El Salvador (2002) | Sierra Leone (2001) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
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 | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.4% (male 1,211,156; female 1,162,317)
15-64 years: 57.5% (male 1,735,744; female 1,922,395) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 144,864; female 177,205) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
44.73% (male 1,190,207; female 1,237,326) 15-64 years: 52.12% (male 1,351,455; female 1,477,155) 65 years and over: 3.15% (male 84,364; female 86,111) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish |
Airports | 83 (2001) | 11 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 78
914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 61 (2002) |
total:
10 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 21,040 sq km
land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
total:
71,740 sq km land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
Background | El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost about 75,000 lives, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms. | Since 1991, civil war between the government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (well over one-third of the population) many of whom are now refugees in neighboring countries. A peace agreement, signed in July 1999, collapsed in May 2000 after the RUF took over 500 UN peacekeepers hostage. The RUF stepped up attacks on Guinea in December 2000, despite a cease-fire that it signed with the Freetown government one month earlier. As of late 2000, up to 13,000 UN peacekeepers were protecting the capital and key towns in the south. A UK force of 750 was helping to reinforce security and train the Sierra Leone army. |
Birth rate | 28.3 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 45.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.1 billion
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) (2001 est.) |
revenues:
$96 million expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | San Salvador | Freetown |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) |
Coastline | 307 km | 402 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1983 | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times |
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:
Republic of Sierra Leone conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
Currency | Salvadoran colon (SVC); US dollar (USD) | leone (SLL) |
Death rate | 6.1 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 19.19 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.9 billion (2001 est.) | $1.28 billion (1999) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Rose M. LIKINS
embassy: Final Boulevard Santa Elena Sur, Urbanizacion Santa Elena, 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 Joseph H. MELROSE, Jr. embassy: Corner of Walpole and Siaka Stevens Streets, Freetown mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [232] (22) 226481 through 226485 FAX: [232] (22) 225471 |
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: Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco |
chief of mission:
Ambassador John Ernest LEIGH chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 through 9263 FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793 |
Disputes - international | El Salvador claims tiny Conejo Island off Honduras in the Golfo de Fonseca; many of the "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary remain undemarcated despite ICJ adjudication in 1992; 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 | civil war has engendered massive refugee movements into neighboring Guinea and Liberia |
Economic aid - recipient | total $252 million; $57 million from US (1999 est.) | $203.7 million (1995) |
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. Growth in 2002 will depend largely on the speed of recovery in the US. | Sierra Leone is an extremely poor African nation with tremendous inequality in income distribution. It does have substantial mineral, agricultural, and fishery resources. However, the economic and social infrastructure is not well developed, and serious social disorders continue to hamper economic development. About two-thirds of the working-age population engages in subsistence agriculture. Manufacturing consists mainly of the processing of raw materials and of light manufacturing for the domestic market. Bauxite and rutile mines have been shut down by civil strife. The major source of hard currency is found in the mining of diamonds, the large majority of which are smuggled out of the country. The resurgence of internal warfare in 1999 brought another substantial drop in GDP, with GNP recovering part of the way in 2000. The fate of the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.07 billion kWh (2000) | 223.2 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 112 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 750 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 3.69 billion kWh (2000) | 240 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 42%
hydro: 36% nuclear: 0% other: 22% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes | rapid population growth pressuring the environment; overharvesting of timber, expansion of cattle grazing, and slash-and-burn agriculture have resulted in deforestation and soil exhaustion; civil war depleting natural resources; overfishing |
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 90%, Amerindian 1%, white 9% | 20 native African tribes 90% (Temne 30%, Mende 30%, other 30%), Creole 10% (descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area in the late-18th century), refugees from Liberia's recent civil war, small numbers of Europeans, Lebanese, Pakistanis, and Indians |
Exchange rates | Salvadoran colones per US dollar - 8.750 (fixed since January 2001), 8.755 (fixed rate since 1993)
note: since January 2001 the US dollar has also become legal tender; the exchange rate has been fixed at 8.75 colones per US dollar |
leones per US dollar - 1,653.39 (January 2001), 2,092.13 (2000), 1,804.20 (1999), 1,563.62 (1998), 981.48 (1997), 920.73 (1996) |
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: Council of Ministers 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 (CD) 7.5%, other (no individual above 3%) 11.5% |
chief of state:
President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Ministers of State appointed by the president with the approval of the House of Representatives; the cabinet is responsible to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election held 26-27 February and 15 March 1996 (next to be held NA September 2001); note - president's tenure of office is limited to two five-year terms election results: Ahmad Tejan KABBAH elected president; percent of vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 59.5%, John KAREFA-SMART (UNPP) 40.5% |
Exports | $2.9 billion (2001) | $65 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish |
Exports - partners | US 65%, Guatemala 11%, Honduras 8%, EU 5% (2000) | Belgium 38%, US 6%, Italy 4%, UK 4% (1999) |
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 equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $28.4 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.7 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10%
industry: 30% services: 60% (2000) (2000) |
agriculture:
43% industry: 26% services: 31% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,600 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $510 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.4% (2001 est.) | 4.2% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 50 N, 88 55 W | 8 30 N, 11 30 W |
Geography - note | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea | - |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 10,029 km
paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways) unpaved: 8,043 km (1997) |
total:
11,300 km paved: 904 km unpaved: 10,396 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 39% (2001) (2001) |
lowest 10%:
0.5% highest 10%: 43.6% (1989) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine; small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic cocaine abuse on the rise | - |
Imports | $5 billion (2001) | $145 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US 50%, Guatemala 10%, EU 7%, Mexico 5%, (2000) | UK 34%, US 8%, Italy 7%, Nigeria 5% (1999) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 27 April 1961 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Industries | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining |
Infant mortality rate | 27.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 146.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.8% (2001 est.) | 15% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 4 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 360 sq km (1998 est.) | 290 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court |
Labor force | 2.35 million (1999) (1999) | 1.369 million (1981 est.)
