Saint Lucia (2001) | El Salvador (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux Fort | 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:
32.13% (male 25,951; female 24,874) 15-64 years: 62.59% (male 48,568; female 50,430) 65 years and over: 5.28% (male 3,120; female 5,235) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 36.5% (male 1,250,901/female 1,198,589)
15-64 years: 58.3% (male 1,860,084/female 2,051,140) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 153,133/female 191,085) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 73 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 54 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
620 sq km land: 610 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total: 21,040 sq km
land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
Area - comparative | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Massachusetts |
Background | The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979. | 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 | 21.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 27.04 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$141.2 million expenditures: $146.7 million, including capital expenditures of $25.1 million (FY97/98 est.) |
revenues: $2.491 billion
expenditures: $2.782 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Castries | San Salvador |
Climate | tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to April, rainy season from May to August | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands |
Coastline | 158 km | 307 km |
Constitution | 22 February 1979 | 23 December 1983 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Lucia |
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 | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | - |
Death rate | 5.36 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.85 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $131.6 million (1998) | $4.792 billion (September 2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador in Barbados is accredited to Saint Lucia | chief of mission: Ambassador H. Douglas BARCLAY
embassy: Final Boulevard Santa Elena Sur, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 278-4444 FAX: [503] 278-5522 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Sonia Merlyn JOHNNY chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6728 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Rene Antonio LEON Rodriguez
chancery: 2308 California Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9671 FAX: [1] (202) 234-3834 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York (2), San Francisco, and Washington, DC consulate(s): Boston |
Disputes - international | none | in 1992, the ICJ ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, but despite OAS intervention and a further ICJ ruling in 2003, full demarcation of the border remains stalled; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca advocating Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not identified in the ICJ decision, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca |
Economic aid - recipient | $51.8 million (1995) | $125 million of which, $53 million from US (2003) |
Economy - overview | The recent changes in the EU import preference regime and the increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. Improvement in the construction sector and growth of the tourism industry helped expand GDP in 1998-99. The agriculture sector registered its fifth year of decline in 1997 primarily because of a severe decline in banana production. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean, and the government is beginning to develop regulations for the small offshore financial sector. | GDP per capita is roughly half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, and the distribution of income is highly unequal. The government is striving to open new export markets, encourage foreign investment, modernize the tax and healthcare systems, and stimulate the sluggish economy. Implementation of the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement, ratified by El Salvador in 2004, is viewed as a key policy to help achieve these objectives. The trade deficit has been offset by annual remittances from Salvadorans living abroad - 16% of GDP in 2004 - and external aid. With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency, El Salvador has lost control over monetary policy and must concentrate on maintaining a disciplined fiscal policy. |
Electricity - consumption | 102.3 million kWh (1999) | 4.45 billion kWh (2004) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 91 million kWh (2004) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 473 million kWh (2004) |
Electricity - production | 110 million kWh (1999) | 4.158 billion kWh (2004) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | black 90%, mixed 6%, East Indian 3%, white 1% | mestizo 90%, white 9%, Amerindian 1% |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | the US dollar became El Salvador's currency in 2001 |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dr. Perlette LOUISY (since September 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Kenneth ANTHONY (since 24 May 1997) and Deputy Prime Minister Mario MICHEL (since 24 May 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
chief of state: President Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); 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 21 March 2004 (next to be held March 2009) election results: Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez elected president; percent of vote - Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (ARENA) 57.7%, Schafik HANDAL (FMLN) 35.6%, Hector SILVA (CDU-PDC) 3.9%, other 2.8% |
Exports | $68.3 million (2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity |
Exports - partners | UK 50%, US 24%, Caricom countries 16% (1995) | US 65.6%, Guatemala 11.8%, Honduras 6.3% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border | 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 - $700 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10.7% industry: 32.3% services: 57% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 9.2%
industry: 31.1% services: 59.7% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,900 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.5% (2000 est.) | 1.8% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 53 N, 60 68 W | 13 50 N, 88 55 W |
Geography - note | - | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea |
Heliports | - | 1 (2004 est.) |
Highways | total:
1,210 km paved: 63 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1996) |
