Guatemala

Republic of GuatemalaRepublica de Guatemala

constitutional democratic republicIndependence 15 September 1821 (from Spain)

Guatemala as the 2004 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 125 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalGuatemala
Position15 30 N, 90 15 W
Area108,890 sq km
2004

Every edition of Guatemala

Populationas each edition published it
14.28 million July 2004 est. · 9.1m in 1990
Population growth% a year
2.61% 2004 est. · 2.63% in 1993
Median ageyears
18.4 years 2004 est. · 18.3 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
65.19 years 2004 est. · 63.99 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
4.6 children per woman 2004 est. · 5.1 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
36.91 deaths per 1,000 live births 2004 est. · 61 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
$4,100 2003 est. · $1,300 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
2.1% 2003 est. · 4.2% in 1993

Introduction

1 field

Background

The Maya civilization flourished in Guatemala and surrounding regions during the first millennium A.D. After almost three centuries as a Spanish colony, Guatemala won its independence in 1821. During the second half of the 20th century, it experienced a variety of military and civilian governments as well as a 36-year guerrilla war. In 1996, the government signed a peace agreement formally ending the conflict, which had led to the death of more than 100,000 people and had created some 1 million refugees.

Geography

Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Mexico, and bordering the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) between Honduras and Belize

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Land useshare of 108,890 sq km

arable land 12.54%permanent crops 5.03%other 82.43% (2001)irrigated 1,250 sq km (1998 est.)
Area
108,890sq km
land: 108,430 sq kmwater: 460 sq kmslightly smaller than Tennessee
Coastline
400km
territorial sea: 12 nmexclusive economic zone: 200 nmcontinental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Highest point
4,211m
Volcan Tajumulcolowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
Land boundaries
1,687km
border countries: Belize 266 km, El Salvador 203 km, Honduras 256 km, Mexico 962 km

Location

Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Mexico, and bordering the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) between Honduras and Belize

Geographic coordinates

15 30 N, 90 15 W

Map references

Central America and the Caribbean

Climate

  • tropical;
  • hot, humid in lowlands;
  • cooler in highlands

Terrain

mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling limestone plateau (Peten)

Natural resources

petroleum, nickel, rare woods, fish, chicle, hydropower

Natural hazards

numerous volcanoes in mountains, with occasional violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast extremely susceptible to hurricanes and other tropical storms

Environment - current issues

  • deforestation in the Peten rainforest;
  • soil erosion;
  • water pollution

Environment - international agreements

party to:
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements

Geography - note

no natural harbors on west coast

People

19 fields
Population
14,280,596
(July 2004 est.)growth rate: 2.61% (2004 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2004 est.)

Birth
34.58Death
6.79Net migration
-1.67

Male · female

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years (2004 est.)65.19
64.3 · 66.13Infant mortality deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)36.91
37.71 · 36.07
TotalMale · femaleLiteracy (2003 est.)70.6%
78% · 63.3%Median age years (2004 est.)18.4
18.1 · 18.6
MaleFemaleLiteracy definition: age 15 and over can read and write

Age structure

0-14 years:
42.6% (male 3,118,396; female 2,970,729)
15-64 years:
54% (male 3,898,939; female 3,817,435)
65 years and over:
3.3% (male 221,154; female 253,943) (2004 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.87 male(s)/female
total population:
1.03 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate

4.6 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

5,800 (2003 est.)

Nationality

noun:
Guatemalan(s)
adjective:
Guatemalan

Ethnic groups

Mestizo (mixed Amerindian-Spanish or assimilated Amerindian - in local Spanish called Ladino), approximately 55%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian, approximately 43%, whites and others 2%

Religions

Roman Catholic, Protestant, indigenous Mayan beliefs

Languages

Spanish 60%, Amerindian languages 40% (23 officially recognized Amerindian languages, including Quiche, Cakchiquel, Kekchi, Mam, Garifuna, and Xinca)

Government

Constitutional democratic republic; President Oscar Jose Rafael BERGER Perdomo (since 14 January 2004); President Oscar Jose Rafael BERGER Perdomo (since 14 January 2004)

18 fields

Presidential electionpercent of vote

54.1%
Oscar BERGER Perdomo (GANA) 54.1%Alvaro COLOM (UNE) 45.9%election last held 9 November 2003; runoff held 28 December 2003 (next to be held NA November 2007)

Congress of the Republic or Congreso de la Republica, 158 seats, elected 9 November 2003one dot, one seat

GANA 49FRG 41UNE 33PAN 17other 18

Country name

conventional long form:
Republic of Guatemala
conventional short form:
Guatemala
local long form:
Republica de Guatemala
local short form:
Guatemala

Government type

constitutional democratic republic

Capital

Guatemala

Administrative divisions

  • 22 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento);
  • Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Chiquimula, El Progreso, Escuintla, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Izabal, Jalapa, Jutiapa, Peten, Quetzaltenango, Quiche, Retalhuleu, Sacatepequez, San Marcos, Santa Rosa, Solola, Suchitepequez, Totonicapan, Zacapa

