El Salvador (2006) | Barbados (2001) | |
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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, San Vicente, Santa Ana, Sonsonate, Usulutan | 11 parishes; Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; note - the city of Bridgetown may be given parish status |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 36.3% (male 1,265,080/female 1,212,216)
15-64 years: 58.5% (male 1,900,372/female 2,092,251) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 156,292/female 196,167) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years:
21.68% (male 30,122; female 29,572) 15-64 years: 69.44% (male 93,283; female 97,915) 65 years and over: 8.88% (male 9,432; female 15,006) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; beef, dairy products; shrimp | sugarcane, vegetables, cotton |
Airports | 75 (2006) | 1 (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 (2006) |
total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 71
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 56 (2006) |
- |
Area | total: 21,040 sq km
land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
total:
430 sq km land: 430 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
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 island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Its economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance. |
Birth rate | 26.61 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 13.47 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.84 billion
expenditures: $3.167 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.) |
revenues:
$725.5 million expenditures: $750.6 million, including capital expenditures of $126.3 million (FY97/98 est.) |
Capital | name: San Salvador
geographic coordinates: 13 42 N, 89 12 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Bridgetown |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands | tropical; rainy season (June to October) |
Coastline | 307 km | 97 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1983 | 30 November 1966 |
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:
none conventional short form: Barbados |
Currency | - | Barbadian dollar (BBD) |
Death rate | 5.78 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 8.53 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $8.087 billion (2005 est.) | $425 million (2000 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] 2278-4444 FAX: [503] 2278-5522 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador James A. DALEY embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; FPO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246 |
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, Elizabeth (New Jersey), Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York (2), Nogales (Arizona), Santa Ana (California), San Francisco, Washington, DC consulate(s): Boston |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael KING chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9200 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York consulate(s): Los Angeles |
Disputes - international | in 1992, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, but despite Organization of American States (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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $125 million of which, $53 million from US (2003) | $9.1 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | The smallest country in Central America, El Salvador has the third largest economy, but growth has been minimal in recent years. Hoping to stimulate the sluggish economy, the government is striving to open new export markets, encourage foreign investment, and modernize the tax and healthcare systems. Implementation in 2006 of the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement, which El Salvador was the first to ratify, is viewed as a key policy to help achieve these objectives. The trade deficit has been offset by annual remittances from Salvadorans living abroad - 16.6% of GDP in 2005 - and external aid. With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency in 2001, El Salvador has lost control over monetary policy and must concentrate on maintaining a disciplined fiscal policy. | Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. The start of the Port Charles Marina project in Speightstown helped the tourism industry continue to expand in 1996-2000. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, encourage direct foreign investment, and privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. Growth should remain steady in 2001, with new tourist facilities a plus factor. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.45 billion kWh (2004) | 667.7 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 91 million kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 473 million kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 4.158 billion kWh (2004) | 718 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | 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: Mount Hillaby 336 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes | pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers |
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:
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 90%, white 9%, Amerindian 1% | black 80%, white 4%, other 16% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar became El Salvador's currency in 2001 | Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2.0000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) |
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) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single five-year term; 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:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 6 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Billie MILLER (since 6 September 1994) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; prime minister appointed by the governor general |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $260 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity | sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components, clothing |
Exports - partners | US 61%, Guatemala 12.1%, Honduras 7.4%, Nicaragua 4.2% (2005) | UK 14.8%, US 11.6%, Trinidad and Tobago 7.6%, Venezuela 6.1%, Jamaica 5.8% (1998) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident) |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $4 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 9.9%
industry: 30.2% services: 59.9% (2005 est.) |
agriculture:
4% industry: 16% services: 80% (1998) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $14,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.8% (2005 est.) | 2.8% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 50 N, 88 55 W | 13 10 N, 59 32 W |
Geography - note | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea | easternmost Caribbean island |
Heliports | 1 (2006) | - |
Highways | - | total:
1,600 km paved: 1,578 km unpaved: 22 km (1998) |
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 | one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $800.3 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity | consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components |
Imports - partners | US 43.4%, Guatemala 8.2%, Mexico 7.8% (2005) | US 30.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 10.2%, Japan 8.3%, UK 7.7%, Canada 2.2% (1998) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 30 November 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1.5% (2005 est.) | 0.8% (1996) |
Industries | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals | tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export |
Infant mortality rate | total: 24.39 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 27.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
12.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.7% (2005 est.) | 2% (2000 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, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 19 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 450 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) | Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) |
Labor force | 2.81 million (2005 est.) | 136,000 (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 17.1%
industry: 17.1% services: 65.8% (2003 est.) |
services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 545 km
border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 31.37%
permanent crops: 11.88% other: 56.75% (2005) |
arable land:
37% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 12% other: 46% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) | English |
Legal system | based on civil and Roman law with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court | English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts |
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 2006 (next to be held in March 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ARENA 34, FMLN 32, PCN 10, PDC 6, CD 2 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (28 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 20 January 1999 (next to be held by January 2004) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BLP 26, DLP 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.49 years
male: 67.88 years female: 75.28 years (2006 est.) |
total population:
73.25 years male: 70.66 years female: 75.86 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 10 and over can read and write
total population: 80.2% male: 82.8% female: 77.7% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 97.4% male: 98% female: 96.8% (1995 est.) |
Location | Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 nm | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 671,545 GRT/1,125,635 DWT ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 28, combination bulk 1, container 2, petroleum tanker 4, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Canada 2, Hong Kong 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Salvadoran Army (ES), Salvadoran Navy (FNES), Salvadoran Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Salvadorena, FAS) (2006) | Royal Barbados Defense Force (includes Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $161.7 million (2005 est.) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
78,069 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
53,576 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Independence Day, 30 November (1966) |
Nationality | noun: Salvadoran(s)
adjective: Salvadoran |
noun:
Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial) adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial) |
Natural hazards | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible to hurricanes | infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides |
Natural resources | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land | petroleum, fish, natural gas |
Net migration rate | -3.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -0.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER, secretary general]; Democratic Convergence or CD (formerly United Democratic Center or CDU) [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Medardo GONZALEZ, coordinator general]; National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ ZEPEDA, president]; National Republican Alliance or ARENA [Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez]; Popular Social Christian Party or PPSC [Rene AGUILUZ]; Revolutionary Democratic Front or FDR [Julio Cesar HERNANDEZ Carcamo, coordinator general] | Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [David THOMPSON]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Richard HAYNES] |
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 | Barbados Workers Union [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMMISSIONG]; People's Progressive Movement [Eric SEALY]; Worker's Party of Barbados [Dr. George BELLE] |
Population | 6,822,378 (July 2006 est.) | 275,330 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 36.1% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.72% (2006 est.) | 0.46% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 237,000 (1997) |
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 (2005) |
0 km |
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 |
Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% |
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 (2006 est.) |
at birth:
1.01 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 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: country code - 503; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
general assessment:
NA domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 971,500 (2005) | 108,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2.412 million (2005) | 8,013 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1997) | 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau | relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region |
Total fertility rate | 3.12 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 1.64 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.5% official rate; but the economy has much underemployment (2005 est.) | 11% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | Rio Lempa partially navigable (2004) | none |