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Compare Syria (2008) - Lebanon (2005)
Compare Syria (2008) z Lebanon (2005)
| Syria (2008) | Lebanon (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 | 6 governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah); Beyrouth, Beqaa, Liban-Nord, Liban-Sud, Mont-Liban, Nabatiye |
| 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: 26.7% (male 520,270/female 499,609)
15-64 years: 66.4% (male 1,216,738/female 1,324,031) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 120,176/female 145,194) (2005 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk | citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats |
| Airports | 90 (2007) | 8 (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: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (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: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (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: 10,400 sq km
land: 10,230 sq km water: 170 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than North Dakota | about 0.7 times the size of Connecticut |
| 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. | Lebanon has made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions since 1991 and the end of the devastating 15-year civil war. Under the Ta'if Accord - the blueprint for national reconciliation - the Lebanese have established a more equitable political system, particularly by giving Muslims a greater say in the political process while institutionalizing sectarian divisions in the government. Since the end of the war, the Lebanese have conducted several successful elections, most of the militias have been weakened or disbanded, and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) have extended central government authority over about two-thirds of the country. Hizballah, a radical Shia organization, retains its weapons. During Lebanon's civil war, the Arab League legitimized in the Ta'if Accord Syria's troop deployment, numbering about 16,000 based mainly east of Beirut and in the Bekaa Valley. Damascus justified its continued military presence in Lebanon by citing Beirut's requests and the failure of the Lebanese Government to implement all of the constitutional reforms in the Ta'if Accord. Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000, however, encouraged some Lebanese groups to demand that Syria withdraw its forces as well. The passage of UNSCR 1559 in early October 2004 - a resolution calling for Syria to withdraw from Lebanon and end its interference in Lebanese affairs - further emboldened Lebanese groups opposed to Syria's presence in Lebanon. Syria finally withdrew the remainder of its forces from Lebanon in April of 2005. |
| Birth rate | 27.19 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 18.88 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $8.45 billion
expenditures: $10.38 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues: $4.895 billion
expenditures: $6.642 billion, 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 |
Beirut |
| 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 | Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows |
| Coastline | 193 km | 225 km |
| Constitution | 13 March 1973 | 23 May 1926; amended a number of times, most recently Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Ta'if Accord) of October 1989 |
| 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: Lebanese Republic
conventional short form: Lebanon local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah local short form: Lubnan |
| Death rate | 4.74 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 6.24 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $6.61 billion (31 December 2007 est.) | $15.84 billion (2004 est.) |
| 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 Jeffrey D. FELTMAN
embassy: Awkar, Lebanon mailing address: P. O. Box 70-840, Antelias, Lebanon; PSC 815, Box 2, FPO AE 09836-0002 telephone: [961] (4) 542600, 543600 FAX: [961] (4) 544136 |
| 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 Dr. Farid ABBOUD
chancery: 2560 28th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6300 FAX: [1] (202) 939-6324 consulate(s) general: Detroit, New York, and Los Angeles |
| 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 | intense international pressure prompts the removal of Syrian troops and intelligence personnel from Lebanon; Lebanese Government claims Shab'a Farms area of Israeli-occupied Golan Heights; the roughly 2,000-strong UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has been in place since 1978 |
| Economic aid - recipient | $77.85 million (2005 est.) | $2.2 billion received (2003), out of the $4.2 billion in soft loans pledged at the November 2002 Paris II Aid Conference |
| 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 1975-91 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure, cut national output by half, and all but ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. In the years since, Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure by borrowing heavily - mostly from domestic banks. In an attempt to reduce the ballooning national debt, the HARIRI government began an austerity program, reining in government expenditures, increasing revenue collection, and privatizing state enterprises. In November 2002, the government met with international donors at the Paris II conference to seek bilateral assistance in restructuring its massive domestic debt at lower rates of interest. Substantial receipts from donor nations stabilized government finances in 2003, but did little to reduce the debt, which stood at nearly 180% of GDP. In 2004 the HARIRI government issued Eurobonds in an effort to manage maturing debt, and the KARAMI government has continued this practice. However, privatization of state-owned enterprises had not occurred by the end of 2004, as promised during the Paris II conference. |
| Electricity - consumption | 34 billion kWh (2007 est.) | 8.591 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2007) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2007 est.) | 1.09 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | 34.94 billion kWh (2007 est.) | 8.066 billion kWh (2002) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m
highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m |
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Qurnat as Sawda' 3,088 m |
| Environment - current issues | deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills |
| 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, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation |
| Ethnic groups | Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7% | Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 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, |
Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (2004), 1,507.5 (2003), 1,507.5 (2002), 1,507.5 (2001), 1,507.5 (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 Emile LAHUD (since 24 November 1998)
head of government: Prime Minister Fuad SINIORA (since 30 June 2005); Deputy Prime Minister Elias MURR (since April 2005) cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president and members of the National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a six-year term; election last held 15 October 1998 (next election date NA); note - on 3 September 2004 the National Assembly voted 96 to 29 to extend Emile LAHUD's six-year term by three years; the prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly; by agreement, the president is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the legislature is a Shia Muslim election results: for 15 October 1998 election: Emile LAHUD elected president; National Assembly vote - 118 votes in favor, 0 against, 10 abstentions |
| 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 | authentic jewelry, inorganic chemicals, miscellaneous consumer goods, fruit, tobacco, construction minerals, electric power machinery and switchgear, textile fibers, paper |
| Exports - partners | Iraq 27.3%, Germany 12.1%, Lebanon 9.5%, Italy 6.6%, Egypt 5.3%, Saudi Arabia 4.8% (2006) | Syria 24.9%, UAE 10%, Turkey 6.9%, Switzerland 6.7%, Saudi Arabia 5.3% (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 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 consisting of red (top), white (middle, double width), and red (bottom) with a green cedar tree centered in the white band |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 24.6%
industry: 24.4% services: 51% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 12%
industry: 21% services: 67% (2000) |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2007 est.) | 4% (2004 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 35 00 N, 38 00 E | 33 50 N, 35 50 E |
| Geography - note | there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (August 2005 est.) | Nahr el Litani only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity |
| Heliports | 7 (2007) | - |
| Highways | - | total: 7,300 km
paved: 6,198 km unpaved: 1,102 km (1999 est.) |
| 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, hashish, and cocaine bound for regional and Western markets; weak anti-money-laundering controls and bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money laundering | cannabis cultivation dramatically reduced to 2,500 hectares in 2002; opium poppy cultivation minimal; small amounts of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin transit country on way to European markets and for Middle Eastern consumption |
| 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 | petroleum products, cars, medicinal products, clothing, meat and live animals, consumer goods, paper, textile fabrics, tobacco |
| 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) | Italy 11.2%, France 10.3%, Syria 9.8%, Germany 8.6%, China 5.8%, US 5.5%, UK 4.6% (2004) |
| Independence | 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) | 22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) |
| Industrial production growth rate | -0.4% (2007 est.) | NA |
| Industries | petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining, cement, oil seeds crushing | banking, food processing, jewelry, cement, textiles, mineral and chemical products, wood and furniture products, oil refining, metal fabricating |
| 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: 24.52 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 27.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7% (2007 est.) | 2% (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 | ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
| Irrigated land | 13,330 sq km (2003) | 1,200 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) | four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases); Constitutional Council (called for in Ta'if Accord - rules on constitutionality of laws); Supreme Council (hears charges against the president and prime minister as needed) |
| Labor force | 5.457 million (2007 est.) | 2.6 million
note: in addition, there are as many as 1 million foreign workers (2001 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 26%
industry: 14% services: 60% (2003 est.) |
agriculture NA, industry NA, 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: 454 km
border countries: Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km |
| Land use | arable land: 24.8%
permanent crops: 4.47% other: 70.73% (2005) |
arable land: 16.62%
permanent crops: 13.98% other: 69.4% (2001) |