Independence

15 September 1821 (from Spain)

National holiday

Independence Day, 15 September (1821)

Constitution

  • 31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986;
  • note - suspended 25 May 1993 by former President SERRANO;
  • reinstated 5 June 1993 following ouster of president;
  • amended November 1993

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal (active duty members of the armed forces may not vote and are restricted to their barracks on election day)

Executive branch

chief of state:
  • President Oscar Jose Rafael BERGER Perdomo (since 14 January 2004);
  • Vice President Eduardo STEIN Barillas (since 14 January 2004);
  • note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government:
  • President Oscar Jose Rafael BERGER Perdomo (since 14 January 2004);
  • Vice President Eduardo STEIN Barillas (since 14 January 2004);
  • note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections:
  • president elected by popular vote for a four-year term;
  • election last held 9 November 2003;
  • runoff held 28 December 2003 (next to be held NA November 2007)
election results:
Oscar BERGER Perdomo elected president; percent of vote - Oscar BERGER Perdomo (GANA) 54.1%, Alvaro COLOM (UNE) 45.9%

Legislative branch

unicameral Congress of the Republic or Congreso de la Republica (158 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

elections:
last held 9 November 2003 (next to be held NA November 2007)
election results:
percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - GANA 49, FRG 41, UNE 33, PAN 17, other 18

note: for the 9 November 2003 election, the number of congressional seats increased from 113 to 158

Judicial branch

Constitutional Court or Corte de Constitutcionalidad is Guatemala's highest court (five judges are elected for concurrent five-year terms by Congress, each serving one year as president of the Constitutional Court; one is elected by Congress, one elected by the Supreme Court of Justice, one appointed by the President, one elected by Superior Counsel of Universidad San Carlos de Guatemala, and one by Colegio de Abogados);

Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (thirteen members serve concurrent five-year terms and elect a president of the Court each year from among their number; the president of the Supreme Court of Justice also supervises trial judges around the country, who are named to five-year terms)

Political parties and leaders

  • Authentic Integral Development or DIA [Eduardo SUGER];
  • Democratic Union or UD [Rodolfo PAIZ Andrade];
  • Grand National Alliance or GANA [Oscar BERGER Perdomo];
  • Green Party or LOV [Rodolfo ROSALES Garcis-Salaz];
  • Guatemalan Christian Democracy or DCG [Vinicio CEREZO Arevalo];
  • Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity or URNG [Alba ESTELA Maldonado, secretary general];
  • Guatemalan Republican Front or FRG [Efrain RIOS Montt];
  • Movement for Guatemalan Unity or MGU [Jacobo ARBENZ Villanueva];
  • Movement for Principals and Values or MPV [Francisco BIANCHI];
  • National Advancement Party or PAN [Leonel LOPEZ Rodas, secretary general];
  • National Unity for Hope or UNE [Alvarado COLOM Caballeros];
  • New Nation Alliance or ANN, formed by an alliance of DIA, URNG, and several splinter groups most of whom subsequently defected [led by three co-equal partners - Nineth Varenca MONTENEGRO Cottom, Rodolfo BAUER Paiz, and Jorge Antonio BALSELLS TUT];
  • Patriot Party or PP [retired General Otto PEREZ Molina];
  • Progressive Liberator Party or PLP [Acisclo VALLADARES Molina];
  • Reform Movement or MR [Alfredo SKINNER-KLEE, secretary general];
  • Unionista Party [leader NA]

Political pressure groups and leaders

  • Agrarian Owners Group or UNAGRO;
  • Alliance Against Impunity or AAI;
  • Committee for Campesino Unity or CUC;
  • Coordinating Committee of Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial, and Financial Associations or CACIF;
  • Mutual Support Group or GAM

International organization participation

BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, ONUB, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission:
Ambassador Guillermo CASTILLO
chancery:
2220 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 745-4952
FAX:
[1] (202) 745-1908
consulate(s) general:
Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission:
Ambassador John R. HAMILTON
embassy:
7-01 Avenida Reforma, Zone 10, Guatemala City
mailing address:
APO AA 34024
telephone:
[502] 2331-1541/55
FAX:
[502] 2334-8477

Flag description

  • three equal vertical bands of light blue (hoist side), white, and light blue with the coat of arms centered in the white band;
  • the coat of arms includes a green and red quetzal (the national bird) and a scroll bearing the inscription LIBERTAD 15 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 1821 (the original date of independence from Spain) all superimposed on a pair of crossed rifles and a pair of crossed swords and framed by a wreath

Economy

Guatemala is the largest and most populous of the Central American countries with a GDP per capita roughly one-half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile.

42 fields
Real growth rate
2.1%
(2003 est.)industrial production growth: 4.1% (1999)
Unemployment rate
7.5%
(2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector(2003 est.)

agriculture 22.5%industry 18.9%services 58.5% (2003 est.)

