Compare Syria (2004) - Macau (2005)

Compare Syria (2004) z Macau (2005)

	Syria (2004)	Macau (2005)

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 (special administrative region of China)
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: 17% (male 39,564/female 36,947) 15-64 years: 75.1% (male 160,957/female 176,386) 65 years and over: 7.9% (male 14,713/female 20,631) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk	only 2% of land area is cultivated, mainly by vegetable growers; fishing, mostly for crustaceans, is important, some of catch is exported to Hong Kong; most food requirements are met by imports, primarily from China
Airports	93 (2003 est.)	1 (2004 est.)
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: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.)
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.)	-
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: 25.4 sq km land: 25.4 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than North Dakota	about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC
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.	Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999. China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau, and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years.
Birth rate	28.93 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	8.04 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $6.106 billion expenditures: $7.397 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6 billion (2003 est.)	revenues: $1.84 billion expenditures: $1.57 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003)
Capital	Damascus	-
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	subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers
Coastline	193 km	41 km
Constitution	13 March 1973	Basic Law, approved in March 1993 by China's National People's Congress, is Macau's "mini-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: Macau Special Administrative Region conventional short form: Macau local long form: Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese); Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese) local short form: Aomen (Chinese); Macau (Portuguese)
Currency	Syrian pound (SYP)	-
Death rate	4.96 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	4.23 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$21.55 billion (2003 est.)	$2.7 billion (2003)
Dependency status	-	special administrative region of China
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	the US has no offices in Macau; US interests are monitored by the US Consulate General in Hong Kong
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	none (special administrative region of China)
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	none
Economic aid - recipient	$199 million (1997 est.)	NA
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.	Macau's well-to-do economy has remained one of the most open in the world since its reversion to China in 1999. Apparel exports and tourism are mainstays of the economy. Although the territory was hit hard by the 1998 Asian financial crisis and the global downturn in 2001, its economy grew 9.5% in 2002 and 15.6% in 2003. During the first three quarters of 2004, Macau registered year-on-year GDP increases of more than 20 percent. A rapid rise in the number of mainland visitors because of China's easing of restrictions on travel, increased public works expenditures, and significant investment inflows associated with the liberalization of Macau's gaming industry drove the recovery. The budget also returned to surplus in 2002 because of the surge in visitors from China and a hike in taxes on gambling profits, which generated about 70% of government revenue. The three companies awarded gambling licenses have pledged to invest $2.2 billion in the territory, which will boost GDP growth. Much of Macau's textile industry may move to the mainland as the Multi-Fiber Agreement is phased out. The territory may have to rely more on gambling and trade-related services to generate growth. Two new casinos were opened by new foreign gambling licensees in 2004; development of new infrastructure and facilities in preparation for Macau's hosting of the 2005 East Asian Games will bolster the construction sector. The Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Macau and mainland China that came into effect on 1 January 2004 offers many Macau-made products tariff-free access to the mainland, and the range of products covered by CEPA was to be expanded on 1 January 2005.
Electricity - consumption	21.63 billion kWh (2001)	1.772 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	1 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	179.7 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	23.26 billion kWh (2001)	1.719 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m	lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Coloane Alto 172.4 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water	NA
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	-
Ethnic groups	Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%	Chinese 95.7%, Macanese (mixed Portuguese and Asian ancestry) 1%, other 3.3% (2001 census)
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)	patacas per US dollar - 8.022 (2004), 8.021 (2003), 8.033 (2002), 8.034 (2001), 8.026 (2000)
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 of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003) head of government: Chief Executive Edmund HO Hau-wah (since 20 December 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of one government secretary, four legislators, four businessmen, and one pro-Beijing unionist elections: chief executive chosen by a 300-member Election Committee for up to two five-year terms election results: Edmund HO Hau-wah reelected on 29 August 2004; received 296 votes in Election Committee out of 300 possible; 3 members submitted blank ballots; 1 member was absent
Exports	NA (2001)	NA
Exports - commodities	crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat	clothing, textiles, footwear, toys, electronics, machinery and parts
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)	US 48.7%, China 13.9%, Germany 8.3%, Hong Kong 7.6%, UK 4.4% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
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	light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller
GDP	purchasing power parity - $58.01 billion (2003 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 28.5% industry: 29.4% services: 42.1% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 0.1% industry: 7.2% services: 92.7% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $3,300 (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $19,400 (2003)
GDP - real growth rate	0.9% (2003 est.)	15.6% (2003)
Geographic coordinates	35 00 N, 38 00 E	22 10 N, 113 33 E