note: only about 65,000 wage earners (1985) |
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:
958 km border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
Land use | arable land: 27.27%
permanent crops: 12.11% other: 60.62% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
7% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 31% forests and woodland: 28% other: 33% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) | English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende (principal vernacular in the south), Temne (principal vernacular in the north), Krio (English-based Creole, spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area, a lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but understood by 95%) |
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 law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; 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 16 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FMLN 31, ARENA 27, PCN 16, PDC 5, CD 5 |
unicameral House of Representatives (80 seats - 68 elected by popular vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26-27 February 1996 (next to be held NA 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - SLPP 36.1%, UNPP 21.6%, PDP 15.3%, APC 5.7%, NUP 5.3%, DCP 4.8%, other 11.2%; seats by party - SLPP 27, UNPP 17, PDP 12, APC 5, NUP 4, DCP 3; note - first elections since the former House of Representatives was shut down by the military coup of 29 April 1992 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.32 years
male: 66.72 years female: 74.11 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
45.6 years male: 42.69 years female: 48.61 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 10 and over can read and write
total population: 71.5% male: 73.5% female: 69.8% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic total population: 31.4% male: 45.4% female: 18.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Middle America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 NM | territorial sea:
200 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,057 GRT/3,498 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy (FNES), Air Force | Army |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $112 million (FY99) | $46 million (FY96/97) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.7% (FY99) | 2% (FY96/97) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,500,712 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,161,790 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 951,715 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
563,631 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 68,103 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) |
Nationality | noun: Salvadoran(s)
adjective: Salvadoran |
noun:
Sierra Leonean(s) adjective: Sierra Leonean |
Natural hazards | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible to hurricanes | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms |
Natural resources | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite |
Net migration rate | -3.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: by the end of 1999 refugees from Sierra Leone are assumed to be returning |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER]; Democratic Convergence or CD [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general] (includes Social Democratic Party or PSD [Juan MEDRANO, leader); 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] | All People's Congress or APC [Edward Mohammed TURAY, chairman]; Democratic Centre Party or DCP [Adu Aiah KOROMA]; National Democratic Alliance or NDA [Amadu M. B. JALLOH]; National Republican Party or NRP [Sahr Stephen MAMBU]; National Unity Party or NUP [Dr. John KARIMU, chairman]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Thaimu BANGURA, chairman]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Abass Chernok BUNDU, chairman]; Revolutionary United Front Party or RUFP [Foday SANKOH, chairman]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH, chairman]; United National People's Party or UNPP [John KARIFA-SMART in exile, Raymond KAMARA, acting leader] |
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 | Trade Unions and Student Unions |
Population | 6,353,681 (July 2002 est.) | 5,426,618 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 48% (1999 est.) | 68% (1989 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.83% (2002 est.) | 3.61% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco, La Libertad, La Union, Puerto El Triunfo | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) |
Radios | 2.75 million (1997) | 1.12 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 562 km
narrow gauge: 562 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of operational route is reduced to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintenance (2001 est.) |
total:
84 km used on a limited basis because the mine at Marampa is closed narrow gauge: 84 km 1.067-m gauge |
Religions | Roman Catholic 83%
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 |
Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% |
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 (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
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:
marginal telephone and telegraph service domestic: national microwave radio relay trunk system, made unserviceable by military activities, is now operating from Freetown to Bo and Kenema (April 2001) international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 380,000 (1998) | 17,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 40,163 (1997) | 650 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1997) | 2 (1999) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east |
Total fertility rate | 3.29 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 6.01 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | Rio Lempa partially navigable | 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round) |