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Compare Syria (2001) - Angola (2003)

Compare Syria (2001) z Angola (2003)

 Syria (2001)Angola (2003)
 SyriaAngola
Administrative divisions 14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus 18 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Bengo, Benguela, Bie, Cabinda, Cuando Cubango, Cuanza Norte, Cuanza Sul, Cunene, Huambo, Huila, Luanda, Lunda Norte, Lunda Sul, Malanje, Moxico, Namibe, Uige, Zaire
Age structure 0-14 years:
39.92% (male 3,440,060; female 3,238,576)

15-64 years:
56.87% (male 4,868,816; female 4,644,870)

65 years and over:
3.21% (male 261,036; female 275,450) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 43.5% (male 2,363,829; female 2,317,610)


15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,941,999; female 2,842,923)


65 years and over: 2.8% (male 134,330; female 165,780) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn, cotton, manioc (tapioca), tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock; forest products; fish
Airports 100 (2000 est.) 243 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways total:
24

over 3,047 m:
5

2,438 to 3,047 m:
16

914 to 1,523 m:
1

under 914 m:
2 (2000 est.)
total: 32


over 3,047 m: 4


2,438 to 3,047 m: 8


1,524 to 2,437 m: 14


914 to 1,523 m: 5


under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
76

1,524 to 2,437 m:
2

914 to 1,523 m:
11

under 914 m:
63 (2000 est.)
total: 211


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 4


1,524 to 2,437 m: 30


914 to 1,523 m: 95


under 914 m: 80 (2002)
Area total:
185,180 sq km

land:
184,050 sq km

water:
1,130 sq km

note:
includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory
total: 1,246,700 sq km


land: 1,246,700 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than North Dakota slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Background Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon, ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. In recent years, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights. Civil war has been the norm in Angola since independence from Portugal in 1975. A 1994 peace accord between the government and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) provided for the integration of former UNITA insurgents into the government and armed forces. A national unity government was installed in April of 1997, but serious fighting resumed in late 1998, rendering hundreds of thousands of people homeless. Up to 1.5 million lives may have been lost in fighting over the past quarter century. The death of insurgent leader Jonas SAVIMBI in 2002 and a subsequent cease-fire with UNITA may bode well for the country.
Birth rate 30.64 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 45.57 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget revenues:
$2.25 billion

expenditures:
$5.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
revenues: $928 million


expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $963 million (1992 est.)
Capital Damascus Luanda
Climate mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically hitting Damascus semiarid in south and along coast to Luanda; north has cool, dry season (May to October) and hot, rainy season (November to April)
Coastline 193 km 1,600 km
Constitution 13 March 1973 11 November 1975; revised 7 January 1978, 11 August 1980, 6 March 1991, and 26 August 1992
Country name conventional long form:
Syrian Arab Republic

conventional short form:
Syria

local long form:
Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah

local short form:
Suriyah

former:
United Arab Republic (with Egypt)
conventional long form: Republic of Angola


conventional short form: Angola


local long form: Republica de Angola


local short form: Angola


former: People's Republic of Angola
Currency Syrian pound (SYP) kwanza (AOA)
Death rate 5.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 25.83 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external $22 billion (2000 est.) $9.9 billion (2002 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Ryan C. CROCKER

embassy:
Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus

mailing address:
P. O. Box 29, Damascus

telephone:
[963] (11) 333-2814

FAX:
[963] (11) 224-7938
chief of mission: Ambassador Christopher William DELL


embassy: number 32 Rua Houari Boumedienne (in the Miramar area of Luanda), Luanda


mailing address: international mail: Caixa Postal 6468, Luanda; pouch: American Embassy Luanda, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2550


telephone: [244] (2) 445-481, 447-028, 446-224


FAX: [244] (2) 446-924
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Rustum al-ZU'BI

chancery:
2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:
[1] (202) 232-6313

