El Salvador (2001) | Oman (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Vicente, Sonsonate, Usulutan | 5 regions (manatiq, singular - mintaqat) and 4 governorates* (muhafazat, singular - muhafazat) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al Batinah, Al Buraymi*, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat*, Musandam*, Zufar (Dhofar)* |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
37.68% (male 1,198,623; female 1,151,584) 15-64 years: 57.27% (male 1,693,865; female 1,878,254) 65 years and over: 5.05% (male 142,345; female 172,991) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.7% (male 698,461/female 670,793)
15-64 years: 54.6% (male 1,026,686/female 723,712) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 47,534/female 37,711) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products | dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish |
Airports | 83 (2000 est.) | 137 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
79 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 62 (2000 est.) |
total: 130
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 51 914 to 1,523 m: 35 under 914 m: 34 (2007) |
Area | total:
21,040 sq km land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
total: 212,460 sq km
land: 212,460 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly smaller than Kansas |
Background | El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost the lives of some 75,000 people, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms. | The inhabitants of the area of Oman have long prospered on Indian Ocean trade. In the late 18th century, a newly established sultanate in Muscat signed the first in a series of friendship treaties with Britain. Over time, Oman's dependence on British political and military advisors increased, but it never became a British colony. In 1970, QABOOS bin Said al-Said overthrew the restrictive rule of his father; he has ruled as sultan ever since. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world while preserving the longstanding close ties with the UK. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries. |
Birth rate | 28.67 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 35.76 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.8 billion expenditures: $2.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $13.07 billion
expenditures: $11.62 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | San Salvador | name: Muscat
geographic coordinates: 23 37 N, 58 35 E time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands | dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south |
Coastline | 307 km | 2,092 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1983 | none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a basic law considered by the government to be a constitution which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of El Salvador conventional short form: El Salvador local long form: Republica de El Salvador local short form: El Salvador |
conventional long form: Sultanate of Oman
conventional short form: Oman local long form: Saltanat Uman local short form: Uman former: Muscat and Oman |
Currency | Salvadoran colon (SVC); US dollar (USD) | - |
Death rate | 6.18 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 3.78 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.1 billion (2000 est.) | $3.465 billion (2006 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Rose M. LIKINS embassy: Boulevard Santa Elena Final, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 278-4444 FAX: [503] 278-6011 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Gary A. GRAPPO
embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat mailing address: P. O. Box 202, P.C. 115, Madinat Sultan Qaboos, Muscat telephone: [968] 24-643-400 FAX: [968] 24-699771 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Rene Antonio LEON Rodriguez chancery: 2308 California Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9671 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco consulate(s): Boston |
chief of mission: Ambassador Hunaina bint Sultan bin Ahmad al-MUGHAIRI
chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1981, 1988 FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933 |
Disputes - international | with respect to the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua likely would be required | boundary agreement reportedly signed and ratified with UAE in 2003 for entire border, including Oman's Musandam Peninsula and Al Madhah exclave, but details of the alignment have not been made public |
Economic aid - recipient | total $252 million; $57 million from US (1999 est.) | $30.68 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | El Salvador is a struggling Central American economy which has been suffering from a weak tax collection system, factory closings, the aftermaths of Hurricane Mitch of 1998 and the devastating earthquakes of early 2001, and weak world coffee prices. On the bright side, in recent years inflation has fallen to single digit levels, and total exports have grown substantially. The trade deficit has been offset by remittances (an estimated $1.6 billion in 2000) from Salvadorans living abroad and by external aid. As of 1 January 2001, the US dollar was made legal tender alongside the colon. | Oman is a middle-income economy in the Middle East with notable oil and gas resources, a substantial trade surplus, and low inflation. Sustained high oil prices in recent years have helped build Oman's budget and trade surpluses and foreign reserves. Oman joined the World Trade Organization in November 2000 and continues to liberalize its markets. It ratified a free trade agreement with the US in September 2006 and, through the Gulf Cooperation Council, seeks similar agreements with the EU, China and Japan. To reduce unemployment and limit dependence on foreign labor, the government is encouraging the replacement of foreign expatriate workers with local workers. Oman actively seeks private foreign investors, especially in the industrial, information technology, tourism, and higher education fields. Industrial development plans focus on gas resources, metal manufacturing, petrochemicals, and international transshipment ports. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.638 billion kWh (1999) | 8.661 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 208 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 460 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 3.641 billion kWh (1999) | 11.89 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
45.65% hydro: 41.01% nuclear: 0% other: 13.34% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m |
lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes; Hurricane Mitch damage | rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 90%, Amerindian 1%, white 9% | Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African |
Exchange rates | Salvadoran colones per US dollar - 8.755 (fixed rate since 1993) | Omani rials per US dollar - 0.3845 (2006), 0.3845 (2005), 0.3845 (2004), 0.3845 (2003), 0.3845 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Francisco FLORES Perez (since 1 June 1999); Vice President Carlos QUINTANILLA Schmidt (since 1 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Francisco FLORES Perez (since 1 June 1999); Vice President Carlos QUINTANILLA Schmidt (since 1 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: cabinet selected by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: Francisco FLORES Perez elected president; percent of vote - Francisco FLORES (ARENA) 52%, Facundo GUARDADO (FMLN) 29%, Ruben ZAMORA (CDU) 7.5%, other (no individual above 3%) 11.5% |
chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said al-Said (sultan since 23 July 1970 and prime minister since 23 July 1972); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said al-Said (sultan since 23 July 1970 and prime minister since 23 July 1972) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
Exports | $2.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | 733,100 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity | petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles |
Exports - partners | US 63%, Guatemala 11%, Honduras 7%, Costa Rica 4% (1999) | China 23.6%, South Korea 17.9%, Japan 10.9%, Thailand 10.7%, South Africa 7.7%, UAE 6.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band - it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band | three horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered near the top of the vertical band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $24 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
12% industry: 28% services: 60% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 2.3%
