Nicaragua

Physical. Nicaragua is located in Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Honduras and Costa Rica. It covers an area slightly smaller than the state of New York. The climate is tropical in the lowlands and temperate in the highlands. Extensive Atlantic coastal plains rise to central interior mountains with a narrow Pacific coastal plain dotted by volcanoes. Natural resources include gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, fish and timber.

People. Over 5.3 million people live in Nicaragua. Spanish is the official language, but English and Amerindian-speaking minorities may be found along the Atlantic coast. The ethnic make-up of the country is: Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white 69%), white (17%), black (9%) and Amerindian (5%). The two main religious groups are Roman Catholic (85%) and Protestant (5%). Nicaragua is a divided land with distinct geographic cultural racial ethnic and religious zones. The west-coast region, containing 90% of the population is Mestizo, Catholic and Latino. The east coast is a sharp contrast with its scattered population and multiplicity of Indian, Creole and Latino groups and is considered (by the west coast population) to be “second class.”

Government. In 2006, Daniel Ortega was re-elected president. When the Sandinistas came to power in 1979 they attempted to unify the country. Policies of regional autonomy put in place in1982 indicate that the Sandinista government recognized the regional differences that must be respected. While the Sandinistas made great strides in health and nutrition, they could not successfully reconstruct an economy in a shambles, particularly while under an embargo from the US for their leftist policies. In addition, the Contras military force, supported by the US, also hampered economic growth. Armed conflict ended in 1990 and the Sandinistas lost the election that year.

Economy. In the western Hemisphere only Haiti is poorer. Perhaps 22% of the population is unemployed with considerable underemployment. Over 50% live in poverty. Just as the economy showed signs of some recovery after years of war and the US embargo, Hurricane Mitch struck in 1998 and profoundly set back development. All available resources had to be used to reconstruct the infrastructure.

Areas of Concern. Poverty and regional differences. Environmental concerns include land deforestation, soil erosion and water pollution. Curing economic malaise compounded by corruption in the recent administration is a serious concern.