Morocco (2004) | El Salvador (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 16 regions: Casablanca, Chaouia-Ourdigha, Doukkala-Abda, Fes-Boulmane, Gharb-Chrarda-Beni Hssen, Guelmim-Es Smara, Laayoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra, Marrakech-Tensift-El Haouz, Meknes-Tafilalet, Oriental, Oued Eddahab-Lagouira, Rabat-Sale-Zemmour-Zaer, Souss-Massa-Draa, Tadla-Azilal, Tangier-Tetouan, Taza-Al Hoceima-Taounate | 14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Vicente, Sonsonate, Usulutan |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 32.6% (male 5,355,388; female 5,156,762)
15-64 years: 62.5% (male 10,013,466; female 10,112,060) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 692,465; female 878,960) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 37.4% (male 1,211,156; female 1,162,317)
15-64 years: 57.5% (male 1,735,744; female 1,922,395) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 144,864; female 177,205) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, wheat, citrus, wine, vegetables, olives; livestock | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 64 (2003 est.) | 83 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 25
over 3,047 m: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 38
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 11 (2004 est.) |
total: 78
914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 61 (2002) |
Area | total: 446,550 sq km
land: 446,300 sq km water: 250 sq km |
total: 21,040 sq km
land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly smaller than Massachusetts |
Background | Morocco's long struggle for independence from France ended in 1956. The internationalized city of Tangier was turned over to the new country that same year. Morocco virtually annexed Western Sahara during the late 1970s, but final resolution on the status of the territory remains unresolved. Gradual political reforms in the 1990s resulted in the establishment of a bicameral legislature in 1997. Parliamentary elections were held for the second time in September 2002 and municipal elections were held in September 2003. | 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. |
Birth rate | 22.79 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 28.3 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $13.8 billion
expenditures: $14 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.1 billion (2004 est.) |
revenues: $2.1 billion
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) (2001 est.) |
Capital | Rabat | San Salvador |
Climate | Mediterranean, becoming more extreme in the interior | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands |
Coastline | 1,835 km | 307 km |
Constitution | 10 March 1972, revised 4 September 1992, amended (to create bicameral legislature) September 1996 | 23 December 1983 |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Morocco
conventional short form: Morocco local long form: Al Mamlakah al Maghribiyah local short form: Al Maghrib |
conventional long form: Republic of El Salvador
conventional short form: El Salvador local long form: Republica de El Salvador local short form: El Salvador |
Currency | Moroccan dirham (MAD) | Salvadoran colon (SVC); US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 5.71 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.1 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $17.32 billion (2003 est.) | $4.9 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas T. RILEY
embassy: 2 Avenue de Mohamed El Fassi, Rabat mailing address: PSC 74, Box 021, APO AE 09718 telephone: [212] (37) 76 22 65 FAX: [212] (37) 76 56 61 consulate(s) general: Casablanca |
chief of mission: Ambassador Rose M. LIKINS
embassy: Final Boulevard Santa Elena Sur, Urbanizacion Santa Elena, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 278-4444 FAX: [503] 278-6011 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Aziz MEKOUAR
chancery: 1601 21st Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 462-7979 through 7982 FAX: [1] (202) 265-0161 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Rene Antonio LEON Rodriguez
chancery: 2308 California Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9671 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | claims and administers Western Sahara whose sovereignty remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991, but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals; Morocco protests Spain's control over the coastal enclaves of Ceuta, Melilla, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera, the islands of Penon de Alhucemas and Islas Chafarinas, and surrounding waters; Morocco also rejected Spain's unilateral designation of a median line from the Canary Islands in 2002 to set limits to undersea resource exploration and refugee interdiction, but agreed in 2003 to discuss a comprehensive maritime delimitation; Morocco serves as one of the primary launching areas of illegal migration into Spain from North Africa | El Salvador claims tiny Conejo Island off Honduras in the Golfo de Fonseca; many of the "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary remain undemarcated despite ICJ adjudication in 1992; with respect to the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua likely would be required |
Economic aid - recipient | $565.6 million (1995) | total $252 million; $57 million from US (1999 est.) |