total: 10,029 km
paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways) unpaved: 8,043 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1.4%
highest 10%: 39.3% (2001) |
Illicit drugs | transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe | transshipment point for cocaine; small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic cocaine abuse on the rise |
Imports | $319.4 million (2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity |
Imports - partners | US 36%, Caricom countries 22%, UK 11%, Japan 5%, Canada 4% (1995) | US 46.3%, Guatemala 8.1%, Mexico 6% (2004) |
Independence | 22 February 1979 (from UK) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | -8.9% (1997 est.) | 0.7% (2004 est.) |
Industries | clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism, lime processing, coconut processing | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals |
Infant mortality rate | 15.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 25.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 27.98 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2000 est.) | 5.4% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT (associate), ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 15 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 360 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (jurisdiction extends to Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) |
Labor force | 43,800 | 2.75 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 43.4%, services 38.9%, industry and commerce 17.7% (1983 est.) | agriculture 17.1%, industry 17.1%, services 65.8% (2003 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 545 km
border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km |
Land use | arable land:
8% permanent crops: 21% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 13% other: 53% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 31.85%
permanent crops: 12.07% other: 56.08% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), French patois | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) |
Legal system | based on English common law | 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 the Senate (11 seats; six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 23 May 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SLP 16, UWP 1 |
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 March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FMLN 31, ARENA 28, PCN 15, PDC 5, CD 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
72.57 years male: 69 years female: 76.39 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 71.22 years
male: 67.61 years female: 75.01 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 67% male: 65% female: 69% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 10 and over can read and write
total population: 80.2% male: 82.8% female: 77.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | - |
Military branches | Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard | Army, Navy (FNES), Air Force (FAS) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $5 million (FY91/92) | $157 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (FY91/92) | 1.1% (2003) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 February (1979) | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
Nationality | noun:
Saint Lucian(s) adjective: Saint Lucian |
noun: Salvadoran(s)
adjective: Salvadoran |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and volcanic activity | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible to hurricanes |
Natural resources | forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land |
Net migration rate | -4.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -3.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | National Freedom Party or NFP [Martinus FRANCOIS]; Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Kenneth ANTHONY]; United Workers Party or UWP [Dr. Morella JOSEPH] | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER]; Democratic Convergence or CD (formerly United Democratic Center or CDU) [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general]; Democratic Party or PD [Jorge MELENDEZ]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Medardo GONZALEZ]; 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 [Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez]; Social Christian Union or USC (formed by the merger of Christian Social Renewal Party or PRSC and Unity Movement or MU) [Abraham RODRIGUEZ, president]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Juan MEDRANO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | 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 | 158,178 (July 2001 est.) | 6,704,932 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 36.1% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.23% (2001 est.) | 1.75% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Castries, Vieux Fort | Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 7 (plus 3 repeaters), shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 111,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 283 km
narrow gauge: 283 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of operational route reduced from 562 km to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintenance (2004) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 7%, Anglican 3% | Roman Catholic 83%, other 17%
note: there is extensive activity by Protestant groups throughout the country; by the end of 1992, there were an estimated 1 million Protestant evangelicals in El Salvador |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
adequate system domestic: system is automatically switched international: direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados; international calls beyond these countries are carried by Intelsat from Martinique |
general assessment: NA
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system international: country code - 503; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
Telephones - main lines in use | 37,000 (1997) | 752,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,600 (1997) | 1,149,800 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (of which two are commercial stations and one is a community antenna television or CATV channel) (1997) | 5 (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau |
Total fertility rate | 2.38 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.16 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1996 est.) | 6.3% - but the economy has much underemployment (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | Rio Lempa partially navigable (2004) |