oman Catholic 96%, Protestant 2%, other 2%

Languages:

Spanish (official), numerous indigenous dialects

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93%
male: 93.3%
female: 92.7% (2001 census)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):

total: 12 years
male: 11 years
female: 12 years (2003)

Education expenditures:

3.7% of GDP (2006)

Government
Venezuela

Country name:

conventional long form: Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
conventional short form: Venezuela
local long form: Republica Bolivariana de Venezuela
local short form: Venezuela

Government type:

federal republic

Capital:

name: Caracas
geographic coordinates: 10 30 N, 66 56 W
time difference: UTC-4.5 (half an hour ahead of Washington, DC
during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions:

23 states (estados, singular - estado), 1 capital district*
(distrito capital), and 1 federal dependency** (dependencia
federal); Amazonas, Anzoategui, Apure, Aragua, Barinas, Bolivar,
Carabobo, Cojedes, Delta Amacuro, Dependencias Federales**, Distrito
Federal*, Falcon, Guarico, Lara, Merida, Miranda, Monagas, Nueva
Esparta, Portuguesa, Sucre, Tachira, Trujillo, Vargas, Yaracuy, Zulia
note: the federal dependency consists of 11 federally controlled
island groups with a total of 72 individual islands

Independence:

5 July 1811 (from Spain)

National holiday:

Independence Day, 5 July (1811)

Constitution:

30 December 1999

Legal system:

open, adversarial court system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias (since 3 February 1999);
Executive Vice President Ramon Alonzo CARRIZALEZ Rengifo (since 4
January 2008); note - the president is both the chief of state and
head of government
head of government: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias (since 3 February
1999); Executive Vice President Ramon Alonzo CARRIZALEZ Rengifo
(since 4 January 2008)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term
(eligible for a second term); election last held 3 December 2006
(next to be held in December 2012)
note: in 1999, a National Constituent Assembly drafted a new
constitution that increased the presidential term to six years; an
election was subsequently held on 30 July 2000 under the ter