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Compare Honduras (2008) - Syria (2002)

Compare Honduras (2008) z Syria (2002)

 Honduras (2008)Syria (2002)
 HondurasSyria
Administrative divisions 18 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Atlantida, Choluteca, Colon, Comayagua, Copan, Cortes, El Paraiso, Francisco Morazan, Gracias a Dios, Intibuca, Islas de la Bahia, La Paz, Lempira, Ocotepeque, Olancho, Santa Barbara, Valle, Yoro 14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus
Age structure 0-14 years: 39.3% (male 1,500,949/female 1,439,084)


15-64 years: 57.2% (male 2,142,953/female 2,140,432)


65 years and over: 3.5% (male 117,774/female 142,571) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 39.3% (male 3,467,267; female 3,264,639)


15-64 years: 57.5% (male 5,052,841; female 4,817,662)


65 years and over: 3.2% (male 267,803; female 285,602) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp, tilapia, lobster; corn, African palm wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk
Airports 112 (2007) 99 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 12


2,438 to 3,047 m: 3


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 3 (2007)
total: 24


over 3,047 m: 5


2,438 to 3,047 m: 16


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 100


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 15


under 914 m: 83 (2007)
total: 68


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 55 (2002)
Area total: 112,090 sq km


land: 111,890 sq km


water: 200 sq km
total: 185,180 sq km


land: 184,050 sq km


water: 1,130 sq km


note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory
Area - comparative slightly larger than Tennessee slightly larger than North Dakota
Background Once part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two and a half decades of mostly military rule, a freely elected civilian government came to power in 1982. During the 1980s, Honduras proved a haven for anti-Sandinista contras fighting the Marxist Nicaraguan Government and an ally to Salvadoran Government forces fighting leftist guerrillas. The country was devastated by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which killed about 5,600 people and caused approximately $2 billion in damage. Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon, ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. In recent years, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights.
Birth rate 27.59 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 30.11 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $2.089 billion


expenditures: $2.357 billion; including capital expenditures of $106 million (2007 est.)
revenues: $5 billion


expenditures: $7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital name: Tegucigalpa


geographic coordinates: 14 06 N, 87 13 W


time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November; note - these dates become effective in 2007
Damascus
Climate subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus
Coastline 820 km 193 km
Constitution 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended many times 13 March 1973
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Honduras


conventional short form: Honduras


local long form: Republica de Honduras


local short form: Honduras
conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic


conventional short form: Syria


local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah


local short form: Suriyah


former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt)
Currency - Syrian pound (SYP)
Death rate 5.32 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 5.12 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $3.871 billion (31 December 2007 est.) $22 billion (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Charles A. FORD


embassy: Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa


mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa


telephone: [504] 236-9320, 238-5114


FAX: [504] 236-9037
chief of mission: Ambassador Theodore H. KATTOUF


embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus


mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus


telephone: [963] (11) 333-1342


FAX: [963] (11) 331-9678
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Roberto FLORES BERMUDEZ


chancery: Suite 4-M, 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 966-7702


FAX: [1] (202) 966-9751


consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco


honorary consulate(s): Boston, Detroit, Jacksonville
chief of mission: Ambassador Rustum al-ZU'BI


chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313


FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548
Disputes - international International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras border in 1992 with final settlement 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 with consideration of Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not mentioned in the ICJ ruling, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca; Honduras claims the Belizean-administered Sapodilla Cays off the coast of Belize in its constitution, but agreed to a joint ecological park around the cays should Guatemala consent to a maritime corridor in the Caribbean under the OAS-sponsored 2002 Belize-Guatemala Differendum; memorials and countermemorials were filed by the parties in Nicaragua's 1999 and 2001 proceedings against Honduras and Colombia at the ICJ over the maritime boundary and territorial claims in the western Caribbean Sea - final public hearings are scheduled for 2007 Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied; dispute with upstream riparian Turkey over Turkish water development plans for the Tigris and Euphrates rivers; Syrian troops in northern, central, and eastern Lebanon since October 1976; Turkey is quick to rebuff any perceived Syrian claim to Hatay province
Economic aid - recipient $680.8 million (2005) $199 million (1997 est.)
Economy - overview Honduras, the second poorest country in Central America and one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere, with an extraordinarily unequal distribution of income and massive unemployment, is banking on expanded trade under the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and on debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Despite improvements in tax collections, the government's fiscal deficit is growing due to increases in current expenditures and financial losses from the state energy and telephone companies. Honduras is the fastest growing remittance destination in the region with inflows representing over a quarter of GDP, equivalent to nearly three-quarters of exports. The economy relies heavily on a narrow range of exports, notably bananas and coffee, making it vulnerable to natural disasters and shifts in commodity prices, however, investments in the maquila and non-traditional export sectors are slowly diversifying the economy. Growth remains dependent on the economy of the US, its largest trading partner, and on reduction of the high crime rate, as a means of attracting and maintaining investment. Syria's predominantly statist economy has been growing slower than its 2.5% annual population growth rate, causing a persistent decline in per capita GDP. President Bashar AL-ASAD has made little progress on the economic front after one year in office, but does appear willing to permit a gradual strengthening of the private sector. His most obvious accomplishment to this end was the recent passage of legislation allowing private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector will take years and further government cooperation to develop. ASAD's recent cabinet reshuffle may improve his chances of implementing further growth-oriented policies, although external factors such as the international war on terrorism, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and downturn in oil prices could weaken the foreign investment and government revenues Syria needs to flourish. A long-run economic constraint is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution.
Electricity - consumption 4.036 billion kWh (2005) 17.671 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 650 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 57 million kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 5.339 billion kWh (2005) 19.7 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 64%