Trading partnersexports left, imports right

56.7%
US
34.1%
10.8%
El Salvador
6.4%
Mexico
8.8%
South Korea
7.8%
China
4.6%
3.6%
Nicaragua
Exports $2.763 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)Imports $5.749 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)(2003)

Budget

Revenues
$2.741 billionExpenditures
$3.316 billion (2003 est.)
expenditures including capital expenditures of $750 million

Electricity

Electricity production
6.237 billion (2001)Electricity consumption
5.559 billion (2001)Electricity exports
336 million (2001)Electricity imports
95 million (2001)

Economy - overview

Guatemala is the largest and most populous of the Central American countries with a GDP per capita roughly one-half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile. The agricultural sector accounts for about one-fourth of GDP, two-thirds of exports, and half of the labor force. Coffee, sugar, and bananas are the main products.

The 1996 signing of peace accords, which ended 36 years of civil war, removed a major obstacle to foreign investment, but widespread political violence and corruption scandals continue to dampen investor confidence. The distribution of income remains highly unequal, with perhaps 75% of the population below the poverty line.

Ongoing challenges include increasing government revenues, negotiating further assistance from international donors, upgrading both government and private financial operations, curtailing drug trafficking, and narrowing the trade deficit.

GDP

purchasing power parity - $56.5 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $4,100 (2003 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

15.2% of GDP (2003)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%:
1.6%
highest 10%:
46% (1998)

Labor force

3.84 million (2003 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 50%, industry 15%, services 35% (1999 est.)

Public debt

30.8% of GDP (2003)

Agriculture - products

sugarcane, corn, bananas, coffee, beans, cardamom; cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens

Industries

sugar, textiles and clothing, furniture, chemicals, petroleum, metals, rubber, tourism

Oil - production

21,080 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption

61,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

NA (2001)

Oil - imports

NA (2001)

Oil - proved reserves

263 million bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - proved reserves

1.543 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance

$-1.106 billion (2003)

Exports

$2.763 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities

coffee, sugar, bananas, fruits and vegetables, cardamom, meat, apparel, petroleum, electricity

Imports

$5.749 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities

fuels, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, grain, fertilizers, electricity

Debt - external

$4.957 billion (2003 est.)

Economic aid - recipient

$250 million (2000 est.)

Currency

quetzal (GTQ), US dollar (USD), others allowed

Exchange rates

quetzales per US dollar - 7.9409 (2003), 7.8216 (2002), 7.8586 (2001), 7.7632 (2000), 7.3856 (1999)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields
Mobile cellular
1,577,100
(2002)
Internet users
20,360
(2003)
Fixed lines
846,000
(2002) · country code .gt

Telephone system

general assessment:
fairly modern network centered in the city of Guatemala
domestic:
NA
international:
  • country code - 502;
  • connected to Central American Microwave System;
  • satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 130, FM 487, shortwave 15 (2000)

Television broadcast stations

26 (plus 27 repeaters) (1997)

Internet users

400,000 (2002)

Transportation

9 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right

3
2,438 to 3,047 m
1
2
1,524 to 2,437 m
8
4
914 to 1,523 m
109
2
under 914 m
323
Paved 11Unpaved 441

Networkskm

Highways
14,118Railways
886Waterways
990
Highways: paved: 4,871 km (including 74 km of expressways) · unpaved: 9,247 km (1999) · Railways: narrow gauge: 886 km 0.914-m gauge (2003) · Waterways: note: 260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during high-water season (2004)

Railways

total:
886 km
narrow gauge:
886 km 0.914-m gauge (2003)

Highways

total:
14,118 km
paved:
4,871 km (including 74 km of expressways)
unpaved:
9,247 km (1999)

Waterways

990 km note: 260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during high-water season (2004)

Pipelines

oil 480 km (2004)

Ports and harbors

Champerico, Puerto Barrios, Puerto Quetzal, San Jose, Santo Tomas de Castilla

Airports

452 (2003 est.)

Military

Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force

7 fields

Military branches

Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force

Military manpower - military age and obligation

18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 30 months (2004)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 3,421,682 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 2,233,562 (2004 est.)

Transnational Issues

3 fields

Disputes - international

  • Guatemalan squatters continue to settle in Belize border region;
  • OAS brokered Differendum in 2002 creating small adjustment to land boundary, large Guatemalan maritime corridor in Caribbean, joint ecological park for disputed Sapodilla Cays, and substantial US-UK financial package, but agreement was not brought to popular referendum leaving Guatemala to continue to claim the southern half of Belize intact;
  • numbers of Guatemalans enter Mexico seeking work or transit to the US

Refugees and internally displaced persons

IDPs: 250,000 (government's scorched-earth offensive in 1980s against indigenous people) (2004)

Illicit drugs

  • major transit country for cocaine and heroin;
  • minor producer of illicit opium poppy and cannabis for mostly domestic consumption;
  • proximity to Mexico makes Guatemala a major staging area for drugs (particularly for cocaine);
  • money laundering is a serious problem;
  • corruption is a major problem;
  • remains on Financial Action Task Force Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories List for continued failure to address deficiencies in money-laundering control regime

Central Intelligence Agency. “Guatemala.” The World Factbook 2004. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/guatemala/2004.

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