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276 lines
22 KiB
Plaintext
276 lines
22 KiB
Plaintext
CANADA
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 9,976,140 km2; land area: 9,220,970 km2
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Comparative area: slightly larger than US
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Land boundaries: 8,893 km with US (includes 2,477 km with Alaska)
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Coastline: 243,791 km
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Maritime claims:
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Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation;
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Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;
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Territorial sea: 12 nm
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Disputes: maritime boundary disputes with France (Saint Pierre and
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Miquelon) and US
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Climate: varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in
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north
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Terrain: mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in
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southeast
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Natural resources: nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum,
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potash, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, crude oil, natural gas
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Land use: arable land 5%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and
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pastures 3%; forest and woodland 35%; other 57%; includes NEGL%
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irrigated
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Environment: 80% of population concentrated within 160 km of US
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border; continuous permafrost in north a serious obstacle to development
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Note: second-largest country in world (after USSR); strategic
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location between USSR and US via north polar route
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PEOPLE
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Population: 26,835,036 (July 1991), growth rate 1.1% (1991)
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Birth rate: 14 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: 5 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 7 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 74 years male, 81 years female (1991)
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Total fertility rate: 1.7 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Canadian(s); adjective--Canadian
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Ethnic divisions: British Isles origin 40%, French origin 27%,
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other European 20%, indigenous Indian and Eskimo 1.5%
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Religion: Roman Catholic 46%, United Church 16%, Anglican 10%
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Language: English and French (both official)
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Literacy: 99% (male NA%, female NA%) age 15 and over can
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read and write (1981 est.)
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Labor force: 13,380,000; services 75%, manufacturing 14%,
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agriculture 4%, construction 3%, other 4% (1988)
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Organized labor: 30.6% of labor force; 39.6% of nonagricultural
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paid workers
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: none
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Type: confederation with parliamentary democracy
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Capital: Ottawa
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Administrative divisions: 10 provinces and 2 territories*; Alberta,
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British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland,
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Northwest Territories*, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island,
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Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon Territory*
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Independence: 1 July 1867 (from UK)
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Constitution: amended British North America Act 1867 patriated to
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Canada 17 April 1982; charter of rights and unwritten customs
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Legal system: based on English common law, except in Quebec, where
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civil law system based on French law prevails; accepts compulsory ICJ
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jurisdiction, with reservations
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National holiday: Canada Day, 1 July (1867)
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Executive branch: British monarch, governor general, prime
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minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet
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Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament (Parlement) consists of an
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upper house or Senate (Senat) and a lower house or House of Commons
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(Chambre des Communes)
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Judicial branch: Supreme Court
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Leaders:
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Chief of State--Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
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represented by Governor General Raymond John HNATSHYN (since 29 January
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1990);
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Head of Government--Prime Minister (Martin) Brian MULRONEY (since
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4 September 1984); Deputy Prime Minister Donald Frank MAZANKOWSKI (since
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NA June 1986)
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Political parties and leaders:
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Progressive Conservative, Brian MULRONEY;
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Liberal, Jean CHRETIEN;
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New Democratic, Audrey McLAUGHLIN
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Suffrage: universal at age 18
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Elections:
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House of Commons--last held 21 November 1988 (next to be
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held by November 1993);
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results--Progressive Conservative 43.0%, Liberal 32%,
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New Democratic Party 20%, other 5%;
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seats--(295 total) Progressive Conservative 159, Liberal 80, New
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Democratic Party 44, independent 12
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Communists: 3,000
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Member of: ACCT, AfDB, AG (observer), APEC, AsDB,
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BIS, C, CCC, CDB, COCOM, CP, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, FAO, G-7, G-8, G-10,
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GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF,
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IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU,
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LORCS, NATO, NEA, OAS, OECD, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP,
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UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIIMOG, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
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WTO
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Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Derek BURNEY; Chancery at
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1746 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20036; telephone (202)
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785-1400; there are Canadian Consulates General in Atlanta, Boston,
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Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis,
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New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Seattle;
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US--Ambassador Edward N. NEY; Embassy at 100 Wellington Street,
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K1P 5T1, Ottawa (mailing address is P. O. Box 5000, Ogdensburg, NY
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13669-0430); telephone (613) 248-25256, 25106, 25271, and 25170; there
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are US Consulates General in Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec, Toronto,
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and Vancouver
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Flag: three vertical bands of red (hoist side), white (double
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width, square), and red with a red maple leaf centered in the white band
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ECONOMY
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Overview: As an affluent, high-tech industrial society, Canada
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today closely resembles the US in per capita output, market-oriented
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economic system, and pattern of production. Since World War II the
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impressive growth of the manufacturing, mining, and service sectors has
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transformed the nation from a largely rural economy into one primarily
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industrial and urban. In the 1980s Canada registered one of the highest
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rates of real growth among the OECD nations, averaging about 3.2%. With
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its great natural resources, skilled labor force, and modern capital
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plant, Canada has excellent economic prospects. In mid-1990, however, the
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long-simmering problems between English- and French-speaking areas
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became so acute that observers spoke openly of a possible split in the
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confederation; foreign investors were becoming edgy.