hydro: 36%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m


highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m
lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m


highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m
Environment - current issues urban population expanding; deforestation results from logging and the clearing of land for agricultural purposes; further land degradation and soil erosion hastened by uncontrolled development and improper land use practices such as farming of marginal lands; mining activities polluting Lago de Yojoa (the country's largest source of fresh water), as well as several rivers and streams, with heavy metals deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
Ethnic groups mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1% Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%
Exchange rates lempiras per US dollar - 18.9 (2007), 18.895 (2006), 18.92 (2005), 18.206 (2004), 17.345 (2003) Syrian pounds per US dollar - 51 (December 2001), 46 (2000), 46 (1998), 41.9 (January 1997)
Executive branch chief of state: President Manuel ZELAYA Rosales (since 27 January 2006); Vice President Elvin Ernesto SANTOS Ordonez (since 27 January 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Manuel ZELAYA Rosales (since 27 January 2006); Vice President Elvin Ernesto SANTOS Ordonez (since 27 January 2006)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held in November 2009)


election results: Manuel ZELAYA Rosales elected president - 49.8%, Porfirio "Pepe" LOBO Sosa 46.1%, other 4.1%
chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim ibn Said KHADDAM (since 11 March 1984) and Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984)


head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Mustafa MIRU (since 13 March 2000), Deputy Prime Ministers Lt. Gen. Mustafa TALAS (since 11 March 1984), Farouk al-SHARA (since 13 December 2001), Dr. Muhammad al-HUSAYN (since 13 December 2001)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; referendum/election last held 10 July 2000 - after the death of President Hafez al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held NA 2007); vice presidents appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president


election results: Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29%


note: Hafiz al-ASAD died on 10 June 2000; on 20 June 2000, the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council on 25 June 2000
Exports 765.4 bbl/day (2004) $5 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Exports - commodities coffee, shrimp, bananas, gold, palm oil, fruit, lobster, lumber crude oil 68%, textiles 7%, fruits and vegetables 6%, raw cotton 4% (1998 est.)
Exports - partners US 70.6%, Guatemala 3.5%, El Salvador 3.4% (2006) Germany 27%, Italy 12%, France 10%, Turkey 10%, Saudi Arabia 7% (2000 est.)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with five blue, five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band; the stars represent the members of the former Federal Republic of Central America - Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; similar to the flag of El Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which features a triangle encircled by the word REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom, centered in the white band three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, with two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, and of Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt, which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band
GDP - purchasing power parity - $54.2 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 13.5%


industry: 31%


services: 55.6% (2007 est.)
agriculture: 27%


industry: 23%


services: 50% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $3,200 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 6% (2007 est.) 2% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 15 00 N, 86 30 W 35 00 N, 38 00 E
Geography - note has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern Mosquito Coast there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.)
Heliports - 7 (2002)
Highways - total: 41,451 km


paved: 9,575 km (including 877 km of expressways)


unpaved: 31,876 km (1997)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 1.2%


highest 10%: 42.2% (2003)
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs transshipment point for drugs and narcotics; illicit producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption; corruption is a major problem; some money-laundering activity a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets
Imports 42,620 bbl/day (2004) $4 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs machinery and transport equipment 21%, food and livestock 18%, metal and metal products 15%, chemicals and chemical products 10% (2000 est.)
Imports - partners US 53%, Guatemala 7%, El Salvador 4.5%, Costa Rica 4.1%, Mexico 4.1% (2006) Italy 9%, Germany 7%, France 5%, Lebanon 5%, China 4%, South Korea 4%, Turkey 4%, US 4% (2000 est.)
Independence 15 September 1821 (from Spain) 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
Industrial production growth rate 5.3% (2007 est.) NA%
Industries sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining
Infant mortality rate total: 25.21 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 28.3 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 21.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
32.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 6.4% (2007 est.) 0.3% (2001 est.)
International organization participation BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 1 (2000)
Irrigated land 800 sq km (2003) 12,130 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (15 judges are elected for seven-year terms by the National Congress) Supreme Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts
Labor force 2.812 million (2007 est.) 4.7 million (1998 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 34%


industry: 23%


services: 43% (2003 est.)
agriculture 40%, industry 20%, services 40% (1996 est.)
Land boundaries total: 1,520 km


border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km
total: 2,253 km


border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km
Land use arable land: 9.53%


