also produces a variety of animal products - beef, veal, pork,
poultry, dairy products; normally self-sufficient in food
Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-92), $620 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89),
$1.381 billion
Currency:
1 gold cordoba (C$) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates:
gold cordobas (C$) per US$1 - 6 (10 January 1993), 5 (1992); note -
gold cordoba replaced cordoba as Nicaragua's currency in 1991
(exchange rate of old cordoba had reached per US$1 - 25,000,000 by
March 1992)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Nicaragua, Communications

Railroads:
373 km 1.067-meter narrow gauge, government owned; majority of system
not operating; 3 km 1.435-meter gauge line at Puerto Cabezas (does not
connect with mainline)
Highways:
total:
25,930 km
paved:
4,000 km
unpaved:
gravel, crushed stone 2,170 km; graded earth 5,425 km; unimproved
earth 14,335 km
Pan-American highway:
368.5 km (not in total)
Inland waterways:
2,220 km, including 2 large lakes
Pipelines:
crude oil 56 km
Ports:
Corinto, El Bluff, Puerto Cabezas, Puerto Sandino, Rama
Merchant marine:
2 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,161 GRT/2,500 DWT
Airports:
total:
208
usable:
149
with permanent-surface runways:
11
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
2
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
13
Telecommunications:
low-capacity radio relay and wire system being expanded; connection
into Central American Microwave System; 60,000 telephones; broadcast
stations - 45 AM, no FM, 7 TV, 3 shortwave; earth stations - 1
Intersputnik and 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT

@Nicaragua, Defense Forces

Branches:
Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 946,177; fit for military service 582,669; reach
military age (18) annually 45,555 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $43.0 million, 1.6% of GDP (1992)

@Niger, Geography

Location:
Western Africa, between Algeria and Nigeria
Map references:
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
1.267 million sq km
land area:
1,266,700 sq km
comparative area:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total 5,697 km, Algeria 956 km, Benin 266 km, Burkina 628 km, Chad
1,175 km, Lib