Paraguay


Flag	Coat of arms

Motto: Paz y justicia

(Spanish: Peace and justice)

Anthem: Paraguayos, República o Muerte

Capital Asunción
25°16′ S 57°40′ W

Largest city Asunción

Official language(s) Spanish

Government

President
Vice President

Parliamentary democracy
Nicanor Duarte Frutos
Luis Castiglioni Joria

Independence
Declared From Spain
May 14, 1811

Area
• Total

• Water (%) 406,750 km² ( 59th)
{{{areami²}}} mi²
2.3%%

Population
• 2005 est.
• [[As of |]] census
• Density 6,347,884 ( 100th)

15/km² ( 161st)
{{{population_densitymi²}}}/mi²

GDP ( PPP)
• Total
• Per capita 2004 estimate
$27,581,000,000 ( 96th)
$4,553 ( 109th)

HDI ( 2003) 0.755 ( 88th) – medium

Currency Guaraní (PYG)

Time zone
• Summer ( DST) ( UTC-4)
( UTC-5)

Internet TLD .py

Calling code +595

The Republic of Paraguay ( Spanish: República del Paraguay, pron. IPA [re'puβlika del para'ɣwaj]) is a landlocked nation in South America. It lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, bordering Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. The name of the country means "water that goes to the water," derived from the Guaraní words pará ("ocean"), gua ("to/from"), and y ("water"). The expression in Guaraní often refers solely to Asunción, but in Spanish refers to the entire country.

History

Europeans first arrived in the area in the early 16th century and the settlement of Asunción was founded in 1537, by the Spanish explorer Juan de Salazar. The city eventually became the centre of a Spanish colonial province, as well as a primary site of the Jesuit missions and settlements in South America in the 18th century. Paraguay declared its independence by overthrowing the local Spanish authorities on May 15, 1811.

In the disastrous War of the Triple Alliance ( 1865– 1870), Paraguay lost two-thirds of its adult male population and 140,000 km² of its territory. It stagnated economically for the next half century. In the Chaco War of 1932 to 1935, invading Bolivian troops, trying to gain a port on the Paraguay river for their landlocked country, were expelled from most of the Chaco region by the Paraguayan Armed Forces. The Chaco had been claimed by both countries, but the settlements in the region were mostly Paraguayan. The 35-year military dictatorship of Alfredo Stroessner was overthrown in 1989, and, despite a marked increase in political infighting in recent years, relatively free and regular presidential elections have been held since then. However, the democracy that exists in the country, while a great improvement on the 'stronato' is very limited. It is hampered by the widespread corruption and lack of a solid democratic political culture.

Politics

Paraguay's highly centralised and often dictatorial government was fundamentally changed by the 1992 constitution, which provides for a division of powers. The president and vice president are elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms, after which the president appoints a cabinet. The president functions as both head of state and head of government.

The bicameral parliament, the Congress (Congreso), consists of an 80-member Chamber of Deputies (Cámara de Diputados) and a 45-member Senate (Cámara de Senadores), elected concurrently with the president through a proportional representation system. Deputies are elected by department and senators nationwide on a list system, both for five-year terms. Each of Paraguay's 17 departments is headed by a popularly elected governor.

Paraguay's highest court is the Supreme Court. The Senate and the President select its nine members on the basis of recommendations from a constitutionally created Magistrates Council.

A Paraguayan peculiarity is its flag, which features a slightly different design on the reverse side than on the front. The three stripes on the flag (red, white, and blue) come from the French flag. The front side contains the National Seal of Paraguay and the reverse contains the words "Paz y Justicia"(Peace and Justice) along with a lion and a Phrygian Cap on a pole.

Departments

Paraguay consists of 18 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento):

Alto Paraguay
Alto Paraná
Amambay
Asunción
Boquerón
Caaguazú
Caazapá
Canindeyú
Central
Concepción
Cordillera
Guairá
Itapúa
Misiones
Ñeembucú
Paraguarí
Presidente Hayes
San Pedro

The (Gran) Chaco features mostly low, marshy plains near the river and dry forest and thorny scrub further west. The highest point is the Cerro Pero ( Cerro Tres Kandu) at 842 m. The southeastern border is formed by the Parana River, containing the impressive Itaipu dam it shares with Brazil. It is currently the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world, generating nearly all of Paraguay's electricity.

The local climate ranges from subtropical to temperate, with substantial rainfall in the eastern portions, though becoming semi-arid in the far west.

Economy

Paraguay has a market economy marked by a large informal sector. The informal sector features both re-export of imported consumer goods to neighbouring countries as well as the activities of thousands of microenterprises and urban street vendors. Because of the importance of the informal sector, accurate economic measures are difficult to obtain. A large percentage of the population derive their living from agricultural activity, often on a subsistence basis.

Paraguay's economy is very dependent on Brazil, its neighbour in the east. Most of the country's imports come through the Brazilian port of Paranaguá by highway, on trucks. Ciudad del Este is the third largest free-tax commerce zone of the world, only behind Hong Kong and Miami. The country holds the impressive Itaipu dam which used to be the largest concrete structure, the largest dam and the largest power plant of the world. Itaipu's energy supplies about 20% of the current Brazilian needs and is the most important export good of Paraguay. The selling of cheaper goods is another important source of revenue and it is still a common habit in Brazil to go to Paraguay and buy electronics, like TV sets and sound systems there. About 60% of the country's GDP comes from commerce with Brazil. Nearly all the rest comes from commerce with Argentina with which the country shares another major power plant: Yaciretá.

The formal economy grew by an average of about 3% annually in 1995- 1997, but its GDP declined slightly in 1998, 1999, and 2000. Despite difficulties arising from political instability, corruption, slow structural reforms, high internal and external debts and deficient infrastructure; it is believed that the factor that most contributed to the stagnation of Paraguayan economy was the devaluation of the Brazilian currency, the Real, in 1998; which caused Paraguayan shops to lose their attractiveness (as prices there are mostly dollarised).

Since 1991 Paraguay has been a member of the free trade bloc MERCOSUR.

Demographics

Ethnically, culturally, and socially, Paraguay has one of the most homogeneous populations in Latin America. About 95% of the people are mestizos of mixed Spanish and Guaraní Indian descent. Little trace is left of the original Guaraní culture except the Guaraní language, which is spoken by 90% of the population. About 75% of all Paraguayans can speak Spanish. Guaraní and Spanish are official languages. Germans, Japanese, Koreans, ethnic Chinese, Arabs, Brazilians, and Argentines are among those who have settled in Paraguay and they have to an extent retained their respective languages.

Paraguay's population is distributed unevenly throughout the country. The vast majority of the people live in the eastern region, most within 160 kilometers of Asunción, the capital and largest city. The Chaco, which accounts for about 60% of the territory, is home to less than 2% of the population. The country is predominantly Roman Catholic, with some Mennonite and other Protestant minorities.