El Salvador (2005) | 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: 36.5% (male 1,250,901/female 1,198,589)
15-64 years: 58.3% (male 1,860,084/female 2,051,140) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 153,133/female 191,085) (2005 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 | 73 (2004 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 (2004 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: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 54 (2004 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 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. | 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 | 27.04 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 35.76 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.491 billion
expenditures: $2.782 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 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 |
Death rate | 5.85 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 3.78 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.792 billion (September 2004 est.) | $3.465 billion (2006 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador H. Douglas BARCLAY
embassy: Final Boulevard Santa Elena Sur, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 278-4444 FAX: [503] 278-5522 |
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 FAX: [1] (202) 234-3834 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York (2), San Francisco, and Washington, DC 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 | in 1992, the ICJ ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, but despite OAS intervention and a further ICJ ruling in 2003, full demarcation of the border remains stalled; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca advocating Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not identified in the ICJ decision, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca | 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 | $125 million of which, $53 million from US (2003) | $30.68 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | GDP per capita is roughly half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, and the distribution of income is highly unequal. The government is striving to open new export markets, encourage foreign investment, modernize the tax and healthcare systems, and stimulate the sluggish economy. Implementation of the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement, ratified by El Salvador in 2004, is viewed as a key policy to help achieve these objectives. The trade deficit has been offset by annual remittances from Salvadorans living abroad - 16% of GDP in 2004 - and external aid. With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency, El Salvador has lost control over monetary policy and must concentrate on maintaining a disciplined fiscal policy. | 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 | 4.45 billion kWh (2004) | 8.661 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 91 million kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 473 million kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 4.158 billion kWh (2004) | 11.89 billion kWh (2005) |
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 | 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, 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%, white 9%, Amerindian 1% | Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African |
Exchange rates | the US dollar became El Salvador's currency in 2001 | 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 Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); 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 21 March 2004 (next to be held March 2009) election results: Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez elected president; percent of vote - Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (ARENA) 57.7%, Schafik HANDAL (FMLN) 35.6%, Hector SILVA (CDU-PDC) 3.9%, other 2.8% |
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 | NA | 733,100 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity | petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles |
Exports - partners | US 65.6%, Guatemala 11.8%, Honduras 6.3% (2004) | 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 - composition by sector | agriculture: 9.2%
industry: 31.1% services: 59.7% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 2.3%
industry: 39.1% services: 58.6% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,900 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.8% (2004 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 (2004 est.) | 2 (2007) |
Highways | total: 10,029 km
paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways) unpaved: 8,043 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.4%
highest 10%: 39.3% (2001) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine; small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic cocaine abuse on the rise | - |
Imports | NA | 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 46.3%, Guatemala 8.1%, Mexico 6% (2004) | 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 | 0.7% (2004 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 | total: 25.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 27.98 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 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) | 5.4% (2004 est.) | 3.2% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | 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 |
Irrigated land | 360 sq km (1998 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 | 2.75 million (2004 est.) | 920,000 (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 17.1%, industry 17.1%, services 65.8% (2003 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: 31.85%
permanent crops: 12.07% other: 56.08% (2001) |
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 16 March 2003 (next to be held March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FMLN 31, ARENA 28, PCN 15, PDC 5, CD 5 |
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: 71.22 years
male: 67.61 years female: 75.01 years (2005 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: 80.2% male: 82.8% female: 77.7% (2003 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: 81.4% male: 86.8% female: 73.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central 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 | - | 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 (FNES), Air Force (FAS) | 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 | $157 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.1% (2003) | 11.4% (2005 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; extremely susceptible to hurricanes | 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 | -3.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 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 [Rodolfo PARKER]; Democratic Convergence or CD (formerly United Democratic Center or CDU) [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general]; Democratic Party or PD [Jorge MELENDEZ]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Medardo GONZALEZ]; 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 [Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez]; Social Christian Union or USC (formed by the merger of Christian Social Renewal Party or PRSC and Unity Movement or MU) [Abraham RODRIGUEZ, president]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Juan MEDRANO] | 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 | 6,704,932 (July 2005 est.) | 3,204,897
note: includes 577,293 non-nationals (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 36.1% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.75% (2005 est.) | 3.234% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Railways | total: 283 km
narrow gauge: 283 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of operational route reduced from 562 km to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintenance (2004) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 83%, other 17%
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: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 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: country code - 503; 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 | 752,600 (2003) | 278,300 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,149,800 (2003) | 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 | 3.16 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 5.7 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.3% - but the economy has much underemployment (2004 est.) | 15% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | Rio Lempa partially navigable (2004) | - |