barriers, all locations are particularly
vulnerable to rapid changes in weather fronts
international agreements: party to - Antarctic-Environmental
Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the
Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation

People
------

Population: 3,238,952 (July 1996 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 24% (male 405,041; female 386,155)
15-64 years: 63% (male 1,004,089; female 1,035,336)
65 years and over: 13% (male 170,109; female 238,222) (July 1996
est.)

Population growth rate: 0.7% (1996 est.)

Birth rate: 17.02 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate: 9.05 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.95 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 15.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.94 years
male: 71.8 years
female: 78.25 years (1996 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.32 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Uruguayan(s)
adjective: Uruguayan

Ethnic divisions: white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%

Religions: Roman Catholic 66% (less than one-half of the adult
population attends church regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%,
nonprofessing or other 30%

Languages: Spanish, Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the
Brazilian frontier)

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)
total population: 97.3%
male: 96.9%
female: 97.7%

Government
----------

Name of country:
conventional long form: Oriental Republic of Uruguay
conventional short form: Uruguay
local long form: Republica Oriental del Uruguay
local short form: Uruguay

Data code: UY

Type of government: republic

Capital: Montevideo

Administrative divisions: 19 departments (departamentos, singular
- departamento); Artigas, Canelones, Cerro Largo, Colonia, Durazno,
Flores, Florida, Lavalleja, Maldonado, Montevideo, Paysandu, Rio
Negro, Rivera, Rocha, Salto, San Jose, Soriano, Tacuarembo, Treinta
y Tres

Independence: 25 August 1828 (from