Western Sahara (2004) | Saint Helena (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | none (under de facto control of Morocco) | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
0-14 years: 18.9% (male 704; female 685)
15-64 years: 71.6% (male 2,732; female 2,545) 65 years and over: 9.5% (male 309; female 392) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) | corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha) |
Airports | 11 (2003 est.) | 1 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (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.) |
- |
Area | total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 410 sq km
land: 410 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Saint Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
Area - comparative | about the size of Colorado | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station. |
Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population | 12.9 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
revenues: $11.2 million
expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY92) |
Capital | none | Jamestown |
Climate | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew | Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
Coastline | 1,110 km | 60 km |
Constitution | - | 1 January 1989 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
Currency | Moroccan dirham (MAD) | Saint Helenian pound (SHP) |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 6.24 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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 - recipient | NA | $12.6 million (1995); note - $5.3 million from UK (1997) |
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. | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, the raising of livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (2001) | 4.65 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (2001) | 5 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m |
Environment - current issues | sparse water and lack of arable land | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | Arab, Berber | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 9.574 (2003), 11.584 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.626 (2000), 9.804 (1999) | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), |
Executive branch | none | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief Michael CLANCY (since NA October 2003) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | phosphates 62% | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | US 23.7%, Japan 20.5%, Netherlands 16%, Tanzania 15.4%, Spain 6.4%, UK 5.1%, Indonesia 4.5% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | - | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship |
GDP | purchasing power parity - NA | purchasing power parity - $18 million (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: 40% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 24 30 N, 13 00 W | 15 56 S, 5 42 W |
Geography - note | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas | harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns |
Highways | total: 6,200 km
paved: 1,350 km unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est) |
total: 198 km (Saint Helena 138 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 20 km)
paved: 168 km (Saint Helena 118km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) unpaved: 30 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts |
Imports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2000) | UK 47.6%, Tanzania 14.6%, Italy 12.1%, South Africa 10.9%, US 5.3% (2002) |
Independence | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Industries | phosphate mining, handicrafts | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 20.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.66 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 3.2% (1997 est.) |
International organization participation | none | ICFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court |
Labor force | 12,000 | 3,500
note: 1,200 work offshore (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% | agriculture and fishing 6%, industry (mainly construction) 48%, services 46% (1987 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2001) |
arable land: 12.9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 87.1% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic | English |
Legal system | - | NA |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 June 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
total population: 77.38 years
male: 74.49 years female: 80.42 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | - |
National holiday | - | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi,Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian |
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 | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha |
Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore | fish |
Net migration rate | - | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | none |
Population | 267,405 (July 2004 est.) | 7,367 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | NA | 0.67% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) | Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Muslim | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed | NA years of age |
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: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic network international: HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascensionm, which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | about 2,000 (1999 est.) | 2,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1999) | 0 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 0
note: television programs are received in Saint Helena via satellite and distributed by cable (2002) |
Terrain | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast | Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman | 1.54 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 14% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |