Syria (2003) | New Caledonia (2006) | |
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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 | 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: 38.6% (male 3,494,473; female 3,290,699)
15-64 years: 58.2% (male 5,238,026; female 4,991,588) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 274,744; female 296,010) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 28.4% (male 31,818/female 30,503)
15-64 years: 64.9% (male 71,565/female 70,815) 65 years and over: 6.6% (male 6,773/female 7,772) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products; fish |
Airports | 92 (2002) | 25 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 24
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 11
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 68
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 55 (2002) |
total: 14
914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 6 (2006) |
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: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than North Dakota | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
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. | 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 ended in the 1998 Noumea Accord, which over a period of 15 to 20 years will transfer an increasing amount of governing responsibility from France to New Caledonia. The agreement also commits France to conduct as many as three referenda between 2013 and 2018, to decide whether New Caledonia should assume full sovereignty and independence. |
Birth rate | 29.54 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 18.11 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $6 billion
expenditures: $7 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6 billion (2002 est.) |
revenues: $856.3 million
expenditures: $836.5 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Damascus | name: Noumea
geographic coordinates: 22 16 S, 166 27 E time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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 in Damascus | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid |
Coastline | 193 km | 2,254 km |
Constitution | 13 March 1973 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
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: 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 | Syrian pound (SYP) | - |
Death rate | 5.04 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 5.69 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $22 billion (2002 est.) | $79 million (1998 est.) |
Dependency status | - | territorial collectivity of France since 1998 |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Theodore H. KATTOUF
embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus telephone: [963] (11) 333-1342 FAX: [963] (11) 331-9678 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (acting) Imad MUSTAFA
chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313 FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Disputes - international | Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied; Lebanon claims Shaba'a farms in Golan Heights; Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon since October 1976; Syria protests Turkish hydrological projects regulating upper Euphrates waters; Turkey is quick to rebuff any perceived Syrian claim to Hatay province | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu |
Economic aid - recipient | $199 million (1997 est.) | $525 million annual subsidy from France (2004) |
Economy - overview | Syria's predominantly statist economy has been growing, on average, more slowly than its 2.4% annual population growth rate, causing a persistent decline in per capita GDP. Recent legislation allows private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector will take years and further government cooperation to develop. External factors such as the international war on terrorism, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the war between the US-led coalition and Iraq probably will drive real annual GDP growth levels back below their 3.5% spike in 2002. A long-run economic constraint is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution. | 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 | 21.63 billion kWh (2001) | 1.47 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 23.26 billion kWh (2001) | 1.581 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 57.6%
hydro: 42.4% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m
highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7% | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% |
Exchange rates | Syrian pounds per US dollar - (Official rate): 11.23 (2002), 11.23 (2001), 11.23 (2000), 11.23 (1999), 11.23 (1998), (Free market rate): 49.65 (2001), 49.4 (2000), 51.7 (1999), 52 (1998) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 95.89 (2005), 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003), 126.71 (2002), 133.26 (2001) |
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 Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003), Deputy Prime Ministers Lt. Gen. Mustafa TALAS (since 11 March 1984), Farouk al-SHARA (since 13 December 2001), Dr. Muhammad al-HUSAYN (since 13 December 2001) 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 on 10 June 2000; on 20 June 2000, the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council on 25 June 2000 |
chief of state: President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Michel MATHIEU (since 15 July 2005)
head of government: President of the Government Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU (since 10 June 2004) cabinet: Consultative Committee consists of eight members chosen from leading figures on the island to advise the High Commissioner 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 for a five-year term (no term limits); 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 | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | crude oil 70%, petroleum products 7%, fruits and vegetables 5%, cotton fiber 4%, clothing 3%, meat and live animals 2% (2000 est.) | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish |
Exports - partners | Germany 19.1%, Italy 17.5%, Turkey 7.8%, France 7.5%, Lebanon 5.2% (2002) | Japan 21.4%, France 16%, Taiwan 11.4%, South Korea 10.1%, Spain 9%, China 7.2%, South Africa 5.2%, Belgium 4.5% (2005) |
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 | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $63.48 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 27%
industry: 23% services: 50% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 15%
industry: 8.8% services: 76.2% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.6% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 35 00 N, 38 00 E | 21 30 S, 165 30 E |