| Languages | Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood | Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian |
| 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 | mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and civil law; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| 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 or Majlis Alnuwab (Arabic) or Assemblee Nationale (French) (128 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of sectarian proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held in four rounds on 29 May, 5, 12, 19 June 2005 (next to be held 2009) election results: percent of vote by group - NA; seats by group - Future Movement Bloc 36; Democratic Gathering 15; Development and Resistance Bloc 15; Loyalty to the Resistance 14; Free Patriotic Movement 14; Lebanese Forces 6; Qornet Shewan 5; Popular Bloc 4; Tripoli Independent Bloc 3; Syrian National Socialist Party 2; Kataeb Reform Movement 2; Tachnaq Party 2; Democratic Renewal Movement 1; Democratic Left 1; Nasserite Popular Movement 1; Ba'th Party 1; Kataeb Party 1; independent 5 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.61 years
male: 69.27 years female: 72.02 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 72.63 years
male: 70.17 years female: 75.21 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: 87.4% male: 93.1% female: 82.2% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria |
| Map references | Middle East | Middle East |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm |
| 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: 44 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 198,602 GRT/248,313 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 4, cargo 26, livestock carrier 8, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 2, vehicle carrier 3 foreign-owned: 6 (Austria 1, Greece 5) registered in other countries: 40 (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) | Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF): Army, Navy, and Air Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $540.6 million (2002) (2004) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.9% (2005 est.) | 3.1% (FY99) (2004) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 17 April (1946) | Independence Day, 22 November (1943) |
| Nationality | noun: Syrian(s)
adjective: Syrian |
noun: Lebanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Lebanese |
| Natural hazards | dust storms, sandstorms | dust storms, sandstorms |
| Natural resources | petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower | limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land |
| 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) | oil 209 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] |
Ba'th Party [leader NA]; Democratic Gathering [Walid JUNBLATT]; Democratic Left [leader NA]; Development and Resistance Bloc [Nabih BARRI, Amal leader/speaker]; Free Patriotic Movement [Michel AWN]; Future Movement Bloc [Sa'ad HARIRI]; Kataeb Party [leader NA]; Kataeb Reform Movement [leader NA]; Lebanese Forces [leader NA]; Loyalty to the Resistance [Mohammad RA'AD]; Nasserite Popular Movement [leader NA]; Popular Bloc [leader NA]; Qornet Shewan [leader NA]; Syrian National Socialist Party [leader NA]; Tripoli Independent Bloc [leader NA] |
| 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) | NA |
| 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.) |
3,826,018 (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 11.9% (2006 est.) | 28% (1999 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.244% (2007 est.) | 1.26% (2005 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | - | Beirut, Chekka, Jounie, Tripoli |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 20, FM 22, 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) |
total: 401 km
standard gauge: 319 km 1.435-m narrow gauge: 82 km 1.050-m note: rail system became unusable because of damage during the civil war in the 1980s; short sections are operable (2004) |
| Religions | Sunni Muslim 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo) | Muslim 59.7% (Shi'a, Sunni, Druze, Isma'ilite, Alawite or Nusayri), Christian 39% (Maronite Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Melkite Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Syrian Catholic, Armenian Catholic, Syrian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Chaldean, Assyrian, Copt, Protestant), other 1.3%
note: seventeen religious sects recognized |
| 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: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education |
| 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: telecommunications system severely damaged by civil war; rebuilding well underway
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay and cable international: country code - 961; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) (erratic operations); coaxial cable to Syria; microwave radio relay to Syria but inoperable beyond Syria to Jordan; 3 submarine coaxial cables |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 3.243 million (2006) | 678,800 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 4.675 million (2006) | 775,100 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995) | 15 (plus 5 repeaters) (1995) |
| Terrain | primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west | narrow coastal plain; El Beqaa (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains |
| Total fertility rate | 3.31 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.92 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 10% (2007 est.) | 18% (1997 est.) |
| Waterways | 900 km (not economically significant) (2005) | - |
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