Environment - current issues: sewage pollution of Lago de Valencia; oil and urban pollution of Lago de Maracaibo; deforestation; soil degradation; urban and industrial pollution, especially along the Caribbean coast; threat to the rainforest ecosystem from irresponsible mining operations
Environment - international agreements: party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed but not ratified:: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
on major sea and air routes linking North and South America; Angel
Falls in the Guiana Highlands is the world's highest waterfall
People Venezuela
Population:
25,730,435 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 29.1% (male 3,860,116/female 3,620,440)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 8,494,944/female 8,410,874)
65 years and over: 5.2% (male 609,101/female 734,960) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 26 years
male: 25.4 years
female: 26.6 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.38% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
18.71 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
4.92 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)