Morocco (2004) | Russia (2001) | |
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 | 49 oblasts (oblastey, singular - oblast), 21 republics* (respublik, singular - respublika), 10 autonomous okrugs**(avtonomnykh okrugov, singular - avtonomnyy okrug), 6 krays*** (krayev, singular - kray), 2 federal cities (singular - gorod)****, and 1 autonomous oblast*****(avtonomnaya oblast'); Adygeya (Maykop)*, Aginskiy Buryatskiy (Aginskoye)**, Altay (Gorno-Altaysk)*, Altayskiy (Barnaul)***, Amurskaya (Blagoveshchensk), Arkhangel'skaya, Astrakhanskaya, Bashkortostan (Ufa)*, Belgorodskaya, Bryanskaya, Buryatiya (Ulan-Ude)*, Chechnya (Groznyy)*, Chelyabinskaya, Chitinskaya, Chukotskiy (Anadyr')**, Chuvashiya (Cheboksary)*, Dagestan (Makhachkala)*, Evenkiyskiy (Tura)**, Ingushetiya (Nazran')*, Irkutskaya, Ivanovskaya, Kabardino-Balkariya (Nal'chik)*, Kaliningradskaya, Kalmykiya (Elista)*, Kaluzhskaya, Kamchatskaya (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy), Karachayevo-Cherkesiya (Cherkessk)*, Kareliya (Petrozavodsk)*, Kemerovskaya, Khabarovskiy***, Khakasiya (Abakan)*, Khanty-Mansiyskiy (Khanty-Mansiysk)**, Kirovskaya, Komi (Syktyvkar)*, Koryakskiy (Palana)**, Kostromskaya, Krasnodarskiy***, Krasnoyarskiy***, Kurganskaya, Kurskaya, Leningradskaya, Lipetskaya, Magadanskaya, Mariy-El (Yoshkar-Ola)*, Mordoviya (Saransk)*, Moskovskaya, Moskva (Moscow)****, Murmanskaya, Nenetskiy (Nar'yan-Mar)**, Nizhegorodskaya, Novgorodskaya, Novosibirskaya, Omskaya, Orenburgskaya, Orlovskaya (Orel), Penzenskaya, Permskaya, Komi-Permyatskiy (Kudymkar)**, Primorskiy (Vladivostok)***, Pskovskaya, Rostovskaya, Ryazanskaya, Sakha (Yakutsk)*, Sakhalinskaya (Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), Samarskaya, Sankt-Peterburg (Saint Petersburg)****, Saratovskaya, Severnaya Osetiya-Alaniya [North Ossetia] (Vladikavkaz)*, Smolenskaya, Stavropol'skiy***, Sverdlovskaya (Yekaterinburg), Tambovskaya, Tatarstan (Kazan')*, Taymyrskiy (Dudinka)**, Tomskaya, Tul'skaya, Tverskaya, Tyumenskaya, Tyva (Kyzyl)*, Udmurtiya (Izhevsk)*, Ul'yanovskaya, Ust'-Ordynskiy Buryatskiy (Ust'-Ordynskiy)**, Vladimirskaya, Volgogradskaya, Vologodskaya, Voronezhskaya, Yamalo-Nenetskiy (Salekhard)**, Yaroslavskaya, Yevreyskaya*****; note - when using a place name with an adjectival ending 'skaya' or 'skiy,' the word Oblast' or Avonomnyy Okrug or Kray should be added to the place name
note: the autonomous republics of Chechnya and Ingushetiya were formerly the autonomous republic of Checheno-Ingushetia (the boundary between Chechnya and Ingushetia has yet to be determined); administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
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:
17.41% (male 12,915,026; female 12,405,341) 15-64 years: 69.78% (male 49,183,000; female 52,320,962) 65 years and over: 12.81% (male 5,941,944; female 12,703,924) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, wheat, citrus, wine, vegetables, olives; livestock | grain, sugar beets, sunflower seed, vegetables, fruits; beef, milk |
Airports | 64 (2003 est.) | 2,743 (2000 est.) |
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:
471 over 3,047 m: 56 2,438 to 3,047 m: 178 1,524 to 2,437 m: 76 914 to 1,523 m: 69 under 914 m: 92 (2000 est.) |
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:
2,272 over 3,047 m: 28 2,438 to 3,047 m: 118 1,524 to 2,437 m: 204 914 to 1,523 m: 324 under 914 m: 1,598 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 446,550 sq km
land: 446,300 sq km water: 250 sq km |
total:
17,075,200 sq km land: 16,995,800 sq km water: 79,400 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly less than 1.8 times the size of the US |
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. | The defeat of the Russian Empire in World War I led to the seizure of power by the communists and the formation of the USSR. The brutal rule of Josef STALIN (1924-53) strengthened Russian dominance of the Soviet Union at a cost of tens of millions of lives. The Soviet economy and society stagnated in the following decades until General Secretary Mikhail GORBACHEV (1985-91) introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) in an attempt to modernize communism, but his initiatives inadvertently released forces that by December 1991 splintered the USSR into 15 independent republics. Since then, Russia has struggled in its efforts to build a democratic political system and market economy to replace the strict social, political, and economic controls of the communist period. |
Birth rate | 22.79 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.35 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $13.8 billion
expenditures: $14 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.1 billion (2004 est.) |
revenues:
$40 billion expenditures: $33.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Rabat | Moscow |
Climate | Mediterranean, becoming more extreme in the interior | ranges from steppes in the south through humid continental in much of European Russia; subarctic in Siberia to tundra climate in the polar north; winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid in Siberia; summers vary from warm in the steppes to cool along Arctic coast |
Coastline | 1,835 km | 37,653 km |
Constitution | 10 March 1972, revised 4 September 1992, amended (to create bicameral legislature) September 1996 | adopted 12 December 1993 |
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:
Russian Federation conventional short form: Russia local long form: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya local short form: Rossiya former: Russian Empire, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic |
Currency | Moroccan dirham (MAD) | Russian ruble (RUR) |
Death rate | 5.71 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 13.85 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $17.32 billion (2003 est.) | $163 billion (2000 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 James F. COLLINS embassy: Novinskiy Bul'var 19/23, 121099 Moscow mailing address: APO AE 09721 telephone: [7] (095) 728-5000 FAX: [7] (095) 728-5203 consulate(s) general: Saint Petersburg, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg |
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 Yuriy Viktorovich USHAKOV chancery: 2650 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-5700, 5701, 5704, 5708 FAX: [1] (202) 298-5735 consulate(s) general: New York, San Francisco, and Seattle |
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 | dispute over at least two small sections of the boundary with China remains to be settled, despite 1997 boundary agreement; islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan and the Habomai group occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia, claimed by Japan; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan; Estonian and Russian negotiators reached a technical border agreement in December 1996, which has not been signed or ratified by Russia as of February 2001; draft treaty delimiting the boundary with Latvia has not been signed; 1997 border agreement with Lithuania not yet ratified; has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation; Svalbard is the focus of a maritime boundary dispute between Norway and Russia |
Economic aid - recipient | $565.6 million (1995) | $8.523 billion (1995) |
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. | A decade after the implosion of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia is still struggling to establish a modern market economy and achieve strong economic growth. In contrast to its trading partners in Central Europe - which were able to overcome the initial production declines that accompanied the launch of market reforms within three to five years - Russia saw its economy contract for five years, as the executive and legislature dithered over the implementation of many of the basic foundations of a market economy. Russia achieved a slight recovery in 1997, but the government's stubborn budget deficits and the country's poor business climate made it vulnerable when the global financial crisis swept through in 1998. The crisis culminated in the August depreciation of the ruble, a debt default by the government, and a sharp deterioration in living standards for most of the population. The economy rebounded in 1999 and 2000, buoyed by the competitive boost from the weak ruble and a surging trade surplus fueled by rising world oil prices. This recovery, along with a renewed government effort in 2000 to advance lagging structural reforms, have raised business and investor confidence over Russia's prospects in its second decade of transition. Yet serious problems persist. Russia remains heavily dependent on exports of commodities, particularly oil, natural gas, metals, and timber, which account for over 80% of exports, leaving the country vulnerable to swings in world prices. Russia's agricultural sector remains beset by uncertainty over land ownership rights, which has discouraged needed investment and restructuring. Another threat is negative demographic trends, fueled by low birth rates and a deteriorating health situation - including an alarming rise in AIDS cases - that have contributed to a nearly 2% drop in the population since 1992. Russia's industrial base is increasingly dilapidated and must be replaced or modernized if the country is to achieve sustainable economic growth. Other problems include widespread corruption, capital flight, and brain drain. |
Electricity - consumption | 14.61 billion kWh (2001) | 728.2 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 20 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 2.2 billion kWh (2001) | 6 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 13.35 billion kWh (2001) | 798.065 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
66.31% hydro: 19.79% nuclear: 13.9% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebkha Tah -55 m
highest point: Jbel Toubkal 4,165 m |
lowest point:
Caspian Sea -28 m highest point: Gora El'brus 5,633 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 | air pollution from heavy industry, emissions of coal-fired electric plants, and transportation in major cities; industrial, municipal, and agricultural pollution of inland waterways and sea coasts; deforestation; soil erosion; soil contamination from improper application of agricultural chemicals; scattered areas of sometimes intense radioactive contamination; ground water contamination from toxic waste |
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:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Arab-Berber 99.1%, other 0.7%, Jewish 0.2% | Russian 81.5%, Tatar 3.8%, Ukrainian 3%, Chuvash 1.2%, Bashkir 0.9%, Byelorussian 0.8%, Moldavian 0.7%, other 8.1% |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 9.5744 (2003), 11.0206 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.6256 (2000), 9.8044 (1999) | Russian rubles per US dollar - 28.3592 (January 2001), 28.1292 (2000), 24.6199 (1999), 9.7051 (1998), 5,785 (1997), 5,121 (1996)
