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Compare Western Sahara (2004) - Germany (2002)

Compare Western Sahara (2004) z Germany (2002)

 Western Sahara (2004)Germany (2002)
 Western SaharaGermany
Administrative divisions none (under de facto control of Morocco) 16 states (Laender, singular - Land); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen
Age structure 0-14 years: NA


15-64 years: NA


65 years and over: NA
0-14 years: 15.4% (male 6,568,699; female 6,227,148)


15-64 years: 67.6% (male 28,606,964; female 27,695,539)


65 years and over: 17% (male 5,546,140; female 8,607,361) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry
Airports 11 (2003 est.) 625 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.)
total: 328


over 3,047 m: 11


2,438 to 3,047 m: 54


1,524 to 2,437 m: 63


914 to 1,523 m: 69


under 914 m: 131 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 8


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)
total: 223


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 31


under 914 m: 189 (2002)
Area total: 266,000 sq km


land: 266,000 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 357,021 sq km


land: 349,223 sq km


water: 7,798 sq km
Area - comparative about the size of Colorado slightly smaller than Montana
Background Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. As Europe's largest economy and most populous nation, Germany remains a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed the country in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which became the EU, and NATO, while the communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then Germany has expended considerable funds to bring eastern productivity and wages up to western standards. In January 2002, Germany and 11 other EU countries introduced a common European currency, the euro.
Birth rate NA births/1,000 population 8.99 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: NA


expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA
revenues: $802 billion


expenditures: $825 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital none Berlin
Climate hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm foehn wind
Coastline 1,110 km 2,389 km
Constitution - 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Western Sahara


former: Spanish Sahara
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany


conventional short form: Germany


local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland


local short form: Deutschland


former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich
Currency Moroccan dirham (MAD) euro (EUR); deutsche mark (DEM)


note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries
Death rate NA deaths/1,000 population 10.36 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external NA $NA
Diplomatic representation from the US none chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel R. COATS


embassy: Neustaedtische Kirchstrasse 4-5, 10117 Berlin; note - a new embassy will be built near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin


mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265


telephone: [49] (030) 8305-0


FAX: [49] (030) 238-6290


consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich
Diplomatic representation in the US none chief of mission: Ambassador Wolfgang Friedrich ISCHINGER


chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007


telephone: [1] (202) 298-8140


FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249


consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco
Disputes - international Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991 but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals none
Economic aid - donor - ODA, $5.6 billion (1998)
Economic aid - recipient NA -
Economy - overview Western Sahara depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, and most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. Incomes and standards of living in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. Germany's affluent and technologically powerful economy turned in a relatively weak performance throughout much of the 1990s. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy continues to be a costly long-term problem, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $70 billion. Germany's ageing population, combined with high unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions from workers. Structural rigidities in the labor market - including strict regulations on laying off workers and the setting of wages on a national basis - have made unemployment a chronic problem. Business and income tax cuts introduced in 2001 did not spare Germany from the impact of the downturn in international trade, and domestic demand faltered as unemployment began to rise. Growth in 2002 again fell short of 1%. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could allow Germany to meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization, particularly if labor market rigidities are addressed. In the short run, however, the fall in government revenues and the rise in expenditures has brought the deficit close to the EU's 3% debt limit.
Electricity - consumption 83.7 million kWh (2001) 501.72 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2001) 42.5 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 44.5 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 90 million kWh (2001) 537.33 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 63%


hydro: 4%


nuclear: 30%


other: 3% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m


highest point: unnamed location 463 m
lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m


highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m
Environment - current issues sparse water and lack of arable land emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive
Environment - international agreements party to: none of the selected agreements


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Ethnic groups Arab, Berber German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Serbo-Croatian, Italian, Russian, Greek, Polish, Spanish)
Exchange rates Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 9.574 (2003), 11.584 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.626 (2000), 9.804 (1999) euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); deutsche marks per US dollar - 1.69 (January 1999), 1.7597 (1998), 1.7341 (1997)
Executive branch none chief of state: President Johannes RAU (since 1 July 1999)


head of government: Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October 1998)


cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor


elections: president elected for a five-year term by a Federal Convention including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 1999 (next to be held 23 May 2004); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006)


election results: Johannes RAU elected president; percent of Federal Convention vote - 57.6%; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly vote NA%
Exports NA (2001) $608 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities phosphates 62% machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles
Exports - partners Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts France 11.1%, US 10.6%, UK 8.4%, Netherlands 6.2%, Austria 5.1%; Belgium 4.9%, Spain 4.5%, Switzerland 4.3% (2001) (2001)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description - three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold
GDP purchasing power parity - NA purchasing power parity - $2.184 trillion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: NA


