Canada

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Canada

General Information
Geography
Government
Economy
Population
Health
Communications and media
Chronology


GENERAL INFORMATION

Area 9,970,610 sq km/3,849,652 sq mi Capital Ottawa Language English (60%), French (24%) (both official), American Indian languages, Inuktitut (Inuit) Religion Roman Catholic 45%, various Protestant denominations Time difference GMT -3.5/8 Major holidays 1 January, 1 July (except Newfoundland), 11 November, 25–26 December; variable: Good Friday, Easter Monday, Labour Day (September), Thanksgiving (October), Victoria (May), additional days vary between states


GEOGRAPHY

Major towns/cities Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Québec, Hamilton, Saskatoon, Halifax, London, Kitchener, Mississauga, Laval, Surrey Physical features mountains in west, with low-lying plains in interior and rolling hills in east; St Lawrence Seaway, Mackenzie River; Great Lakes; Arctic Archipelago; Rocky Mountains; Great Plains or Prairies; Canadian Shield; Niagara Falls; climate varies from temperate in south to arctic in north; 45% of country forested Airports 13 international airports; domestic services to all major cities/towns; total passengers carried: 35.9 million (2003 est) Railways total length: 90,000 km/55,923 mi; total passenger journeys: 4 million (2003) Roads total road network: 1,408,900 km/875,450 mi, of which 35.3% paved (2003 est); passenger cars: 557.1 per 1,000 people (2003 est)


GOVERNMENT

Head of state Queen Elizabeth II from 1952, represented by Governor General Michaëlle Jean from 2005 Head of government Stephen Harper from 2006 Political system liberal democracy Political executive parliamentary Administrative divisions ten provinces and three territories Political parties Liberal Party, nationalist, centrist; Bloc Québécois, Québec-based, separatist; Reform Party, populist, right wing; New Democratic Party (NDP), moderate left of centre; Progressive Conservative Party (PCP), free enterprise, right of centre; Confederation of Regions (COR); Party of New Brunswick; Green Party of Canada Death penalty abolished in 1998 Armed forces 62,100; plus 37,400 reserves (2006 est) Conscription military service is voluntary Defence spend (% GDP) 1.2 (2005 est) Education spend (% GDP) 5.2 (2002 est) Health spend (% GDP) 6.9 (2004)


ECONOMY

Currency Canadian dollar GDP (US$) 1,115.2 billion (2005 est) Real GDP growth (% change on previous year) 3.1 (2006 est) GNI (US$) 1,051.9 billion (2005 est) GNI per capita (PPP) (US$) 32,220 (2005 est) Consumer price inflation 2.2% (2006 est) Unemployment 6.3% (2006 est) Labour force 2.7% agriculture, 22% industry, 75.3% services (2005) Major trading partners USA, EU countries, Japan, China, Mexico Resources petroleum, natural gas, coal, copper (world's third-largest producer), nickel (world's second-largest producer), lead (world's fifth-largest producer), zinc (world's largest producer), iron, gold, uranium, timber Industries transport equipment, food products, paper and related products, wood industries, chemical products, machinery Exports motor vehicles and parts, lumber, wood pulp, paper and newsprint, crude petroleum, natural gas, aluminium and alloys, petroleum and coal products. Principal market: USA 83.2% (2005) Imports machinery, motor vehicle parts, passenger vehicles, computers, foodstuffs, consumer goods, telecommunications equipment. Principal source: USA 63.4% (2005) Arable land 4.6% (2006 est) Agricultural products wheat, barley, maize, oats, rapeseed, linseed; livestock production (cattle and pigs)


POPULATION

Population 32,565,500 (2006 est) Population growth rate 0.9% (2005–10) Population density (per sq km) 3 (2006 est) Urban population (% of total) 81 (2005 est) Age distribution (% of total population) 0–14 17%, 15–59 65%, 60+ 18% (2005 est) Ethnic groups about 40% of British Irish origin, 27% French, 20% of other European descent, about 2% American Indians and Inuit, and 11% other, mostly Asian Life expectancy 78 (men); 83 (women) (2005–10) Child mortality rate (under 5, per 1,000 live births) 6 (2004) Education (compulsory years) 11 Literacy rate 99% (men); 99% (women) (2004 est)


HEALTH

Physicians (per 10,000 people) 20.9 (2004 est) Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) 4.4 (2003 est) HIV infection (% of population aged 15–49) 0.3 (2005 est) AIDS deaths <1,000 (2005 est) Access to drinking-water source (% of total population) 100 (urban); 99 (rural) (2002)


COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA

Landline telephones (per 100 people) 56.6 (2005 est) Mobile phone subscribers (per 100 people) 51.4 (2005 est) Radios (per 1,000 people) 1,077 (1997) TV sets (per 1,000 people) 706 (2004 est) Personal computer users (per 100 people) 70.5 (2004 est) Internet users (per 100 people) 69.8 (2005 est)


CHRONOLOGY

35,000 BC First evidence of people reaching North America from Asia by way of Beringia. c. 2000 BC Inuit (Eskimos) began settling Arctic coast from Siberia eastwards to Greenland. c. AD 1000 Vikings, including Leif Ericsson, established Vinland, a settlement in northeast America that did not survive. 1497 John Cabot, Italian navigator in the service of English king Henry VII, landed on Cape Breton Island and claimed area for England. 1534 French navigator Jacques Cartier reached Gulf of St Lawrence and claimed region for France. 1608 Samuel de Champlain, a French explorer, founded Québec; French settlers developed fur trade and fisheries. 1663 French settlements in Canada formed colony of New France, which expanded southwards. 1670 Hudson's Bay Company established trading posts north of New France, leading to Anglo-French rivalry. 1689–97 King William's War: Anglo-French conflict in North America arising from ‘Glorious Revolution’ in Europe. 1702–13 Queen Anne's War: Anglo-French conflict in North America arising from War of the Spanish Succession in Europe; Britain gained Newfoundland. 1744–48 King George's War: Anglo-French conflict in North America arising from War of Austrian Succession in Europe. 1756–63 Seven Years' War: James Wolfe captured Québec in 1759; France ceded Canada to Britain by Treaty of Paris. 1775–83 American Revolution caused influx of 40,000 United Empire Loyalists, who formed New Brunswick in 1784. 1791 Canada divided into Upper Canada (much of modern Ontario) and Lower Canada (much of modern Québec). 1793 British explorer Alexander Mackenzie crossed Rocky Mountains to reach Pacific coast. 1812–14 War of 1812 between Britain and USA; US invasions repelled by both provinces. 1820s Start of large-scale immigration from British Isles caused resentment among French Canadians. 1837 Rebellions led by Louis Joseph Papineau in Lower Canada and William Lyon Mackenzie in Upper Canada. 1841 Upper and Lower Canada united as Province of Canada; achieved internal self-government in 1848. 1867 British North America Act united Ontario, Québec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick in Dominion of Canada. 1869 Red River Rebellion of Métis (people of mixed French and American Indian descent), led by Louis Riel, against British settlers in Rupert's Land. 1870 Manitoba (part of Rupert's Land) formed fifth province of Canada; British Columbia became sixth in 1871; Prince Edward Island became seventh in 1873. 1885 Northwest Rebellion crushed and Riel hanged. Canadian Pacific Railway completed. 1905 Alberta and Saskatchewan formed from Northwest Territories and became provinces of Canada. 1914–18 Half a million Canadian troops fought for British Empire on western front in World War I. 1931 Statute of Westminster affirmed equality of status between Britain and the Dominions. 1939–45 World War II: Canadian participation in all theatres. 1949 Newfoundland became tenth province of Canada; Canada was founding member of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). 1960 Québec Liberal Party of Jean Lesage launched ‘Quiet Revolution’ to re-assert French-Canadian identity. 1970 Pierre Trudeau invoked War Measures Act to suppress separatist terrorists of Front de Libération du Québec. 1976 Parti Québécois won control of Québec provincial government; referendum rejected independence in 1980. 1982 ‘Patriation’ of constitution removed Britain's last legal control over Canada. 1987 Meech Lake Accord: constitutional amendment proposed to increase provincial powers (to satisfy Québec); failed to be ratified in 1990. 1992 Self-governing homeland for the Inuit approved. 1993–2005 Liberal Party won three successive terms in government. 1994 Canada formed North American Free Trade Area with USA and Mexico. 1995 Québec referendum narrowly rejected sovereignty proposal. 1999 Government passed bill making secession by Québec more difficult to achieve. 2001 Bernard Landry replaced Lucien Bouchard as prime minister of Québec. 2006 Conservatives, led by Stephen Harper, defeated Paul Martin in general elections, ending 12 years of Liberal government; parliament agreed that the Québecois should be considered a ‘nation’ within Canada. 2007 Québec separatist movement moved into third place in parliament following gains in provincial elections.


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