Infant mortality rate: 26.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 73.31 years
male: 70.48 years
female: 76.29 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.97 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Venezuelan(s)
adjective: Venezuelan

Ethnic divisions: mestizo 67%, white 21%, black 10%, Amerindian 2%

Religions: nominally Roman Catholic 96%, Protestant 2%

Languages: Spanish (official), native dialects spoken by about 200,000
Amerindians in the remote interior

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
total population: 90%
male: 91%
female: 89%

Labor force: 7.6 million
by occupation: services 63%, industry 25%, agriculture 12% (1993)

@Venezuela:Government

Names:
conventional long form: Republic of Venezuela
conventional short form: Venezuela
local long form: Republica de Venezuela
local short form: Venezuela

Digraph: VE

Type: republic

Capital: Caracas

Administrative divisions: 21 states (estados, singular - estado), 1
territory* (territorio), 1 federal district** (distrito federal), and
1 federal dependency*** (dependencia federal); Amazonas*, Anzoategui,
Apure, Aragua, Barinas, Bolivar, Carabobo, Cojedes, Delta Amacuro,
Dependencias Federales***, Distrito Federal**, Falcon, Guarico, Lara,
Merida, Miranda, Monagas, Nueva Esparta, Portuguesa, Sucre, Tachira,
Trujillo, Yaracuy, Zulia
note: the federal dependency consists of 11 federally controlled
island groups with a total of 72 individual islands

Independence: 5 July 1811 (from Spain)

National holiday: Independence Day, 5 July (1811)

Constitution: 23 January 1961

Legal system: based on Napoleonic code; judicial review of legislative
acts in Cassation Court only; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: President Rafael CALDERA
Rodriguez (since 2 February 1994); election last held 5 December 1993
(next to be held NA December 1998); results - Rafael CALDERA (National
Convergence) 30.45%, Claudio FERMIN (AD) 23.59%, Oswaldo ALVAREZ PAZ
(COPEI) 22.72%, Andres VELASQUEZ (Causa R) 21.94%, other 1.3%
cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed by the president

Legislative branch: bicameral Congress of the Republic (Congreso de la
Republica)
Senate (Senado): elections last held 5 December 1993 (next to be held
NA