Compare Syria (2008) - Laos (2005)

Compare Syria (2008) z Laos (2005)

	Syria (2008)	Laos (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	16 provinces (khoueng, singular and plural), 1 municipality* (kampheng nakhon, singular and plural), and 1 special zone** (khetphiset, singular and plural); Attapu, Bokeo, Bolikhamxai, Champasak, Houaphan, Khammouan, Louangnamtha, Louangphrabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan (Vientiane), Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun*, Xekong, Xiangkhoang
Age structure	0-14 years: 36.5% (male 3,633,562/female 3,423,435) 15-64 years: 60.1% (male 5,952,275/female 5,664,236) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 303,346/female 337,893) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 41.6% (male 1,300,094/female 1,289,227) 15-64 years: 55.2% (male 1,693,494/female 1,737,196) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 88,744/female 108,386) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk	sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry
Airports	90 (2007)	44 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 26 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2007)	total: 9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 64 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 52 (2007)	total: 35 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (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: 236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than North Dakota	slightly larger than Utah
Background	Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, France administered Syria until its independence in 1946. The country lacked political stability, however, and experienced a series of military coups during its first decades. Syria united with Egypt in February 1958 to form the United Arab Republic. In September 1961, the two entities separated, and the Syrian Arab Republic was reestablished. In November 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a member of the Socialist Ba'th Party and the minority Alawite sect, seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to the country. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. During the 1990s, Syria and Israel held occasional peace talks over its return. Following the death of President al-ASAD, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was approved as president by popular referendum in July 2000. Syrian troops - stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role - were withdrawn in April 2005. During the July-August 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizballah, Syria placed its military forces on alert but did not intervene directly on behalf of its ally Hizballah.	Laos was under the control of Siam (Thailand) from the late 18th century until the late 19th century when it became part of French Indochina. The Franco-Siamese Treaty of 1907 defined the current Lao border with Thailand. In 1975, the Communist Pathet Lao took control of the government, ending a six-century-old monarchy. Initial closer ties to Vietnam and socialization were replaced with a gradual return to private enterprise, a liberalization of foreign investment laws, and the admission into ASEAN in 1997.
Birth rate	27.19 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	35.99 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $8.45 billion expenditures: $10.38 billion (2007 est.)	revenues: $284.3 million expenditures: $416.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital	name: Damascus geographic coordinates: 33 30 N, 36 18 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins 1 April; ends 30 September	Vientiane
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 monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)
Coastline	193 km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	13 March 1973	promulgated 14 August 1991
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: Lao People's Democratic Republic conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none
Death rate	4.74 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	11.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$6.61 billion (31 December 2007 est.)	$2.49 billion (2001)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Michael CORBIN embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansour Street, No. 2, Damascus mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus telephone: [963] (11) 3391-4444 FAX: [963] (11) 3391-3999	chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia M. HASLACH embassy: 19 Rue Bartholonie, B. P. 114, Vientiane mailing address: American Embassy, Box V, APO AP 96546 telephone: [856] (21) 212581, 212582, 212585 FAX: [856] (21) 212584
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 PHANTHONG Phommahaxay chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923
Disputes - international	Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied with the almost 1,000-strong UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) patrolling a buffer zone since 1964; lacking a treaty or other documentation describing the boundary, portions of the Lebanon-Syria boundary are unclear with several sections in dispute; since 2000, Lebanon has claimed Shaba'a farms in the Golan Heights; 2004 Agreement and pending demarcation settles border dispute with Jordan; approximately two million Iraqis have fled the conflict in Iraq with the majority taking refuge in Syria and Jordan	Southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Laos and Thailand pledge to complete demarcation of boundaries in 2005, while ongoing disputes over squatters and boundary encroachment by Thailand including Mekong River islets persist; in 2004 Cambodian-Laotian boundary commission agrees to re-erect missing markers in two adjoining provinces; concern among Mekong Commission members that China's construction of dams on the Mekong River will affect water levels
Economic aid - recipient	$77.85 million (2005 est.)	$243 million (2001 est.)
Economy - overview	The Syrian economy grew by an estimated 3.5% in real terms in 2007 led by the petroleum and agricultural sectors, which together account for about one-half of GDP. Higher crude oil prices countered declining oil production and led to higher budgetary and export receipts. Damascus has implemented modest economic reforms in the past few years, including cutting lending interest rates, opening private banks, consolidating all of the multiple exchange rates, raising prices on some subsidized items, most notably, gasoline and cement, and establishing the Damascus Stock Exchange-which is set to begin operations in 2008. In October 2007, for example, Damascus raised the price of subsidized gasoline by 20%, and may institute a rationing system in 2008. In addition, President ASAD signed legislative decrees to encourage corporate ownership reform, and to allow the Central Bank to issue Treasury bills and bonds for government debt. Nevertheless, the economy remains highly controlled by the government. Long-run economic constraints include declining oil production, high unemployment and inflation, rising budget deficits, and increasing pressure on water supplies caused by heavy use in agriculture, rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and water pollution.	The government of Laos - one of the few remaining official Communist states - began decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise in 1986. The results, starting from an extremely low base, were striking - growth averaged 6% in 1988-2004 except during the short-lived drop caused by the Asian financial crisis beginning in 1997. Despite this high growth rate, Laos remains a country with a primitive infrastructure; it has no railroads, a rudimentary road system, and limited external and internal telecommunications. The government has sponsored major improvements in the road system. Electricity is available in only a few urban areas. Subsistence agriculture accounts for half of GDP and provides 80% of total employment. The economy will continue to benefit from aid from the IMF and other international sources and from new foreign investment in food processing and mining. In late 2004, Laos gained Normal Trade Relations status with the US, allowing Laos-based producers to face lower tariffs on their exports; this may help spur growth.
Electricity - consumption	34 billion kWh (2007 est.)	3.036 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2007)	400 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2007 est.)	125 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	34.94 billion kWh (2007 est.)	3.56 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m	lowest point: Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water	unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%	Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1%
Exchange rates	Syrian pounds per US dollar - 50.0085 (2007), 51.689 (2006), 50 (2005), 48.5 (2004), 52.8 (2003) note: data for 2004-06 are the public sector rate; data for 2002-03 are the parallel market rate in 'Amman and Beirut; the official rate for repaying loans was 11.25 Syrian pounds per US dollars during 2004-06,	kips per US dollar - 10,820 (2004), 10,569 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002), 8,954.6 (2001), 7,887.6 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice President Farouk al-SHARA (since 11 February 2006) oversees foreign policy; Vice President Najah al-ATTAR (since 23 March 2006) oversees cultural policy head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003); Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdallah al-DARDARI (since 14 June 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president approved by popular referendum for a second seven-year term (no term limits); referendum last held on 27 May 2007 (next to be held in May 2014); the president appoints the vice presidents, prime minister, and deputy prime ministers election results: Bashar al-ASAD approved as president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.6%	chief of state: President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphadon (since 26 February 1998) and Vice President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since 27 March 2001) head of government: Prime Minister BOUNGNANG Volachit (since 27 March 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Bouasone BOUPHAVANH (since 3 October 2003) Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since May 2002), Deputy Prime Minister THONGLOUN Sisolit (since 27 March 2001), and Deputy Prime Minister SOMSAVAT Lengsavat (since 26 February 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 24 February 2002 (next to be held in 2007); prime minister appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly for a five-year term election results: KHAMTAI Siphadon elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA%
Exports	150,000 bbl/day (2007 est.)	NA
Exports - commodities	crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat	garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin
Exports - partners	Iraq 27.3%, Germany 12.1%, Lebanon 9.5%, Italy 6.6%, Egypt 5.3%, Saudi Arabia 4.8% (2006)	Thailand 19.3%, Vietnam 13.4%, France 8%, Germany 5.3%, UK 5% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 October - 30 September
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 an Arabic inscription 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 horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 24.6% industry: 24.4% services: 51% (2007 est.)	agriculture: 49.5% industry: 27.5% services: 23% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.5% (2007 est.)	6% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	35 00 N, 38 00 E	18 00 N, 105 00 E
Geography - note	there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (August 2005 est.)	landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand
Heliports	7 (2007)	-
Highways	-	total: 21,716 km paved: 9,664 km unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 3.2% highest 10%: 30.6% (1997)
Illicit drugs	a transit point for opiates, hashish, and cocaine bound for regional and Western markets; weak anti-money-laundering controls and bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money laundering	estimated cultivation in 2004 - 10,000 hectares, a 45% decrease from 2003; estimated potential production in 2004 - 49 metric tons, a significant decrease from 200 metric tons in 2003 (2005)
Imports	160,000 bbl/day (2007 est.)	NA
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper	machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods
Imports - partners	Saudi Arabia 12.3%, China 7.9%, Egypt 6.2%, UAE 6%, Germany 4.9%, Italy 4.9%, Ukraine 4.8%, Iran 4.5% (2006)	Thailand 60.5%, China 10.3%, Vietnam 7.1%, Singapore 4% (2004)
Independence	17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)	19 July 1949 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	-0.4% (2007 est.)	9.7% (2001 est.)
