PARAGUAY
GEOGRAPHY
Total area: 406,750 km2; land area: 397,300 km2
Comparative area: slightly smaller than California
Land boundaries: 3,920 km total; Argentina 1,880 km, Bolivia
750 km, Brazil 1,290 km
Coastline: none--landlocked
Maritime claims: none--landlocked
Disputes: short section of the boundary with Brazil (just west of
Guaira Falls on the Rio Parana) has not been determined
Climate: varies from temperate in east to semiarid in far west
Terrain: grassy plains and wooded hills east of Rio Paraguay;
Gran Chaco region west of Rio Paraguay mostly low, marshy plain near
the river, and dry forest and thorny scrub elsewhere
Natural resources: iron ore, manganese, limestone, hydropower,
timber
Land use: arable land 20%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and
pastures 39%; forest and woodland 35%; other 5%; includes irrigated
NEGL%
Environment: local flooding in southeast (early September to June);
poorly drained plains may become boggy (early October to June)
Note: landlocked; buffer between Argentina and Brazil
PEOPLE
Population: 4,798,739 (July 1991), growth rate 2.9% (1991)
Birth rate: 35 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Infant mortality rate: 47 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Life expectancy at birth: 67 years male, 72 years female (1991)
Total fertility rate: 4.7 children born/woman (1991)
Nationality: noun--Paraguayan(s); adjective--Paraguayan
Ethnic divisions: mestizo (Spanish and Indian) 95%, white and
Indian 5%
Religion: Roman Catholic 90%; Mennonite and other Protestant
denominations
Language: Spanish (official) and Guarani
Literacy: 90% (male 92%, female 88%) age 15 and over can
read and write (1990 est.)
Labor force: 1,300,000; agriculture 44%, industry and commerce
34%, services 18%, government 4% (1986)
Organized labor: about 2% of labor force
GOVERNMENT
Long-form name: Republic of Paraguay
Type: republic
Capital: Asuncion
Administrative divisions: 19 departments (departamentos,
singular--departamento); Alto Paraguay, Alto Parana, Amambay,
Boqueron, Caaguazu, Caazapa, Canindeyu, Central, Chaco,
Concepcion, Cordillera, Guaira, Itapua, Misiones, Neembucu,
Nueva Asuncion, Paraguari, Presidente Hayes, San Pedro
Independence: 14 May 1811 (from Spain)
Constitution 25 August 1967
Legal system: based on Argentine codes, Roman law, and French
codes; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court of Justice;
does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday: Independence Days, 14-15 May (1811)
Executive branch: president, Council of Ministers (cabinet),
Council of State
Legislative branch: bicameral Congress (Congreso)
consists of an upper chamber or Chamber of Senators (Camara de
Senadores) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara de
Diputados)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de
Justicia)
Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Gen. Andres
RODRIGUEZ Pedotti (since 15 May 1989)
Political parties and leaders:
Colorado Party, Luis Maria ARGANA, acting president;
Authentic Radical Liberal Party (PLRA), Juan Manuel BENITEZ Florentin;
Christian Democratic Party (PDC), Jorge Dario CRISTALDO;
Febrerista Revolutionary Party (PRF), Euclides ACEVEDO;
Popular Democratic Party (PDP), Hugo RICHER
Suffrage: universal and compulsory at age 18 and up to age 60
Elections:
President--last held 1 May 1989 (next to be held February 1993);
results--Gen. RODRIGUEZ 75.8%, Domingo LAINO 19.4%;
Chamber of Senators--last held 1 May 1989 (next to be held by
May 1993);
results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(36 total) Colorado Party 24, PLRA 10, PLR 1, PRF 1;
Chamber of Deputies--last held on 1 May 1989 (next to be held by
May 1994);
results--percent of vote by party NA;
seats--(72 total) Colorado Party 48, PLRA 19, PRF 2, PDC 1, PL 1, PLR 1
Communists: Oscar Creydt faction and Miguel Angel SOLER faction
(both illegal); 3,000 to 4,000 (est.) party members and sympathizers in
Paraguay, very few are hard core; party beginning to return from exile is
small and deeply divided
Other political or pressure groups: Confederation of Workers (CUT);
Roman Catholic Church
Member of: AG (observer), CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES,
LAIA, LORCS, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL,
WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Marcos MARTINEZ MENDIETA;
Chancery at 2400 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone
(202) 483-6960 through 6962; there are Paraguayan Consulates General in
New Orleans and New York, and a Consulate in Houston;
US--Ambassador Jon GLASSMAN; Embassy at 1776 Avenida Mariscal
Lopez, Asuncion (mailing address is C. P. 402, Asuncion, or APO Miami
34036-0001); telephone 595 (21) 213-715
Flag: three equal, horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue
with an emblem centered in the white band; unusual flag in that the
emblem is different on each side; the obverse (hoist side at the left)
bears the national coat of arms (a yellow five-pointed star within a
green wreath capped by the words REPUBLICA DEL PARAGUAY, all within
two circles); the reverse (hoist side at the right) bears the seal of the
treasury (a yellow lion below a red Cap of Liberty and the words Paz y
Justicia (Peace and Justice) capped by the words REPUBLICA DEL
PARAGUAY, all within two circles)
ECONOMY
Overview: The economy is predominantly agricultural. Agriculture,
including forestry, accounts for about 25% of GNP, employs about 45% of
the labor force, and provides the bulk of exports. Paraguay has no known
significant mineral or petroleum resources but does have a large
hydropower potential. Since 1981 economic performance has declined
compared with the boom period of 1976-81, when real GDP grew at an
average annual rate of nearly 11%. During 1982-86 real GDP fell in three
of five years, inflation jumped to an annual rate of 32%, and
foreign debt rose. Factors responsible for the erratic behavior of the
economy were the completion of the Itaipu hydroelectric dam, bad weather
for crops, and weak international commodity prices for agricultural
exports. In 1987 the economy experienced a minor recovery because of
improved weather conditions and stronger international prices for key
agricultural exports. The recovery continued through 1990, on the
strength of bumper crops in 1988-89. The government, however, must
follow through on promises of reforms needed to deal with escalating
inflation, large fiscal deficits, growing debt arrearages, and falling
reserves.
GDP: $4.6 billion, per capita $1,000; real growth rate 3.5%
(1990 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 44% (1990 est.)
Unemployment rate: 12% (1989 est.)
Budget: revenues $1.2 billion; expenditures $1.2 billion,
including capital expenditures of $487 million (1991)
Exports: $980 million (registered f.o.b., 1990 est.);
commodities--cotton, soybean, timber, vegetable oils, coffee,
tung oil, meat products;
partners--EC 37%, Brazil 25%, Argentina 10%, Chile 6%, US 6%
Imports: $1.4 billion (registered c.i.f., 1990 est.);
commodities--capital goods 35%, consumer goods 20%, fuels and
lubricants 19%, raw materials 16%, foodstuffs, beverages, and tobacco
10%;
partners--Brazil 30%, EC 20%, US 18%, Argentina 8%, Japan 7%
External debt: $1.7 billion (1989 est.)
Industrial production: growth rate 5.9% (1989 est.); accounts
for 16% of GDP
Electricity: 5,169,000 kW capacity; 15,144 million kWh produced,
3,250 kWh per capita (1990)
Industries: meat packing, oilseed crushing, milling, brewing,
textiles, other light consumer goods, cement, construction
Agriculture: accounts for 25% of GDP and 44% of labor force; cash
crops--cotton, sugarcane; other crops--corn, wheat, tobacco, soybeans,
cassava, fruits, and vegetables; animal products--beef, pork, eggs,
milk; surplus producer of timber; self-sufficient in most foods
Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis for the international
drug trade; important transshipment point for Bolivian cocaine headed
for the US and Europe
Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $172
million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-88), $1.05 billion
Currency: guarani (plural--guaranies);
1 guarani (G) = 100 centimos
Exchange rates: guaranies (G) per US$1--1,204.5 (October 1989),
1,056.2 (1989), 550.00 (fixed rate 1986-February 1989), 339.17 (1986),
306.67 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
COMMUNICATIONS
Railroads: 970 km total; 440 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, 60 km
1.000-meter gauge, 470 km various narrow gauge (privately owned)
Highways: 21,960 km total; 1,788 km paved, 474 km gravel, and
19,698 km earth
Inland waterways: 3,100 km
Ports: Asuncion
Merchant marine: 14 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 18,743
GRT/22,954 DWT; includes 12 cargo, 2 petroleum, oils, and lubricants
(POL) tanker; note--1 naval cargo ship is sometimes used commercially
Civil air: 4 major transport aircraft
Airports: 851 total, 738 usable; 6 with permanent-surface runways;
1 with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 60 with
runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: principal center in Asuncion; fair intercity
microwave net; 78,300 telephones; stations--40 AM, no FM, 5 TV, 7
shortwave; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
DEFENSE FORCES
Branches: Army, Navy (including Naval Air and Marines), Air Force
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 1,130,690; 823,136 fit for
military service; 51,415 reach military age (17) annually
Defense expenditures: $84 million, 1.4% of GDP (1988 est.)