Economy - overview | Morocco faces the problems typical of developing countries - restraining government spending, reducing constraints on private activity and foreign trade, and achieving sustainable economic growth. Despite structural adjustment programs supported by the IMF, the World Bank, and the Paris Club, the dirham is only fully convertible for current account transactions. Reforms of the financial sector are being contemplated. Droughts depressed activity in the key agricultural sector and contributed to a stagnant economy in 2002. Morocco reported large foreign exchange inflows from the sale of a mobile telephone license, and partial privatization of the state-owned telecommunications company and the state tobacco company. Favorable rainfall in 2003 led to a growth of 6%. Formidable long-term challenges include: preparing the economy for freer trade with the EU and US, improving education, and attracting foreign investment to boost living standards and job prospects for Morocco's youth. | El Salvador is a struggling Central American economy which has been suffering from a weak tax collection system, factory closings, the aftermaths of Hurricane Mitch of 1998 and the devastating earthquakes of early 2001, and weak world coffee prices. On the bright side, in recent years inflation has fallen to single digit levels, and total exports have grown substantially. The trade deficit has been offset by remittances (an estimated $1.6 billion in 2000) from Salvadorans living abroad and by external aid. As of 1 January 2001, the US dollar was made legal tender alongside the colon. Growth in 2002 will depend largely on the speed of recovery in the US. |
Electricity - consumption | 14.61 billion kWh (2001) | 4.07 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 112 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 2.2 billion kWh (2001) | 750 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 13.35 billion kWh (2001) | 3.69 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 42%
hydro: 36% nuclear: 0% other: 22% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebkha Tah -55 m
highest point: Jbel Toubkal 4,165 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m |
Environment - current issues | land degradation/desertification (soil erosion resulting from farming of marginal areas, overgrazing, destruction of vegetation); water supplies contaminated by raw sewage; siltation of reservoirs; oil pollution of coastal waters | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Arab-Berber 99.1%, other 0.7%, Jewish 0.2% | mestizo 90%, Amerindian 1%, white 9% |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 9.5744 (2003), 11.0206 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.6256 (2000), 9.8044 (1999) | Salvadoran colones per US dollar - 8.750 (fixed since January 2001), 8.755 (fixed rate since 1993)
note: since January 2001 the US dollar has also become legal tender; the exchange rate has been fixed at 8.75 colones per US dollar |
Executive branch | chief of state: King MOHAMED VI (since 30 July 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Driss JETTOU (since 9 October 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch following legislative elections |
chief of state: President Francisco FLORES Perez (since 1 June 1999); Vice President Carlos QUINTANILLA Schmidt (since 1 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Francisco FLORES Perez (since 1 June 1999); Vice President Carlos QUINTANILLA Schmidt (since 1 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: Francisco FLORES Perez elected president; percent of vote - Francisco FLORES (ARENA) 52%, Facundo GUARDADO (FMLN) 29%, Ruben ZAMORA (CD) 7.5%, other (no individual above 3%) 11.5% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $2.9 billion (2001) |
Exports - commodities | clothing, fish, inorganic chemicals, transistors, crude minerals, fertilizers (including phosphates), petroleum products, fruits, vegetables | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity |
Exports - partners | France 26.5%, Spain 16.7%, UK 7.2%, Germany 5.2%, Italy 5%, US 4% (2003) | US 65%, Guatemala 11%, Honduras 8%, EU 5% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a green pentacle (five-pointed, linear star) known as Sulayman's (Solomon's) seal in the center of the flag; red and green are traditional colors in Arab flags, although the use of red is more commonly associated with the Arab states of the Persian gulf; design dates to 1912 | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $128.3 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $28.4 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 22.9%
industry: 35.5% services: 41.5% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 10%
industry: 30% services: 60% (2000) (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,600 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2003 est.) | 1.4% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 5 00 W | 13 50 N, 88 55 W |
Geography - note | strategic location along Strait of Gibraltar | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea |
Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 57,707 km
paved: 32,547 km (including 481 km of expressways) unpaved: 25,160 km (2000) |
total: 10,029 km
paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways) unpaved: 8,043 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 30.9% (1998-99) |
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 39% (2001) (2001) |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of hashish; shipments of hashish mostly directed to Western Europe; transit point for cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe | transshipment point for cocaine; small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic cocaine abuse on the rise |
