Canada

Background: Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, and the Arctic Ocean on the north

Capital: Ottawa

Climate: Varies from temperate in south to sub arctic and arctic in north

Terrain: Mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in southeast

Natural Resources: iron ore, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum, potash, diamonds, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydropower

Population: 33,098,932 (July 2006 est.)

Languages: English (official) 59.3%, French (official) 23.2%, other 17.5%

Industries: transportation equipment, chemicals, processed and unprocessed minerals, food products, wood and paper products, fish products, petroleum and natural gas

Government type: constitutional monarchy that is also a parliamentary democracy and a federation

A Brief History A land of vast distances and rich natural resources, Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 while retaining ties to the British crown. Economically and technologically the nation has developed in parallel with the US, its neighbour in the south, across an unfortified border. Canada\'s paramount political problem is meeting public demands for quality improvements in health care and education services after a decade of budget cuts.