Read below hardly your typical third world country.DGRI
Type: Republic.
Independence: 1821.
Constitution: The 1987 Sandinista-era constitution was amended in 1995 to provide for a more even distribution of power among the four branches of government and again in 2000 to increase the size of the Supreme Court and the Controller General's Office and to make changes to the electoral laws. The changes in 2000 allowed for the president to be elected with 35% of the popular vote so long as there was at least a five percentage point difference between the first and second place candidates in order to avoid a second round of voting.
Branches: Executive--president and vice president. Legislative--National Assembly (unicameral). Judicial--Supreme Court and subordinate appeals, district, and local courts, as well as separate labor and administrative tribunals. Electoral--Supreme Electoral Council, responsible for organizing and holding elections.
Administrative subdivisions: 15 departments and two autonomous regions on the Atlantic coast; 153 municipalities.
National political parties and leaders: Conservative Party or PC (Alejandro Bolanos Davis); Independent Liberal Party or PLI (Indalecio Rodriguez); Liberal Constitutionalist Party or PLC (Jorge Castillo-Quant); Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance or ALN (Alejandro Mejia-Ferreti); Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN (Daniel Ortega-Saavedra); Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS (Enrique Saenz-Navarrete).
Suffrage: Universal at 16.
Economy
GDP (2011 est.): $7.08 billion.
GDP real growth rate (2011): 4.0%.
Per capita GDP (2011): $1,202.
Components of GDP (2011): Agriculture 20.3%, industry 23.4%, services 56.3%.
Inflation rate (2011): 7.95%.
Natural resources: Arable land, fresh water, fisheries, gold, timber, renewable energy potential (wind, hydro, and geothermal).
Trade (2011): Total exports--$3.964 billion. National exports--$2.264 billion: coffee, beef, gold, sugar, shrimp and lobster, industrial goods. Free trade zone exports--$1.7 billion: mostly textiles and apparel, automobile wiring harnesses, cigars. Markets--United States, Venezuela, Canada, Central American Common Market, Mexico. Imports--$4.857 billion: primarily consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products. Suppliers--United States, Venezuela, China, Costa Rica, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador.