Industries	petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining, cement, oil seeds crushing	tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism
Infant mortality rate	total: 27.7 deaths/1,000 live births male: 27.94 deaths/1,000 live births female: 27.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 85.22 deaths/1,000 live births male: 95.04 deaths/1,000 live births female: 75.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	7% (2007 est.)	12.3% (2004 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, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO	ACCT, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	13,330 sq km (2003)	1,640 sq km note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Judicial Council (appoints and dismisses judges; headed by the President); national level - Supreme Constitutional Court (adjudicates electoral disputes and rules on constitutionality of laws and decrees; justices appointed for four-year terms by the President); Court of Cassation; Appeals Courts (Appeals Courts represent an intermediate level between the Court of Cassation and local level courts); local level - Magistrate Courts; Courts of First Instance; Juvenile Courts; Customs Courts; specialized courts - Economic Security Courts (hear cases related to economic crimes); Supreme State Security Court (hear cases related to national security); Personal Status Courts (religious; hear cases related to marriage and divorce)	People's Supreme Court (the president of the People's Supreme Court is elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the National Assembly Standing Committee; the vice president of the People's Supreme Court and the judges are appointed by the National Assembly Standing Committee)
Labor force	5.457 million (2007 est.)	2.6 million (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 26% industry: 14% services: 60% (2003 est.)	agriculture 80% (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: 5,083 km border countries: Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km
Land use	arable land: 24.8% permanent crops: 4.47% other: 70.73% (2005)	arable land: 3.8% permanent crops: 0.35% other: 95.85% (2001)
Languages	Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood	Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages
Legal system	based on a combination of French and Ottoman civil law; Islamic law is used in the family court system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice
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 on 22-23 April 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NPF 172, independents 78	unicameral National Assembly (109 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - total number of seats increased from 99 to 109 for the 2002 election) elections: last held 24 February 2002 (next to be held in 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LPRP or LPRP-approved (independent, non-party members) 109
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 70.61 years male: 69.27 years female: 72.02 years (2007 est.)	total population: 55.08 years male: 53.07 years female: 57.17 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 79.6% male: 86% female: 73.6% (2004 census)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 66.4% male: 77.4% female: 55.5% (2002)
Location	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey	Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam
Map references	Middle East	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm	none (landlocked)
Merchant marine	total: 96 ships (1000 GRT or over) 353,351 GRT/512,597 DWT by type: bulk carrier 7, cargo 82, container 1, livestock carrier 4, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 10 (Jordan 2, Lebanon 4, Romania 4) registered in other countries: 164 (Bolivia 1, Cambodia 32, Comoros 8, Cyprus 2, Dominica 2, Georgia 54, Hong Kong 1, North Korea 7, Lebanon 1, Libya 1, Malta 4, Mongolia 1, Panama 24, Sierra Leone 8, Slovakia 2, St Kitts and Nevis 5, St Vincent and The Grenadines 11, unknown 2) (2007)	total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT by type: cargo 1 (2005)
Military - note	-	Laos is one of the world's least developed countries; the Lao People's Armed Forces are small, poorly funded, and ineffectively resourced; there is little political will to allocate sparse funding to the military, and the armed forces' gradual degradation is likely to continue; the massive drug production and trafficking industry centered in the Golden Triangle makes Laos an important narcotics transit country, and armed Wa and Chinese smugglers are active on the Lao-Burma border (2005)
Military branches	Syrian Armed Forces: Syrian Arab Army (includes Syrian Arab Navy), Syrian Arab Air and Air Defense Force (includes Air Defense Command) (2005)	Lao People's Army (LPA; includes Riverine Force), Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$10.7 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.9% (2005 est.)	0.5% (2004)
