Compare Syria (2004) - Equatorial Guinea (2002)

Compare Syria (2004) z Equatorial Guinea (2002)

	Syria (2004)	Equatorial Guinea (2002)

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	7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas
Age structure	0-14 years: 38% (male 3,524,406; female 3,319,323) 15-64 years: 58.7% (male 5,421,133; female 5,163,669) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 281,795; female 306,548) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 42.4% (male 106,061; female 105,071) 15-64 years: 53.8% (male 128,489; female 139,732) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,385; female 10,406) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products	wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk	coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber
Airports	93 (2003 est.)	3 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 26 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)	total: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 66 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 54 (2004 est.)	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (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: 28,051 sq km land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than North Dakota	slightly smaller than Maryland
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. Over the past decade, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights.	Composed of a mainland portion and five inhabited islands, Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. The tiny country, one of the smallest on the African continent, has been ruled by President OBIANG NGUEM MBASOGO since he seized power in a coup in 1979. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 legislative elections - were widely seen as being flawed.
Birth rate	28.93 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	37.33 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget	revenues: $6.106 billion expenditures: $7.397 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6 billion (2003 est.)	revenues: $200 million expenditures: $158 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital	Damascus	Malabo
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; always hot, humid
Coastline	193 km	296 km
Constitution	13 March 1973	approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995
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 Equatorial Guinea conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea
Currency	Syrian pound (SYP)	Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States
Death rate	4.96 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	12.83 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external	$21.55 billion (2003 est.)	$225 million (2000 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Margaret SCOBEY 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	chief of mission: Ambassador George McDade STAPLES; note - the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); the US ambassador to Cameroon is accredited to Equatorial Guinea; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Imad MUSTAFA chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313 FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548	chief of mission: Ambassador Pastor Micha ONDO BILE chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 528-5252
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; settled border dispute with Jordan in 2004	tripartite maritime boundary and economic zone dispute with Cameroon and Nigeria is currently before the ICJ; maritime boundary dispute with Gabon because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay
Economic aid - recipient	$199 million (1997 est.)	$33.8 million (1995) (1995)
Economy - overview	Syria's predominantly statist economy lately has been growing more slowly than its 2.4% annual population growth rate. Recent legislation allows private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector will take years and further government cooperation to develop. Factors, including the war between the US-led coalition and Iraq, probably drove real annual GDP growth levels back below 1% in 2003 following growth of 3.5% in 2001 and 4.5% in 2002. A long-run economic constraint is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution.	The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been unsuccessfully trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Boosts in production and higher world oil prices stimulated growth in 2002, with oil accounting for 90% of increased exports.
Electricity - consumption	21.63 billion kWh (2001)	20.46 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - production	23.26 billion kWh (2001)	22 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 91% hydro: 9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000)
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: Pico Basile 3,008 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water	tap water is not potable; deforestation
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%	Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish
Exchange rates	Syrian pounds per US dollar - (Official rate): 11.225 (2003), 11.225 (2002), 11.225 (2001), 11.225 (2000), 11.225 (1999), (Free market rate): 49.65 (2001), 49.4 (2000), 51.7 (1999)	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro
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) 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 Hafiz al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held 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 Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup) head of government: Prime Minister Candido Muatetema RIVAS (since 26 February 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Miguel OYONO NDONG (since NA January 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Demetrio Elo NDONG NZE FUMU (since NA January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud
Exports	NA (2001)	$2.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Exports - commodities	crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat	petroleum, timber, cocoa
Exports - partners	Germany 20.9%, Italy 12.6%, UAE 7.6%, Lebanon 6.2%, Turkey 6%, France 5.4%, Croatia 4.8%, US 4.1% (2003)	China 24%, Japan 7%, US 7%, South Korea 5% (1999)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 January - 31 December
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, colors associated with the Arab Liberation flag; two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; former flag of the United Arab Republic where the two stars represented the constituent states of Syria and Egypt; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band, and that of Egypt, which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; the current design dates to 1980	three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice)
GDP	purchasing power parity - $58.01 billion (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $1.04 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 28.5% industry: 29.4% services: 42.1% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 20% industry: 60% services: 20% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $3,300 (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	0.9% (2003 est.)	6% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates	35 00 N, 38 00 E	2 00 N, 10 00 E
