Monaco (2005) | Syria (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | none; there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are four quarters (quartiers, singular - quartier); Fontvieille, La Condamine, Monaco-Ville, Monte-Carlo | 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: 15.5% (male 2,563/female 2,445)
15-64 years: 62.1% (male 9,909/female 10,217) 65 years and over: 22.4% (male 2,972/female 4,303) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
39.92% (male 3,440,060; female 3,238,576) 15-64 years: 56.87% (male 4,868,816; female 4,644,870) 65 years and over: 3.21% (male 261,036; female 275,450) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | none | wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk |
Airports | none; linked to the airport at Nice, France by helicopter service (2004 est.) | 100 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total:
24 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
76 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 63 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 1.95 sq km
land: 1.95 sq km water: 0 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 | about three times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | slightly larger than North Dakota |
Background | Economic development was spurred in the late 19th century with a railroad linkup to France and the opening of a casino. Since then, the principality's mild climate, splendid scenery, and gambling facilities have made Monaco world famous as a tourist and recreation center. | 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 | 9.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 30.64 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $518 million
expenditures: $531 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1995) |
revenues:
$2.25 billion expenditures: $5.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Monaco | Damascus |
Climate | Mediterranean with mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers | 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 hitting Damascus |
Coastline | 4.1 km | 193 km |
Constitution | 17 December 1962 | 13 March 1973 |
Country name | conventional long form: Principality of Monaco
conventional short form: Monaco local long form: Principaute de Monaco local short form: Monaco |
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 | 12.71 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 5.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $18 billion (2000 est.) | $22 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Monaco; the US Consul General in Marseille (France) is accredited to Monaco | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ryan C. CROCKER embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus telephone: [963] (11) 333-2814 FAX: [963] (11) 224-7938 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Monaco does not have an embassy in the US
consulate(s) general: New York |
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 | none | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $199 million (1997 est.) |
Economy - overview | Monaco, bordering France on the Mediterranean coast, is a popular resort, attracting tourists to its casino and pleasant climate. In 2001, a major construction project extended the pier used by cruise ships in the main harbor. The principality has successfully sought to diversify into services and small, high-value-added, nonpolluting industries. The state has no income tax and low business taxes and thrives as a tax haven both for individuals who have established residence and for foreign companies that have set up businesses and offices. The state retains monopolies in a number of sectors, including tobacco, the telephone network, and the postal service. Living standards are high, roughly comparable to those in prosperous French metropolitan areas. Monaco does not publish national income figures; the estimates below are extremely rough. | Syria's predominantly statist economy is on a shaky footing because of Damascus's failure to implement extensive economic reform. The dominant agricultural sector remains underdeveloped, with roughly 80% of agricultural land still dependent on rain-fed sources. Although Syria has sufficient water supplies in the aggregate at normal levels of precipitation, the great distance between major water supplies and population centers poses serious distribution problems. The water problem is exacerbated by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution. Private investment is critical to the modernization of the agricultural, energy, and export sectors. Oil production is leveling off, and the efforts of the nonoil sector to penetrate international markets have fallen short. Syria's inadequate infrastructure, outmoded technological base, and weak educational system make it vulnerable to future shocks and hamper competition with neighbors such as Jordan and Israel. The government recognizes the need to open the economy to additional domestic and foreign investment. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 16.684 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | NA kWh
note: electricity supplied by France |
0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | - | 17.94 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
57.64% hydro: 42.36% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mont Agel 140 m |
lowest point:
unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from dumping of raw sewage and wastes from petroleum refining; inadequate supplies of potable water |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
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 | French 47%, Monegasque 16%, Italian 16%, other 21% | Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) | Syrian pounds per US dollar - 46 (2000), 46 (1998), 41.9 (January 1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Prince ALBERT II (since 6 April 2005)
head of government: Minister of State Jean-Paul PROUST (since 1 June 2005) cabinet: Council of Government is under the authority of the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; minister of state appointed by the monarch from a list of three French national candidates presented by the French Government |
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), Khalid RA'D (since 13 March 2000), Muhammad NAJI 'UTRI (since 13 March 2000) 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 10 June 2000; 20 June 2000 the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council 25 June 2000 |
Exports | $NA; full customs integration with France, which collects and rebates Monegasque trade duties; also participates in EU market system through customs union with France | $4.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | - | petroleum 65%, textiles 10%, manufactured goods 10%, fruits and vegetables 7%, raw cotton 5%, live sheep 2%, phosphates 1% (1998 est.) |
Exports - partners | - | Germany 21%, Italy 12%, France 10%, Saudi Arabia 9%, Turkey 8% (1999 est.) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; similar to the flag of Indonesia which is longer and the flag of Poland which is white (top) and red | 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 - $50.9 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 17%
industry: NA% services: NA% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
29% industry: 22% services: 49% (1997) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $27,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,100 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.9% (2000 est.) | 3.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 43 44 N, 7 24 E | 35 00 N, 38 00 E |
