Country: Venezuela - Geography Total area: 912,050 km2; land area: 882,050 km2 Comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of California Land boundaries: 4,993 km total; Brazil 2,200 km, Colombia 2,050 km, Guyana 743 km Coastline: 2,800 km Maritime claims: Contiguous zone: 15 nm; Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploitation; Extended economic zone: 200 nm; Territorial sea: 12 nm Disputes: claims Essequibo area of Guyana; maritime boundary disputes with Colombia in the Gulf of Venezuela and with Trinidad and Tobago in the Gulf of Paria Climate: tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands Terrain: Andes mountains and Maracaibo lowlands in northwest; central plains (llanos); Guyana highlands in southeast Natural resources: crude oil, natural gas, iron ore, gold, bauxite, other minerals, hydropower, diamonds Land use: 3% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 20% meadows and pastures; 39% forest and woodland; 37% other; includes NEGL% irrigated Environment: subject to floods, rockslides, mudslides; periodic droughts; increasing industrial pollution in Caracas and Maracaibo Note: on major sea and air routes linking North and South America - People Population: 19,698,104 (July 1990), growth rate 2.5% (1990) Birth rate: 28 births/1,000 population (1990) Death rate: 4 deaths/1,000 population (1990) Net migration rate: 1 migrant/1,000 population (1990) Infant mortality rate: 27 deaths/1,000 live births (1990) Life expectancy at birth: 71 years male, 77 years female (1990) Total fertility rate: 3.4 children born/woman (1990) Nationality: noun--Venezuelan(s); adjective--Venezuelan Ethnic divisions: 67% mestizo, 21% white, 10% black, 2% Indian Religion: 96% nominally Roman Catholic, 2% Protestant Language: Spanish (official); Indian dialects spoken by about 200,000 Amerindians in the remote interior Literacy: 85.6% Labor force: 5,800,000; 56% services, 28% industry, 16% agriculture (1985) Organized labor: 32% of labor force - Government Long-form name: Republic of Venezuela Type: republic Capital: Caracas Administrative divisions: 20 states (estados, singular--estado), 2 territories* (territorios, singular--territorio), 1 federal district** (distrito federal), and 1 federal dependence*** (dependencia federal); Amazonas*, Anzoategui, Apure, Aragua, Barinas, Bolivar, Carabobo, Cojedes, Delta Amacuro*, Dependencias Federales***, Distrito Federal**, Falcon, Guarico, Lara, Merida, Miranda, Monagas, Nueva Esparta, Portuguesa, Sucre, Tachira, Trujillo, Yaracuy, Zulia; note--the federal dependence consists of 11 federally controlled island groups with a total of 72 individual islands Independence: 5 July 1811 (from Spain) Constitution: 23 January 1961 Legal system: based on Napoleonic code; judicial review of legislative acts in Cassation Court only; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction National holiday: Independence Day, 5 July (1811) Executive branch: president, Council of Ministers (cabinet) Legislative branch: bicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional) consists of an upper chamber or Senate (Senado) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados) Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justica) Leaders: Chief of State and Head of Government--President Carlos Andres PEREZ (since 2 February 1989) Political parties and leaders: Social Christian Party (COPEI), Eduardo Fernandez, secretary general; Democratic Action (AD), Gonzalo Barrios, president, and Humberto Celli, secretary general; Movement Toward Socialism (MAS), Teodoro Petkoff, president, and Freddy Munoz, secretary general Suffrage: universal and compulsory at age 18, though poorly enforced Elections: President--last held 4 December 1988 (next to be held December 1993); results--Carlos Andres Perez (AD) 53%, Eduardo Fernandez (COPEI) 40%, others 7%; Senate--last held 4 December 1988 (next to be held December 1993); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(49 total) AD 23, COPEI 22, others 4; Chamber of Deputies--last held 4 December 1988 (next to be held December 1993); results--AD 43.7%, COPEI 31.4%, MAS 10.3%, others 14.6%; seats--(201 total) AD 97, COPEI 67, MAS 18, others 19 Communists: 10,000 members (est.) Other political or pressure groups: FEDECAMARAS, a conservative business group; Venezuelan Confederation of Workers, the Democratic Action-dominated labor organization Member of: Andean Pact, AIOEC, FAO, G-77, Group of Eight, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICO, IDB--Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, IRC, ITU, IWC--International Wheat Council, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPEC, PAHO, SELA, WFTU, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Simon Alberto CONSALVI Bottaro; Chancery at 2445 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 797-3800; there are Venezuelan Consulates General in Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico); US--Ambassador-designate Eric JAVITS; Embassy at Avenida Francisco de Miranda and Avenida Principal de la Floresta, Caracas (mailing address is P. O. Box 62291, Caracas 1060-A, or APO Miami 34037); telephone p58o (2) 284-6111 or 7111; there is a US Consulate in Maracaibo Flag: three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), blue, and red with the coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band and an arc of seven white five-pointed stars centered in the blue band - Economy Overview: Petroleum is the cornerstone of the economy and accounted for 17% of GDP, 52% of central government revenues, and 81% of export earnings in 1988. President Perez introduced an economic readjustment program when he assumed office in February 1989. Lower tariffs and price supports, a free market exchange rate, and market-linked interest rates have thrown the economy into confusion, causing about an 8% decline in GDP. GDP: $52.0 billion, per capita $2,700; real growth rate - 8.1% (1989 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 80.7% (1989) Unemployment rate: 7.0% (1988) Budget: revenues $8.4 billion; expenditures $8.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.9 billion (1989) Exports: $10.4 billion (f.o.b., 1988); commodities--petroleum 81%, bauxite and aluminum, iron ore, agricultural products, basic manufactures; partners--US 50.3%, FRG 5.3%, Japan 4.1% (1988) Imports: $10.9 billion (f.o.b., 1988); commodities--foodstuffs, chemicals, manufactures, machinery and transport equipment; partners--US 44%, FRG 8.5%, Japan 6%, Italy 5%, Brazil 4.4% (1987) External debt: $33.6 billion (1988) Industrial production: growth rate 3.7%, excluding oil (1988) Electricity: 19,110,000 kW capacity; 54,516 million kWh produced, 2,830 kWh per capita (1989) Industries: petroleum, iron-ore mining, construction materials, food processing, textiles, steel, aluminum, motor vehicle assembly Agriculture: accounts for 6% of GDP and 15% of labor force; products--corn, sorghum, sugarcane, rice, bananas, vegetables, coffee, beef, pork, milk, eggs, fish; not self-sufficient in food other than meat Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis and coca for the international drug trade on a small scale; however, large quantities of cocaine and marijuana do transit the country Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-86), $488 million; Communist countries (1970-88), $10 million Currency: bolivar (plural--bolivares); 1 bolivar (Bs) = 100 centimos Exchange rates: bolivares (Bs) per US$1--43.42 (January 1990), 34.6815 (1989), 14.5000 (fixed rate 1987-88), 8.0833 (1986), 7.5000 (1985) Fiscal year: calendar year - Communications Railroads: 542 km total; 363 km 1.435-meter standard gauge all single track, government owned; 179 km 1.435-meter gauge, privately owned Highways: 77,785 km total; 22,780 km paved, 24,720 km gravel, 14,450 km earth roads, and 15,835 km unimproved earth Inland waterways: 7,100 km; Rio Orinoco and Lago de Maracaibo accept oceangoing vessels Pipelines: 6,370 km crude oil; 480 km refined products; 4,010 km natural gas Ports: Amuay Bay, Bajo Grande, El Tablazo, La Guaira, Puerto Cabello, Puerto Ordaz Merchant marine: 70 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 997,458 GRT/1,615,155 DWT; includes 1 short-sea passenger, 1 passenger cargo, 28 cargo, 2 container, 3 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 17 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 2 chemical tanker, 2 liquefied gas, 11 bulk, 1 vehicle carrier, 1 combination bulk, 1 combination ore/oil Civil air: 58 major transport aircraft Airports: 306 total, 278 usable; 134 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 12 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 92 with runways 1,220-2,439 m Telecommunications: modern and expanding; 1,440,000 telephones; stations--181 AM, no FM, 59 TV, 26 shortwave; 3 submarine coaxial cables; satellite earth stations--1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 3 domestic - Defense Forces Branches: Ground Forces (Army), Naval Forces (Navy, Marines, Coast Guard), Air Forces, Armed Forces of Cooperation (National Guard) Military manpower: males 15-49, 5,073,913; 3,680,176 fit for military service; 211,269 reach military age (18) annually Defense expenditures: 1.1% of GDP, or $570 million (1990 est.)