Ashmore and Cartier Islands (2001) | Western Sahara (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (under de facto control of Morocco) |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years:
NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
Agriculture - products | - | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) |
Airports | - | 11 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total:
3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
5 sq km land: 5 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ashmore Reef (West, Middle, and East Islets) and Cartier Island |
total:
266,000 sq km land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about eight times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | about the size of Colorado |
Background | These uninhabited islands came under Australian authority in 1931; formal administration began two years later. Ashmore Reef supports a rich and diverse avian and marine habitat; in 1983 it became a National Nature Reserve. Recent geological explorations have indicated promising petroleum formations. | Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 cease-fire; a referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed and is not expected to occur until at least 2002. |
Budget | - | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | - | none |
Climate | tropical | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew |
Coastline | 74.1 km | 1,110 km |
Country name | conventional long form:
Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands conventional short form: Ashmore and Cartier Islands |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
Currency | - | Moroccan dirham (MAD) |
Debt - external | - | $NA |
Dependency status | territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of the Environment, Sport, and Territories | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | none |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | none |
Disputes - international | none | claimed and administered by Morocco, but sovereignty is unresolved and the UN is attempting to hold a referendum on the issue; the UN-administered cease-fire has been in effect since September 1991 |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
Economy - overview | no economic activity | Western Sahara, a territory poor in natural resources and lacking sufficient rainfall, depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. Most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Incomes and standards of living are substantially below the Moroccan level. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 83.7 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | - | 90 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 3 m |
lowest point:
Sebjet Tah -55 m highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | sparse water and lack of arable land |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
none of the selected agreements signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | - | Arab, Berber |
Exchange rates | - | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 10.590 (January 2001), 10.626 (2000), 9.804 (1999), 9.604 (1998), 9.527 (1997), 8.716 (1996) |
Executive branch | - | none |
Exports | - | $NA |
Exports - commodities | - | phosphates 62% |
Exports - partners | - | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of Australia is used | - |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $NA |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: 40%-45% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $NA |
GDP - real growth rate | - | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 12 14 S, 123 05 E | 24 30 N, 13 00 W |
Geography - note | Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve established in August 1983 | - |
Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | - | total:
6,200 km paved: 1,350 km unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | - | $NA |
Imports - commodities | - | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | - | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
Industries | - | phosphate mining, handicrafts |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | NA% |
International organization participation | - | none |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1993) | NA sq km |
Labor force | - | 12,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | - | animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
2,046 km border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (all grass and sand) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 19% forests and woodland: 0% other: 81% |
Languages | - | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic |
Legal system | the laws of the Northern Territory of Australia, where applicable, apply | - |
Literacy | - | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southeastern Asia, islands in the Indian Ocean, northwest of Australia | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
12 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 3 NM |
contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia; periodic visits by the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Australian Air Force | - |
Military branches | - | NA |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
Nationality | - | noun:
Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s) adjective: Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
Natural hazards | surrounded by shoals and reefs that can pose maritime hazards | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility |
Natural resources | fish | phosphates, iron ore |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | none |
Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: there are only seasonal caretakers (July 2001 est.) |
250,559 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only | Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 56,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | - | Muslim |
Suffrage | - | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign has yet to be completed |
Telephone system | - | general assessment:
sparse and limited system domestic: NA international: tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | about 2,000 (1999 est.) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 0 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | - | NA |
Terrain | low with sand and coral | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast |
Unemployment rate | - | NA% |
Waterways | none | none |