Geography - note	there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.)	essentially urban; one causeway and two bridges connect the two islands of Coloane and Taipa to the peninsula on mainland
Heliports	7 (2003 est.)	-
Highways	total: 43,381 km paved: 10,021 km (including 877 km of expressways) unpaved: 33,360 km (1999)	total: 341 km paved: 341 km unpaved: 0 km (2002)
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)	NA
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper	raw materials and semi-manufactured goods, consumer goods (foodstuffs, beverages, tobacco), capital goods, mineral fuels and oils
Imports - partners	Germany 7.2%, Italy 7.1%, China 6.3%, France 5.9%, Turkey 5.4% (2003)	China 44.4%, Hong Kong 10.6%, Japan 9.6%, Taiwan 4.9%, Singapore 4.1%, US 4.1% (2004)
Independence	17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)	none (special administrative region of China)
Industrial production growth rate	NA	NA
Industries	petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining	tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys
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.)	total: 4.39 deaths/1,000 live births male: 4.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.5% (2003 est.)	2% (3rd quarter, 2004)
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	IMF, IMO (associate), Interpol (sub-bureau), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate), WTO
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	Court of Final Appeal in Macau Special Administrative Region
Labor force	4.97 million (2003 est.)	231,500 (3rd Quarter, 2004)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture, industry, services NA	manufacturing 18.3%, construction 8%, transport and communications 7%, wholesale and retail trade 16.2%, restaurants and hotels 10.9%, gambling 11.6%, public sector 8.8%, other services and agriculture 19.2% (2003 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: 0.34 km regional border: China 0.34 km
Land use	arable land: 25.22% permanent crops: 4.43% other: 70.35% (2001)	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% note: "green areas" represent 22.4% (2001)
Languages	Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood	Cantonese 87.9%, Hokkien 4.4%, Mandarin 1.6%, other Chinese dialects 3.1%, other 3% (2001 census)
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
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 Legislative Council or LEGCO (29 seats; 12 elected by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and seven appointed by the chief executive; members serve four-year terms) elections: last held 26 September 2005 (next in September 2009) election results: percent of vote - Development Union 12.8%, Macau Development Alliance 9%, Macau United Citizens' Association 16%, New Democratic Macau Association 18.2%, others na; seats by political group - Development Union 2, Macau Development Alliance 1, Macau United Citizens' Association 2, New Democratic Macau Association 2, New Hope 1, Union Forces 2, others 2; 10 seats filled by professional and business groups; seven members appointed by chief executive
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 69.71 years male: 68.47 years female: 71.02 years (2004 est.)	total population: 82.12 years male: 79.29 years female: 85.09 years (2005 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: 94.5% male: 97.2% female: 92% (2003 est.)
Location	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey	Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China
Map references	Middle East	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 41 nm	not specified
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.)	-
Military branches	Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (including Air Defense Command), Police and Security Force	China's People's Revolutionary Army (PLA) constitutes the only armed force in Macau; several police forces constitute the Security Forces of Macau (SFM) that are subordinate to the General Secretariat of Security, a body comparable to a ministry of interior (2004)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.9% (FY00)	-
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 4,876,040 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 2,716,054 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 216,077 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 17 April (1946)	National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December 1999 is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day
Nationality	noun: Syrian(s) adjective: Syrian	noun: Chinese adjective: Chinese
Natural hazards	dust storms, sandstorms	typhoons
Natural resources	petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower	NEGL
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	4.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 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]	Civil Service Union [Jose Maria Pereira COUTINHO]; Development Union [KWAN Tsui-hang]; Macau Development Alliance [Angela LEONG On-kei]; Macau United Citizens' Association [CHAN Meng-kam]; New Democratic Macau Association [Antonio NG Kuok-cheong]; United Forces [leader NA]
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.)	449,198 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	20% (2003 est.)	NA
Population growth rate	2.4% (2004 est.)	0.87% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus	Macau
Radio broadcast stations	AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways	total: 2,711 km standard gauge: 2,460 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 251 km 1.050-m gauge (2003)	-
Religions	Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)	Buddhist 50%, Roman Catholic 15%, none and other 35% (1997 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: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	direct election 18 years of age, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" (257 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies
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: fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services domestic: NA international: country code - 853; HF radiotelephone communication facility; access to international communications carriers provided via Hong Kong and China; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	2,099,300 (2002)	174,600 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	400,000 (2002)	364,000 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995)	1 (2003)
Terrain	primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west	generally flat
Total fertility rate	3.61 children born/woman (2004 est.)	0.93 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	20% (2002 est.)	4.7% (3rd Quarter, 2004)
Waterways	900 km (not economically significant) (2002)	-

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