r and drier
in south

Terrain: mountainous north of the Tagus, rolling plains in south

Natural resources: fish, forests (cork), tungsten, iron ore,
uranium ore, marble

Land use: 32% arable land; 6% permanent crops; 6% meadows and
pastures; 40% forest and woodland; 16% other; includes 7% irrigated

Environment: Azores subject to severe earthquakes

Note: Azores and Madeira Islands occupy strategic locations
along western sea approaches to Strait of Gibraltar

- People
Population: 10,354,497 (July 1990), growth rate 0.3% (1990)

Birth rate: 12 births/1,000 population (1990)

Death rate: 10 deaths/1,000 population (1990)

Net migration rate: 1 migrants/1,000 population (1990)

Infant mortality rate: 14 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)

Life expectancy at birth: 71 years male, 78 years female (1990)

Total fertility rate: 1.5 children born/woman (1990)

Nationality: noun--Portuguese (sing. and pl.); adjective--Portuguese

Ethnic divisions: homogeneous Mediterranean stock in mainland, Azores,
Madeira Islands; citizens of black African descent who immigrated to mainland
during decolonization number less than 100,000

Religion: 97% Roman Catholic, 1% Protestant denominations, 2% other

Language: Portuguese

Literacy: 83%

Labor force: 4,605,700; 45% services, 35% industry, 20% agriculture (1988)

Organized labor: about 55% of the labor force; the Communist-dominated
General Confederation of Portuguese Workers--Intersindical (CGTP-IN) represents
more than half of the unionized labor force; its main competition, the General
Workers Union (UGT), is organized by the Socialists and Social Democrats and
represents less than half of unionized labor

- Government
Long-form name: Portuguese Republic

Type: republic

Capital: Lisbon

Administrative divisions: 18 districts (distritos,
singular--distrito) and 2 autonomous regions* (regioes autonomas,
singular--regiao autonoma); Acores*, Aveiro, Beja, Braga,
Braganca, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Evora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria,
Lisboa, Madeira*, Portalegre, Porto, Santarem, Setubal,
Viana do Castelo, Vila Real, Viseu

Dependent area: Macau (scheduled to become a Special Administrative
Region of China in 1999)

Independence: 1140; independent republic proclaimed 5 October 1910

Constitution: 25 April 1976, revised 30 October 1982; new discussions on
constitutional revision began October 1987

Legal system: civil law system; the Constitutional Tribunal reviews t