Sister State Agreement with Iowa
Geography
Government
Population
Agriculture
Transportation
Recreation and Tourism
Sister
State Agreement with Iowa
In 2004, the states of Iowa and Yucatan celebrated a 40-year formal relationship. During those years, the Iowa-Yucatan Partners of the Americas has been the organization
involved. That group of volunteers works with Iowa Sister States.
Top Geography
The State of Yucatan is located in southeastern Mexico on the northern part
of the Yucatan Peninsula. To the North and West lies the Gulf of Mexico;
it shares its eastern and southeastern borders with the State of Quintana
Roo and its western and southwestern borders with the State of Campeche.
The State is
located between parallels 19°29´ and 21°37´ north
latitude and 89°32´ and 90°24´ west longitude.
Yucatan has an area of 39,340 square kilometers. With 2% of Mexico's
total territory, it is the country's 20th largest state. Its 378
kilometers of coastline comprise 3.8% of Mexico's total coast and
ranks 11th in terms of coastline.
The climate is
hot and unvarying throughout the state with two basic climatic
regions. Most of the state has a hot, subhumid climate with summer
rains, but the climate is dry along a narrow coastal strip. Average
annual temperature ranges between 25.4°C and 26.3°C. May
is the hottest month and January the coldest. Average humidity
ranges from 66% in March to 89% in December. Mean annual rainfall
along the coast is 469mm and 1,200 mm in the southern part of the
state.
Although Yucatan
has no bodies of surface water, there are exposed underground aquifers
in the central and northeastern part of the state. These sinkholes,
known locally as cenotes, are the result of total or partial sinking
of the limestone vault forming the subsoil. The aquifers, which
are frequent and have large volumes of water, form a system of
interconnecting arteries that empty into the sea. They are found
between 2 and 3 meters from the surface near the coast and at depths
of as much as 130 meters in the southern part of the state. This
provides the state with a large volume of fresh water available
for industrial, agricultural and urban use. It is estimated that
the natural flow in the underground system is approximately 9 billion
cubic meters annually of which only 4% is currently used.
The northern
coastal plain accounts for 5% of Yucatan's total area. It includes
flat, sandy beaches, often measuring as much as one kilometer wide.
A swampy area that at times meets the sea runs parallel to the
beach. The limestone shelf in the central, eastern and western
part of the state comprises 75% of the state's area. It is relatively
flat area with low hills, rises and vales with altitudes between
10 and 35 meters above the sea level.
Top Government
The State of Yucatan is divided into 106 municipalities, Mexico's equivalent
to US counties. The capital city, Merida, is the administrative center
for regional federal offices, and the state has a number of other smaller
cities.
Population
According to the 2005 census, Yucatan has a population of 1,818,948 inhabitants. Yucatan is ranked 21st in the world for number of people.
Top Main
Agricultural Products
Agriculture activities focused on domestic and international markets with intensive,
high-technology practices of the agribusiness tending to replace extensive,
traditional agriculture. Accordingly, vegetable production is on the rise with
increased production of crops such as chili peppers, tomatoes and cantaloupes.
New markets are being developed, and flower and ornamental plant production
being promoted.
Agriculture production
totaled 373,259 metric tons in 1995, with a value of 402,459 pesos,
and an area of 279,927 hectares were cropped. In terms of value,
the major crops were corn, vegetables, sisal and citrus fruit.
Citrus production is the main agricultural activity and is an alternative
to sisal production, formerly the mainstay of Yucatan's agriculture.
Citrus orchards now cover some 19,661 hectares. Sisal is now assuming
its true dimension in line with the market potential for products
derived from this plant.
Poultry production
maintained its place as the major activity in the livestock and
animal production sector. Production of chicken meat stands at
83,311 metric tons with a value of 637,329 pesos. Egg production
totaled 69,729 metric tons and turkey production approximately
1,086 metric tons.
Top Transportation
Seven airlines operating in the state provide service to major Mexican cities
including Mexico City, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Ciudad Juarez, Tuxtia Gutierrez,
Oaxaca, Carmen, Cozumel, Chetumal, Veracruz and Villahermosa. The are flights
between Merida and Miami, Houston, Guatemala and Havana.
Top Recreation
and Tourism
Yucatan as a wide array of attractions for visitors. Some of these are: the
Maya World including Chichen Itza; the Puuc Routa with Uxmal, Sayil, Xlapak,
Labna and other archeological sites; colonial cities such as Menda, Izamal
and Veftadolid; the route including Yucatecan haciendas and convents; and beautiful
beaches such as Progreso, Yukalpeten, Chubuma Port, Chelem, Telchac, Celestun
and Rio Lagartos.
The State of
Yucatan has 6,132 hotel rooms, 73.82% of which are in Merida. The
archaeological sites of Chichen Itza and Uxmal have sufficient
hotel infrastructure, accounting for 8.62% of total available rooms.
Coastal resorts account for an additional 9.09%, while the remainder
are scattered across the rest of the state. It is expected that
a hotel with 15 ecological cabanas with all services will open
in Santa Cruz Xixim in Celestun, Yucatan in 1996.
In 1996 a 70-meter
addition to the pier of Port of Progresso was started to allow
receiving deep water ships and ferries which will potentially increase
maritime tourism.
The state currently
has 101 travel agencies, 300 restaurants of tourist quality, and
17 automobile rental agencies in operation.
Some 1,173,728
persons visited the state in 1995. Of this total 49.6% were Mexicans
and 50.4% were foreigners. Together they spent the equivalent of
$215 mln.
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