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Introduction | Portugal

Background:

Following its heyday as a world power during the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal lost much of its wealth and status with the destruction of Lisbon in a 1755 earthquake, occupation during the Napoleonic Wars, and the independence in 1822 of Brazil as a colony. A 1910 revolution deposed the monarchy; for most of the next six decades, repressive governments ran the country. In 1974, a left-wing military coup installed broad democratic reforms. The following year, Portugal granted independence to all of its African colonies. Portugal is a founding member of NATO and entered the EC (now the EU) in 1986.

Geography | Portugal

Location: | Southwestern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Spain
Geographic coordinates: | 39 30 N, 8 00 W
Map references: | Europe
Area: | total: 92,391 sq km land: 91,951 sq km water: 440 sq km note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands
Area - comparative: | slightly smaller than Indiana
Land boundaries: | total: 1,214 km border countries: Spain 1,214 km
Coastline: | 1,793 km
Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate: | maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south
Terrain: | mountainous north of the Tagus River, rolling plains in south
Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Ponta do Pico (Pico or Pico Alto) on Ilha do Pico in the Azores 2,351 m
Natural resources: | fish, forests (cork), iron ore, copper, zinc, tin, tungsten, silver, gold, uranium, marble, clay, gypsum, salt, arable land, hydropower
Land use: | arable land: 17.29% permanent crops: 7.84% other: 74.87% (2005)
Irrigated land: | 6,320 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: | Azores subject to severe earthquakes
Environment - current issues: | soil erosion; air pollution caused by industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution, especially in coastal areas

Environment - international agreements:

party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Environmental Modification

Geography - note: | Azores and Madeira Islands occupy strategic locations along western sea approaches to Strait of Gibraltar

People | Portugal

Population: | 10,605,870 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure: | 0-14 years: 16.5% (male 915,604/female 839,004) 15-64 years: 66.3% (male 3,484,545/female 3,544,674) 65 years and over: 17.2% (male 751,899/female 1,070,144) (2006 est.)
Median age: | total: 38.5 years male: 36.4 years female: 40.6 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate: | 0.36% (2006 est.)
Birth rate: | 10.72 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate: | 10.5 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate: | 3.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate: | total: 4.98 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 77.7 years male: 74.43 years female: 81.2 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate: | 1.47 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 0.4% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 22,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: | less than 1,000 (2003 est.)
Nationality: | noun: Portuguese (singular and plural) adjective: Portuguese
Ethnic groups: | homogeneous Mediterranean stock; citizens of black African descent who immigrated to mainland during decolonization number less than 100,000; since 1990 East Europeans have entered Portugal
Religions: | Roman Catholic 94%, Protestant (1995)
Languages: | Portuguese (official), Mirandese (official - but locally used)
Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93.3% male: 95.5% female: 91.3% (2003 est.)

Government | Portugal

Country name: | conventional long form: Portuguese Republic conventional short form: Portugal local long form: Republica Portuguesa local short form: Portugal
Government type: | parliamentary democracy
Capital: | Lisbon
Administrative divisions: | 18 districts (distritos, singular - distrito) and 2 autonomous regions* (regioes autonomas, singular - regiao autonoma); Aveiro, Acores (Azores)*, Beja, Braga, Braganca, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Evora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria, Lisboa, Madeira*, Portalegre, Porto, Santarem, Setubal, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real, Viseu
Independence: | 1143 (Kingdom of Portugal recognized); 5 October 1910 (independent republic proclaimed)
National holiday: | Portugal Day (Day of Portugal), 10 June (1580); note - also called Camoes Day, the day that revered national poet Luis de Camoes (1524-80) died
Constitution: | 25 April 1976; revised many times
Legal system: | civil law system; the Constitutional Tribunal reviews the constitutionality of legislation; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Anibal CAVACO Silva (since 9 March 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Jose SOCRATES (since 12 March 2005)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister
note: there is also a Council of State that acts as a consultative body to the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 22 January 2006 (next to be held January 2011); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president
election results: Anibal CAVACO Silva elected president; percent of vote - Anibal CAVACO Silva 50.6%, Manuel ALEGRE 20.7%, Mario SOARES 14.3%, Jeronimo de SOUSA 8.5%, Franciso LOUCA 5.3%

