Venezuela

Venezuela is a country in the northern part of South America. It shares a border with Guyana on the east, Brazil on the south and Colombia on the west. The north part of Venezuela is bordered by the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. The country's official name is Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, as changed by the Constitution in 2000, under the personal initiative of Hugo Chávez. According to the administrative division, Venezuela is subdivided into 23 states (estados): Amazonas, Anzoátegui, Apure, Aragua, Barinas, Bolívar, Carabobo, Cojedes, Delta Amacuro, Falcón, Guárico, Lara, Mérida, Miranda, Monagas, Nueva Esparta, Portuguesa, Sucre, Táchira, Trujillo, Vargas, Yaracuy and Zulia. The only capital district (distrito capital) covers the area of the capital city of Caracas. Federal dependencies (dependencias federales) are in fact all islands in the Caribbean Sea off Venezuela's mainland. There are some 600 islands all together with 3000 people who permanently live there, but the number of tourists which visit them is several times higher. Guayana Esequiba in the western part of Venezuela is an area in dispute between Venezuela and Guyana since the 1960s. All maps published in Venezuela clearly place it inside Venezuelan borders, and the two countries have agreed to find a peaceful solution to this dispute