industry: NA


services: 40% (1996 est.)
agriculture: 1%


industry: 31%


services: 68% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - NA purchasing power parity - $26,600 (2002 est.); (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate NA 0.4% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 24 30 N, 13 00 W 51 00 N, 9 00 E
Geography - note the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea
Heliports - 40 (2002)
Highways total: 6,200 km


paved: 1,350 km


unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est)
total: 656,140 km


paved: 650,891 km (including 11,400 km of expressways)


unpaved: 5,249 km (all-weather) (1998 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
lowest 10%: 4%


highest 10%: 25% (1997)
Illicit drugs - source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs
Imports NA (2001) $487.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals
Imports - partners Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2000) France 9.4%, Netherlands 8.4%, US 8.3%, UK 6.9%, Italy 6.5%, Belgium 5.2%, Japan 4.1%, Austria 3.8% (2001)
Independence - 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991
Industrial production growth rate NA -2.1% (2002 est.)
Industries phosphate mining, handicrafts among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; shipbuilding; textiles
Infant mortality rate total: NA


male: NA


female: NA
4.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) NA 1.3% (2002 est.)
International organization participation none AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 200 (2001)
Irrigated land NA sq km 4,850 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch - Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat)
Labor force 12,000 41.9 million (2001)
Labor force - by occupation animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% industry 33%, agriculture 3%, services 64% (1999)
Land boundaries total: 2,046 km


border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km
total: 3,621 km


border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km
Land use arable land: 0.02%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 99.98% (2001)
arable land: 33.88%


permanent crops: 0.65%


other: 65.47% (1998 est.)
Languages Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic German
Legal system - civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch - bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (603 seats; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block)


elections: Federal Assembly - last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election


election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - SPD 38.5%, CDU/CSU 38.5%, Greens 8.6%, FDP 7.4%, PDS 4%; seats by party - SPD 251, CDU/CSU 248, Greens 55, FDP 47, PDS 2; Federal Council - current composition - NA
Life expectancy at birth total population: NA years


male: NA years


female: NA years
total population: 77.78 years


male: 74.64 years


female: 81.09 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition: NA


total population: NA


male: NA


female: NA
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99% (1977 est.)


male: NA%


female: NA%
Location Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark
Map references Africa Europe
Maritime claims contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine - total: 388 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,758,942 GRT/7,132,525 DWT


ships by type: cargo 132, chemical tanker 10, container 219, liquefied gas 3, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 7, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 7


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Chile 1, Finland 5, Iceland 1, Netherlands 3, Switzerland 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches - Army, Navy (including naval air arm), Air Force, Medical Corps, Joint Support Service
Military expenditures - dollar figure NA $38.8 billion (2002)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA 1.38% (2002)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 20,854,329 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 17,734,977 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 482,318 (2002 est.)
National holiday - Unity Day, 3 October (1990)
Nationality noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)


adjective: Sahrawi,Sahrawian, Sahraouian
noun: German(s)


adjective: German
Natural hazards hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility flooding
Natural resources phosphates, iron ore iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land
Net migration rate - 3.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines - crude oil 2,240 km (2001)
Political parties and leaders - Alliance '90/Greens [Angelika BEER and Reinhard BUETIKOFER]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE, chairman]; the Greens [leader NA]; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Gabriele ZIMMER]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Gerhard SCHROEDER, chairman]
Political pressure groups and leaders none employers' organizations; expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups
Population 267,405 (July 2004 est.) 83,251,851 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line NA NA%
Population growth rate NA 0.26% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) Berlin, Bonn, Brake, Bremen, Bremerhaven, Cologne, Dresden, Duisburg, Emden, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Kiel, Luebeck, Magdeburg, Mannheim, Rostock, Stuttgart
Radio broadcast stations AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998)
Radios - 77.8 million (1997)
Railways - total: 44,000 km (including at least 20,300 km electrified); most routes are double- or multiple-track


note: since privatization in 1994, Deutsche Bahn AG (DBAG) no longer publishes details of the track it owns; in addition to the DBAG system there are 102 privately owned railway companies which own approximately 3,000 to 4,000 km of track (2001 est.)
Religions Muslim Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3%
Sex ratio NA at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: sparse and limited system


domestic: NA


international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco
general assessment: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part


domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries


international: Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the INMARSAT, INTELSAT, EUTELSAT, and INTERSPUTNIK satellite systems (2001)
Telephones - main lines in use about 2,000 (1999 est.) 50.9 million (March 2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular 0 (1999) 55.3 million (June 2001)
Television broadcast stations NA 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south
Total fertility rate NA children born/woman 1.39 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate NA 9.8% (2002 est.)
Waterways - 7,500 km


note: major rivers include the Rhine and Elbe; Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea and North Sea (1999)
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