Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a governor Prime minister: Perry Christie
Population
42,192,494
316,182
Life Expectancy
77.140 years
71.440 years
Capital City
Buenos Aires
Nassau
Largest city
Buenos Aires (population: 13,076,300)
Nassau (population: 227,940)
Human Development Index
0.86
NA
GDP per capita
$17,700 US
$31,400 US
Literacy Rate
97.2%
95.6%
Corruption Perception Index
2.9
NA
Percentage of Women in Parliament
39.8%
NA
Wealthiest Citizens
Gregorio Perez Companc & family ($1.8bn US)
NA
Unemployment Rate
7.200%
14.200%
Death Penalty
Abolished
NA
Political System
republic
constitutional parliamentary democracy
Independence date
9 July 1816 (from Spain)
10 July 1973 (from UK)
Religions
nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%
Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8% (2000 census)
Languages
Spanish (official), Italian, English, German, French
English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)
Exports
soybeans and derivatives, petroleum and gas, vehicles, corn, wheat
mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals, fruit and vegetables
External Debt
$136,800,000,000 $
$342,600,000 US
Exchange Rate
Argentine pesos (ARS) per US dollar - 3.1636 (2008 est.), 3.1105 (2007), 3.0543 (2006), 2.9037 (2005), 2.9233 (2004)
Bahamian dollars (BSD) per US dollar - 1 (2008 est.), 1 (2007), 1 (2006), 1 (2005), 1 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
0.800%
0.700%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
6
0
Location
Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay
Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba
Area
2,780,400 km sq
13,880 km sq
Coastline
4,989 km
3,542 km
Climate
mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest
tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream
