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Compare Western Sahara (2005) - Eritrea (2001)

Compare Western Sahara (2005) z Eritrea (2001)

 Western Sahara (2005)Eritrea (2001)
 Western SaharaEritrea
Administrative divisions none (under de facto control of Morocco) 8 provinces (singular - awraja); Akale Guzay, Barka, Denkel, Hamasen, Sahil, Semhar, Senhit, Seraye

note:
in May 1995 the National Assembly adopted a resolution stating that the administrative structure of Eritrea, which had been established by former colonial powers, would consist of only six provinces when the new constitution, then being drafted, became effective in 1997; the new provinces, the names of which had not been recommended by the US Board on Geographic Names for recognition by the US Government, pending acceptable definition of the boundaries, were: Anseba, Debub, Debubawi Keyih Bahri, Gash-Barka, Maakel, and Semanawi Keyih Bahri; more recently, it has been reported that these provinces have been redesignated regions and renamed Southern Red Sea, Northern Red Sea, Anseba, Gash-Barka, Southern, and Central
Age structure 0-14 years: NA


15-64 years: NA


65 years and over: NA
0-14 years:
42.85% (male 922,691; female 918,916)

15-64 years:
53.87% (male 1,147,927; female 1,167,705)

65 years and over:
3.28% (male 71,232; female 69,798) (2001 est.)
Agriculture - products fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish
Airports 11 (2004 est.) 20 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 3


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

over 3,047 m:
1

2,438 to 3,047 m:
1 (2000 est.)
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:
18

over 3,047 m:
2

2,438 to 3,047 m:
2

1,524 to 2,437 m:
5

914 to 1,523 m:
7

under 914 m:
2 (2000 est.)
Area total: 266,000 sq km


land: 266,000 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total:
121,320 sq km

land:
121,320 sq km

water:
0 sq km
Area - comparative about the size of Colorado slightly larger than Pennsylvania
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. Eritrea was awarded to Ethiopia in 1952 as part of a federation. Ethiopia's annexation of Eritrea as a province 10 years later sparked a 30-year struggle for independence that ended in 1991 with Eritrean rebels defeating governmental forces; independence was overwhelmingly approved in a 1993 referendum. A two and a half year border war with Ethiopia that erupted in 1998 ended under UN auspices on 12 December 2000.
Birth rate NA births/1,000 population 42.52 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Budget revenues: NA


expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA
revenues:
$283.9 million

expenditures:
$351.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.)
Capital none Asmara (formerly Asmera)
Climate hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually); semiarid in western hills and lowlands; rainfall heaviest during June-September except in coastal desert
Coastline 1,110 km 2,234 km total; mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km
Constitution - the transitional constitution, decreed on 19 May 1993, was replaced by a new constitution adopted on 23 May 1997, but not yet implemented
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Western Sahara


former: Spanish Sahara
conventional long form:
State of Eritrea

conventional short form:
Eritrea

local long form:
Hagere Ertra

local short form:
Ertra

former:
Eritrea Autonomous Region in Ethiopia
Currency - nakfa (ERN)
Death rate NA deaths/1,000 population 12.07 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Debt - external NA $281 million (2000 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US none chief of mission:
Ambassador William D. CLARKE

embassy:
Franklin D. Roosevelt Street, Asmara

mailing address:
P. O. Box 211, Asmara

telephone:
[291] (1) 120004

FAX:
[291] (1) 127584
Diplomatic representation in the US none chief of mission:
Ambassador GIRMA Asmerom

chancery:
1708 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009

telephone:
[1] (202) 319-1991

FAX:
[1] (202) 319-1304
Disputes - international Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991, administered by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals as a result of the 12 December 2000 peace agreement ending a two-year war with Ethiopia, the UN will administer a 25-km wide temporary security zone within Eritrea until a joint boundary commission delimits and demarcates a final boundary
Economic aid - recipient NA $77 million (1999)
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. With independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993, Eritrea faced the economic problems of a small, desperately poor country. The economy is largely based on subsistence agriculture, with 80% of the population involved in farming and herding. The small industrial sector consists mainly of light industries with outmoded technologies. Domestic output (GDP) is substantially augmented by worker remittances from abroad. Government revenues come from custom duties and taxes on income and sales. Road construction is a top domestic priority. In the long term, Eritrea may benefit from the development of offshore oil, offshore fishing, and tourism. Eritrea's economic future depends on its ability to master fundamental social and economic problems, e.g., by reducing illiteracy, promoting job creation, expanding technical training, attracting foreign investment, and streamlining the bureaucracy. Eritrea's agriculture over the last two years was severely weakened by war and drought, and many farmlands must wait to be demined. Another major difficulty is the ports, which prior to the war were Ethiopia's preferred outlets but since have seen trade dry up.
Electricity - consumption 83.7 million kWh (2002) 153.5 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2002) 0 kWh NA kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2002) 0 kWh NA kWh (1999)
Electricity - production 90 million kWh (2002) 165 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel:
100%

hydro:
0%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m


highest point: unnamed location 463 m
lowest point:
near Kulul within the Denakil depression -75 m

highest point:
Soira 3,018 m
Environment - current issues sparse water and lack of arable land deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare
Environment - international agreements party to: none of the selected agreements


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species

signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Arab, Berber ethnic Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%
Exchange rates Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003), 11.0206 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.6256 (2000) nakfa per US dollar = 9.5 (January 2000), 7.6 (January 1999), 7.2 (March 1998 est.)
Executive branch none chief of state:
President ISAIAS Afworki (since 8 June 1993); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly

head of government:
President ISAIAS Afworki (since 8 June 1993); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly

cabinet:
State Council is the collective executive authority

elections:
president elected by the National Assembly; election last held 8 June 1993 (next tentatively scheduled for December 2001)

election results:
ISAIAS Afworki elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - ISAIAS Afworki 95%
Exports NA $26 million (f.o.b., 1999)
Exports - commodities phosphates 62% livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures
Exports - partners Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts Sudan 27.2%, Ethiopia 26.5%, Japan 13.2%, UAE 7.3%, Italy 5.3% (1998)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description - red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) dividing the flag into two right triangles; the upper triangle is green, the lower one is blue; a gold wreath encircling a gold olive branch is centered on the hoist side of the red triangle
GDP - purchasing power parity - $2.9 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: NA


industry: NA


services: 40% (1996 est.)
agriculture:
16%

industry:
27%

services:
57% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - NA purchasing power parity - $710 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate NA -1% (2000 est.)
Geographic coordinates 24 30 N, 13 00 W 15 00 N, 39 00 E
Geography - note the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas strategic geopolitical position along world's busiest shipping lanes; Eritrea retained the entire coastline of Ethiopia along the Red Sea upon de jure independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993
Highways total: 6,200 km


paved: 1,350 km


unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est)
total:
3,850 km

paved:
810 km

unpaved:
3,040 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
Imports NA $560 million (c.i.f., 1999)
Imports - commodities fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods
Imports - partners Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts Italy 17.4%, UAE 16.2%, Germany 5.7%, UK 4.5%, Korea 4.4% (1998)
Independence - 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia)
Industrial production growth rate NA NA%
Industries phosphate mining, handicrafts food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles
Infant mortality rate total: NA


male: NA


female: NA
75.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) NA 14% (2000 est.)
International organization participation none ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 4 (2000)
Irrigated land NA sq km 280 sq km (1993 est.)
Judicial branch - Supreme Court; 10 provincial courts; 29 district courts
Labor force 12,000 NA
Labor force - by occupation animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% agriculture 80%, industry and services 20%
Land boundaries total: 2,046 km