National holiday	Independence Day, 17 April (1946)	Republic Day, 2 December (1975)
Nationality	noun: Syrian(s) adjective: Syrian	noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian
Natural hazards	dust storms, sandstorms	floods, droughts
Natural resources	petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower	timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	gas 2,794 km; oil 2,000 km (2007)	refined products 540 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	legal parties: National Progressive Front or NPF [President Bashar al-ASAD, Dr. Suleiman QADDAH] (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party [President Bashar al-ASAD]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallah Nasr Al-DIN]; Syrian Arab Socialist Union or ASU [Safwan QUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yusuf Rashid FAYSAL]; Syrian Social Nationalist Party [Ali QANSU]; Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL]) opposition parties not legally recognized:: Arab Democratic Socialist Union Party [Hasan Abdul AZIM]; Arab Socialist Movement; Democratic Ba'th Party [Ibrahim MAHKOS]; People's Democratic Party [Riad al TURK]; Revolutionary Workers' Party [Abdul Hafeez al HAFEZ] Kurdish parties (considered illegal): Kurdish Democratic Front [Abdul Hamid DARWISH] (includes four parties); Kurdish Coordination [Abdul Hakim BASHAR] (includes Azadi Party [Kheirudin MURAD], Future Party [Masha'l TAMMO], Yekity Party [Hasam SALE]) other parties: Nahda Party [Abdul Aziz al MISLET]; Syrian Democratic Party [Mustafa QALAAJI]	Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphadon, party president]; other parties proscribed
Political pressure groups and leaders	Damascus Declaration National Council [Riyad SEIF, secretary general] (a broad alliance of opposition groups and individuals including: Committee for Revival of Civil Society [Michel KILO, Riyad SEIF]; Communist Action Party [Fateh JAMOUS]; Kurdish Democratic Alliance; Kurdish Democratic Front; Liberal Nationalists' Movement; National Democratic Front; National Democratic Rally; and Syrian Human Rights Society or HRAS [Fawed FAWUZ]); National Salvation Front (alliance between former Vice President Abd al-Halim KHADDAM, the SMB, and other small opposition groups); Syrian Muslim Brotherhood or SMB [Sadr al-Din al-BAYANUNI]; (operates in exile in London; endorsed the Damascus Declaration but is not an official member)	noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975
Population	19,314,747 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 2007 est.)	6,217,141 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	11.9% (2006 est.)	40% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate	2.244% (2007 est.)	2.42% (2005 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998)
Railways	total: 2,711 km standard gauge: 2,460 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 251 km 1.050-m gauge (2006)	-
Religions	Sunni Muslim 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)	Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.061 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.051 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.898 male(s)/female total population: 1.049 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 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: the number of fixed-line connections has increased markedly since 2000; mobile-cellular service growing rapidly and teledensity has reached 25 wireless telephones per 100 persons; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 963; submarine cable connection to Cyprus; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel	general assessment: service to general public is poor but improving with over 20,000 telephones currently in service and an additional 48,000 expected by 2001; the government relies on a radiotelephone network to communicate with remote areas domestic: radiotelephone communications international: country code - 856; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
Telephones - main lines in use	3.243 million (2006)	61,900 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	4.675 million (2006)	55,200 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995)	4 (1999)
Terrain	primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west	mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus
Total fertility rate	3.31 children born/woman (2007 est.)	4.77 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	10% (2007 est.)	5.7% (1997 est.)
Waterways	900 km (not economically significant) (2005)	4,600 km note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m (2003)

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