Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a Governor-General. Prime minister : Peter O'Neill
Population
5,727,707
6,310,129
Life Expectancy
72.180 years
66.460 years
Capital City
Managua
Port Moresby
Largest city
Managua (population: 973,087)
Port Moresby (population: 283,733)
Human Development Index
0.699
0.516
GDP per capita
$3,200 US
$2,600 US
Literacy Rate
67.5%
57.3%
Corruption Perception Index
2.5
2
Percentage of Women in Parliament
18.5%
0.9%
Wealthiest Citizens
Unemployment Rate
7.300%
1.900%
Death Penalty
Abolished
Abolished in practice
Political System
republic
constitutional parliamentary democracy
Independence date
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
16 September 1975 (from the Australian-administered UN trusteeship)
Religions
Roman Catholic 58.5%, Evangelical 21.6%, Moravian 1.6%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, other 1.7%, none 15.7% (2005 census)
Roman Catholic 27%, Evangelical Lutheran 19.5%, United Church 11.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10%, Pentecostal 8.6%, Evangelical Alliance 5.2%, Anglican 3.2%, Baptist 2.5%, other Protestant 8.9%, Bahai 0.3%, indigenous beliefs and other 3.3% (2000 census)
Languages
Spanish 97.5% (official), Miskito 1.7%, other 0.8% (1995 census) note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast
Melanesian Pidgin serves as the lingua franca, English spoken by 1%-2%, Motu spoken in Papua region note: 820 indigenous languages spoken (over one-tenth of the world's total)
Exports
coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts
