Itaguay

Republic of Itaguay República de Itaguay
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Por la Razón o la Fuerza "By Right or Might"
Capital and	Providencia
Official languages	Spanish
Demonym(s)	Itaguayan
Government	Unitary presidential constitutional republic
• President	Carolina Ponce de León
• Vice President of Itaguay	Andrés Larraín
Legislature	Parliament of Itaguay
Establishment
• Independence of Itaguay	27 of July of 1815
Area
•	756,096 km2 (291,930 sq mi)
Population
• 2019 estimate	17,574,003
• 2017 census	17,125,405
• Density	24/km2 (62.2/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)	2020 estimate
• Total	$528.300 billion
• Per capita	$26,317
GDP (nominal)	2020 estimate
• Total	$308.505 billion
• Per capita	$19,547
Gini (2020)	39.5 medium
HDI (2019)	0.847 very high
Currency	Peso de Itaguay (PPS)
Driving side	left
Calling code	+570

Itaguay, officially the Republic of Itaguay (Spanish: República del Itaguay) is a country on the _ coast of the _ continent of _. It borders _ to the north, _ to the east and _ to the west, while the south is bathed by the _ Ocean. The capital city of Itaguay is Providencia, which with its 6.5 million inhabitants on its metropolitan area, it is the largest settlement on the country. Most of the population is concentrated on the southern coast while the rest of the territory lies on a difficult terrain with valleys surrounded by mountains and peaks.

Before the initial arrival of !European explorers, Itaguay was home to several ancient cultures that fought to conquer the territory; however, it was around the 15th century when the Pacotas Empire unified the territory building one of the most developed societies in the region that lasted until !European discovery and later conquest. The !Spanish Empire ruled Itaguay for over four centuries after having established the Viceroyalty of Itaguay with Providencia as its capital city but counting with Viña Alta as an important commercial port. Itaguay proclaimed its independence during July of 1815 after years of battles and fights against the ruling empire and in the decades that followed, it counted with a history of civil wars between the two traditional political parties that represented different ideological poles. It was only in the approach to the twentieth century when Itaguay's countryside recovered from the Civil War and the country incurred in several democratic reforms with which attained the construction of a peaceful society, big economic success and the initial steps to a welfare state. Financial complications and social discontent, however, appeared finishing the 60's decade and Itaguay's society saw itself submerged in the 1973 coup and later civic-military dictatorship that lasted until 1985; throughout the whole period, the constitutional guaranties were suppressed together with individual liberties and general freedom, the civic-military government persecuted left-wing political parties and groups that were often seen as opposites to the regime, an issue that resulted in several deaths and numerous instances of torture. In 1985 the people of Itaguay was taken to vote for a plebiscite that would consolidate the military power; however, the plebiscite resulted in an overwhelming support of the no and in the following year, the dictatorship was dismantled with Itaguay's political scene being labelled as a guided democracy. In 1986 the country elected the Christian Democrat candidate Ignacio Larraín Hesse as the first democratically elected president after the return of the democracy; since then, the country has undergone several economic reforms aimed to liberalise the economy ensuring growth and stability for the oncoming decades.

Today, Itaguay is considered a high-income economy counting with high living standards and one of the most stable and peaceful societies in the region. The national economy is based in a strong agro-exporter sector; Itaguay leads the dairy global production and counts with a specialised sector focused in organic, high-valued production of fruits and vegetables; however, in recent years, the services sector has undergone a substantial growth on the share of the economy with the banking and financial sector, technology and telecommunications leading the economy of Providencia and the largest urban poles. Itaguay leads regional rankings in human development, competitiveness, income per capita, globalisation, state of peace, economic freedom, and low perception of corruption. The country is a founding member of the !UN and *add useless, cool and capitalist institution*, it joined the !OECD in 2008 and has been a member since then.

Geography

The national bird of Itaguay, the southern lapwing, is native to the central and north-central green areas of Itaguay.

