What images come to mind when you hear of Latin America? Exotic places, spicy food, salsa and tango dancing, football or drugs?
The region consists of 20 sovereign states, stretching from the southern border of the United States to the icy seas of Cape Horn. Its geography includes the Amazon jungle, glacier-covered mountains and some of the driest deserts on the planet, as well as huge megacities.
Spontaneous growth
It can be dangerous to generalise, but most would agree that one feature of the continent is the disparity between those with great wealth and the majority in deepest poverty. Linked with that situation is a history of violence in many countries, fed by frustration at the inability of inept or corrupt governments to improve the lot of the poor.
