Nicaragua

National name

República de Nicaragua

Government 

Republic.

Geography

A Central American nation - has mountainous in the west, with fertile valleys. Two big lakes, Nicaragua and Managua, are connected by the Tipitapa River. The Pacific coast is volcanic and very fertile. The swampy Caribbean coast is aptly called the “Mosquito Coast.”

Historical Background

Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades, a civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in President of HAITI : René Préval El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. Free elections in 1990, 1996, and again in 2001, saw the Sandinistas defeated. On March 7, 2008, during a summit meeting in the Dominican Republic, the leaders of Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, and Nicaragua ended their diplomatic dispute over Colombia's raid into Ecaudor.

Facts & Figures

Name

NICARAGUA

Capital

Managua

Government

Presidential republic President Daniel Ortega (FSLN)Vice President     Jaime Morales Carazo

Language

Spanish

Religion

Religion is a significant part of the culture of Nicaragua and is referred to in the constitution. Religious freedom, which has been guaranteed since 1939, and religious tolerance are promoted by both the Nicaraguan government and the constitution.

Area

130,373 km2  50,193 sq m

Population

July 2009 estimate 5,891,199 (110th) 2005 census 5,148,098

Currency

Córdoba (NIO)

GDP(PPP)

2010 estimate Total  $17.033 billion

GDP(nominal)

2010 estimate Total $6.246 billion

National Anthem

Salve a ti, Nicaragua