permanent crops: 3.21%


other: 87.26% (2005)
arable land: 25.96%


permanent crops: 4.08%


other: 69.96% (1998 est.)
Languages Spanish, Amerindian dialects Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood
Legal system rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law with increasing influence of English common law; recent judicial reforms include abandoning Napoleonic legal codes in favor of the oral adversarial system; accepts ICJ jurisdiction with reservations based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (128 seats; members are elected proportionally to the number of votes their party's presidential candidate receives to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held in November 2009)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 62, PN 55, PUD 5, PDC 4, PINU 2
unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 30 November-1 December 1998 (next to be held NA 2002)


election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, independents 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receives one-half of the seats
Life expectancy at birth total population: 69.35 years


male: 67.78 years


female: 70.99 years (2007 est.)
total population: 69.08 years


male: 67.9 years


female: 70.32 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 80%


male: 79.8%


female: 80.2% (2001 census)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 70.8%


male: 85.7%


female: 55.8% (1997 est.)
Location Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the Gulf of Fonseca (North Pacific Ocean), between El Salvador and Nicaragua Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey
Map references Central America and the Caribbean Middle East
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: natural extension of territory or to 200 nm
contiguous zone: 41 NM


territorial sea: 35 NM
Merchant marine total: 126 ships (1000 GRT or over) 352,534 GRT/481,217 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 58, chemical tanker 5, container 1, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 4, passenger/cargo 7, petroleum tanker 27, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1


foreign-owned: 40 (Bangladesh 1, Canada 1, China 3, Egypt 4, Greece 1, Hong Kong 1, Israel 1, Japan 4, South Korea 6, Lebanon 2, Mexico 1, Singapore 10, Taiwan 2, Tanzania 1, US 1, Vietnam 1) (2007)
total: 143 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 482,985 GRT/702,590 DWT


ships by type: bulk 12, cargo 126, livestock carrier 4, roll on/roll off 1


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Egypt 1, Greece 2, Italy 1, Lebanon 10 (2002 est.)
Military branches Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry), Honduran Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Hondurena, FAH) (2007) Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (includes Air Defense Forces), Police and Security Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $921 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 0.6% (2006 est.) 5.9% (FY98)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 4,550,496 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 2,539,342 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 19 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 200,859 (2002 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 15 September (1821) Independence Day, 17 April (1946)
Nationality noun: Honduran(s)


adjective: Honduran
noun: Syrian(s)


adjective: Syrian
Natural hazards frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; extremely susceptible to damaging hurricanes and floods along the Caribbean coast dust storms, sandstorms
Natural resources timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower
Net migration rate -1.36 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines - crude oil 1,304 km; petroleum products 515 km
Political parties and leaders Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Felicito AVILA]; Democratic Unification Party or PUD [Cesar HAM]; Liberal Party or PL [Patricia RODAS]; National Innovation and Unity Party or PINU [Jorge AQUILAR Paredes]; National Party of Honduras or PN [Porfirio LOBO] National Progressive Front or NPF (includes the Ba'th Party, ASU, Arab Socialist Party, Socialist Unionist Democratic Party, ASP, SCP) [President Bashar al-ASAD, chairman]; Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party (governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan KOUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party or SCP [Yusuf FAYSAL]; Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI]
Political pressure groups and leaders Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras or CODEH; Confederation of Honduran Workers or CTH; Coordinating Committee of Popular Organizations or CCOP; General Workers Confederation or CGT; Honduran Council of Private Enterprise or COHEP; National Association of Honduran Campesinos or ANACH; National Union of Campesinos or UNC; Popular Bloc or BP; United Confederation of Honduran Workers or CUTH conservative religious leaders; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in Jordan and Yemen); non-Ba'th parties have little effective political influence
Population 7,483,763


note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)
17,155,814 (July 2002 est.)


note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (February 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line 50.7% (2004) 15%-25%
Population growth rate 2.091% (2007 est.) 2.5% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors - Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus
Radio broadcast stations AM 241, FM 53, shortwave 12 (1998) AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios - 4.15 million (1997)
Railways total: 699 km


narrow gauge: 279 km 1.067-m gauge; 420 km 0.914-m gauge (2006)
total: 2,750 km


standard gauge: 2,423 km 1.435-m gauge


narrow gauge: 327 km 1.050-m gauge


note: rail link between Syria and Iraq replaced in 2000 (2001)
Religions Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3% Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.001 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.826 male(s)/female


total population: 1.011 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.94 male(s)/female


total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal and compulsory 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: inadequate system


domestic: beginning in 2003, private sub-operators allowed to provide fixed-lines in order to expand telephone coverage; fixed-line teledensity has increased to about 10 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone service has been increasing rapidly and subscribership in 2006 exceeded 30 per 100 persons


international: country code - 504; landing point for both the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) and the MAYA-1 fiber optic submarine cable system that together provide connectivity to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System
general assessment: fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology


domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network


international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel
Telephones - main lines in use 708,400 (2006) 1.313 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular 2.241 million (2006) NA
Television broadcast stations 11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997) 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west
Total fertility rate 3.48 children born/woman (2007 est.) 3.84 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 27.8% (2007 est.) 20% (2000 est.)
Waterways 465 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2007) 870 km (minimal economic importance)
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