 to 1,523 m: 587 under 914 m: 587 (2006) Antartida

Argentina

Military

Military branches:

Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic (includes Naval Aviation, Marines, and Coast Guard), Argentine Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Aeronautical Police Force

Military manpower - military age:

18 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2001)

Military manpower - availability:

males age 18-49: 8,981,886 females age 18-49: 8,883,756 (2005 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:

males age 18-49: 7,316,038 females age 18-49: 7,442,589 (2005 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:

males age 18-49: 344,575 females age 18-49: 334,649 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:

$4.3 billion (FY99)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:

1.3% (FY00) San Luis

Argentina

Transnational Issues

Disputes - international:

claims UK-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); claims UK-administered South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica partially overlaps British and Chilean claims

Illicit drugs:

used as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for Europe; some money-laundering activity, especially in the Tri-Border Area; domestic consumption of drugs in urban centers is increasing

This page was last updated on 14 November, 2006 by cia.gov/cia/publications