Nicaragua - Geography
Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Nicaragua. Largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua. Mother's mean age at first birth is 19.2 years (2011/12 est.) (Note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-29), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 78 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Geographical data of Nicaragua
| Location | Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras |
|---|---|
| Geographic coordinates | 13 00 N, 85 00 W |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean |
| Tarrain | extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes |
| Natural Resources | gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish |
| Natural Hazards | destructive earthquakes; volcanoes; landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes volcanism: significant volcanic activity; Cerro Negro (728 m), which last erupted in 1999, is one of Nicaragua's most active volcanoes; its lava flows and ash have been known to cause significant damage to farmland and buildings; other historically active volcanoes include Concepcion, Cosiguina, Las Pilas, Masaya, Momotombo, San Cristobal, and Telica |
| Irrigated Land | 1,990 sq km (2012) |
| Major rivers (by length in km) | |
| Major aquifers | |
| Land Boundaries | 1,253 km |
| Border Countries | Costa Rica 313 km; Honduras 940 km |
| Coastline | 910 km |
| Climate | tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands |
| Area | |
| Total Area | 130,370 sq km |
| Land Area | 119,990 sq km |
| Water Area | 10,380 sq km |
| comparative Area | slightly larger than Pennsylvania; slightly smaller than New York state |
| Maritime Claims | |
| Territorial sea | 12 nm |
| Contiguous zone | 24 nm |
| Continental shelf | natural prolongation |
| Elevations | |
| Highest point | Mogoton 2,085 m |
| Lowest point | Pacific Ocean 0 m |
| Mean elevation | 298 m |
| Land Use | |
| Agricultural land | 42.2% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: arable land | arable land: 12.5% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent crops | permanent crops: 2.5% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent pasture | permanent pasture: 27.2% (2018 est.) |
| Forest | 25.3% (2018 est.) |
| Other | 32.5% (2018 est.) |
Population Distribution
The overwhelming majority of the population resides in the western half of the country, with much of the urban growth centered in the capital city of Managua; coastal areas also show large population clusters
People and Society
In Nicaragua, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Mestizo (mixed Indigenous and White) 69%, White 17%, Black 9%, Indigenous 5%
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Pop growth rate | 0.95% (2024 est.) |
| Birth rate | 16.4 births/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Death rate | 5.1 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Health expenditure | 8.6% of GDP (2020) |
| Physicians Density | 1.67 physicians/1,000 population (2018) |
| Hospital bed Density | 0.9 beds/1,000 population (2017) |
| Total fertility rate | 1.83 children born/woman (2024 est.) |
| Gross reproduction rate | 0.89 (2024 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 80.4% (2011/12) |
| Est married women (ages 15-49) | 56% (2023 est.) |
| Literacy | age 15 and over can read and write |
| Education expenditures | 4.6% of GDP (2020 est.) |
| Net Migration rate | -1.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Nationality | Nicaraguan | Nicaraguan(s) |
| Languages | |
| Religions | Roman Catholic 44.9%, Protestant 38.7% (Evangelical 38.2, Adventist 0.5%), other 1.2%, (includes Jehovah's Witness and Church of Jesus Christ), believer but not belonging to a church 1%, agnostic or atheist 0.4%, none 13.7%, unspecified 0.2% (2020 est.) |
| Age Structure | |
| 0-14 years | 25.1% (male 855,256/female 818,714) |
| 15-64 years | 68.9% (male 2,240,297/female 2,360,244) |
| 65 years and over | 6% (2024 est.) (male 178,347/female 224,090) |
| Dependency Ratios | |
| Total dependency ratio | 54.4 |
| Youth dependency ratio | 46.4 |
| Elderly dependency ratio | 8 |
| Potential support ratio | 12.6 (2021 est.) |
| Median Age | |
| Total | 29 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 28.1 years |
| Female | 29.9 years |
| Urbanization | |
| Urban population | 59.8% of total population (2023) |
| Rate of urbanization | 1.45% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Major urban areas (Pop) | 1.095 million MANAGUA (capital) (2023). |
| Sex Ratio | |
| At birth | 1.05 male(s)/female |
| 0-14 years | 1.04 male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 0.95 male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.8 male(s)/female |
| Total population | 0.96 male(s)/female (2024 est.) |
| Infant Motality | |
| Total | 14.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.) |
| Male | 15.9 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Female | 12.8 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life Expectancy at birth | |
| Total population | 74.7 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 73.2 years |
| Female | 76.4 years |
| Drinking Water Sources | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 97.5% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 62.6% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 83.2% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 2.5% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 37.4% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 16.8% of population (2020 est.) |
| Sanitation facility acess | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 89.9% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 66.5% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 80.3% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 10.1% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 33.5% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 19.7% of population (2020 est.) |
| Major Infectious diseases | |
| Degree of risk | high (2023) |
| Food or waterborne diseases | bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever |
| Vectorborne diseases | dengue fever and malaria |
| Alcohol consumption per capita | |
| Total | 3.69 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Beer | 1.57 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Wine | 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Spirits | 2.1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Other alcohols | 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
Demographic profile
Despite being one of the poorest countries in Latin America, Nicaragua has improved its access to potable water and sanitation and has ameliorated its life expectancy, infant and child mortality, and immunization rates. However, income distribution is very uneven, and the poor, agriculturalists, and indigenous people continue to have less access to healthcare services. Nicaragua's total fertility rate has fallen from around 6 children per woman in 1980 to below replacement level today, but the high birth rate among adolescents perpetuates a cycle of poverty and low educational attainment.
Nicaraguans emigrate primarily to Costa Rica and to a lesser extent the United States. Nicaraguan men have been migrating seasonally to Costa Rica to harvest bananas and coffee since the early 20th century. Political turmoil, civil war, and natural disasters from the 1970s through the 1990s dramatically increased the flow of refugees and permanent migrants seeking jobs, higher wages, and better social and healthcare benefits. Since 2000, Nicaraguan emigration to Costa Rica has slowed and stabilized. Today roughly 300,000 Nicaraguans are permanent residents of Costa Rica - about 75% of the foreign population - and thousands more migrate seasonally for work, many illegally.
All Important Facts about Nicaragua
Want to know more about Nicaragua? Check all different factbooks for Nicaragua below.
