Canada

Airports

1,416 total, 1,168 usable; 455 with permanent-surface runways; 4 with runways over 3,659 m; 30 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 338 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air

636 major transport aircraft; Air Canada is the major carrier

Highways

884,272 km total; 712,936 km surfaced (250,023 km paved), 171,336 km earth

Inland waterways

3,000 km, including Saint Lawrence Seaway

Merchant marine

70 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 500,904 GRT/727,118 DWT; includes 1 passenger, 3 short-sea passenger, 2 passenger-cargo, 10 cargo, 2 railcar carrier, 1 refrigerated cargo, 8 roll-on/roll-off, 1 container, 28 petroleum tanker, 5 chemical tanker, 1 specialized tanker, 8 bulk; note - does not include ships used exclusively in the Great Lakes

Pipelines

crude and refined oil 23,564 km; natural gas 74,980 km

Ports

Halifax, Montreal, Quebec, Saint John (New Brunswick), Saint John's (Newfoundland), Toronto, Vancouver

Railroads

93,544 km total; two major transcontinental freight railway systems - Canadian National (government owned) and Canadian Pacific Railway; passenger service - VIA (government operated)

Telecommunications

excellent service provided by modern media; 18.0 million telephones; broadcast stations - 900 AM, 29 FM, 53 (1,400 repeaters) TV; 5 coaxial submarine cables; over 300 earth stations operating in INTELSAT (including 4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean) and domestic systems

Branches

Canadian Armed Forces (including Mobile Command, Maritime Command, Air Command, Communications Command, Canadian Forces Europe, Training Commands), Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $11.4 billion, 1.7% of GDP (FY91); $10.5 billion, NA% of GDP (FY 92)

Manpower availability

males 15-49, 7,366,675; 6,387,459 fit for military service; 190,752 reach military age (17) annually

Agriculture

accounts for about 3% of GDP; one of the world's major producers and exporters of grain (wheat and barley); key source of US agricultural imports; large forest resources cover 35% of total land area; commercial fisheries provide annual catch of 1.5 million metric tons, of which 75% is exported

Budget

revenues $111.8 billion; expenditures $138.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY90 est.)

Currency

Canadian dollar (plural - dollars); 1 Canadian dollar (Can$) = 100 cents

Economic aid

donor - ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $7.2 billion

Electricity

106,464,000 kW capacity; 479,600 million kWh produced, 17,872 kWh per capita (1991)

Exchange rates

Canadian dollars (Can$) per US$1 - 1.1565 (January 1992), 1.1457 (1991), 1.1668 (1990), 1.1840 (1989), 1.2307 (1988), 1.3260 (1987)

Exports

$124.0 billion (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: newsprint, wood pulp, timber, crude petroleum, machinery, natural gas, aluminum, motor vehicles and parts; telecommunications equipment partners: US, Japan, UK, Germany, South Korea, Netherlands, China

External debt

$247 billion (1987)

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March

GDP

purchasing power equivalent - $521.5 billion, per capita $19,400; real growth rate -1.1% (1991 est.)

Illicit drugs

illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic drug market; use of hydroponics technology permits growers to plant large quantities of high-quality marijuana indoors; growing role as a transit point for heroin and cocaine entering the US market

Imports

$118 billion (c.i.f., 1991) commodities: crude petroleum, chemicals, motor vehicles and parts, durable consumer goods, electronic computers; telecommunications equipment and parts partners: US, Japan, UK, Germany, France, Mexico, Taiwan, South Korea

Industrial production

growth rate -3.8% (August 1991); accounts for 34% of GDP

Industries

processed and unprocessed minerals, food products, wood and paper products, transportation equipment, chemicals, fish products, petroleum and natural gas

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

4.2% (November 1991, annual rate)

Overview

As an affluent, high-tech industrial society, Canada today closely resembles the US in per capita output, market-oriented economic system, and pattern of production. Since World War II the impressive growth of the manufacturing, mining, and service sectors has transformed the nation from a largely rural economy into one primarily industrial and urban. In the 1980s, Canada registered one of the highest rates of real growth among the OECD nations, averaging about 3.2%. With its great natural resources, skilled labor force, and modern capital plant, Canada has excellent economic prospects. However, the continuing constitutional impasse between English- and French-speaking areas has observers discussing a possible split in the confederation; foreign investors are becoming edgy.

