Mexico

federal republic operating under a centralized governmentIndependence 16 September 1810 (from Spain)

Mexico as the 1991 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 71 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.

CapitalMexico

Area1,972,550 km2

Populationas each edition published it

90.01 million July 1991 · 87.87m in 1990

Population growth% a year

Not in this edition 1.97% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 23.8 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

Not in this edition 72.55 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

3.4 children per woman 1991 · 3.4 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

29 deaths per 1,000 live births 1991 · 33 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

Not in this edition $3,600 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

Not in this edition 2.6% in 1993

Geography

11 fields

Total area

1,972,550km2

land area: 1,923,040 km2Comparative area: slightly less than three times the size of Texas

Land boundaries

4,538km total

Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,326 km

Coastline

9,330 km Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
Continental shelf: natural prolongation of continental margin or 200 nm;
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Disputes

claims Clipperton Island (French possession)

Terrain

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

Natural resources

crude oil, 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%;
includes irrigated 3%

Environment

subject to tsunamis along the Pacific coast and destructive earthquakes in the center and south;
natural water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast;
deforestation;
erosion widespread;
desertification;
serious air pollution in Mexico City and urban centers along US-Mexico border

Note

strategic location on southern border of US

People

14 fields

Population

90,007,304

(July 1991), growth rate 2.2% (1991)

Per 1,000 population(1991)

Birth

29Death

Ethnic divisions

mestizo (Indian-Spanish) 60%Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%white or predominantly white 9%other 1%

Literacy

87%

(male 90%, female 85%) age 15 and over can read and write (1985 est.)

Religion

nominally Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3%

26,100,000 (1988); services 31.4%, agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing 26%, commerce 13.9%, manufacturing 12.8%, construction 9.5%, transportation 4.8%, mining and quarrying 1.3%, electricity 0.3% (1986)

Organized labor

35% of labor force

Government

Federal republic operating under a centralized government

17 fields

Presidential electionpercent of vote

50.74%

Carlos SALINAS de Gortari (PRI) 50.74%Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (FDN) 31.06%Manuel CLOUTHIER (PAN) 16.81%6 July 1988 (next to be held September 1994)

Senate, elected 6 July 1988percent of vote

PRI 94%FDN (now PRD) 6%

Long-form name

United Mexican States

Type

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, Colima, Distrito Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Yucatan, Zacatecas

Independence

16 September 1810 (from Spain)

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

National holiday

Independence Day, 16 September (1810)

Executive branch

president, Cabinet

Legislative branch

bicameral National Congress (Congreso de la Union) consists of an upper chamber or Senate (Camara de Senadores) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados)

Judicial branch

Supreme Court of Justice (Suprema Corte de Justicia) Chief of State and Head of Government--President Carlos SALINAS de Gortari (since 1 December 1988)

Political parties and leaders

(recognized parties) Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Luis Donaldo COLOSIO Murrieta;
National Action Party (PAN), Luis ALVAREZ;
Popular Socialist Party (PPS), Indalecio SAYAGO Herrera;
Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano;
Cardenist Front for the National Reconstruction Party (PFCRN), Rafael AGUILAR Talamantes;
Authentic Party of the Mexican Revolution (PARM), Carlos Enrique CANTU Rosas

Suffrage

universal and compulsory (but not enforced) at age 18 President--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held September 1994);
results--Carlos SALINAS de Gortari (PRI) 50.74%, Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (FDN) 31.06%, Manuel CLOUTHIER (PAN) 16.81%;
other 1.39%;
note--several of the smaller parties ran a common candidate under a coalition called the National Democratic Front (FDN);
Senate--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held mid-year 1991);
results--PRI 94%, FDN (now PRD) 6%;
seats--(64 total) number of seats by party NA;
Chamber of Deputies--last held on 6 July 1988 (next to be held mid-year 1991);
results--PRI 53%, PAN 20%, PFCRN 10%, PPS 6%, PARM 7%, PMS (now part of PRD) 4%;
seats--(500 total) number of seats by party NA

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), UNE (no expansion), Revolutionary Workers Party (PRT), Mexican Democratic Party (PDM), 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), Business Coordination Council (CCE)