border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km
total:
1,630 km

border countries:
Djibouti 113 km, Ethiopia 912 km, Sudan 605 km
Land use arable land: 0.02%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 99.98% (2001)
arable land:
12%

permanent crops:
1%

permanent pastures:
49%

forests and woodland:
6%

other:
32% (1998 est.)
Languages Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic Afar, Amharic, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages
Legal system - operates on the basis of transitional laws that incorporate pre-independence statutes of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front, revised Ethiopian laws, customary laws, and post independence enacted laws
Legislative branch - unicameral National Assembly (150 seats; term limits not established)

elections:
in May 1997, following the adoption of the new constitution, 75 members of the PFDJ Central Committee (the old Central Committee of the EPLF), 60 members of the 527-member Constituent Assembly which had been established in 1997 to discuss and ratify the new constitution, and 15 representatives of Eritreans living abroad were formed into a Transitional National Assembly to serve as the country's legislative body until country-wide elections to a National Assembly are held; only 75 members will be elected to the National Assembly - the other 75 will be members of the Central Committee of the PFDJ; parliamentary elections are now scheduled for NA December 2001
Life expectancy at birth total population: NA years


male: NA years


female: NA years
total population:
56.18 years

male:
53.73 years

female:
58.71 years (2001 est.)
Literacy definition: NA


total population: NA%


male: NA%


female: NA%
definition:
NA

total population:
25%

male:
NA%

female:
NA%
Location Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan
Map references Africa Africa
Maritime claims contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue territorial sea:
12 NM
Merchant marine - total:
5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,069 GRT/19,549 DWT

ships by type:
bulk 1, cargo 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.)
Military branches - Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $160 million (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP - 29.4% (2000 est.)
National holiday - Independence Day, 24 May (1993)
Nationality noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)


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

adjective:
Eritrean
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 frequent droughts; locust swarms
Natural resources phosphates, iron ore gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish
Net migration rate - 7.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

note:
according to the UNHCR, about 150,000 Eritrean refugees in Sudan have registered for voluntary repatriation, following the restoration of diplomatic relations between Eritrea and Sudan in January 2000
Political parties and leaders - People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, the only party recognized by the government [ISAIAS Afworki, PETROS Solomon]; note - the National Assembly has appointed a committee to draft a law on political parties
Political pressure groups and leaders none Eritrean Islamic Jihad or EIJ; Eritrean Liberation Front or ELF [ABDULLAH Muhammed]; Eritrean Liberation Front-Revolutionary Council or ELF-RC [Ahmed NASSER]; Eritrean Liberation Front-United Organization or ELF-UO [Mohammed Said NAWD]
Population 273,008 (July 2005 est.) 4,298,269 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line NA NA%
Population growth rate NA 3.84% (2001 est.)
Ports and harbors Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) Assab (Aseb), Massawa (Mits'iwa)
Radio broadcast stations AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 2, FM 1, shortwave 2 (2000)
Radios - 345,000 (1997)
Railways - total:
317 km

narrow gauge:
317 km 0.950-m gauge (1999)

note:
links Ak'ordat and Asmara with the port of Massawa; nonoperational since 1978 except for about a 5 km stretch that was reopened in Massawa in 1994; rehabilitation of the remainder and of the rolling stock is under way
Religions Muslim Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant
Sex ratio NA at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1 male(s)/female

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

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

total population:
0.99 male(s)/female (2001 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:
NA

domestic:
very inadequate; most telephones are in Asmara; government is seeking international tenders to improve the system

international:
NA
Telephones - main lines in use about 2,000 (1999 est.) 23,578 (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 0 (1999) NA
Television broadcast stations NA 1 (2000)
Terrain mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast dominated by extension of Ethiopian north-south trending highlands, descending on the east to a coastal desert plain, on the northwest to hilly terrain and on the southwest to flat-to-rolling plains
Total fertility rate NA children born/woman 5.87 children born/woman (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate NA NA%
Waterways - none
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