El Salvador (2007) | Croatia (2003) | |
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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 | 20 counties (zupanije, zupanija - singular) and 1 city* (grad - singular); Bjelovarsko-Bilogorska Zupanija, Brodsko-Posavska Zupanija, Dubrovacko-Neretvanska Zupanija, Istarska Zupanija, Karlovacka Zupanija, Koprivnicko-Krizevacka Zupanija, Krapinsko-Zagorska Zupanija, Licko-Senjska Zupanija, Medimurska Zupanija, Osjecko-Baranjska Zupanija, Pozesko-Slavonska Zupanija, Primorsko-Goranska Zupanija, Sibensko-Kninska Zupanija, Sisacko-Moslavacka Zupanija, Splitsko-Dalmatinska Zupanija, Varazdinska Zupanija, Viroviticko-Podravska Zupanija, Vukovarsko-Srijemska Zupanija, Zadarska Zupanija, Zagreb*, Zagrebacka Zupanija |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 36.1% (male 1,281,889/female 1,228,478)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 1,942,674/female 2,134,154) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 158,276/female 202,602) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 415,873; female 394,414)
15-64 years: 66.1% (male 1,465,488; female 1,454,778) 65 years and over: 15.6% (male 258,943; female 432,752) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; beef, dairy products; shrimp | wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, barley, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soybeans, potatoes; livestock, dairy products |
Airports | 65 (2007) | 59 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 16
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 61
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 48 (2007) |
total: 43
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 34 (2002) |
Area | total: 21,040 sq km
land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
total: 56,542 sq km
land: 56,414 sq km water: 128 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly smaller than West Virginia |
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. | In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became a federal independent Communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Under UN supervision, the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. |
Birth rate | 26.13 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 12.76 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.82 billion
expenditures: $2.94 billion (FY07 est.) |
revenues: $8.6 billion
expenditures: $9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 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) |
Zagreb |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands | Mediterranean and continental; continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold winters; mild winters, dry summers along coast |
Coastline | 307 km | 5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 km) |
Constitution | 20 December 1983 | adopted on 22 December 1990 |
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 Croatia
conventional short form: Croatia local long form: Republika Hrvatska local short form: Hrvatska |
Currency | - | kuna (HRK) |
Death rate | 5.6 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 11.25 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.518 billion (2006 est.) | $16.5 billion (yearend 2002 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Charles L. GLAZER
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 Ralph FRANK
embassy: Thomasa Jeffersona 2, 10010 Zagreb mailing address: use street address telephone: [385] (1) 661-2200 FAX: [385] (1) 661-2373 |
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 Ivan GRDESIC
chancery: 2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-5899 FAX: [1] (202) 588-8936 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, in 1992, with final agreement by the parties in 2006 after an Organization of American States (OAS) survey and a further ICJ ruling in 2003; 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 | discussions continue with Bosnia and Herzegovina on sections of the Una River and villages at the base of Mount Pljesevica; parliamentarians are far from ratifying the Croatia-Slovenia land and maritime boundary agreement, which would have ceded most of Pirin Bay and maritime access to Slovenia and several villages to Croatia; in late 2002, Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro adopted an interim agreement to settle the disputed Prevlaka Peninsula, allowing the withdrawal of the UN monitoring mission (UNMOP), but discussions could be complicated by the inability of Serbia and Montenegro to come to an agreement on the economic aspects of the new federal union; Croatia and Italy continue to debate bilateral property and ethnic minority rights issues stemming from border changes after the Second World War |
Economic aid - recipient | $199.4 million of which $55 million from US (2005) | ODA $66 million (2000) |
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, has strengthened an already positive export trend. The trade deficit has been offset by annual remittances from Salvadorans living abroad - equivalent to more than 16% of GDP - 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. The current government has pursued economic diversification, with some success in promoting textile production, international port services, and tourism. It is committed to opening the economy to trade and investment, and has embarked on a wave of privatizations extending to telecom, electricity distribution, banking, and pension funds. | Before the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the Republic of Croatia, after Slovenia, was the most prosperous and industrialized area, with a per capita output perhaps one-third above the Yugoslav average. The economy emerged from its mild recession in 2000 with tourism the main factor, but massive structural unemployment remains a key negative element. The government's failure to press the economic reforms needed to spur growth is largely the result of coalition politics and public resistance, particularly from the trade unions. Opponents fear reforms would cut jobs, wages, and social benefits. The government has a heavy backload of civil cases, many involving tenure land. The country is likely to experience only moderate growth without disciplined fiscal and structural reform. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.204 billion kWh (2006) | 14.27 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 95.5 million kWh (2006) | 386 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 322 million kWh (2005) | 3.386 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 5.293 billion kWh (2006) | 12.12 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 33.6%
hydro: 66% nuclear: 0% other: 0.4% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Dinara 1,830 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes | air pollution (from metallurgical plants) and resulting acid rain is damaging the forests; coastal pollution from industrial and domestic waste; landmine removal and reconstruction of infrastructure consequent to 1992-95 civil strife |
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: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 90%, white 9%, Amerindian 1% | Croat 89.6%, Serb 4.5%, Bosniak 0.5%, Hungarian 0.4%, Slovene 0.3%, Czech 0.2%, Roma 0.2%, Albanian 0.1%, Montenegrin 0.1%, others 4.1% (2001) |
Exchange rates | the US dollar became El Salvador's currency in 2001 | kuna per US dollar - 7.87 (2002), 8.34 (2001), 8.28 (2000), 7.11 (1999), 6.36 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma Albanez 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 Albanez 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 in March 2009) election results: Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez elected president; percent of vote - Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez 57.7%, Schafik HANDAL 35.6%, Hector SILVA 3.9%, other 2.8% |
chief of state: President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Ivica RACAN (since 27 January 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Goran GRANIC (since 27 January 2000), Ante SIMONIC (since 30 July 2002), Zeljka ANTUNOVI (since 27 January 2000), Slavko LINIC (since 27 January 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and approved by the House of Representatives elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 7 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister nominated by the president in line with the balance of power in the Assembly election results: Stjepan MESIC elected president; percent of vote - Stjepan MESIC (HNS) 56%, Drazen BUDISA (HSLS) 44% note: government coalition - SDP, HSLS, HSS, LP, HNS; a sixth party, the Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), withdrew in June 2001 |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity | transport equipment, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels |
Exports - partners | US 49.6%, Guatemala 14.4%, Honduras 8.8%, Nicaragua 5% (2006) | Italy 22.4%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 14.4%, Germany 12.5%, Slovenia 8%, Austria 7.3% (2002) |
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 | red, white, and blue horizontal bands with Croatian coat of arms (red and white checkered) |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $43.12 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10.1%
industry: 29.9% services: 60% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 33% services: 58% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $9,800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.2% (2006 est.) | 5.2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 50 N, 88 55 W | 45 10 N, 15 30 E |
Geography - note | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea | controls most land routes from Western Europe to Aegean Sea and Turkish Straits |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | 1 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 28,123 km
paved: 23,792 km (including 410 km of expressways) unpaved: 4,331 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.7%
highest 10%: 38.8% (2002) |
lowest 10%: 3.7%
highest 10%: 23.3% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine; small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption; significant use of cocaine | transit point along the Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe; has been used as a transit point for maritime shipments of South American cocaine bound for Western Europe |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity | machinery, transport and electrical equipment, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | US 32.2%, Guatemala 9.3%, Mexico 7.4%, Germany 6.3%, China 4.7% (2006) | Italy 16.8%, Germany 16.4%, Slovenia 7.8%, Russia 6.8%, Austria 6.7%, France 5.2% (2002) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2% (2006 est.) | 2.8% (2002 est.) |
Industries | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals | chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 22.88 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 25.76 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.86 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 6.92 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (2006 est.) | 2.2% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 9 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 450 sq km (2003) | 30 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the House of Representatives |
Labor force | 2.875 million (2006 est.) | 1.7 million (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 17.1%
industry: 17.1% services: 65.8% (2003 est.) |
agriculture 13.2% NA, industry 25.4% NA, services 46.4% NA (2002) |
Land boundaries | total: 545 km
border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km |
total: 2,197 km
border countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina 932 km, Hungary 329 km, Serbia and Montenegro (north) 241 km, Serbia and Montenegro (south) 25 km, Slovenia 670 km |
Land use | arable land: 31.37%
permanent crops: 11.88% other: 56.75% (2005) |
arable land: 23.55%
permanent crops: 2.24% other: 74.21% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) | Croatian 96%, other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German) |
Legal system | based on civil and Roman law with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court | based on civil law system |
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 |
unicameral Assembly or Sabor (152 seats; note - one seat was added in the November Parliamentary elections; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - House of Counties was abolished in March 2001