industry: 39.1% services: 58.6% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2000 est.) | 6.6% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 50 N, 88 55 W | 21 00 N, 57 00 E |
Geography - note | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea | strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | 2 (2007) |
Highways | total:
10,029 km paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways) unpaved: 8,043 km (1997) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.2% highest 10%: 38.3% (1995) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine; marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic drug abuse on the rise | - |
Imports | $4.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants |
Imports - partners | US 52%, Guatemala 9%, Mexico 6%, Costa Rica 3% (1999) | UAE 22.4%, Japan 16.5%, US 8.1%, Germany 5.4%, India 4.3% (2006) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 5.9% (2006 est.) |
Industries | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals | crude oil production and refining, natural and liquefied natural gas (LNG) production; construction, cement, copper, steel, chemicals, optic fiber |
Infant mortality rate | 28.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 18.28 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.96 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 4 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 1,200 sq km (1993 est.) | 720 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) | Supreme Court
note: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, has judges who practice secular and Shari'a law |
Labor force | 2.35 million (1999) | 920,000 (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 30%, industry 15%, services 55% (1999 est.) | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
Land boundaries | total:
545 km border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km |
total: 1,374 km
border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km |
Land use | arable land:
27% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 29% forests and woodland: 5% other: 31% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0.12%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 99.74% (2005) |
Languages | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) | Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects |
Legal system | based on civil and Roman law, with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to the monarch; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (84 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 12 March 2000 (next to be held NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - ARENA 36.1%, FMLN 35.14%, PCN 8.76%, PDC 7.08%, CD 5.32%, PAN 3.75%, USC 1.47%, PLD 1.29%; seats by party - ARENA 28, FMLN 31, PCN 14, PDC 5, CD 3, PAN 1, independent 2 |
bicameral Majlis Oman consists of Majlis al-Dawla (or upper chamber) (58 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory powers only) and Majlis al-Shura (or lower chamber)(84 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms; body has some limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory powers)
elections: last held 4 October 2003 (next to be held in October 2007) election results: NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
70.03 years male: 66.43 years female: 73.81 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 73.62 years
male: 71.37 years female: 75.99 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 10 and over can read and write total population: 71.5% male: 73.5% female: 69.8% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: 81.4% male: 86.8% female: 73.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Middle America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras | Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
200 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 12,155 GRT/7,244 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1, passenger 1 registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Royal Omani Armed Forces: Royal Army of Oman, Royal Navy of Oman, Royal Air Force of Oman (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Sultanat Oman, RAFO) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $112 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.7% (FY99) | 11.4% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,464,898 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
929,263 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
68,103 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Birthday of Sultan QABOOS, 18 November (1940) |
Nationality | noun:
Salvadoran(s) adjective: Salvadoran |
noun: Omani(s)
adjective: Omani |
Natural hazards | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity | summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land | petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas |
Net migration rate | -3.95 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.36 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 4,072 km; oil 3,405 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rene AGUILUZ]; Democratic Convergence or CD (includes PSD, MNR, MPSC) [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general]; Democratic Party or PD [Jorge MELENDEZ]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Fabio CASTILLO]; Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Kirio Waldo SALGADO, president]; National Action Party or PAN [Gustavo Rogelio SALINAS, secretary general]; National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ Zepeda, president]; National Republican Alliance or ARENA [Walter ARAUJO]; Social Christian Union or USC (formed by the merger of Christian Social Renewal Party or PRSC and Unity Movement or MU) [Abraham RODRIGUEZ, president] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | labor organizations - Electrical Industry Union of El Salvador or SIES; Federation of the Construction Industry, Similar Transport and other activities, or FESINCONTRANS; National Confederation of Salvadoran Workers or CNTS; National Union of Salvadoran Workers or UNTS; Port Industry Union of El Salvador or SIPES; Salvadoran Union of Ex-Petrolleros and Peasant Workers or USEPOC; Salvadoran Workers Central or CTS; Workers Union of Electrical Corporation or STCEL; business organizations - National Association of Small Enterprise or ANEP; Salvadoran Assembly Industry Association or ASIC; Salvadoran Industrial Association or ASI | none |
Population | 6,237,662 (July 2001 est.) | 3,204,897
note: includes 577,293 non-nationals (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 48% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.85% (2001 est.) | 3.234% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco, La Libertad, La Union, Puerto El Triunfo | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Radios | 2.75 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
562 km narrow gauge: 562 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of route which is operational is reduced to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintainance (2001) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 86%
note: there is extensive activity by Protestant groups throughout the country; by the end of 1992, there were an estimated 1 million Protestant evangelicals in El Salvador |
Ibadhi Muslim 75%, other (includes Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu) 25% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.041 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.419 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.26 male(s)/female total population: 1.238 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal; note - members of the military and security forces are not allowed to vote |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
general assessment: modern system consisting of open-wire, microwave, and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable
domestic: open-wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations international: country code - 968; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean), 1 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 380,000 (1998) | 278,300 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 40,163 (1997) | 1.818 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1997) | 13 (plus 25 repeaters) (1999) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau | central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south |
Total fertility rate | 3.34 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.7 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (2000 est.) | 15% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | Rio Lempa partially navigable | - |