| Background: |
The site of
advanced Amerindian civilizations, Mexico came under Spanish
rule for three centuries before achieving independence early
in the 19th century. A devaluation of the peso in late 1994
threw Mexico into economic turmoil, triggering the worst
recession in over half a century. The nation continues to
make an impressive recovery. Ongoing economic and social
concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large
segment of the population, inequitable income distribution,
and few advancement opportunities for the largely Amerindian
population in the impoverished southern states. |
| Location: |
Middle America,
bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, between
Belize and the US and bordering the North Pacific Ocean,
between Guatemala and the US |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
23 00 N, 102 00 W |
| Map
references: |
North America |
| Area: |
total:
1,972,550 sq km
land: 1,923,040 sq km
water: 49,510 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly less
than three times the size of Texas |
| Land
boundaries: |
total:
4,538 km
border countries: Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962
km, US 3,326 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: |
varies from
tropical to desert |
| Terrain: |
high, rugged
mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus; desert |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Laguna Salada -10 m
highest point: Volcan Pico de Orizaba 5,700 m |
| Natural
resources: |
petroleum,
silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
12%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 39%
forests and woodland: 26%
other: 22% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
61,000 sq km
(1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
tsunamis along
the Pacific coast, volcanoes and destructive earthquakes in
the center and south, and hurricanes on the Gulf of Mexico
and Caribbean coasts |
| 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 |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, 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: none of the selected
agreements |
| Geography
- note: |
strategic
location on southern border of US |
| Population: |
101,879,171 (July
2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
33.32% (male 17,312,220; female 16,635,438)
15-64 years: 62.28% (male 30,888,015; female
32,558,359)
65 years and over: 4.4% (male 1,997,219; female
2,487,920) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
1.5% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
22.77
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
5.02 deaths/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-2.77 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
25.36
deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 71.76 years
male: 68.73 years
female: 74.93 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
2.62 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.29% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
150,000 (1999
est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
4,700 (1999 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Mexican(s)
adjective: Mexican |
| Ethnic
groups: |
mestizo
(Amerindian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly
Amerindian 30%, white 9%, other 1% |
| Religions: |
nominally Roman
Catholic 89%, Protestant 6%, other 5% |
| Languages: |
Spanish, various
Mayan, Nahuatl, and other regional indigenous languages |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89.6%
male: 91.8%
female: 87.4% (1995 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: United Mexican States
conventional short form: Mexico
local long form: Estados Unidos Mexicanos
local short form: Mexico |
| Government
type: |
federal republic |
| 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: President Vicente FOX Quesada (since 1
December 2000); note - the president is both the chief of
state and head of government
head of government: President Vicente FOX
Quesada (since 1 December 2000); note - the president is
both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president;
note - appointment of attorney general requires consent of
the Senate
elections: president elected by popular vote
for a six-year term; election last held 2 July 2000 (next to
be held NA July 2006)
election results: Vicente FOX Quesada elected
president; percent of vote - Vicente FOX Quesada (PAN)
42.52%, Francisco LABASTIDA Ochoa (PRI) 36.1%, Cuauhtemoc
CARDENAS Solorzano (PRD) 16.64%, other 4.74% |
| Legislative
branch: |
bicameral
National Congress or Congreso de la Union consists of the
Senate or Camara de Senadores (128 seats; 96 are elected by
popular vote to serve six-year terms, and 32 are allocated
