Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is an American country located in the northern part of South America, consisting of a mainland and a large number of small islands in the Caribbean or Caribbean Sea and greater urban agglomeration is the city of Caracas. It has na area of 916 445 km², being the 32nd largest country in the world in territory. Its borders are bordered to the north by the Caribbean Sea, to the west by Colombia, to the South by Brazil and to the east by Guyana, with whom it contends territorial disputes. Through its maritime zones, it has sovereignty over 71,295 km² of territorial sea 22,224 km² in the contiguous zone, 471,507 km² of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean under the concept of exclusive economic zone, and 99,889 km² of continental shelf. This marine area borders thirteen sovereign states, being Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia and Barbados some of them. Its population is estimated at 31 703 499 inhabitants and the national capital is Caracas. The country faces serious social and economic problems, such as inflation (which is the highest in the world), scarcity of commodities in the markets, high crime and censorship of the press.