FAX:
[1] (202) 234-9548
chief of mission: Ambassador Josefina Perpetua Pitra DIAKIDI


chancery: 2108 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009


telephone: [1] (202) 785-1156


FAX: [1] (202) 785-1258


consulate(s) general: Houston and New York
Disputes - international Golan Heights is Israeli occupied; dispute with upstream riparian Turkey over Turkish water development plans for the Tigris and Euphrates rivers; Syrian troops in northern, central, and eastern Lebanon since October 1976 gives shelter to thousands of refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo while thousands of Angolan refugees still remain in neighboring states as a consequence of the protracted civil wars in both states
Economic aid - recipient $199 million (1997 est.) $383.5 million (1999)
Economy - overview Syria's predominantly statist economy is on a shaky footing because of Damascus's failure to implement extensive economic reform. The dominant agricultural sector remains underdeveloped, with roughly 80% of agricultural land still dependent on rain-fed sources. Although Syria has sufficient water supplies in the aggregate at normal levels of precipitation, the great distance between major water supplies and population centers poses serious distribution problems. The water problem is exacerbated by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution. Private investment is critical to the modernization of the agricultural, energy, and export sectors. Oil production is leveling off, and the efforts of the nonoil sector to penetrate international markets have fallen short. Syria's inadequate infrastructure, outmoded technological base, and weak educational system make it vulnerable to future shocks and hamper competition with neighbors such as Jordan and Israel. The government recognizes the need to open the economy to additional domestic and foreign investment. Angola has been an economy in disarray because of a quarter century of nearly continuous warfare. An apparently durable peace was established after the death of rebel leader Jonas SAVIMBI on February 22, 2002, but consequences from the conflict continue including the impact of wide-spread land mines. Subsistence agriculture provides the main livelihood for 85% of the population. Oil production and the supporting activities are vital to the economy, contributing about 45% to GDP and more than half of exports. Much of the country's food must still be imported. To fully take advantage of its rich natural resources - gold, diamonds, extensive forests, Atlantic fisheries, and large oil deposits - Angola will need to continue reforming government policies. While Angola made progress in bringing inflation down further, from 325% in 2000 to about 106% in 2002, the government has failed to make sufficient progress on reforms recommended by the IMF such as increasing foreign exchange reserves and promoting greater transparency in government spending. Increased oil production should bring about 6% GDP growth in 2003.
Electricity - consumption 16.684 billion kWh (1999) 1.348 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 17.94 billion kWh (1999) 1.45 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
57.64%

hydro:
42.36%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
fossil fuel: 36.4%


hydro: 63.6%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point:
unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m

highest point:
Mount Hermon 2,814 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Morro de Moco 2,620 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from dumping of raw sewage and wastes from petroleum refining; inadequate supplies of potable water overuse of pastures and subsequent soil erosion attributable to population pressures; desertification; deforestation of tropical rain forest, in response to both international demand for tropical timber and to domestic use as fuel, resulting in loss of biodiversity; soil erosion contributing to water pollution and siltation of rivers and dams; inadequate supplies of potable water
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:
Environmental Modification
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7% Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mestico (mixed European and Native African) 2%, European 1%, other 22%
Exchange rates Syrian pounds per US dollar - 46 (2000), 46 (1998), 41.9 (January 1997) kwanza per US dollar - 43.53 (2002), 22.06 (2001), 10.04 (2000), 2.79 (1999), 0.39 (1998); note - in December 1999 the kwanza was revalued with six zeroes dropped off the old value
Executive branch chief of state:
President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim ibn Said KHADDAM (since 11 March 1984) and Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984)

head of government:
Prime Minister Muhammad Mustafa MIRU (since 13 March 2000), Deputy Prime Ministers Lt. Gen. Mustafa TALAS (since 11 March 1984), Khalid RA'D (since 13 March 2000), Muhammad NAJI 'UTRI (since 13 March 2000)

cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by the president

elections:
president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; referendum/election last held 10 July 2000 - after the death of President Hafez al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held NA 2007); vice presidents appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president

election results:
Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29%

note:
Hafiz al-ASAD died 10 June 2000; 20 June 2000 the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council 25 June 2000
chief of state: President Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS (since 21 September 1979); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS (since 21 September 1979); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; Fernando de Piedade Dias DOS SANTOS was appointed Prime Minister on 6 December 2002, but this is not a position of real power