Geography - note | there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.) | 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 | 7 (2002) | 6 (2006) |
Highways | total: 43,381 km
paved: 10,021 km (including 877 km of expressways) unpaved: 33,360 km (1999) |
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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 | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 21%, food and livestock 18%, metal and metal products 15%, chemicals and chemical products 10% (2000 est.) | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Italy 8.3%, Germany 7.4%, China 5.7%, South Korea 4.8%, France 4.6%, US 4.4%, Turkey 4.1% (2002) | France 39%, Singapore 17.4%, Australia 13%, NZ 5.3% (2005) |
Independence | 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) | 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 | NA% | -0.6% (1996) |
Industries | petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining | nickel mining and smelting |
Infant mortality rate | total: 31.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 31.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 7.57 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.9% (2002 est.) | -0.6% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO | ICFTU, PIF (observer), SPC, UPU, WFTU, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 12,130 sq km (1998 est.) | 100 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court |
Labor force | 5.2 million (2000 est.) | 78,990 (including 11,300 unemployed) (2004) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture, industry, services NA (2002) | agriculture: 20%
industry: 20% services: 60% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,253 km
border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 25.96%
permanent crops: 4.08% other: 69.96% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0.32%
permanent crops: 0.22% other: 99.46% (2005) |
Languages | Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects |
Legal system | based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law |
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 2-3 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, independents 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receives one-half of the seats |
unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (54 seats; members belong to 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, UC 7, FN 4, others 3 note: New Caledonia currently holds 1 seat in the French Senate; by 2010, New Caledonia will gain a second seat in the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held not later than September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 1; 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: 69.39 years
male: 68.18 years female: 70.67 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 74.27 years
male: 71.29 years female: 77.39 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.9% male: 89.7% female: 64% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91% male: 92% female: 90% (1976 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
Map references | Middle East | Oceania |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 41 NM
territorial sea: 35 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 129 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 450,135 GRT/645,296 DWT
ships by type: bulk 13, cargo 109, container 2, livestock carrier 3, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Egypt 1, Greece 2, Italy 1, Lebanon 10 (2002 est.) |
total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,566 GRT/2,543 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (includes Air Defense Forces), Police and Security Force | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.9% (FY00) | NA |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 4,715,386 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,629,148 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 210,941 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 17 April (1946) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Syrian(s)
adjective: Syrian |
noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
Natural hazards | dust storms, sandstorms | cyclones, most frequent from November to March |
Natural resources | petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 2,300 km; oil 2,183 km (2003) | - |
Political parties and leaders | National Progressive Front or NPF (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party (governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general], Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Ahmad al ASAD], Syrian Communist Party [leader NA], Unionist Socialist Party [leader NA], Arab Socialist Party [Abd al-Ghani QANNUT], and Arab Socialist Unionist Movement [Sami SUFAN]) [President Bashar al-ASAD, chairman]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan QUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party or SCP [Yusuf FAYSAL]; Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI] | Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Caledonian Union or UC; 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 | conservative religious leaders; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in Jordan and Yemen); non-Ba'th parties have little effective political influence | NA |
Population | 17,585,540 (July 2002 est.)
note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (February 2003 est.) (July 2003 est.) |
219,246 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 15%-25% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.45% (2003 est.) | 1.24% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 2,743 km
standard gauge: 2,425 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 318 km 1.050-m gauge (2002) |
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Religions | Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo) | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% |
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: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2003 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: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2006 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: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.313 million (1997) | 55,300 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 134,300 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995) | 6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west | coastal plains with interior mountains |
Total fertility rate | 3.72 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.28 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (2002 est.) | 17.1% (2004) |
Waterways | 870 km (minimal economic importance) | - |