Itaguay covers an extension of 756,096 km² located on the _ continent of the _ region. It lies completely on the southern hemisphere and its territory finds the complications of the _ mountains range and the complexity of the coastal austral areas. The whole territory encompasses different and a wide diversity of climates that divide the country in specific regions, such as Mediterranean climate in the centre, the oceanic climate on most of the coast and alpine tundra and glaciers in the east and south. The northeast region of Itaguay is known locally as La Sierra or The Highlands, a vast region of narrow valleys and high peaks that were home to the first civilisations that inhabited the nation, together with the coast and the plain areas of the north, they are characterised by being dry, arid and cold, with strong winds throughout the four seasons.

The constant presence of mountains, peaks and glaciers in Itaguay, give the advantage of large reserves of sweet and fresh water. Most rivers originate on the peaks and are drained towards the _ Ocean, their large presence throughout the whole territory of Itaguay have gave them a place in the national identity of the nation with several rivers being special to the communities that have settled around them, such as the Rímac on the northern region and Paracoto on the capital city, Providencia. The largest river in Itaguay is the Vilcanota which runs alongside the Sacred Valley originating on the Chauvín Peak and passing through hundreds of towns to end 78 km south from Catamarca.

The varied grography of Itaguay results in a diverse flora and fauna unique to each of the regions and their distinctive climate. The national animal, the vicugna vicugna is the most representative of all, it is native to the pampean northern and arid northernmost regions of Itaguay and was domesticated by native communities primarily on the Sacred Valley in the region of Catamarca. Other distinctive animals of Itaguay are found on the Patagonic plains and coasts, such as the blue whale and the king penguin; the national identity of the country, primarily on the countryside has been also influenced by the animals brought during the colony period from the old world, such as the hereford cattle and the horse, which were domesticated by the gauchos and are today, important to the economy of Itaguay. The national bird of Itaguay is the southern lapwing, commonly called Tero de Itaguay, it is native to the centre and north-centre regions of the country, it flies commonly across green fields and is rare in zones of the cold south or the dry and windy north.

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  Diego González Peaks on the south of Itaguay.

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  Gauchos, horses and sheeps on the pampa, centre-north region of Itaguay.

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  Vilcanota River on La Sierra, northeast Region.

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  Vicugnas in the northernmost region of Itaguay.

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  Mountains and vineyard in the outskirts of Providencia.

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  Coast of Viña Alta.

Climate

The geography of Itaguay is the most influential aspect on its diverse climate. In general terms, the climate zones of the country can be divided in the northernmost region (characterised by an arid climate or semi-arid climate), the coastal northern regions (with strong cold oceanic winds), the centre (whose geography is characterised by the matorrales and has a Mediterranean climate) and the south, where oceanic climates, austral location and mountainous geography cause temperate and subpolar oceanic climates. Generalisations are difficult and the year can be divided into four seasons in most of the country: summer (December to February), autumn (March to May), winter (June to August), and spring (September to November). Alpine and alpine tundra climates are found in all natural regions of Itaguay.

Mean annual temperatures range between 17°C to 20°C depending on the region, with the centre, an in specific the capital city, Providencia, being predominantly hotter than the rest of the country, while the pampas (the coastal centre and centre-north region) having the most average temperatures in all Itaguay, counting with all year winds, cold winters and hot summers. Cold air masses from the south can push temperatures below freezing nation-wide and in most of the territory, east winds can bring snowfalls, although these can be more recurrent high in the mountains and in the south of Itaguay.