Geography - note | second-smallest independent state in the world (after Holy See); almost entirely urban | there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (August 1999 est.) |
Heliports | 1 (shuttle service between the international airport at Nice, France, and Monaco's heliport at Fontvieille) (2004 est.) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 50 km
paved: 50 km unpaved: 0 km (1999 est.) |
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%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets |
Imports | $NA; full customs integration with France, which collects and rebates Monegasque trade duties; also participates in EU market system through customs union with France | $3.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | - | machinery and equipment 23%, foodstuffs/animals 20%, metal and metal products 15%, textiles 10%, chemicals 10% (1998 est.) |
Imports - partners | - | France 11%, Italy 8%, Germany 7%, Turkey 5%, China 4% (1999 est.) |
Independence | 1419 (beginning of the rule by the House of Grimaldi) | 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism, construction, small-scale industrial and consumer products | petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 5.43 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
33.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.9% (2000) | 1.5% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, CE, FAO, IAEA, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO | ABEDA, 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, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 9,060 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Tribunal Supreme (judges appointed by the monarch on the basis of nominations by the National Council) | Supreme Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts |
Labor force | 30,540 (January 1994) | 4.7 million (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 40%, industry 20%, services 40% (1996 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 4.4 km
border countries: France 4.4 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: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (urban area) (2001) |
arable land:
28% permanent crops: 4% permanent pastures: 43% forests and woodland: 3% other: 22% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), English, Italian, Monegasque | Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood |
Legal system | based on French law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Council or Conseil National (24 seats; 16 members elected by list majority system, 8 by proportional representation; to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 February 2003 (next to be held February 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UNAM 21, UND 3 |
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%, non-NPF 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receive one-half of the seats |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.57 years
male: 75.7 years female: 83.63 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
68.77 years male: 67.63 years female: 69.98 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: 99% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 70.8% male: 85.7% female: 55.8% (1997 est.) |
Location | Western Europe, bordering the Mediterranean Sea on the southern coast of France, near the border with Italy | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey |
Map references | Europe | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm | contiguous zone:
41 NM territorial sea: 35 NM |
Merchant marine | registered in other countries: 54 (2005) | total:
133 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 425,392 GRT/612,097 DWT ships by type: bulk 11, cargo 117, livestock carrier 4, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France; the Palace Guard performs ceremonial duties (2003) | - |
Military branches | - | Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force, Syrian Arab 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 | - | 5.9% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
4,384,528 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
2,448,630 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
200,859 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | National Day (Prince of Monaco Holiday), 19 November | Independence Day, 17 April (1946) |
Nationality | noun: Monegasque(s) or Monacan(s)
adjective: Monegasque or Monacan |
noun:
Syrian(s) adjective: Syrian |
Natural hazards | NA | dust storms, sandstorms |
Natural resources | none | petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 7.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 1,304 km; petroleum products 515 km |
Political parties and leaders | National and Democratic Union or UND [Jean-Louis CAMPORA]; Union for Monaco or UPM (including National Union for the Future of Monaco or UNAM) [leader NA] | National Progressive Front or NPF (includes the Ba'th Party, ASU, Arab Socialist Party, Socialist Unionist Democratic Party, ASP, SCP) [President Bashar al-ASAD]; Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party (governing party) [Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general of the party, and chairman of the National Progressive Front after the death of Hafiz al-ASAD on 10 June 2000]; Arab Socialist Unionist Movement or ASU [Sami SOUFAN]; Arab Socialist Party [Abd al-Ghani KANNUT]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Ahmad al-ASAD]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan KOUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party or SCP [Yusuf FAYSAL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | conservative religious leaders; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in Jordan and Yemen); non-Ba'th parties have little effective political influence |
Population | 32,409 (July 2005 est.) | 16,728,808
note: in addition, there are about 38,200 people living in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 18,200 Arabs (16,500 Druze and 1,700 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 15%-25% |
Population growth rate | 0.43% (2005 est.) | 2.54% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Monaco | Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM NA, shortwave 8 (1998) | AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 4.15 million (1997) |
Railways | - | 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 (2000) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 90% | 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: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2005 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: 0.95 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern automatic telephone system
domestic: NA international: country code - 377; no satellite earth stations; connected by cable into the French communications 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 | 33,700 (2002) | 1.313 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 19,300 (2002) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1998) | 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | hilly, rugged, rocky | primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west |
Total fertility rate | 1.76 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 3.95 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (1999) | 20% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | - | 870 km (minimal economic importance) |