Spain (2005) | New Caledonia (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 17 autonomous communities (comunidades autonomas, singular - comunidad autonoma)and 2 autonomous cities* (ciudades autonomas, singular - ciudad autonoma); Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Baleares (Balearic Islands), Ceuta*, Canarias (Canary Islands), Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y Leon, Cataluna, Comunidad Valenciana, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Melilla*, Murcia, Navarra, Pais Vasco (Basque Country)
note: the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla plus three small islands of Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera, administered directly by the Spanish central government, are all located off the coast of Morocco and are collectively referred to as Places of Sovereignty (Plazas de Soberania) |
none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Iles Loyaute, Nord, and Sud |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14.4% (male 2,994,124/female 2,815,456)
15-64 years: 68% (male 13,762,281/female 13,664,762) 65 years and over: 17.6% (male 2,965,859/female 4,138,980) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.4% (male 32,076; female 30,772)
15-64 years: 64.3% (male 69,150; female 68,310) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 6,259; female 7,112) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products |
Airports | 156 (2004 est.) | 25 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 95
over 3,047 m: 15 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 28 (2004 est.) |
total: 11
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 61
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 44 (2004 est.) |
total: 14
914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 504,782 sq km
land: 499,542 sq km water: 5,240 sq km note: there are 19 autonomous communities including Balearic Islands and Canary Islands, and three small Spanish possessions off the coast of Morocco - Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera |
total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of Oregon | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
Background | Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power. Spain remained neutral in World Wars I and II, but suffered through a devastating civil war (1936-39). In the second half of the 20th century, Spain has played a catch-up role in the western international community; it joined the EU in 1986. Continuing challenges include Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) terrorism and further reductions in unemployment. | Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s has dissipated. |
Birth rate | 10.1 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 18.98 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $383.7 billion
expenditures: $386.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $12.8 billion (2004 est.) |
revenues: $861.3 million
expenditures: $735.3 million, including capital expenditures of $52 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Madrid | Noumea |
Climate | temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid |
Coastline | 4,964 km | 2,254 km |
Constitution | 6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain
conventional short form: Spain local short form: Espana |
conventional long form: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies
conventional short form: New Caledonia local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie |
Currency | - | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF); note - may adopt the euro in 2003 |
Death rate | 9.63 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 5.64 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $771.1 billion (2004 est.) | $79 million (1998 est.) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France since 1956 |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires J. Robert MANZANARES
embassy: Serrano 75, 28006 Madrid mailing address: PSC 61, APO AE 09642 telephone: [34] (91) 587-2200 FAX: [34] (91) 587-2303 consulate(s) general: Barcelona |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Carlos WESTENDORP
chancery: 2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0100, 728-2340 FAX: [1] (202) 833-5670 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Disputes - international | in 2003, Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum to remain a British colony and against a "total shared sovereignty" arrangement while demanding participation in talks between the UK and Spain; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomy; Morocco protests Spain's control over the coastal enclaves of Ceuta, Melilla, and the islands of Penon de Velez de la Gomera, Penon de Alhucemas and Islas Chafarinas, and surrounding waters; Morocco serves as the primary launching site of illegal migration into Spain from North Africa | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1.33 billion (1999) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $880 million annual subsidy from France (1998) |
Economy - overview | The Spanish economy boomed from 1986 to 1990, averaging five percent annual growth. After a European-wide recession in the early 1990s, the Spanish economy resumed moderate growth starting in 1994. Spain's mixed capitalist economy supports a GDP that on a per capita basis is 80% that of the four leading West European economies. The center-right government of former President AZNAR successfully worked to gain admission to the first group of countries launching the European single currency (the euro) on 1 January 1999. The AZNAR administration continued to advocate liberalization, privatization, and deregulation of the economy and introduced some tax reforms to that end. Unemployment fell steadily under the AZNAR administration but remains high at 10.4%. Growth of 2.5% in 2003 and 2.6% in 2004 was satisfactory given the background of a faltering European economy. The socialist president, RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO, has initiated economic and social reforms that are generally popular among the masses of people but that are anathema to religious and other conservative elements. Adjusting to the monetary and other economic policies of an integrated Europe, reducing unemployment, and absorbing widespread social changes will pose challenges to Spain over the next few years. | New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, substantial financial support from France - equal to more than one-fourth of GDP - and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. Substantial new investment in the nickel industry, combined with the recovery of global nickel prices, brightens the economic outlook for the next several years. |