Climate data for Station Puente Alto of the Instituto Nacional de Meteorología, Providencia, Itaguay (1981–2010, extremes 1966–present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	39.3 (102.7)	37.2 (99.0)	36.8 (98.2)	33.0 (91.4)	31.1 (88.0)	26.7 (80.1)	28.2 (82.8)	29.9 (85.8)	32.9 (91.2)	33.3 (91.9)	34.7 (94.5)	35.0 (95.0)	39.3 (102.7)
Average high °C (°F)	29.9 (85.8)	29.4 (84.9)	27.5 (81.5)	23.0 (73.4)	18.3 (64.9)	15.3 (59.5)	14.7 (58.5)	16.4 (61.5)	18.7 (65.7)	22.5 (72.5)	25.9 (78.6)	28.5 (83.3)	22.5 (72.5)
Daily mean °C (°F)	20.4 (68.7)	19.5 (67.1)	17.5 (63.5)	13.7 (56.7)	10.3 (50.5)	8.3 (46.9)	7.5 (45.5)	8.9 (48.0)	11.1 (52.0)	14.1 (57.4)	16.9 (62.4)	19.3 (66.7)	14.0 (57.2)
Average low °C (°F)	12.0 (53.6)	11.5 (52.7)	9.9 (49.8)	7.1 (44.8)	4.7 (40.5)	3.5 (38.3)	2.5 (36.5)	3.6 (38.5)	5.4 (41.7)	7.3 (45.1)	9.1 (48.4)	11.0 (51.8)	7.3 (45.1)
Record low °C (°F)	2.7 (36.9)	1.2 (34.2)	0.7 (33.3)	−2.6 (27.3)	−5.9 (21.4)	−6.5 (20.3)	−6.8 (19.8)	−6.2 (20.8)	−4.5 (23.9)	−2.8 (27.0)	0.7 (33.3)	3.2 (37.8)	−6.8 (19.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	0.4 (0.02)	0.8 (0.03)	6.1 (0.24)	12.0 (0.47)	46.1 (1.81)	68.7 (2.70)	62.5 (2.46)	44.2 (1.74)	20.1 (0.79)	10.0 (0.39)	4.6 (0.18)	1.4 (0.06)	276.9 (10.90)
Average precipitation days	0	0	1	3	5	7	7	6	5	2	1	0	37
Average relative humidity (%)	57	60	65	71	80	84	84	81	78	71	63	58	71
Mean monthly sunshine hours	362.7	302.3	272.8	201.0	155.0	120.0	145.7	161.2	186.0	248.0	306.0	347.2	2,807.9
Mean daily sunshine hours	11.7	10.7	8.8	6.7	5.0	4.0	4.7	5.2	6.2	8.0	10.2	11.2	7.7
Source: Instituto Nacional de Meteorología

Politics and government

Main article: Politics of Itaguay

Carolina Ponce de León
President of Parinacota
since 1 March 2019

Andrés de Soto Larraín
Vice-President of Parinacota
since 1 March 2019

Like most surrounding nations, Itaguay adopted its first Constitution shortly after the independence. The first carta magna of the nation was presented and ratified during the so called Primer Cabildo Independiente de Itaguay on the Arms Square of Providencia. Since then and with several plebiscited reforms, the constitution has maintained a unitarian, republican state with a strong egalitarian component, although the Catholic religion remained as the official state religion until the first reform in 1920. The Constitution of Itaguay defines the separation of powers into Legislative, Executive and Judicial with a strong independence between the three and the President of the Republic (Presidente de la República) as both the Head of State and Government while in case of his or her absence, the office is exercised by the Vice President of the Republic (Vicepresidente de la República).

Manuel Balmaceda Square in Providencia, seat of the Legislative Power.

The government of Itaguay is led by the President and the Ministers, which are appointed by who is presiding; there are currently _ offices and all political decisions made by the President or members of the cabinet are always taken under a basis of dialogue and consensus during the weekly Ministers Council (Consejo de Ministros). Besides of the Ministers, the President counts with personal groups of advisers and secretaries from which direct works are delegated. While the President of Itaguay is excersicing in the office, the Vice President acts as the link between the Executive and Legislative power, being the President of the Parliament of Itaguay. Both the President and the Vice President are elected by popular direct suffrage for a term of five years each one, elections at national and local levels happen every five years and Presidents are forbidden by the constitution to be reelected for a consecutive administration. Although it is not in the constitution, in practice, few former presidents have continued on the political scene immediately after leaving their office.

