Geography

Location:
Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, between Colombia and Guyana
Area:

total area: 912,050 sq km
land area: 882,050 sq km
Coastline:
2,800 km
Climate:
tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands
Terrain:
Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central plains (llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, bauxite, other minerals, hydropower, diamonds
Land use:

arable land: 3%
permanent crops: 1%
meadows and pastures: 20%
forest and woodland: 39%
other: 37%
Irrigated land:
2,640 sq km (1989 est.)



People

Population:
21,004,773 (July 1995 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.1% (1995 est.)
Birth rate:
25.11 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate:
4.57 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 73.31 years
male: 70.48 years
female: 76.29 years (1995 est.)
Ethnic divisions:
mestizo 67%, white 21%, black 10%, Amerindian 2%
Religions:
nominally Roman Catholic 96%, Protestant 2%
Languages:
Spanish (official), native dialects spoken by about 200,000 Amerindians in the remote interior
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
total population: 90%
male: 91%
female: 89%
Labor force:
7.6 million
by occupation: services 63%, industry 25%, agriculture 12% (1993)



Goverment

Type:
Republic
Capital:
Caracas
Administrative divisions:
21 states (estados, singular - estado), 1 territory* (territorio), 1 federal district** (distrito federal), and 1 federal dependency*** (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 dependency consists of 11 federally controlled island groups with a total of 72 individual islands
Independence:
5 July 1811 (from Spain)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 5 July (1811)
Executive branch:

chief of state and head of government: President Rafael CALDERA Rodriguez (since 2 February 1994); election last held 5 December 1993 (next to be held NA December 1998);
cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed by the president
Legislative branch:
bicameral Congress of the Republic (Congreso de la Republica)
Senate (Senado): elections last held 5 December 1993 (next to be held NA December 1998); seats - (53 total)
Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados): elections last held 5 December 1993 (next to be held NA December 1998); seats - (203 total)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justicia)



Economy

National product:
GDP - purchasing power parity - $178.3 billion (1994 est.)
National product real growth rate:
-3.3% (1994 est.)
National product per capita:
$8,670 (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
71% (1994 est.)
Unemployment rate:
9% (1994 est.)
Budget:

revenues: $10.3 billion
expenditures: $14.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $103 million (1994 est.)
Exports:
$15.2 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: petroleum 72%, bauxite and aluminum, steel, chemicals, agricultural products, basic manufactures
partners: US and Puerto Rico 55%, Japan, Netherlands, Italy
Imports:
$7.6 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction materials
partners: US 40%, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Canada
External debt:
$40.1 billion (1994)
Currency:
1 bolivar (Bs) = 100 centimos
Exchange rates:
bolivares (Bs) per US$1 - 169.570 (January 1995),
£1=....... pesos