note: the post-1 January 1998 ruble is equal to 1,000 of the pre-1 January 1998 rubles |
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 Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN (acting president since 31 December 1999, president since 7 May 2000) head of government: Premier Mikhail Mikhaylovich KASYANOV (since 7 May 2000); First Deputy Premier Aleksey Leonidovich KUDRIN (since 18 May 2000), Deputy Premiers Aleksey Vasilyevich GORDEYEV (since 20 May 2000), Viktor Borisovich KHRISTENKO (since 31 May 1999), Ilya Iosifovich KLEBANOV (since 31 May 1999), Valentina Ivanovna MATVIYENKO (since 22 September 1998) cabinet: Ministries of the Government or "Government" composed of the premier and his deputies, ministers, and other agency heads; all are appointed by the president note: there is also a Presidential Administration (PA) that provides staff and policy support to the president, drafts presidential decrees, and coordinates policy among government agencies; a Security Council also reports directly to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 March 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); note - no vice president; if the president dies in office, cannot exercise his powers because of ill health, is impeached, or resigns, the premier succeeds him; the premier serves as acting president until a new presidential election is held, which must be within three months; premier appointed by the president with the approval of the Duma election results: Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN elected president; percent of vote - PUTIN 52.9%, Gennadiy Aadreyevich ZYUGANOV 29.2%, Grigoriy Alekseyevich YAVLINSKIY 5.8% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $105.1 billion (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | clothing, fish, inorganic chemicals, transistors, crude minerals, fertilizers (including phosphates), petroleum products, fruits, vegetables | petroleum and petroleum products, natural gas, wood and wood products, metals, chemicals, and a wide variety of civilian and military manufactures |
Exports - partners | France 26.5%, Spain 16.7%, UK 7.2%, Germany 5.2%, Italy 5%, US 4% (2003) | US 8.8%, Germany 8.5%, Ukraine 6.5%, Belarus 5.1%, Italy 5%, Netherlands 4.8% (1999) |
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 white (top), blue, and red |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $128.3 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.12 trillion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 22.9%
industry: 35.5% services: 41.5% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
7% industry: 34% services: 59% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,700 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2003 est.) | 6.3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 5 00 W | 60 00 N, 100 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location along Strait of Gibraltar | largest country in the world in terms of area but unfavorably located in relation to major sea lanes of the world; despite its size, much of the country lacks proper soils and climates (either too cold or too dry) for agriculture |
Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 57,707 km
paved: 32,547 km (including 481 km of expressways) unpaved: 25,160 km (2000) |
total:
952,000 km paved: 752,000 km (including, in addition to about 336,000 km of conventionally paved roads, about 416,000 km of roads, the surfaces of which have been stabilized with gravel or other coarse aggregates, making them trafficable in wet weather) unpaved: 200,000 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 30.9% (1998-99) |
lowest 10%:
1.7% highest 10%: 38.7% (1998) |
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 | limited cultivation of illicit cannabis and opium poppy and producer of amphetamine, mostly for domestic consumption; government has active eradication program; increasingly used as transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian opiates and cannabis and Latin American cocaine to Western Europe, possibly to the US, and growing domestic market; major source of heroin precursor chemicals; corruption and organized crime are major concerns; heroin an increasing threat in domestic drug market |
Imports | NA (2001) | $44.2 billion (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | crude petroleum, textile fabric, telecommunications equipment, wheat, gas and electricity, transistors, plastics | machinery and equipment, consumer goods, medicines, meat, grain, sugar, semifinished metal products |
Imports - partners | France 20.6%, Spain 12.4%, Italy 7.1%, Germany 5.2%, Saudi Arabia 5%, Russia 4.9%, US 4.1% (2003) | Germany 13.8%, Belarus 10.7%, Ukraine 8.3%, US 7.9%, Kazakhstan 4.6%, Italy 3.8% (1999) |
Independence | 2 March 1956 (from France) | 24 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 8.8% (2000 est.) |
Industries | phosphate rock mining and processing, food processing, leather goods, textiles, construction, tourism | complete range of mining and extractive industries producing coal, oil, gas, chemicals, and metals; all forms of machine building from rolling mills to high-performance aircraft and space vehicles; shipbuilding; road and rail transportation equipment; communications equipment; agricultural machinery, tractors, and construction equipment; electric power generating and transmitting equipment; medical and scientific instruments; consumer durables, textiles, foodstuffs, handicrafts |
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.) |