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president elected by universal ballot for a NA-year term; President DOS SANTOS originally elected (in 1979) without opposition under a one-party system and stood for reelection in Angola's first multiparty elections 29-30 September 1992 (next to be held NA)


election results: DOS SANTOS 49.6%, Jonas SAVIMBI 40.1%, making a run-off election necessary; the run-off was not held and SAVIMBI's National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) repudiated the results of the first election; the civil war resumed
Exports $4.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities petroleum 65%, textiles 10%, manufactured goods 10%, fruits and vegetables 7%, raw cotton 5%, live sheep 2%, phosphates 1% (1998 est.) crude oil, diamonds, refined petroleum products, gas, coffee, sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton
Exports - partners Germany 21%, Italy 12%, France 10%, Saudi Arabia 9%, Turkey 8% (1999 est.) US 41.2%, China 13.7%, France 8%, Belgium 6.3%, Taiwan 6.3%, Japan 4.9%, Spain 4.3% (2002)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, with two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, and of Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt, which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and black with a centered yellow emblem consisting of a five-pointed star within half a cogwheel crossed by a machete (in the style of a hammer and sickle)
GDP purchasing power parity - $50.9 billion (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $18.36 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
29%

industry:
22%

services:
49% (1997)
agriculture: 8%


industry: 67%


services: 25% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $3,100 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 3.5% (2000 est.) 9.4% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 35 00 N, 38 00 E 12 30 S, 18 30 E
Geography - note there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (August 1999 est.) the province of Cabinda is an exclave, separated from the rest of the country by the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Heliports 2 (2000 est.) -
Highways total:
41,451 km

paved:
9,575 km (including 877 km of expressways)

unpaved:
31,876 km (1997)
total: 51,429 km


paved: 5,349 km


unpaved: 46,080 km (1999)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets used as a transshipment point for cocaine destined for Western Europe and other African states
Imports $3.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment 23%, foodstuffs/animals 20%, metal and metal products 15%, textiles 10%, chemicals 10% (1998 est.) machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles, military goods
Imports - partners France 11%, Italy 8%, Germany 7%, Turkey 5%, China 4% (1999 est.) Portugal 20.2%, US 13.9%, South Africa 12.4%, France 6.7%, Brazil 5.8%, Belgium 5.3%, Netherlands 4% (2002)
Independence 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) 11 November 1975 (from Portugal)
Industrial production growth rate NA% 1%
Industries petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining petroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar, bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish processing; food processing; brewing; tobacco products; sugar; textiles
Infant mortality rate 33.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 193.82 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 206.26 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 180.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.5% (2000 est.) 106% (2002 est.)
International organization participation ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO ACP, AfDB, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, SADC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) 1 (2000)
Irrigated land 9,060 sq km (1993 est.) 750 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts Supreme Court or Tribunal da Relacao (judges are appointed by the president)
Labor force 4.7 million (1998 est.) 5 million (1997 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 40%, industry 20%, services 40% (1996 est.) agriculture 85%, industry and services 15% (1997 est.)
Land boundaries total:
2,253 km

border countries:
Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km
total: 5,198 km


border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,511 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of discontiguous Cabinda Province), Republic of the Congo 201 km, Namibia 1,376 km, Zambia 1,110 km
Land use arable land:
28%

permanent crops:
4%

permanent pastures:
43%

forests and woodland:
3%

other:
22% (1993 est.)
arable land: 2.41%


permanent crops: 0.4%


other: 97.19% (1998 est.)
Languages Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood Portuguese (official), Bantu and other African languages
Legal system based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law; recently modified to accommodate political pluralism and increased use of free markets
Legislative branch unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

elections:
last held 30 November-1 December 1998 (next to be held NA 2002)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, non-NPF 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receive one-half of the seats
unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (220 seats; members elected by proportional vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 29-30 September 1992 (next to be held NA)


election results: percent of vote by party - MPLA 54%, UNITA 34%, others 12%; seats by party - MPLA 129, UNITA 70, PRS 6, FNLA 5, PLD 3, others 7
Life expectancy at birth total population:
68.77 years

male:
67.63 years

female:
69.98 years (2001 est.)
total population: 36.96 years


male: 36.13 years


female: 37.83 years (2003 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
70.8%

male:
85.7%

female:
55.8% (1997 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 42%


male: 56%


female: 28% (1998 est.)
Location Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia and Democratic Republic of the Congo
Map references Middle East Africa
Maritime claims contiguous zone:
41 NM