The legislative power of Itaguay is vested on the the Parliament of Itaguay, a unicameral legislature composed by 250 members or representatives as they are called, who are elected by universal suffrage during the presidential elections. The Parliament of Itaguay is known for having one a very high rate of women participation in comparison with the rest of the region. Since its conception as an independent nation, Itaguay has had strong political parties that occupied most of the scene, these were the Partido Liberal and the Partido Popular; however, since the return of the democracy, Itaguay's politics have been divided in major coalitions that split most of the seats in the Parliament with clear left, centre and right characteristics. In the latest elections of 2019, the centre-left coalition Compromiso por Itaguay was the most voted being composed by the Partido Socialista, Demócratas Cristianos and the Partido Social Demócrata, on the other pole of the political spectrum, the centre-right is represented by the coalition Por Itaguay, which is formed by the Partido Popular, Ciudadanos and Evolución Política.

Foreign relations

Carolina Ponce de León Plá, actual President of Itaguay for the period 2019-2023

Since its inception as an independent and sovereign nation, Itaguay has been an active country on the foreign relations scene. However, it has been associated most of the times associated with an image of neutrality and often isolation owing to its geographical conditions. During its first years of independence, the country maintained an hostile and even aggressive relation with some of its neighbourhoods, an issue that took Itaguay to be involved in several wars with which gained territory and geopolitical power. The foreign relations of most governments since the start of the 20th century were proactive to the cooperation with most of the developed world and with the construction of ties with the !European nations from which Itaguay's modern immigration belonged.

During the civic-military dictatorship, Itaguay entered gradually into an isolation period, which resulted in the later economical recession of 1980. During this period, the approach to the foreign relations Itaguay would maintain was directly dictated from the civic-military president and its three members cabinet; these policies were often soaked of ideology and so, the nation kept strong ties with nations whose governments were aligned to the far-right on the political spectrum, mainly with intelligence purposes. The return of the democracy marked a substantial change of paradigm on these issues and Itaguay recovered its international presence shortly after the assumption of the first democratically elected President and Parliament.

Since the 80's, Itaguay has tried to project its influence on the world through several alliances with others countries and being part of several economic blocks and cooperative forums or associations, such as the _ and the _. Itaguayan diplomats and politicians have been highlighted by several international global organisations and some of them have even been in charge of important offices. As an active member of the !UN, the country keeps a significantly important peacekeeping and disasters relief teams in several undeveloped countries. Since 2008 it is a full member of the !OCDE and an observer of the _.

Military

Celebration of the Navy of Itaguay in 2018.

The Armed Forces of Itaguay —Fuerzas Armadas de Itaguay— are the military service of Itaguay comprising the independent Air Force of Itaguay, the Navy of Itaguay and the Army of Itaguay. While the three branches are commanded independently, they are subordinated to the President of Itaguay, who is the Commander-in-Chief, and to the Minister of National Defence, while there is also a Chief of the Joint Command in charge of the three branches. The primary mission of the Armed Forces is to safeguard Itaguay's sovereignty from foreign intervention and attacks; however, they also work as peacekeepers in foreign land and during natural disasters in Itaguay to ensure economic and social development during civil tasks. While conscription has never been enforced, during the dictatorship the de facto government celebrated a plebiscite to make it legal.

Although their presence at worldwide-level is limited, Itaguay's armed force have been recognised for being a strong and capable force; their budget has kept consistently through the decades with a 1%-1.5% of the state budget. As a completely independently law enforcement agency, the Police of Itaguay has worked during anti-terrorist tasks dismantling few cells in the 90's and previously to the dictatorship. In 2019, a study presented by the INE of Itaguay reported that among young members of the society, there is few trust in the military forces with the Human Rights' violations during the dictatorship and later concealment being an important factor.