Electricity - consumption | 218.4 billion kWh (2002) | 1.5 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 4.4 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 9.8 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 229 billion kWh (2002) | 1.613 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico de Teide (Tenerife) on Canary Islands 3,718 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m |
Environment - current issues | pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas; water quality and quantity nationwide; air pollution; deforestation; desertification | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
- |
Ethnic groups | composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 105.73 (2003), 126.72 (2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: King JUAN CARLOS I (since 22 November 1975); Heir Apparent Prince FELIPE, son of the monarch, born 30 January 1968
head of government: President of the Government and Prime Minister Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (since 17 April 2004); First Vice President and Deputy Prime Minister (and Minister of the Presidency) Maria Teresa FERNANDEZ DE LA VEGA (since 18 April 2004) and Second Vice President (and Minister of Economy and Finance) Pedro SOLBES (since 18 April 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers designated by the president note: there is also a Council of State that is the supreme consultative organ of the government, but its recommendations are non-binding elections: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually proposed president by the monarch and elected by the National Assembly; election last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March 2008); vice presidents appointed by the monarch on the proposal of the president election results: Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (PSOE) elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 52.29% |
chief of state: President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Daniel CONSTANTIN (since 3 July 2002)
head of government: President of the Government Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU (since 10 June 2004) cabinet: Consultative Committee elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress; note - last election held 29 June 2004 when Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU was elected on the third vote with 8 votes for and 3 abstentions |
Exports | 135,100 bbl/day (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, medicines, other consumer goods | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish |
Exports - partners | France 19.3%, Germany 11.7%, Portugal 9.6%, UK 9%, Italy 9%, US 4% (2004) | Japan 21.8%, France 19.2%, Taiwan 14%, Spain 11%, South Korea 8.5%, Australia 7.2%, Italy 5.1% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of red (top), yellow (double width), and red with the national coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band; the coat of arms includes the royal seal framed by the Pillars of Hercules, which are the two promontories (Gibraltar and Ceuta) on either side of the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar | the flag of France is used |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $3.158 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 28.5% services: 68% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 30% services: 65% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $23,300 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.6% (2004 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 4 00 W | 21 30 S, 165 30 E |
Geography - note | strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar | consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls |
Heliports | 8 (2004 est.) | 6 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total: 664,852 km
paved: 658,203 km (including 11,152 km of expressways) unpaved: 6,649 km (2001) |
total: 4,825 km
paved: 2,287 km unpaved: 2,538 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 25.2% (1990) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | key European gateway country and consumer for Latin American cocaine and North African hashish entering the European market; destination and minor transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin; money-laundering site for European earnings of Colombian narcotics trafficking organizations | - |
Imports | 1.582 million bbl/day (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods; foodstuffs, consumer goods; measuring and medical control instruments | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Germany 16.6%, France 15.8%, Italy 8.9%, UK 6.3%, Netherlands 4.8% (2004) | France 46.1%, Australia 9.5%, Singapore 9.3%, New Zealand 4.3% (2003) |
Independence | the Iberian peninsula was characterized by a variety of independent kingdoms prior to the Moslem occupation that began in the early 8th century A. D. and lasted nearly seven centuries; the small Christian redoubts of the north began the reconquest almost immediately, culminating in the seizure of Granada in 1492; this event completed the unification of several kingdoms and is traditionally considered the forging of present-day Spain | none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014 |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2004 est.) | -0.6% (1996) |
Industries | textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages, metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles, machine tools, tourism, clay and refractory products, footwear, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment | nickel mining and smelting |
Infant mortality rate | total: 4.42 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 7.89 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.2% (2004 est.) | -0.6% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | FZ, ICFTU, PIF (observer), UPU, WFTU, WMO |
Irrigated land | 36,400 sq km (1998 est.) | 160 sq km (1991) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court |
Labor force | 19.33 million (2004 est.) | 79,400 (including 15,018 unemployed, 1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 5.3%, manufacturing, mining, and construction 30.1%, services 64.6% (2004 est.) | agriculture 7%, industry 23%, services 70% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,917.8 km
border countries: Andorra 63.7 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km, Portugal 1,214 km, Morocco (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Morocco (Melilla) 9.6 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 26.07%
permanent crops: 9.87% other: 64.06% (2001) |
arable land: 0.38%
permanent crops: 0.33% other: 99.29% (2001) |
Languages | Castilian Spanish 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%; note - Castilian is the official language nationwide; the other languages are official regionally | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects |
Legal system | civil law system, with regional applications; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law |