on the basis of each party's popular vote) and the Federal
Chamber of Deputies or Camara Federal de Diputados (500
seats; 300 members are directly elected by popular vote to
serve three-year terms; remaining 200 members are allocated
on the basis of each party's popular vote, also for
three-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 July 2000 for
all of the seats (next to be held NA 2006); Chamber of
Deputies - last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2003)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - PRI 59, PAN 45, PRD 17, PVEM
5, PT 1, PCD 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - PRI 211, PAN 208, PRD 50, PVEM
16, PT 7, PCD 3, PSN 3, PAS 2 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Court of
Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are appointed
by the president with consent of the Senate) |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Convergence for
Democracy or CD [Dante DELGADO Ranauro]; Institutional
Revolutionary Party or PRI [Dulce Maria SAURI Riancho];
Mexican Green Ecological Party or PVEM [Jorge GONZALEZ
Torres]; National Action Party or PAN [Luis Felipe BRAVO
Mena]; Party of the Democratic Center or PCD [Manuel CAMACHO
Solis]; Party of the Democratic Revolution or PRD [Amalia
GARCIA Medina]; Party of the Nationalist Society or PSN
[Gustavo RIOJAIS Santana]; Social Alliance Party or PAS
[Jose Antonio CALDERON Cardoso]; Workers Party or PT
[Alberto ANAYA Gutierrez] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Confederation of
Employers of the Mexican Republic or COPARMEX; Confederation
of Industrial Chambers or CONCAMIN; Confederation of Mexican
Workers or CTM; Confederation of National Chambers of
Commerce or CONCANACO; Coordinator for Foreign Trade
Business Organizations or COECE; Federation of Unions
Providing Goods and Services or FESEBES; National Chamber of
Transformation Industries or CANACINTRA; National Peasant
Confederation or CNC; National Union of Workers or UNT;
Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers or CROM;
Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants or CROC;
Roman Catholic Church |
| International
organization participation: |
APEC, BCIE, BIS,
Caricom (observer), CCC, CDB, CE (observer), EBRD, ECLAC,
FAO, G-3, G-6, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, IADB, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA (observer), IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM (observer), NEA, OAS,
OECD, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UNITAR, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Juan Jose BREMER Martino
chancery: 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20006
telephone: [1] (202) 728-1600
FAX: [1] (202) 728-1698
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Austin, Boston,
Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Laredo (Texas),
Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Nogales
(Arizona), Phoenix, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Diego, San
Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico)
consulate(s): Albuquerque, Brownsville (Texas),
Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas),
Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno
(California), McAllen (Texas), Midland (Texas), Orlando,
Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon), St.
Louis, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, San Jose, Santa Ana
(California), Seattle, Tucson |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Jeffery DAVIDOW
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) 209-9100
FAX: [52] (5) 208-3373, 511-9980
consulate(s) general: Ciudad Juarez,
Guadalajara, Monterrey, Tijuana
consulate(s): Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida,
Nuevo Laredo, Nogales |
| Flag
description: |
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 has a free
market economy with a mixture of modern and outmoded
industry and agriculture, increasingly dominated by the
private sector. The number of state-owned enterprises in
Mexico has fallen from more than 1,000 in 1982 to fewer than
200 in 2000. The ZEDILLO administration privatized and
expanded competition in seaports, railroads,
telecommunications, electricity, natural gas distribution,
and airports. A strong export sector helped to cushion the
economy's decline in 1995 and led the recovery in 1996-2000.
Private consumption became the leading driver of growth in
2000, accompanied by increased employment and higher real
wages. Mexico still needs to overcome many structural
problems as it strives to modernize its economy and raise
living standards. Income distribution is very unequal, with
the top 20% of income earners accounting for 55% of income.