Economy

View of the financial centre of Providencia.

The economy of Itaguay is a high-income economy and is considered one of the most stable and economically prosperous nations of the continent. With a total GDP (PPP) of $528.300 billion and $26,317 per capita, Itaguay leads several regional rankings such as economic competitiveness, freedom of business, globalisation and real income per capita, although economic inequality continues being a problem on the daily life of the nation. Itaguay's poverty rate was reported in 2019 to be at 6% with the extreme poverty comprising a 2% of the total population. While the economy of Itaguay has been characterised for having a well-educated workforce and an over the regional average social spending, liberalisations have caused a gradual standstill of the monetary transfers from the highest social classes to the lowest; however, this process has been reported to be slowing down as the new centre-left government takes actions.

Itaguay's economy is driven on its majority by a large export-oriented agricultural sector that comprises 6.2% of the total economy and enforces 13% of the total workforce; however, the services sector remains being the largest in the economy of Itaguay, generating 73% of the total Gross Domestic Product. The agricultural sector is focused on its majority on the central valley, the pampas and the northeast valleys, combined the three zones, Itaguay is a worldwide recognised country by its meats, wineries, dairy products and fruits and vegetables such as avocados, blueberries, kiwi fruits, apples and oranges; the south of the country with an oceanic climate and forests, has been a large producer on the logging and forestry as well as pulp mill industries, which combined with other industries, comprise a 24.1% of the total GDP employing 14% of Itaguay's workforce. The services are driven on its majority by a large retail sector and the tourism while the banking and finances and the technology sectors provide substantial contributions. The biggest and most important stock exchange in Itaguay is the Providencia Stock Exchange (PSX), which is a dominant stock exchange on the region.

The unemployment rate of Itaguay was at 8.1% in 2019, reporting a gradual increase over the last decade. Itaguay's national pension system is catalogued as semi-privatised, allowing private pension funds to compete with the public sector, giving the chance to the population to choose among a range of companies previously allowed by the Central Bank of Itaguay. Pensions funds are called "Administradora de Fondos de Ahorro Previsional" or AFAPs (Pension Fund Manager).

Energy and infrastructure

Itaguay counts with a developed energetic network that provides basic services to an overwhelming 89% of the population, a number that excedes regional parameters. Due to its large territory and given geographic and topographic diversity, the country is almost auto-sufficient on its energetic resources that count with a wide range of resources, from strong winds on the south oceanic regions to the sunny valleys in the area of Providencia. Despite this advantage to produce its energy by sustainable methods, Itaguay's energy still relies on non-renewable sources such as petroleum and coal. Like some other aspects in the economic life of the nation, the energetic market of Itaguay sees a high intervention of the State through the state-owned company, COPEP, which is the company in charge of the refineries, buying, producing and distributing petroleum and petrol. Despite several efforts to privatise this company and distribute among private conglomerates its activities, governments have faced serious popular halts in referendums and plebiscites. Today, only the gas market and the commercial supply of petrol is considered to be semi-privatised as COPEP has allowed private companies to set their activities on both areas.

Although the country counts with an advanced and developed infrastructure this faces the challenges of centralisation in the wealthiest regions of the country, primarily surrounding Providencia. However, the country has centred its efforts in advancing in the democratisation of the access to quality infrastructure with large investments on areas with critical conditions. Basic infrastructure, such as ports, roads and airport have been important factors for the rapid economic growth that Itaguay saw since the 90s; as a country whose economy is mainly focused on the commodities export, counting with a large network of roads and railroads have impacted positively on the Itaguayan economy. Today, most of the commercial traffic is produced on the roads of the country, mostly in those connecting the capital city with the most important ports on the coast while in recent times, commercial flights saw an increment on the international and local traffic.