Legislative branch: | unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (230 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 20 February 2005 (next to be held February 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - PS 45.1%, PSD 28.7%, CDU 7.6%, PP 7.3%, BE 6.4%; seats by party - PS 121, PSD 75, CDU 14, PP 12, BE 8
Judicial branch: | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal de Justica (judges appointed for life by the Conselho Superior da Magistratura)

Political parties and leaders:

Green Ecologist Party or PEV [Heloisa APOLONIA]; Popular Party or PP [Jose Ribeiro e CASTRO]; Portuguese Communist Party or PCP [Jeronimo de SOUSA]; Portuguese Socialist Party or PS [Jose SOCRATES Carvalho Pinto de Sousa]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Luis Marques MENDES]; The Left Bloc or BE [Franciso Anacleto LOUCA]; Unitarian Democratic Coalition or CDU (includes PEV and PCP) [Jeronimo de SOUSA]

Political pressure groups and leaders: | NA

International organization participation:

AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Pedro Manuel Dos Reis Alves CATARINO chancery: 2012 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 350-5400 FAX: [1] (202) 462-3726 consulate(s) general: Boston, New York, Newark (New Jersey), San Francisco consulate(s): New Bedford (Massachusetts), Providence (Rhode Island)
Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Alfred J. HOFFMAN Jr. embassy: Avenida das Forcas Armadas, 1600-081 Lisbon mailing address: Apartado 43033, 1601-301 Lisboa; PSC 83, APO AE 09726 telephone: [351] (21) 727-3300 FAX: [351] (21) 726-9109 consulate(s): Ponta Delgada (Azores)
Flag description: | two vertical bands of green (hoist side, two-fifths) and red (three-fifths) with the Portuguese coat of arms centered on the dividing line

Economy | Portugal

Economy - overview:

Portugal has become a diversified and increasingly service-based economy since joining the European Community in 1986. Over the past decade, successive governments have privatized many state-controlled firms and liberalized key areas of the economy, including the financial and telecommunications sectors. The country qualified for the European Monetary Union (EMU) in 1998 and began circulating the euro on 1 January 2002 along with 11 other EU member economies. Economic growth had been above the EU average for much of the past decade, but fell back in 2001-05. GDP per capita stands at two-thirds that of the Big Four EU economies. A poor educational system, in particular, has been an obstacle to greater productivity and growth. Portugal has been increasingly overshadowed by lower-cost producers in Central Europe and Asia as a target for foreign direct investment. The government faces tough choices in its attempts to boost Portugal's economic competitiveness while keeping the budget deficit within the eurozone's 3%-of-GDP ceiling.

GDP (purchasing power parity): | $196.3 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): | $169 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: | 0.8% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): | $18,600 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 5.2% industry: 28.9% services: 65.9% (2005 est.)
Labor force: | 5.52 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture 10%, industry 30%, services 60% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: | 7.3% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line: | NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: 3.1% highest 10%: 28.4% (1995 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: | 38.5 (1997)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 2.4% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): | 21.7% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget: | revenues: $78.84 billion expenditures: $90.27 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
Public debt: | 69.4% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products: | grain, potatoes, tomatoes, olives, grapes; sheep, cattle, goats, swine, poultry, dairy products; fish
Industries: | textiles and footwear; wood pulp, paper, and cork; metals and metalworking; oil refining; chemicals; fish canning; rubber and plastic products; ceramics; electronics and communications equipment; rail transportation equipment; aerospace equipment; ship construction and refurbishment; wine; tourism
Industrial production growth rate: | -0.1% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production: | 44.32 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: | fossil fuel: 64.5% hydro: 31.3% nuclear: 0% other: 4.1% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: | 44.01 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports: | 3.1 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports: | 5.9 billion kWh (2003)
Oil - production: | 3,745 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption: | 326,500 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports: | 28,830 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports: | 357,300 bbl/day (2001)
Natural gas - production: | 0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: | 2.983 billion cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - exports: | 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports: | 2.553 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Current account balance: | $-15 billion (2005 est.)
Exports: | $38.8 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities: | clothing and footwear, machinery, chemicals, cork and paper products, hides
Exports - partners: | Spain 24.9%, France 14%, Germany 13.4%, UK 9.6%, US 6%, Italy 4.3%, Netherlands 4% (2004)
Imports: | $60.35 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities: | machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum, textiles, agricultural products
Imports - partners: | Spain 29.3%, Germany 14.3%, France 9.3%, Italy 6.1%, UK 4.6%, Netherlands 4.6% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $11 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external: | $298.7 billion (30 June 2005 est.)
Economic aid - donor: | ODA, $271 million (1995)
Currency (code): | euro (EUR) note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries
Currency code: | EUR
Exchange rates: | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
Fiscal year: | calendar year