Trade with the US and Canada has tripled since NAFTA was
implemented in 1994. Mexico completed free trade agreements
with the EU, Israel, El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala in
2000, and is pursuing additional trade agreements with
countries in Latin America and Asia to lessen its dependence
on the US. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $915 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
7.1% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $9,100 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
5%
industry: 27%
services: 68% (2000) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
27% (1998 est.) |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
1.8%
highest 10%: 36.6% (1996) |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
9% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
39.8 million
(2000) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture 20%,
industry 24%, services 56% (1998) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
urban - 2.2%
(2000); plus considerable underemployment |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$125 billion
expenditures: $130 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
| Industries: |
food and
beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum,
mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer
durables, tourism |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
7.5% (2000 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
182.492 billion
kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
74.12%
hydro: 17.75%
nuclear: 5.21%
other: 2.92% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
170.754 billion
kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
11 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
1.047 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
corn, wheat,
soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes;
beef, poultry, dairy products; wood products |
| Exports: |
$168 billion
(f.o.b., 2000), includes in-bond industries (assembly plant
operations) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
manufactured
goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits, vegetables,
coffee, cotton |
| Exports
- partners: |
US 88.6%, Canada
2%, Spain 0.9%, Germany 0.9%, Japan 0.6%, UK 0.6%,
Netherlands Antilles 0.5%, Switzerland 0.3% Venezuela 0.3%,
Chile 0.3% (2000 est.) |
| Imports: |
$176 billion
(f.o.b., 2000), includes in-bond industries (assembly plant
operations) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
metal-working
machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery,
electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts
for motor vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts |
| Imports
- partners: |
US 73.6%, Japan
3.7%, Germany 3.3%, Canada 2.3%, South Korea 2%, China 1.6%,
Taiwan 1.2%, Italy 1%, Brazil 1% (2000 est.) |
| Debt
- external: |
$162 billion
(2000) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$1.166 billion
(1995) |
| Currency: |
Mexican peso (MXN) |
| Exchange
rates: |
Mexican pesos per
US dollar - 9.7701 (January 2001), 9.4556 (2000), 9.5604
(1999), 9.1360 (1998), 7.9185 (1997), 7.5994 (1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
9.6 million
(1998) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
2.02 million
(1998) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: low telephone density with about 11
main lines per 100 persons; privatized in December 1990; the
opening to competition in January 1997 has brightened
prospects for development
domestic: adequate telephone service for
business and government, but the population is poorly
served; domestic satellite system with 120 earth stations;
extensive microwave radio relay network; considerable use of
fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, and mobile cellular
service
international: satellite earth stations - 32
Intelsat, 2 Solidaridad (giving Mexico improved access to
South America, Central America, and much of the US as well
as enhancing domestic communications), numerous Inmarsat
mobile earth stations; linked to Central American Microwave
System of trunk connections; high capacity Columbus-2
fiber-optic submarine cable with access to the US, Virgin
Islands, Canary Islands, Morocco, Spain, and Italy (1997) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 865, FM about
500, shortwave 13 (1999) |
| Radios: |
31 million (1997) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
236 (plus
repeaters) (1997) |
| Televisions: |
25.6 million
(1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.mx |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
51 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
2.5 million
(2000) |
| Railways: |
total:
31,048 km
standard gauge: 30,958 km 1.435-m gauge (246 km
electrified)
narrow gauge: 90 km 0.914-m gauge (1998 est.) |
| Highways: |
total:
323,977 km
paved: 96,221 km (including 6,335 km of
expressways)
unpaved: 227,756 km (1997) |
| Waterways: |
2,900 km
note: 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
and harbors: |
Acapulco,
Altamira, Coatzacoalcos, Ensenada, Guaymas, La Paz, Lazaro
Cardenas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Progreso, Salina Cruz,
Tampico, Topolobampo, Tuxpan, Veracruz |
| Merchant
marine: |
total:
43 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 590,657 GRT/920,456
DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 1, chemical tanker
4, liquefied gas 3, petroleum tanker 28, roll on/roll off 2,
short-sea passenger 3 (2000 est.) |
| Airports: |
1,848 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
238
over 3,047 m: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 28
1,524 to 2,437 m: 90
914 to 1,523 m: 82
under 914 m: 27 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
1,610
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 65
914 to 1,523 m: 470
under 914 m: 1,073 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
National Defense
Secretariat (includes Army and Air Force), Navy Secretariat
(includes Naval Air and Naval Infantry) |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
18 years of age
note: starting in 2000, females will be allowed
to volunteer for military service |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age
15-49: 26,703,300 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age
15-49: 19,394,184 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males:
1,077,536 (2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$4 billion (FY99) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
1% (FY99) |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
| Illicit
drugs: |
illicit
cultivation of opium poppy (cultivation in 2000 - 1,900
hectares; potential heroin production - 2.4 metric tons) and
cannabis cultivation in 2000 - 3,900 hectares; government
eradication efforts have been key in keeping illicit crop
levels low; major supplier of heroin and marijuana to the US
market; continues as the primary transshipment country for
US-bound cocaine from South America; two major drug
syndicates control majority of drug trafficking throughout
the country; primary supplier of methamphetamine to the US
market; growing producer and distributor of ecstasy |
|