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GDP: $516.7 billion, per capita $19,500; real growth rate 0.9%
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(1990)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.8% (1990)
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Unemployment rate: 8.1% (1990)
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Budget: revenues $105.8 billion; expenditures $131.6 billion,
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including capital expenditures of $NA (FY90 est.)
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Exports: $126.7 billion (f.o.b., 1990);
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commodities--newsprint, wood pulp, timber, grain, crude petroleum,
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machinery, natural gas, ferrous and nonferrous ores, motor vehicles
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and parts;
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partners--US, Japan, UK, FRG, other EC, USSR
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Imports: $116.3 billion (c.i.f., 1990);
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commodities--processed foods, beverages, crude petroleum,
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chemicals, industrial machinery, motor vehicles and parts, durable
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consumer goods, electronic computers;
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partners--US, Japan, UK, FRG, other EC, Taiwan, South Korea, Mexico
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External debt: $247 billion (1987)
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Industrial production: growth rate - 2.7% (1990); accounts for 34%
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of GDP
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Electricity: 105,000,000 kW capacity; 500,000 million kWh produced,
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18,840 kWh per capita (1990)
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Industries: processed and unprocessed minerals, food products,
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wood and paper products, transportation equipment, chemicals, fish
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products, petroleum and natural gas
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Agriculture: accounts for about 3% of GDP; one of the world's major
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producers and exporters of grain (wheat and barley); key source of US
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agricultural imports; large forest resources cover 35% of total land
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area; commercial fisheries provide annual catch of 1.5 million metric
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tons, of which 75% is exported
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Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic
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drug market; use of hydroponics technology permits growers to plant
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large quantities of high-quality marijuana indoors
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Economic aid: donor--ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $7.2
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billion
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Currency: Canadian dollar (plural--dollars); 1 Canadian dollar
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(Can$) = 100 cents
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Exchange rates: Canadian dollars (Can$) per US$1--1.1559
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(January 1991), 1.1668 (1990), 1.1840 (1989), 1.2307 (1988), 1.3260
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(1987), 1.3895 (1986), 1.3655 (1985)
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Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Railroads: 93,544 km total; two major transcontinental freight
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railway systems--Canadian National (government owned) and Canadian
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Pacific Railway; passenger service--VIA (government operated)
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Highways: 884,272 km total; 712,936 km surfaced (250,023 km paved),
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171,336 km earth
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Inland waterways: 3,000 km, including Saint Lawrence Seaway
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Pipelines: oil, 23,564 km total crude and refined; natural gas,
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74,980 km
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Ports: Halifax, Montreal, Quebec, Saint John (New Brunswick),
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Saint John's (Newfoundland), Toronto, Vancouver
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Merchant marine: 75 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 532,062
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GRT/727,118 DWT; includes 1 passenger, 5 short-sea passenger, 2
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passenger-cargo, 13 cargo, 2 railcar carrier, 1 refrigerated cargo, 8
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roll-on/roll-off, 1 container, 27 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL)
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tanker, 6 chemical tanker, 1 specialized tanker, 8 bulk; note--does not
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include ships used exclusively in the Great Lakes
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Civil air: 636 major transport aircraft; Air Canada is the major
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carrier
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Airports: 1,397 total, 1,154 usable; 443 with permanent-surface
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runways; 4 with runways over 3,659 m; 30 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 328
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with runways 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: excellent service provided by modern media;
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18.0 million telephones; stations--900 AM, 29 FM, 53 (1,400 repeaters)
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TV; 5 coaxial submarine cables; over 300 earth stations operating in
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INTELSAT (including 4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean) and domestic
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systems
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: Canadian Armed Forces (including Mobile Command,
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Maritime Command, Air Command, Communications Command, Canadian Forces
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Europe, Training Commands), Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)
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Manpower availability: males 15-49, 7,243,909; 6,297,520 fit for
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military service; 188,996 reach military age (17) annually
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Defense expenditures: $11.3 billion, 2% of GDP (FY90)
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