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MEXICO

Geography

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 area: 1,972,550 sq km

land area: 1,923,040 sq km

comparative area: 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

Coastline: 9,330 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

International disputes: claims Clipperton Island (French possession)

Climate: varies from tropical to desert

Terrain: high, rugged mountains, low coastal plains, high plateaus, and desert

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%

meadows and pastures: 39%

forest and woodland: 24%

other: 24%

Irrigated land: 51,500 sq km (1989 est.)

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

natural hazards: tsunamis along the Pacific coast, destructive earthquakes in the center and south, and hurricanes on the Gulf and Caribbean coasts

international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

Geographic note: strategic location on southern border of US

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People

Population: 95,772,462 (July 1996 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 36% (male 17,732,725; female 17,125,562)

15-64 years: 59% (male 27,562,285; female 29,165,138)

65 years and over: 5% (male 1,911,968; female 2,274,784) (July 1996 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.87% (1996 est.)

Birth rate: 26.24 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate: 4.58 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net migration rate: -2.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female

all ages: 0.97 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 25 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 73.67 years

male: 70.07 years

female: 77.45 years (1996 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.03 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Nationality:

noun: Mexican(s)

adjective: Mexican

Ethnic divisions: mestizo (Indian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%, Caucasian or predominantly Caucasian 9%, other 1%

Religions: nominally Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 6%

Languages: Spanish, various Mayan dialects

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)

total population: 89.6%

male: 91.8%

female: 87.4%

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Government

Name of country:

conventional long form: United Mexican States

conventional short form: Mexico

local long form: Estados Unidos Mexicanos

local short form: Mexico

Data code: MX

Type of government: federal republic operating under a centralized government

Capital: Mexico

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 and head of government: President Ernesto ZEDILLO Ponce de Leon (since 1 December 1994) was elected for a six-year term by popular vote; election last held 21 August 1994 (next to be held NA 2000); results - Ernesto ZEDILLO Ponce de Leon (PRI) 50.18%, Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (PRD) 17.08%, Diego FERNANDEZ DE CEVALLOS (PAN) 26.69%; other 6.049%

cabinet: Cabinet was appointed by the president

Legislative branch: bicameral National Congress (Congreso de la Union)

Senate (Camara de Senadores): elections last held 21 August 1994 (next to be held NA July 1997 for one-quarter of the seats); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats in full Senate - (128 total; Senate expanded from 64 seats at the last election) PRI 93, PRD 25, PAN 10

Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados): elections last held 24 August 1994 (next to be held NA July 1997); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (500 total) PRI 300, PAN 119, PRD 71, PT 10

Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justicia), judges are appointed by the president with consent of the Senate

Political parties and leaders: (recognized parties) Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Santiago ONATE Laborde; National Action Party (PAN), Carlos CASTILLO; Popular Socialist Party (PPS), Indalecio SAYAGO Herrera; Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), Porfirio MUNOZ Ledo; Cardenist Front for the National Reconstruction Party (PFCRN), Rafael AGUILAR Talamantes; Democratic Forum Party (PFD), Pablo Emilio MADERO; Mexican Green Ecologist Party (PVEM), Jorge GONZALEZ Torres; Workers Party (PT), Alberto ANYA Gutierrez

Other political or pressure groups: Roman Catholic Church; Confederation of Mexican Workers (CTM); Confederation of Industrial Chambers (CONCAMIN); Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce (CONCANACO); National Peasant Confederation (CNC); Revolutionary Workers Party (PRT); Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants (CROC); Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers (CROM); Confederation of Employers of the Mexican Republic (COPARMEX); National Chamber of Transformation Industries (CANACINTRA); Coordinator for Foreign Trade Business Organizations (COECE); Federation of Unions Providing Goods and Services (FESEBES)

International organization participation: AG (observer), APEC, BCIE, Caricom (observer), CCC, CDB, EBRD, ECLAC, FAO, G- 6, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM (observer), OAS, OECD, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Jesus SILVA Herzog Flores

chancery: 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006

telephone: [1] (202) 728-1600

consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico)

consulate(s): Albuquerque, Austin, Boston, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Loredo, McAllen (Texas), Midland (Texas), Nogales (Arizona), Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Sacramento, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, San Jose, Santa Ana, Seattle

US diplomatic representation:

chief of mission: Ambassador James R. JONES

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) 211-0042

FAX: [52] (5) 511-9980, 208-3373

consulate(s) general: Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Tijuana

consulate(s): Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida, Nuevo Laredo

Flag: 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

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Economy

Economic overview: Mexico has a free market economy with a mixture of modern and outmoded industry and agriculture, increasingly dominated by the private sector. Mexico entered 1996 on the heels of its worst recession since the 1930s. Economic activity contracted about 7% in 1995 in the aftermath of the peso devaluation in late 1994. Although Mexico City was able to correct imbalances in its external accounts, meet international payments obligations, and dramatically improve its trade balance in 1995, the domestic economy suffered harshly as the ZEDILLO administration stuck to a strict austerity program. The tight monetary and fiscal policies helped prevent spiraling inflation and kept government spending under control but drove interest rates to record heights, making it difficult for most Mexicans to service their debts. At the same time, consumers' reduced purchasing power made buying even necessities difficult for some. Many small- and medium-sized firms were unable to survive under the twin burdens of high interest rates and depressed domestic demand for their goods. Business closures and cutbacks fueled unemployment; more than 1 million Mexicans lost their jobs. According to the government and most private sector observers, the recession bottomed out in the third quarter of 1995, but the difficult year fed growing dissatisfaction with the ruling party, led to a crisis of confidence in President ZEDILLO'S ability to lead, and spurred increased tensions within the ruling party. While the ZEDILLO administration is optimistic that 1996 will bring some recovery - the government is forecasting 3% growth and 21% inflation - Mexico will face several key vulnerabilities, including the financial health of the banking sector, shaky investor confidence that could be easily jarred by more political or economic shocks, and increasingly emboldened dissenters within the ruling party.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $721.4 billion (1995 est.)

GDP real growth rate: -6.9% (1995 est.)

GDP per capita: $7,700 (1995 est.)

GDP composition by sector:

agriculture: 8.5%

industry: 28.4%

services: 63.1%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 52% (1995 est.)

Labor force: 33.6 million (1994)

by occupation: services 31.7%, agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing 28%, commerce 14.6%, manufacturing 11.1%, construction 8.4%, transportation 4.7%, mining and quarrying 1.5%

Unemployment rate: 10% (1995 est.) plus considerable underemployment

Budget:

revenues: $56 billion (1995 est.)

expenditures: $54 billion (1995 est.), including capital expenditures of $NA

Industries: food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, tourism

Industrial production growth rate: -7.5% (1995 est.)

Electricity:

capacity: 28,780,000 kW

production: 122 billion kWh

consumption per capita: 1,239 kWh (1993)

Agriculture: corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; beef, poultry, dairy products; wood products

Illicit drugs: illicit cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis continues in spite of increasing government eradication; major supplier of heroin and marijuana to the US market; continues as the primary transshipment country for US-bound cocaine from South America; increasingly involved in the production and distribution of methamphetamine

Exports: $80 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.), includes in-bond industries

commodities: crude oil, oil products, coffee, silver, engines, motor vehicles, cotton, consumer electronics

partners: US 85%, Japan 1.6%, EU 4.6% (1994 est.)

Imports: $72 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.), includes in-bond industries

commodities: metal-working machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts

partners: US 69%, Japan 6%, EU 12% (1994 est.)

External debt: $155 billion (1995 est.)

Economic aid:

recipient: ODA, $85 million (1993)

note: US commitments, (Emergency Stabilization Fund), $13.5 billion; IMF, $13 billion (1995-96)

Currency: 1 New Mexican peso (Mex$) = 100 centavos

Exchange rates: market rate of Mexican pesos (Mex$) per US$1 - 7.6647 (December 1995), 6.4194 (1995), 3.3751 (1994), 3.1156 (1993), 3,094.9 (1992), 3,018.4 (1991)

note: the new peso replaced the old peso on 1 January 1993; 1 new peso = 1,000 old pesos

Fiscal year: calendar year

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Transportation

Railways:

total: 20,567 km

standard gauge: 20,477 km 1.435-m gauge (246 km electrified)

narrow gauge: 90 km 0.914-m gauge (1994)

Highways:

total: 245,433 km

paved: 88,601 km (including 4,286 km of expressways)

unpaved: 156,832 km (1993 est.)

Waterways: 2,900 km 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: Acapulco, Altamira, Coatzacoalcos, Ensenada, Guaymas, La Paz, Lazaro Cardenas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Progreso, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Topolobampo, Tuxpan, Veracruz

Merchant marine:

total: 51 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 875,314 GRT/1,245,932 DWT

ships by type: cargo 1, chemical tanker 4, container 4, liquefied gas tanker 7, oil tanker 29, refrigerated cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 2, short-sea passenger 3 (1995 est.)

Airports:

total: 1,411

with paved runways over 3,047 m: 9

with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 25

with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 88

with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 66

with paved runways under 914 m: 815

with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 50

with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 358 (1995 est.)

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Communications

Telephones: 11,890,868 (1993 est.)

Telephone system: highly developed system with extensive microwave radio relay links; privatized in December 1990

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

international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean); launched Solidaridad I satellite in November 1993 and Solidaridad II in October 1994, giving Mexico improved access to South America, Central America and much of the US as well as enhancing domestic communications; linked to Central American Microwave System of trunk connections

Radio broadcast stations: AM 679, FM 0, shortwave 22

Radios: 22.5 million (1992 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 238

Televisions: 13.1 million (1992 est.)

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Defense

Branches: National Defense (includes Army and Air Force), Navy (includes Naval Air and Marines)

Manpower availability:

males age 15-49: 23,945,962

males fit for military service: 17,451,706

males reach military age (18) annually: 1,057,538 (1996 est.)

Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $2.24 billion, 0.9% of GDP (1996)

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