Imports | NA (2001) | $5 billion (2001) |
Imports - commodities | crude petroleum, textile fabric, telecommunications equipment, wheat, gas and electricity, transistors, plastics | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity |
Imports - partners | France 20.6%, Spain 12.4%, Italy 7.1%, Germany 5.2%, Saudi Arabia 5%, Russia 4.9%, US 4.1% (2003) | US 50%, Guatemala 10%, EU 7%, Mexico 5%, (2000) |
Independence | 2 March 1956 (from France) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 3% (2001 est.) |
Industries | phosphate rock mining and processing, food processing, leather goods, textiles, construction, tourism | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals |
Infant mortality rate | total: 43.25 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 47.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 39.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
27.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.2% (2003 est.) | 3.8% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, EBRD, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 4 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 12,910 sq km (1998 est.) | 360 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed on the recommendation of the Supreme Council of the Judiciary, presided over by the monarch) | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) |
Labor force | 10.84 million (2003) | 2.35 million (1999) (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 40%, industry 15%, services 45% (2003 est.) | agriculture 30%, industry 15%, services 55% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,017.9 km
border countries: Algeria 1,559 km, Western Sahara 443 km, Spain (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Spain (Melilla) 9.6 km |
total: 545 km
border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km |
Land use | arable land: 19.61%
permanent crops: 2.17% other: 78.22% (2001) |
arable land: 27.27%
permanent crops: 12.11% other: 60.62% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), Berber dialects, French often the language of business, government, and diplomacy | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) |
Legal system | based on Islamic law and French and Spanish civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of Supreme Court | based on civil and Roman law, with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of an upper house or Chamber of Counselors (270 seats; members elected indirectly by local councils, professional organizations, and labor syndicates for nine-year terms; one-third of the members are renewed every three years) and a lower house or Chamber of Representatives (325 seats; 295 by multi-seat constituencies and 30 from national lists of women; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Counselors - last held 6 October 2003 (next to be held NA 2006); Chamber of Representatives - last held 27 September 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Chamber of Counselors - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RNI 42, MDS 33, UC 28, MP 27, PND 21, PI 21, USFP 16, MNP 15, PA 13, FFD 12, other 42; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - USFP 50, PI 48, PJD 42, RNI 41, MP 27, MNP 18, UC 16, PND 12, PPS 11, UD 10, other 50 |
unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (84 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 16 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FMLN 31, ARENA 27, PCN 16, PDC 5, CD 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.35 years
male: 68.06 years female: 72.74 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 70.32 years
male: 66.72 years female: 74.11 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 51.7% male: 64.1% female: 39.4% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 10 and over can read and write
total population: 71.5% male: 73.5% female: 69.8% (1995 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Western Sahara | Middle America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
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: 200 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 35 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 236,131 GRT/252,367 DWT
by type: cargo 8, chemical tanker 7, container 7, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 5, short-sea/passenger 2 foreign-owned: France 1, Germany 2, Greece 1, Hong Kong 1, Netherlands 2, Norway 2, United Kingdom 1 (2004 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force | Army, Navy (FNES), Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $2,297.2 million (2003) | $112 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.8% (2003) | 0.7% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 8,788,971 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,500,712 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 5,529,267 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 951,715 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 352,711 (2004 est.) | males: 68,103 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Throne Day (accession of King MOHAMED VI to the throne), 30 July (1999) | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
Nationality | noun: Moroccan(s)
adjective: Moroccan |
noun: Salvadoran(s)
adjective: Salvadoran |
Natural hazards | northern mountains geologically unstable and subject to earthquakes; periodic droughts | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible to hurricanes |
Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore, manganese, lead, zinc, fish, salt | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land |
