Paraguay Area Code

+595 is the dialing code for Paraguay.

The least populated Paraguay is in the hinterland of South America. Dictator Alfredo Stroessner ruled the country with an iron hand for nearly 35 years before being driven into national flight following a coup in 1989. His party, the Colorado Party, retained power for the 2008 election and resumed it five years later. Despite increased democracy, Paraguay is still characterized by severe corruption and a large black sector with extensive smuggling of drugs, among other things. The country is poor, income per resident is among the lowest in Latin America.

  • Abbreviationfinder: Brief profiles of Paraguay, including geography, history, politics, economics as well as common acronyms about this country.

Geography and climate

Paraguay Area Code

Paraguay is located in the interior of South America and is on the surface somewhat smaller than Sweden. The Paraguay River flowing from north to south divides the country into two parts: the dry and flattened Chaco to the west and to the east of Paraneña with rolling countryside and fertile plains.

Two other rivers form the border, Pilcomayo towards Argentina in the west and Paraná towards Brazil in the east. Pilcomayo merges with Paraguay near the capital Asuncion and Paraguay in turn merges with Paraná just south of the country. Through the rivers you reach the Atlantic by boat.

Country Facts

Geography

Cultivated land 53.8 %
Land area 406752 km 2

Population and health

Population development 1.16 ‰
Urban population (Urbanization) 59.7 %
Death rate 4.68 per 1000 residents
Life expectancy: Women 79.77 years
Life expectancy: Men 74.34 years
Birth rate 16.37 births per 1000 residents
HDI index 0.679
Population 6783272
Infant mortality 20.05 deaths / 1000 births

Population Graph Source: Countryaah.com

Energy

Electricity, production 59630 million kWh
Energy consumption per resident 783.3 kg. oil per resident
Natural gas, production million cubic meters
Crude oil, production million tons

Infrastructure

Internet users 29.0 per 100 residents
Mobile subscriptions 109 per 100 residents
Passenger cars 54 per 1000 residents

Business and economics

Unemployment 5.5% of the workforce
GDP 8700 per resident
Primary occupations 26.5 %
Secondary profession 18.5 %
Tertiary professions 55 %

To the east of the Paraguay River are wooded hills that in the south turn into grasslands – Pampas – crossed by small rivers. To the west of the river, Chaco, or Gran Chaco, extends over half the country’s surface. Dry floods with floods make parts of Chaco the peninsula, dominated by thorn bushes and giant cacti. The area is not suitable for agriculture, but irrigation ponds have sometimes created good grazing land for cattle. The whole country is quite lowland.

Wildlife is rich and there are many kinds of birds such as parrots, budgies and rhea (American ostrich). Snakes are also common. Due to the rapid population increase in eastern Paraguay, animals such as jaguars, antelope, belt, wolf and Brazilian tapir are becoming increasingly rare.

Eastern Paraguay has a mild, subtropical climate. During the winter (June to August) it can be chilly with frost some nights. The forest areas get ample and even rainfall, even though the summer gives the most rain. Rapid weather changes, with violent storms and sudden downpours, are common.

In Chaco in the west, it is usually hot and dry. During the summer (October to March) the temperature can exceed 40 degrees. It also rains heavily while it hardly rains at all in the winter.

FACTS – GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE

Surface

406 752 km2 (2018)

Time

Swedish –5 hours

Adjacent country (s)

Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil

Capital with number of residents

Asuncion 2.3 million including suburbs

Other major cities

Ciudad del Este, Encarnación, Concepción, Pedro Juan Caballero

Highest mountain

Cerro Peró (also called Tres Kandú, 842 m asl)

Important rivers

Paraná, Paraguay, Pilcomayo

Largest lake

Ypoa

Average Precipitation / year

1 120 mm in Asuncion, 815 mm in the west, 1 525 mm in the east

Average / day

27 °C (Jan), 17 °C (July)

1st estimate 2014

2014

October

Journalist murdered

October 16

Digging journalist Pablo Medina and his co-worker Antonia Almada are shot to death by motorcycle perpetrators. Medina, who worked for ABC Color, wrote about drug smuggling and had been threatened several times. He had received police protection but was on occasions without escort. He becomes the third journalist to be murdered in Paraguay during the year.

August

Protests against corruption and privatization

A series of demonstrations is being held in protest against politicians and civil servants who are perceived as corrupt, and against the government’s plans to privatize parts of the social service.

June

Land is returned to indigenous people

June 11

President Cartes signs a congressional decision that the state will forcibly redeem land from landowners in Chaco, and return it to the Sawhoyamaxa people group belonging to the indigenous people of Enxet. It covers 14,400 hectares, the largest land area that has so far been returned to original users. Sawhoyamaxa were expelled from the ground in the early 1990s and many of them have since lived on the outskirts, under difficult conditions. In 2006, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) ruled that the state must return the land and pay damages. The process has dragged on over time and the case has been noticed by human rights groups also internationally. In 2013, sawhoyamaxa tired of waiting and occupied a land area, as well as conducted several protests in Asuncion.

Flood in Asuncion

Floods force 150,000 people from their homes in Asuncion. Heavy rainfall has caused the Paraguay and Paraná rivers to rise above their banks.

April

Poverty decreases

An official survey shows a rapid reduction in poverty in the country, which according to national estimates has fallen from 32.4 percent in 2011 to 23.8 percent in 2013. The cause is said to be high growth of an average of 7.6 percent since 2010.