Legislative branch | bicameral; General Courts or National Assembly or Las Cortes Generales consists of the Senate or Senado (259 seats - 208 members directly elected by popular vote and the other 51 appointed by the regional legislatures to serve four-year terms) and the Congress of Deputies or Congreso de los Diputados (350 seats; members are elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March 2008); Congress of Deputies - last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PP 49%, PSOE 38.9%, Entesa Catalona de Progress 5.7%, CiU 1.99%, PNV 2.8%, CC 1.4%; seats by party - PP 102, PSOE 81, Entesa Catalona de Progress 12, CiU 4, PNV 6, CC 3; Congress of Deputies - percent of vote by party - PSOE 43.3%, PP 37.8%, CiU 3.2%, ERC 2.5%, PNV 1.6%, IU 3.2%, CC 0.9%; seats by party - PSOE 164, PP 148, CiU 10, ERC 8, PNV 7, IU 2, CC 3, other 8 |
unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (54 seats; members are members of the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 May 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPCR-UMP 16, AE 16, UNI-FLNKS 8, UE 7, FN 4, others 3 note: New Caledonia currently holds 1 seat in the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held not later than September 2007; between now and 2010 New Caledonia will gain a second seat in the French Senate); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; New Caledonia also elects 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 and 16 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.52 years
male: 76.18 years female: 83.08 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 73.78 years
male: 70.82 years female: 76.89 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.9% male: 98.7% female: 97.2% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91% male: 92% female: 90% (1976 est.) |
Location | Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains, southwest of France | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
Map references | Europe | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm (applies only to the Atlantic Ocean) |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 182 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,740,974 GRT/2,157,551 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 10, cargo 22, chemical tanker 16, container 19, liquefied gas 8, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 47, petroleum tanker 20, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 25, vehicle carrier 7 foreign-owned: 29 (Cuba 2, Denmark 1, Germany 9, Italy 2, Norway 6, United States 7, Uruguay 2) registered in other countries: 192 (2005) |
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,261 GRT/1,600 DWT
by type: cargo 1 foreign-owned: Malaysia 1 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force (Ejercito del Aire, EdA), Naval Infantry | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $9,906.5 million (2003) | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (2003) | NA |
National holiday | National Day, 12 October | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Spaniard(s)
adjective: Spanish |
noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts | cyclones, most frequent from November to March |
Natural resources | coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten, mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper |
Net migration rate | 0.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 7,306 km; oil 730 km; refined products 3,512 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Basque Nationalist Party or PNV [Josu Jon IMAZ]; Canarian Coalition or CC (a coalition of five parties) [Paulino RIVERO Baute]; Convergence and Union or CiU [Artur MAS i Gavarro] (a coalition of the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia or CDC [Artur MAS i Gavarro] and the Democratic Union of Catalonia or UDC [Josep Antoni DURAN y LLEIDA]); Entesa Catalonia de Progress (a Senate coalition grouping four Catalan parties - PSC, ERC, ICV, EUA) [leader NA]; Galician Nationalist Bloc or BNG [Anxo Manuel QUINTANA]; Party of Independents from Lanzarote or PIL [Dimas MARTIN Martin]; Popular Party or PP [Mariano RAJOY]; Republican Left of Catalonia or ERC [Josep-Lluis CAROD-ROVIRA]; Spanish Socialist Workers Party or PSOE [Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO]; United Left or IU (a coalition of parties including the PCE and other small parties) [Gaspar LLAMAZARES] | Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Caleonian Union or UC [leader NA]; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Francois BURCK]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS [leader NA] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independent) or RPCR-UMP [Jacques LAFLEUR]; The Future Together or AE [Harold MARTIN]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | business and landowning interests; Catholic Church; free labor unions (authorized in April 1977); Socialist General Union of Workers or UGT and the smaller independent Workers Syndical Union or USO; university students; Trade Union Confederation of Workers' Commissions or CC.OO.; Nunca Mas (Galician for "Never Again"; formed in response to the oil tanker Prestige oil spill) | NA |
Population | 40,341,462 (July 2005 est.) | 213,679 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA |
Population growth rate | 0.15% (2005 est.) | 1.33% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Algeciras, Barcelona, Cartagena, Gijon, Huelva, La Coruna, Tarragona, Valencia | Mueo, Noumea, Thio |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 208, FM 715, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 14,781 km (7,718 km electrified)
broad gauge: 11,829 km 1.668-m gauge (6,950 km electrified) standard gauge: 998 km 1.435-m gauge (998 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,926 km 1.000-m gauge (815 km electrified); 28 km 0.914-m gauge (28 km electrified) (2004) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 94%, other 6% | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: generally adequate, modern facilities; teledensity is 44 main lines for each 100 persons
domestic: NA international: country code - 34; 22 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to adjacent countries |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 17,567,500 (2003) | 52,000 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 37,506,700 (2003) | 80,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 224 (plus 2,105 repeaters)
note: these figures include 11 television broadcast stations and 88 repeaters in the Canary Islands (1995) |
6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees in north | coastal plains with interior mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.28 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.35 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.4% (2004 est.) | 19% (1996) |
Waterways | 1,045 km (2003) | - |