Net migration rate | -0.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -3.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 695 km; oil 285 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Action Party or PA [Muhammad EL IDRISSI]; Alliance of Liberties or ADL [Ali BELHAJ]; Annahj Addimocrati or Annahj [Abdellah EL HARIF]; Avant Garde Social Democratic Party or PADS [Ahmed BENJELLOUN]; Citizen Forces or FC [Abderrahman LAHJOUJI]; Citizen's Initiatives for Development [Mohamed BENHAMOU]; Constitutional Union or UC [Mohamed ABIED (interim)]; Democratic and Independence Party or PDI [Abdelwahed MAACH]; Democratic and Social Movement or MDS [Mahmoud ARCHANE]; Democratic Socialist Party or PSD [Aissa OUARDIGHI]; Democratic Union or UD [Bouazza IKKEN]; Environment and Development Party or PED [Ahmed EL ALAMI]; Front of Democratic Forces or FFD [Thami EL KHYARI]; Istiqlal Party (Independence Party) or PI [Abbas El FASSI]; Justice and Development Party or PJD [Saad Eddine OTHMANI]; Moroccan Liberal Party or PML [Mohamed ZIANE]; National Democratic Party or PND [Abdallah KADIRI]; National Ittihadi Congress Party or CNI [Abdelmajid BOUZOUBAA]; National Popular Movement or MNP [Mahjoubi AHERDANE]; National Rally of Independents or RNI [Ahmed OSMAN]; National Union of Popular Forces or UNFP [Abdellah IBRAHIM]; Parti Al Ahd or Al Ahd [Najib EL OUAZZANI, chairman]; Party of Progress and Socialism or PPS [Ismail ALAOUI]; Party of Renewal and Equity or PRE [Chakir ACHABAR]; Party of the Unified Socialist Left or GSU [Mohamed Ben Said AIT IDDER]; Popular Movement or MP [Mohamed LAENSER]; Reform and Development Party or PRD [Abderrahmane EL KOUHEN]; Social Center Party or PSC [Lahcen MADIH]; Socialist Union of Popular Forces or USFP [Mohammed El-YAZGHI] | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER]; Democratic Convergence or CD [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general] (includes Social Democratic Party or PSD [Juan MEDRANO, leader); Democratic Party or PD [Jorge MELENDEZ]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Fabio CASTILLO]; Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Kirio Waldo SALGADO, president]; National Action Party or PAN [Gustavo Rogelio SALINAS, secretary general]; National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ Zepeda, president]; National Republican Alliance or ARENA [Walter ARAUJO]; Social Christian Union or USC (formed by the merger of Christian Social Renewal Party or PRSC and Unity Movement or MU) [Abraham RODRIGUEZ, president] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Democratic Confederation of Labor or CDT [Noubir AMAOUI]; General Union of Moroccan Workers or UGTM [Abderrazzak AFILAL]; Moroccan Employers Association or CGEM [Hassan CHAMI]; National Labor Union of Morocco or UNMT [Abdelslam MAATI]; Union of Moroccan Workers or UMT [Mahjoub BENSEDDIK] | 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 |
Population | 32,209,101 (July 2004 est.) | 6,353,681 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 19% (1999 est.) | 48% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.61% (2004 est.) | 1.83% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Agadir, El Jadida, Casablanca, El Jorf Lasfar, Kenitra, Mohammedia, Nador, Rabat, Safi, Tangier; also Spanish-controlled Ceuta and Melilla | Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco, La Libertad, La Union, Puerto El Triunfo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 27, FM 25, shortwave 6 (1998) | AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 2.75 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 1,907 km
standard gauge: 1,907 km 1.435-m gauge (1,003 km electrified) (2003) |
total: 562 km
narrow gauge: 562 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of operational route is reduced to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintenance (2001 est.) |
Religions | Muslim 98.7%, Christian 1.1%, Jewish 0.2% | Roman Catholic 83%
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 |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal (as of January 2003) | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern system with all important capabilities; however, density is low with only 4.6 main lines available for each 100 persons
domestic: good system composed of open-wire lines, cables, and microwave radio relay links; Internet available but expensive; principal switching centers are Casablanca and Rabat; national network nearly 100% digital using fiber-optic links; improved rural service employs microwave radio relay international: country code - 212; 7 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; microwave radio relay to Gibraltar, Spain, and Western Sahara; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Algeria; participant in Medarabtel; fiber-optic cable link from Agadir to Algeria and Tunisia (1998) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1,219,200 (2003) | 380,000 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,332,800 (2003) | 40,163 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 35 (plus 66 repeaters) (1995) | 5 (1997) |
Terrain | northern coast and interior are mountainous with large areas of bordering plateaus, intermontane valleys, and rich coastal plains | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau |
Total fertility rate | 2.81 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 3.29 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 19% (2003 est.) | 10% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | Rio Lempa partially navigable |