Geography - note	there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.)	insular and continental regions rather widely separated
Heliports	7 (2003 est.)	-
Highways	total: 43,381 km paved: 10,021 km (including 877 km of expressways) unpaved: 33,360 km (1999)	total: 2,880 km paved: 0 km unpaved: 2,880 km (1996)
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; weak anti-money-laundering controls, bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money-laundering	-
Imports	NA (2001)	$736 million f.o.b. (2001)
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper	petroleum sector equipment, manufactured goods and equipment
Imports - partners	Germany 7.2%, Italy 7.1%, China 6.3%, France 5.9%, Turkey 5.4% (2003)	US 60%, France 12%, Spain 8%, Italy 6% (1999)
Independence	17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)	12 October 1968 (from Spain)
Industrial production growth rate	NA	7.4% (1994 est.)
Industries	petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining	petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas
Infant mortality rate	total: 30.6 deaths/1,000 live births male: 30.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 30.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	90.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.5% (2003 est.)	6% (2001 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, 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, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	1 (2002)
Irrigated land	12,130 sq km (1998 est.)	NA sq km
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 Tribunal
Labor force	4.97 million (2003 est.)	NA
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture, industry, services NA	-
Land boundaries	total: 2,253 km border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km	total: 539 km border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km
Land use	arable land: 25.22% permanent crops: 4.43% other: 70.35% (2001)	arable land: 4.63% permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (1998 est.)
Languages	Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood	Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo
Legal system	based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom
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 House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PDGE 80%, UP 6%, CPDS 5%; seats by party - PDGE 75, UP 4 and CPDS 1 note: opposition parties have refused to take up their seats in the House to protest widespread irregularities in the 1999 legislative elections
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 69.71 years male: 68.47 years female: 71.02 years (2004 est.)	total population: 54.35 years male: 52.26 years female: 56.5 years (2002 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: 78.5% male: 89.6% female: 68.1% (1995 est.)
Location	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon
Map references	Middle East	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 41 nm	exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	total: 122 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 446,981 GRT/636,620 DWT by type: bulk 12, cargo 101, container 2, livestock carrier 4, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: Egypt 1, Germany 1, Greece 1, Italy 1, Lebanon 10, Romania 1 registered in other countries: 83 (2004 est.)	total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 14,413 GRT/16,251 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 3, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches	Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (including Air Defense Command), Police and Security Force	Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force, National Police
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending	$27.5 million (FY01)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.9% (FY00)	2.5% (FY01)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 4,876,040 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 112,664 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 2,716,054 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 57,194 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 216,077 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 17 April (1946)	Independence Day, 12 October (1968)
Nationality	noun: Syrian(s) adjective: Syrian	noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s) adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean
Natural hazards	dust storms, sandstorms	violent windstorms, flash floods
Natural resources	petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower	oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines	gas 2,300 km; oil 2,183 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	National Progressive Front or NPF (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party; the governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallal Nasr Al-DIN]; Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yuusuf Rashid FAYSAL]; Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL]; Arab Socialist Unionist Movement [Ahmed al-AHMED]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan QUDSI]); Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI]	Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO]
Political pressure groups and leaders	conservative religious leaders; Kurdish Democratic Alliance [leader NA]; Kurdish Democratic Front [lader NA]; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in London) [Ali Badr Eddine al-BAYANOUNI]; National Democratic Front [Hassan Abd al-AZIM]	NA
Population	18,016,874 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 (July 2004 est.)	498,144 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line	20% (2003 est.)	NA%
Population growth rate	2.4% (2004 est.)	2.45% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors	Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus	Bata, Luba, Malabo
Radio broadcast stations	AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002)
Radios	-	180,000 (1997)
Railways	total: 2,711 km standard gauge: 2,460 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 251 km 1.050-m gauge (2003)	total: 0 km
Religions	Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)	nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices
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: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal adult
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: country code - 963; 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: poor system with adequate government services domestic: NA international: international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	2,099,300 (2002)	6,000 (1998)
Telephones - mobile cellular	400,000 (2002)	300 (1998)
Television broadcast stations	44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995)	1 (2002)
Terrain	primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west	coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic
Total fertility rate	3.61 children born/woman (2004 est.)	4.81 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate	20% (2002 est.)	30% (1998 est.)
Waterways	900 km (not economically significant) (2002)	none

Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.