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KOSHER DELIGHT - YOUR JEWISH ONLINE MAGAZINE!
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PANAMA
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GENERAL
INFORMATION ABOUT PANAMA:
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Background:
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With
US backing, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903 and promptly
signed a treaty with the US allowing for the construction of a
canal and US sovereignty over a strip of land on either side of
the structure (the Panama Canal Zone). The Panama Canal was built
by the US Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. On 7
September 1977, an agreement was signed for the complete transfer
of the Canal from the US to Panama by the end of 1999. Certain
portions of the Zone and increasing responsibility over the Canal
were turned over in the intervening years. With US help, dictator
Manuel NORIEGA was deposed in 1989. The entire Panama Canal, the
area supporting the Canal, and remaining US military bases were
turned over to Panama by or on 31 December 1999.
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Location:
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Central
America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific
Ocean, between Colombia and Costa Rica |
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Geographic coordinates:
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9
00 N, 80 00 W |
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Map references:
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Central
America and the Caribbean |
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Area:
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total:
78,200 sq km
land: 75,990 sq km
water: 2,210 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly
smaller than South Carolina |
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Land boundaries:
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total:
555 km
border countries: Colombia 225 km, Costa Rica 330 km |
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Coastline:
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2,490
km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial
sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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Climate:
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tropical
maritime; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainy season (May to
January), short dry season (January to May) |
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Terrain:
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interior
mostly steep, rugged mountains and dissected, upland plains;
coastal areas largely plains and rolling hills |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Volcan de Chiriqui 3,475 m |
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Natural resources:
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copper,
mahogany forests, shrimp, hydropower |
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Land use:
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arable
land: 7.36%
permanent crops: 1.98%
other: 90.66% (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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320
sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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occasional
severe storms and forest fires in the Darien area |
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Environment - current issues:
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water
pollution from agricultural runoff threatens fishery resources;
deforestation of tropical rain forest; land degradation and soil
erosion threatens siltation of Panama Canal; air pollution in
urban areas; mining threatens natural resources |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party
to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands,
Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
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Geography - note:
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strategic
location on eastern end of isthmus forming land bridge connecting
North and South America; controls Panama Canal that links North
Atlantic Ocean via Caribbean Sea with North Pacific Ocean
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Population:
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3,039,150
(July 2005 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 29.8% (male 460,840/female 443,359)
15-64 years: 63.9% (male 984,558/female 956,748)
65 years and over: 6.4% (male 91,383/female 102,262) (2005
est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
26.18 years
male: 25.89 years
female: 26.48 years (2005 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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1.26%
(2005 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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19.96
births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Death rate:
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6.54
deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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-0.86
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at
birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
20.47 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.59 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 18.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 71.94 years
male: 69.67 years
female: 74.31 years (2005 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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2.45
children born/woman (2005 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.9%
(2003 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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16,000
(2003 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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less
than 500 (2003 est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Panamanian(s)
adjective: Panamanian |
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Ethnic groups:
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mestizo
(mixed Amerindian and white) 70%, Amerindian and mixed (West
Indian) 14%, white 10%, Amerindian 6% |
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Religions:
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Roman
Catholic 85%, Protestant 15% |
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Languages:
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Spanish
(official), English 14%; note - many Panamanians bilingual |
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Literacy:
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.6%
male: 93.2%
female: 91.9% (2003 est.)
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: Republic of Panama
conventional short form: Panama
local long form: Republica de Panama
local short form: Panama |
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Government type:
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constitutional
democracy |
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Capital:
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Panama |
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Administrative divisions:
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9
provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 territory* (comarca);
Bocas del Toro, Chiriqui, Cocle, Colon, Darien, Herrera, Los
Santos, Panama, San Blas*(Kuna Yala), and Veraguas |
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Independence:
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3
November 1903 (from Colombia; became independent from Spain 28
November 1821) |
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