20.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.2% (2003 est.) | 20.6% (2000 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 | APEC, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, BSEC, CBSS, CCC, CE, CERN (observer), CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ESCAP, G- 8, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer), ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 35 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 12,910 sq km (1998 est.) | 40,000 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed on the recommendation of the Supreme Council of the Judiciary, presided over by the monarch) | Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Superior Court of Arbitration; judges for all courts are appointed for life by the Federation Council on the recommendation of the president |
Labor force | 10.84 million (2003) | 66 million (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 40%, industry 15%, services 45% (2003 est.) | agriculture 15%, industry 30%, 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:
19,961 km border countries: Azerbaijan 284 km, Belarus 959 km, China (southeast) 3,605 km, China (south) 40 km, Estonia 294 km, Finland 1,313 km, Georgia 723 km, Kazakhstan 6,846 km, North Korea 19 km, Latvia 217 km, Lithuania (Kaliningrad Oblast) 227 km, Mongolia 3,485 km, Norway 167 km, Poland (Kaliningrad Oblast) 206 km, Ukraine 1,576 km |
Land use | arable land: 19.61%
permanent crops: 2.17% other: 78.22% (2001) |
arable land:
8% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 4% forests and woodland: 46% other: 42% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), Berber dialects, French often the language of business, government, and diplomacy | Russian, other |
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 law system; judicial review of legislative acts |
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 |
bicameral Federal Assembly or Federalnoye Sobraniye consists of the Federation Council or Sovet Federatsii (178 seats; as of July 2000, members appointed by the top executive and legislative officials in each of the 89 federal administrative units - oblasts, krays, republics, autonomous okrugs and oblasts, and the federal cities of Moscow and Saint Petersburg; members serve four-year terms) and the State Duma or Gosudarstvennaya Duma (450 seats; half elected by proportional representation from party lists winning at least 5% of the vote, and half from single-member constituencies; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: State Duma - last held 19 December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2003) election results: State Duma - percent of vote received by parties clearing the 5% threshold entitling them to a proportional share of the 225 party list seats - KPRF 24.29%, Unity 23.32%, OVR 13.33%, Union of Right Forces 8.52%, LDPR 5.98%, Yabloko 5.93%; seats by party - KPRF 113, Unity 72, OVR 67, Union of Rightist Forces 29, LDPR 17, Yabloko 21, other 16, independents 106, repeat election required 8, vacant 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.35 years
male: 68.06 years female: 72.74 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
67.34 years male: 62.12 years female: 72.83 years (2001 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 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 100% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Western Sahara | Northern Asia (that part west of the Urals is sometimes included with Europe), bordering the Arctic Ocean, between Europe and the North Pacific Ocean |
Map references | Africa | Asia |
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 |
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 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.) |
total:
878 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,314,485 GRT/5,344,958 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 1, bulk 20, cargo 543, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 21, combination ore/oil 7, container 31, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 35, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 164, refrigerated cargo 24, roll on/roll off 17, short-sea passenger 7 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Reunion 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force | Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Strategic Rocket Forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $2,297.2 million (2003) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.8% (2003) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 8,788,971 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
38,866,147 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 5,529,267 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
30,337,743 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 352,711 (2004 est.) | males:
1,242,778 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Throne Day (accession of King MOHAMED VI to the throne), 30 July (1999) | Russia Day, 12 June (1990) |
Nationality | noun: Moroccan(s)
adjective: Moroccan |
noun:
Russian(s) adjective: Russian |
Natural hazards | northern mountains geologically unstable and subject to earthquakes; periodic droughts | permafrost over much of Siberia is a major impediment to development; volcanic activity in the Kuril Islands; volcanoes and earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula |
Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore, manganese, lead, zinc, fish, salt | wide natural resource base including major deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and many strategic minerals, timber
note: formidable obstacles of climate, terrain, and distance hinder exploitation of natural resources |
Net migration rate | -0.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 695 km; oil 285 km (2004) | crude oil 48,000 km; petroleum products 15,000 km; natural gas 140,000 km (June 1993 est.) |
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] | Agrarian Party [Mikhail Ivanovich LAPSHIN]; Communist Party of the Russian Federation or KPRF [Gennadiy Andreyevich ZYUGANOV]; Fatherland-All Russia or OVR [Yuriy Mikhailovich LUZHKOV]; Liberal Democratic Party of Russia or LDPR [Vladimir Volfovich ZHIRINOVSKIY]; Union of Right Forces [Anatoliy Borisovich CHUBAYS, Yegor Timurovich GAYDAR, Irina Mutsuovna KHAKAMADA, Boris Yefimovich NEMTSOV]; Unity [Sergey Kuzhugetovich SHOYGU]; Yabloko Bloc [Grigoriy Alekseyevich YAVLINSKIY]
note: some 150 political parties, blocs, and movements registered with the Justice Ministry as of the 19 December 1998 deadline to be eligible to participate in the 19 December 1999 Duma elections; of these, 36 political organizations actually qualified to run slates of candidates on the Duma party list ballot, 6 parties cleared the 5% threshold to win a proportional share of the 225 party seats in the Duma, 9 other organizations hold seats in the Duma: Bloc of Nikolayev and Academician Fedorov, Congress of Russian Communities, Movement in Support of the Army, Our Home Is Russia, Party of Pensioners, Power to the People, Russian All-People's Union, Russian Socialist Party, and Spiritual Heritage; primary political blocs include pro-market democrats - (Yabloko Bloc and Union of Right Forces), anti-market and/or ultranationalist (Communist Party of the Russian Federation and Liberal Democratic Party of Russia) |
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] | NA |
Population | 32,209,101 (July 2004 est.) | 145,470,197 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 19% (1999 est.) | 40% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.61% (2004 est.) | -0.35% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Agadir, El Jadida, Casablanca, El Jorf Lasfar, Kenitra, Mohammedia, Nador, Rabat, Safi, Tangier; also Spanish-controlled Ceuta and Melilla | Arkhangel'sk, Astrakhan', Kaliningrad, Kazan', Khabarovsk, Kholmsk, Krasnoyarsk, Moscow, Murmansk, Nakhodka, Nevel'sk, Novorossiysk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Saint Petersburg, Rostov, Sochi, Tuapse, Vladivostok, Volgograd, Vostochnyy, Vyborg |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 27, FM 25, shortwave 6 (1998) | AM 420, FM 447, shortwave 56 (1998) |
Radios | - | 61.5 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 1,907 km
standard gauge: 1,907 km 1.435-m gauge (1,003 km electrified) (2003) |
total:
149,000 km note: 86,000 km are in common carrier service; 63,000 km serve specific industries and are not available for common carrier use; 40,000 km of the railway in common carrier use are electrified broad gauge: 149,000 km 1.520-m gauge (1998) |
Religions | Muslim 98.7%, Christian 1.1%, Jewish 0.2% | Russian Orthodox, Muslim, other |
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: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.47 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2001 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:
the telephone system has undergone significant changes in the 1990s; there are more than 1,000 companies licensed to offer communication services; access to digital lines has improved, particularly in urban centers; Internet and e-mail services are improving; Russia has made progress toward building the telecommunications infrastructure necessary for a market economy; however, a large demand for main line service remains unsatisfied domestic: cross-country digital trunk lines run from Saint Petersburg to Khabarovsk, and from Moscow to Novorossiysk; the telephone systems in 60 regional capitals have modern digital infrastructures; cellular services, both analog and digital, are available in many areas; in rural areas, the telephone services are still outdated, inadequate, and low density international: Russia is connected internationally by three undersea fiber-optic cables; digital switches in several cities provide more than 50,000 lines for international calls; satellite earth stations provide access to Intelsat, Intersputnik, Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and Orbita systems |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1,219,200 (2003) | 30 million (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,332,800 (2003) | 2.5 million (October 2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 35 (plus 66 repeaters) (1995) | 7,306 (1998) |
Terrain | northern coast and interior are mountainous with large areas of bordering plateaus, intermontane valleys, and rich coastal plains | broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains along southern border regions |
Total fertility rate | 2.81 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.27 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 19% (2003 est.) | 10.5% (2000 est.), plus considerable underemployment |
Waterways | - | 95,900 km (total routes in general use)
note: routes with navigation guides serving the Russian River Fleet-95,900 km; routes with night navigational aids-60,400 km; man-made navigable routes-16,900 km (Jan 1994) |