Communications | Portugal

Telephones - main lines in use: | 4,238,300 (2004)
Telephones - mobile cellular: | 10,362,100 (2004)

Telephone system:

general assessment: Portugal's telephone system has achieved a state-of-the-art network with broadband, high-speed capabilities and a main line telephone density of 53%
domestic: integrated network of coaxial cables, open-wire, microwave radio relay, and domestic satellite earth stations
international: country code - 351; 6 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to Azores; note - an earth station for Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region) is planned

Radio broadcast stations: | AM 47, FM 172 (many are repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios: | 3.02 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: | 62 (plus 166 repeaters) note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands (1995)
Televisions: | 3.31 million (1997)
Internet country code: | .pt
Internet hosts: | 845,980 (2005)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 16 (2000)
Internet users: | 6.09 million (2005)

Transportation | Portugal

Airports: | 66 (2005)
Airports - with paved runways: | total: 42 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 10 (2005)
Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 23 (2005)
Pipelines: | gas 1,099 km; oil 8 km; refined products 174 km (2004)
Railways: | total: 2,850 km broad gauge: 2,576 km 1.668-m gauge (623 km electrified) narrow gauge: 274 km 1.000-m gauge (2004)
Roadways: | total: 72,600 km paved: 62,436 km (including 1,700 km of expressways) unpaved: 10,164 km (2002)
Waterways: | 210 km (on Douro River from Porto) (2003)

Merchant marine:

total: 113 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,121,828 GRT/1,475,213 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 14, cargo 28, chemical tanker 15, container 7, liquefied gas 11, passenger 9, passenger/cargo 8, petroleum tanker 8, roll on/roll off 4, vehicle carrier 9
foreign-owned: 87 (Australia 1, Belgium 7, Denmark 7, Germany 17, Greece 4, Italy 10, Japan 9, Lebanon 1, Malta 1, Mexico 1, Netherlands 1, Norway 8, Spain 17, Switzerland 3)
registered in other countries: 19 (Cyprus 1, Malta 4, Marshall Islands 2, Panama 12) (2005)

Ports and terminals: | Leixoes, Lisbon, Setubal, Sines

Military | Portugal

Military branches: | Army, Navy (Marinha Portuguesa; includes Marine Corps), Air Force (Forca Aerea Portuguesa, FAP), National Republican Guard (Guarda Nacional Republicana) (2005)
Military service age and obligation: | 18 years of age for voluntary military service; compulsory military service was ended in 2004; women serve in the armed forces, on naval ships since 1993, but are prohibited from serving in some combatant specialties (2005)
Manpower available for military service: | males age 18-49: 2,435,042 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: | males age 18-49: 1,952,819 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually: | males: 67,189 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: | $3,497.8 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | 2.3% (2003)

Transnational Issues | Portugal

Disputes - international: | Portugal does not recognize Spanish sovereignty over the territory of Olivenza based on a difference of interpretation of the 1815 Congress of Vienna and the 1801 Treaty of Badajoz
Illicit drugs: | gateway country for Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market (especially from Brazil); transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Europe; consumer of Southwest Asian heroin

This page was last updated on 29 March, 2006