Member of

AG (observer), CCC, CDB, CG, EBRD, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-6, G-11, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, LORCS, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador Gustavo PETRICIOLI Iturbide;
Chancery at 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington DC 20006;
telephone (202) 728-1600;
there are Mexican Consulates General in Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Antonio, San Diego, and Consulates in Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Kansas City (Missouri), Laredo, McAllen (Texas), Miami, Nogales (Arizona), Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Phoenix, Presidio (Texas), Sacramento, St. Louis, St. Paul (Minneapolis), Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Seattle;
US--Ambassador John D. NEGROPONTE, Jr.;
Embassy at Paseo de la Reforma 305, 06500 Mexico, D.F. (mailing address is P. O. Box 3087, Laredo, TX 78044-3087);
telephone [52] (5) 211-0042;
there are US Consulates General in Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Tijuana, and Consulates in Hermosillo, Matamoros, Mazatlan, Merida, and 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 is its beak) is centered in the white band

Economy

Mexico's economy is a mixture of state-owned industrial plants (notably oil), private manufacturing and services, and both large-scale and traditional agriculture.

17 fields

GDP, purchasing power parity

$236billion

per capita $2,680; real growth rate 3.9% (1990)

Inflation, consumer prices

30%

(1990)

External debt

$96.0billion

(1990)

Budget

Revenues

$44.3 billionExpenditures

$55.2 billion

expenditures, including capital expenditures of $7.8 billion (1989)

Overview

Mexico's economy is a mixture of state-owned industrial plants (notably oil), private manufacturing and services, and both large-scale and traditional agriculture. In the 1980s Mexico experienced severe economic difficulties: the nation accumulated large external debts as world petroleum prices fell;

rapid population growth outstripped the domestic food supply; and inflation, unemployment, and pressures to emigrate became more acute. Growth in national output, however, appears to be recovering, rising from 1.4% in 1988 to 3.9% in 1990. The US is Mexico's major trading partner, accounting for two-thirds of its exports and imports.

After petroleum, border assembly plants and tourism are the largest earners of foreign exchange. The government, in consultation with international economic agencies, is implementing programs to stabilize the economy and foster growth. In 1991 the government also plans to begin negotiations with the US and Canada on a free trade agreement.

Unemployment rate

15-18% (1990 est.)

Exports

$26.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990);
commodities--crude oil, oil products, coffee, shrimp, engines, cotton;
partners--US 66%, EC 16%, Japan 11%

Imports

$29.8 billion (c.i.f., 1990);
commodities--grain, metal manufactures, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment;
partners--US 62%, EC 18%, Japan 10%

Industrial production

growth rate 5.3% (1989); accounts for 27% of GDP

Electricity

27,600,000 kW capacity; 108,976 million kWh produced, 1,240 kWh per capita (1990)

Industries

food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, transportation equipment, tourism

Agriculture

accounts for 9% of GDP and over 25% of work force;
large number of small farms at subsistence level;
major food crops--corn, wheat, rice, beans;
cash crops--cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes;
fish catch of 1.4 million metric tons among top 20 nations (1987)

Illicit drugs

illicit cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis continues in spite of government eradication efforts;
major link in chain of countries used to smuggle cocaine from South American dealers to US markets

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $3.1 billion;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $7.1 billion;
Communist countries (1970-89), $110 million

Currency

Mexican peso (plural--pesos); 1 Mexican peso (Mex$) = 100 centavos

Exchange rates

market rate of Mexican pesos (Mex$) per US$1--2,940.9 (January 1991), 2,812.6 (1990), 2,461.3 (1989), 2,273.1 (1988), 1,378.2 (1987), 611.8 (1986), 256.9 (1985)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

9 fields

Merchant marine, 64 ships by typeone square, one ship

short-sea passenger 4cargo 9refrigerated cargo 2roll-on/roll-off cargo 2petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker 31chemical tanker 3liquefied gas 7bulk 3combination bulk 364 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 999,423 GRT/1,509,939 DWT

Airports, 1,815 total, 1,537 usable

permanent-surface runways

195runways over 3,659 m

2runways 2,440-3,659 m

33runways 1,220-2,439 m

276

Networkskm

Highways

210,000Railroads

20,680

Highways: ; 65,000 km paved, 30,000 km semipaved or cobblestone, 60,000 km rural roads (improved earth) or roads under construction, 55,000 km unimproved earth roads · Railroads: ; 19,950 km 1.435-meter standard gauge; 730 km 0.914-meter narrow gauge

Railroads

20,680 km total;
19,950 km 1.435-meter standard gauge;
730 km 0.914-meter narrow gauge

Highways

210,000 km total; 65,000 km paved, 30,000 km semipaved or cobblestone, 60,000 km rural roads (improved earth) or roads under construction, 55,000 km unimproved earth roads