territorial sea:
35 NM
contiguous zone: 24 NM


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine total:
133 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 425,392 GRT/612,097 DWT

ships by type:
bulk 11, cargo 117, livestock carrier 4, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.)
total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 30,311 GRT/48,924 DWT


ships by type: cargo 7, petroleum tanker 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force, Syrian Arab Air Defense Forces, Police and Security Force Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, National Police Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $921 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending $222.7 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 5.9% (FY98) 5.4% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
4,384,528 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 2,568,082 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
2,448,630 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 1,290,884 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - military age 19 years of age 18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males:
200,859 (2001 est.)
males: 109,752 (2003 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 17 April (1946) Independence Day, 11 November (1975)
Nationality noun:
Syrian(s)

adjective:
Syrian
noun: Angolan(s)


adjective: Angolan
Natural hazards dust storms, sandstorms locally heavy rainfall causes periodic flooding on the plateau
Natural resources petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, copper, feldspar, gold, bauxite, uranium
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 1,304 km; petroleum products 515 km gas 214 km; liquid natural gas 14 km; liquid petroleum gas 30 km; oil 845 km; refined products 56 km (2003)
Political parties and leaders National Progressive Front or NPF (includes the Ba'th Party, ASU, Arab Socialist Party, Socialist Unionist Democratic Party, ASP, SCP) [President Bashar al-ASAD]; Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party (governing party) [Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general of the party, and chairman of the National Progressive Front after the death of Hafiz al-ASAD on 10 June 2000]; Arab Socialist Unionist Movement or ASU [Sami SOUFAN]; Arab Socialist Party [Abd al-Ghani KANNUT]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Ahmad al-ASAD]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan KOUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party or SCP [Yusuf FAYSAL] Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Analia de Victoria PEREIRA]; National Front for the Liberation of Angola or FNLA [disputed leadership: Lucas NGONDA, Holden ROBERTO]; National Union for the Total Independence of Angola or UNITA [interim leader: PAULO Lukamba "Gato"], largest opposition party has engaged in years of armed resistance; Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola or MPLA [Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS], ruling party in power since 1975; Social Renewal Party or PRS [disputed leadership: Eduardo KUANGANA, Antonio MUACHICUNGO]


note: about a dozen minor parties participated in the 1992 elections but only won a few seats and have little influence in the National Assembly
Political pressure groups and leaders conservative religious leaders; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in Jordan and Yemen); non-Ba'th parties have little effective political influence Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda or FLEC [N'zita Henriques TIAGO; Antonio Bento BEMBE]


note: FLEC is waging a small-scale, highly factionalized, armed struggle for the independence of Cabinda Province
Population 16,728,808

note:
in addition, there are about 38,200 people living in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 18,200 Arabs (16,500 Druze and 1,700 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2001 est.)
10,766,471 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line 15%-25% NA%
Population growth rate 2.54% (2001 est.) 1.97% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus Ambriz, Cabinda, Lobito, Luanda, Malongo, Mocamedes, Namibe, Porto Amboim, Soyo
Radio broadcast stations AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 21, FM 6, shortwave 7 (2000)
Radios 4.15 million (1997) -
Railways total:
2,750 km

standard gauge:
2,423 km 1.435-m gauge

narrow gauge:
327 km 1.050-m gauge

note:
rail link between Syria and Iraq replaced in 2000 (2000)
total: 2,761 km


narrow gauge: 2,638 km 1.067-m gauge; 123 km 0.600-m gauge (2002)
Religions Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo) indigenous beliefs 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15% (1998 est.)
Sex ratio at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
1.05 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.95 male(s)/female

total population:
1.05 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female


total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology

domestic:
coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network

international:
satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel
general assessment: telephone service limited mostly to government and business use; HF radiotelephone used extensively for military links


domestic: limited system of wire, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter


international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 1.313 million (1997) 72,000 (1998)
Telephones - mobile cellular NA 25,800 (2000)
Television broadcast stations 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995) 6 (2000)
Terrain primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west narrow coastal plain rises abruptly to vast interior plateau
Total fertility rate 3.95 children born/woman (2001 est.) 6.38 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate 20% (2000 est.) extensive unemployment and underemployment affecting more than half the population (2001 est.)
Waterways 870 km (minimal economic importance) 1,295 km
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