1989 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1989 (Internet Archive)
Geography
Climate
tropical; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainy season (May to January), short dry season (January to May)
Coastline
2,490 km
Comparative area
slightly smaller than South Carolina
Environment
dense tropical forest in east and northwest
Land boundaries
555 km total; Colombia 225 km, Costa Rica 330 km
Land use
6% arable land; 2% permanent crops; 15% meadows and pastures; 54% forest and woodland; 23% other; includes NEGL% irrigated
Natural resources
copper, mahogany forests, shrimp
Note
strategic location on eastern end of isthmus forming land bridge connecting North and South America; controls Panama Canal that links North Atlantic Ocean via Caribbean Sea with North Pacific Ocean
Terrain
interior mostly steep, rugged mountains and dissected, upland plains; coastal areas largely plains and rolling hills
Territorial sea
200 nm
Total area
78,200 km2; land area: 75,990 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
26 births/ 1 ,000 population (1990)
Death rate
5 deaths/ 1,000 population (1990)
Ethnic divisions
70% mestizo (mixed Indian and European ancestry), 14% West Indian, 10% white, 6% Indian
Infant mortality rate
22 deaths/ 1,000 live births (1990)
Labor force
770,472 (1987); 27.9% government and community services; 26.2% agriculture, hunting, and fishing; 16% commerce, restaurants, and hotels; 10.5% manufacturing and mining; 5.3% construction; 5.3% transportation and communications; 4.2% finance, insurance, and real estate; 2.4% Canal Zone; shortage of skilled labor, but an oversupply of unskilled labor
Language
Spanish (official); 14% speak English as native tongue; many Panamanians bilingual
Life expectancy at birth
72 years male, 76 years female (1990)
Literacy
90%
Nationality
noun — Panamanian(s); adjective— Panamanian
Net migration rate
NEGL migrants/ 1,000 population (1990)
Organized labor
17% of labor force (1986)
Population
2,425,400 (July 1990), growth rate 2.1% (1990)
Religion
over 93% Roman Catholic, 6% Protestant
Total fertility rate
3.1 children born/ woman (1990)
Government
Administrative divisions
9 provinces (provincias, singular — provincia) and I territory* (comarca); Bocas del Toro, Chiriqui. Code, Colon, Darien, Herrera, Los Santos, Panama, San Bias*, Veraguas
Capital
Panama
Communists
People's Party (PdP), proNoriega regime mainline Communist party, did not obtain the necessary 3% of the total vote in the 1984 election to retain its legal status; about 3,000 members
Constitution
1 1 October 1 972; major reforms adopted April 1983
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador Eduardo VALLARINO; Chancery at 2862 McGill Terrace NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 483-1407; the status of the Consulates General and Consulates has not yet been determined; US— Ambassador Deane R. HINTON; Embassy at Avenida Balboa and Calle 38, Apartado 6959, Panama City 5 (mailing address is Box E, APO Miami 34002); telephone [507] 271777
Elections
President — last held on 7 May 1989, annulled but later upheld (next to be held May 1994); results — anti-Noriega coalition believed to have won about 75% of the total votes cast; Legislative Assembly — last held on 7 May 1989, annulled but later upheld; in process of reorganization (next to be held May 1994); results — percent of vote by party NA; seats — (67 total) the Electoral Tribunal has confirmed 58 of the 67 seats — PDC 27, MOLIRENA 15, PLA 6, Noriegist PRD 7, PPA 3; legitimate holders of the other 9 seats cannot be determined and a special election will be held
Executive branch
president, two vice presidents, Cabinet
Independence
3 November 1903 (from Colombia; became independent from Spain 28 November 1821)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justica) currently being reorganized
Leaders
Chief of State and Head of Government— President Guillermo ENDARA (since 20 December 1989, elected 7 May 1989); First Vice President Ricardo Arias CALDERON (since 20 December 1989, elected 7 May 1989); Second Vice President Guillermo FORD (since 20 December 1989, elected 7 May 1989) Political parties and leaders: Government alliance — Authentic Liberal Party (PLA); faction of Authentic Panamenista Party (PPA), Guillermo Endara; Christian Democrat Party (PDC), Ricardo Arias Calderon; Nationalist Republican Liberal Movement (MOLIRENA), Alfredo Ramirez; former Noriegist parties — Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD, ex-official government party), Carlos Duque; Labor Party (PALA), Ramon Sieiro Murgas; People's Party (PdP, Soviet-oriented Communist party), Ruben Dario Sousa Batista; Democratic Workers Party; National Action Party (PAN); other opposition parties — Popular Nationalist Party (PNP), Olimpo A. Saez Maruci; factions of the former Liberal and Republican parties; Popular Action Party (PAP), Carlos Ivan Zuniga; Socialist Workers Party (PST, leftist), Jose Cambra; Revolutionary Workers Party (PRT, leftist), Graciela Dixon
Legal system
based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Justice; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch
unicameral Legislative Assembly (Asamblea Legislativa)
Long-form name
Republic of Panama
Member of
FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IFAD, IDB— Inter-American Development Bank, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IRC, ITU, IWC— International Whaling Commission, IWC — International Wheat Council, NAM, OAS, PAHO, SELA, UN, UNESCO, UPEB, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
National holiday
Independence Day, 3 November (1903)
Other political or pressure groups
National Council of Organized Workers (CONATO); National Council of Private Enterprise (CONEP); Panamanian Association of Business Executives (APEDE)
Suffrage
universal and compulsory at age
Type
centralized republic