Unemployment rate

10.3% (November 1991)

Climate

varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in north

Coastline

243,791 km

Comparative area

slightly larger than US

Disputes

maritime boundary disputes with the US

Environment

80% of population concentrated within 160 km of US border; continuous permafrost in north a serious obstacle to development

Land area

9,220,970 km2

Land boundaries

8,893 km with US (includes 2,477 km with Alaska)

Land use

arable land 5%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and pastures 3%; forest and woodland 35%; other 57%; includes NEGL% irrigated

Maritime claims

Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm Territorial sea: 12 nm

Natural resources

nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum, potash, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, crude oil, natural gas

Note

second-largest country in world (after Russia); strategic location between Russia and US via north polar route

Terrain

mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in southeast

Total area

9,976,140 km2

Administrative divisions

10 provinces and 2 territories*; Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Northwest Territories*, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon Territory*

Capital

Ottawa

Communists

3,000

Constitution

amended British North America Act 1867 patriated to Canada 17 April 1982; charter of rights and unwritten customs

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador Derek BURNEY; Chancery at 501 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20001; telephone (202) 682-1740; there are Canadian Consulates General in Atlanta, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Seattle US: Ambassador Peter TEELEY; Embassy at 100 Wellington Street, K1P 5T1, Ottawa (mailing address is P. O. Box 5000, Ogdensburg, NY 13669-0430); telephone (613) 238-5335 or (613) 238-4470; FAX (613) 238-5720; there are US Consulates General in Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec, Toronto, and Vancouver

Elections

House of Commons: last held 21 November 1988 (next to be held by November 1993); results - Progressive Conservative Party 43.0%, Liberal Party 32%, New Democratic Party 20%, other 5%; seats - (295 total) Progressive Conservative Party 159, Liberal Party 80, New Democratic Party 44, independents 12

Executive branch

British monarch, governor general, prime minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet

Flag

three vertical bands of red (hoist side), white (double width, square), and red with a red maple leaf centered in the white band

Independence

1 July 1867 (from UK)

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Leaders

Chief of State: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Raymond John HNATSHYN (since 29 January 1990) Head of Government: Prime Minister (Martin) Brian MULRONEY (since 4 September 1984); Deputy Prime Minister Donald Frank MAZANKOWSKI (since June 1986)

Legal system

based on English common law, except in Quebec, where civil law system based on French law prevails; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament (Parlement) consists of an upper house or Senate (Senat) and a lower house or House of Commons (Chambre des Communes)

Long-form name

none

Member of

ACCT, AfDB, AG (observer), APEC, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, C, CCC, CDB, COCOM, CP, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, FAO, G-7, G-8, G-10, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LORCS, MTCR, NACC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIIMOG, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

National holiday

Canada Day, 1 July (1867)

Political parties and leaders

Progressive Conservative Party, Brian MULRONEY; Liberal Party, Jean CHRETIEN; New Democratic Party, Audrey McLAUGHLIN

Suffrage

universal at age 18

Type

confederation with parliamentary democracy

Birth rate

14 births/1,000 population (1992)

Death rate

7 deaths/1,000 population (1992)

Ethnic divisions

British Isles origin 40%, French origin 27%, other European 20%, indigenous Indian and Eskimo 1.5%

Infant mortality rate

7 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)

Labor force

13,380,000; services 75%, manufacturing 14%, agriculture 4%, construction 3%, other 4% (1988)

Languages

English and French (both official)

Life expectancy at birth

74 years male, 81 years female (1992)

Literacy

99% (male NA%, female NA%) age 15 and over can read and write (1981 est.)

Nationality

noun - Canadian(s); adjective - Canadian

Net migration rate

6 migrants/1,000 population (1992)

Organized labor

30.6% of labor force; 39.6% of nonagricultural paid workers

Population

27,351,509 (July 1992), growth rate 1.3% (1992)

Religions

Roman Catholic 46%, United Church 16%, Anglican 10%

Total fertility rate

1.8 children born/woman (1992)