elections: Assembly - last held 23 November 2003 (next to be held in 2007) election results: Assembly (then referred to as the House of Representatives) - percent of vote by party - HDZ 43.4%, SDP 23%, HNS 7.4%, HSS 6.57%, HSP 6%; seats by party - HDZ 66, SDP 34, HNS 10, HSS 9, HSP 7; note - these are preliminary results |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.78 years
male: 68.18 years female: 75.57 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 74.37 years
male: 70.76 years female: 78.2 years (2003 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 can read and write
total population: 98.5% male: 99.4% female: 97.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 56 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 765,830 GRT/1,188,948 DWT
ships by type: bulk 14, cargo 16, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 5, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 6, short-sea passenger 3 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Hong Kong 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Salvadoran Army (ES), Salvadoran Navy (FNES), Salvadoran Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Salvadorena, FAS) (2006) | Ground Forces (Hrvatska Vojska, HV), Naval Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $520 million (2002 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5% (2006) | 2.39% (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,081,135 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 856,946 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 30,096 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Statehood Day, 25 June (1991) |
Nationality | noun: Salvadoran(s)
adjective: Salvadoran |
noun: Croat(s), Croatian(s)
adjective: Croatian |
Natural hazards | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible to hurricanes | destructive earthquakes |
Natural resources | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land | oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -3.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 1.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 1,374 km; oil 583 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER]; Democratic Convergence or CD [Ruben ZAMORA] (formerly United Democratic Center or CDU); Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Medardo GONZALEZ]; National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ ZEPEDA]; 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] | Croatian Bloc or HB [Ivic PASALIC]; Croatian Christian Democratic Union or HKDU [Anto KOVACEVIC]; Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Ivo SANADER]; Croatian Party of Rights or HSP [Anto DJAPIC]; Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Zlatko TOMCIC]; Croatian People's Party or HNS [Vesna PUSIC]; Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Drazen BUDISA]; Croatian True Revival Party or HIP [Miroslav TUDJMAN]; Democratic Centre or DC [Mate GRANIC]; Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC]; Liberal Party or LS [Ivo BANAC]; Party of Liberal Democrats or LIBRA [Goran GRANIC]; Social Democratic Party of Croatia or SDP [Ivica RACAN]
note: the Social Democratic Party or SDP and the Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS formed a coalition as did the HSS, HNS, LP, and IDS, which together defeated the Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ in the 2000 lower house parliamentary election; the IDS subsequently left the governing coalition in June 2001 over its inability to win greater autonomy for Istria |
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 | NA |
Population | 6,948,073 (July 2007 est.) | 4,422,248 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 35.2% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.699% (2007 est.) | 0.31% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Dubrovnik, Dugi Rat, Omisalj, Ploce, Pula, Rijeka, Sibenik, Split, Vukovar (inland waterway port on Danube), Zadar |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 52, FM 144, shortwave 0 (2005) | AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5 (1999) |
Railways | total: 562 km
narrow gauge: 562 km 0.914-m gauge note: railways not in operation since 2005 because of disuse and lack of maintenance due to high costs (2007) |
total: 2,296 km
standard gauge: 2,296 km 1.435-m gauge (983 km electrified) (2002) |
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 |
Roman Catholic 87.8%, Orthodox 4.4%, Muslim 1.3%, Protestant 0.3%, others and unknown 6.2% (2001) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.781 male(s)/female total population: 0.949 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed) |
Telephone system | general assessment: the four mobile-cellular service providers are expanding services rapidly and in 2006 mobile-cellular density stood at roughly 55 per 100 persons; growth in fixed-line services has slowed in the face of mobile-cellular competition
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: reconstruction plan calls for replacement of all analog circuits with digital and enlarging the network; a backup will be included in the plan for the main trunk international: digital international service is provided through the main switch in Zagreb; Croatia participates in the Trans-Asia-Europe (TEL) fiber-optic project, which consists of two fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik; Croatia is also investing in ADRIA 1, a joint fiber-optic project with Germany, Albania, and Greece (2000) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.037 million (2006) | 1,721,139 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3.852 million (2006) | 1.3 million (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1997) | 36 (plus 321 repeaters) (September 1995) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau | geographically diverse; flat plains along Hungarian border, low mountains and highlands near Adriatic coastline and islands |
Total fertility rate | 3.08 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.93 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6% official rate; but the economy has much underemployment (2006 est.) | 21.7% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | Rio Lempa partially navigable for small craft (2007) | 785 km
note: (perennially navigable; large sections of Sava blocked by downed bridges, silt, and debris) |