Western Sahara (2005) | Grenada (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (under de facto control of Morocco) | 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
0-14 years: 35.9% (male 16,213; female 15,863)
15-64 years: 60.3% (male 28,460; female 25,307) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 1,546; female 1,822) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables |
Airports | 11 (2004 est.) | 3 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 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: 344 sq km
land: 344 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about the size of Colorado | 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. | One of the smallest independent countries in the western hemisphere, Grenada was seized by a Marxist military council on 19 October 1983. Six days later the island was invaded by US forces and those of six other Caribbean nations, which quickly captured the ringleaders and their hundreds of Cuban advisers. Free elections were reinstituted the following year. |
Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population | 23.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
revenues: $85.8 million
expenditures: $102.1 million, including capital expenditures of $28 million (1997) |
Capital | none | Saint George's |
Climate | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew | tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 1,110 km | 121 km |
Constitution | - | 19 December 1973 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Grenada |
Currency | - | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 7.63 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $196 million (2000) (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none | chief of mission: the ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada; Charge d'Affairs Nadia TONGOUR
embassy: Point Salines, Saint George's mailing address: P. O. Box 54, Saint George's, Grenada, West Indies telephone: [1] (473) 444-1173 through 1176 FAX: [1] (473) 444-4820 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none | chief of mission: Ambassador Denis G. ANTOINE
chancery: 1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2561 FAX: [1] (202) 265-2468 consulate(s) general: New York |
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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $8.3 million (1995) (1995) |
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. | Despite government steadying of annual economic growth in recent years through progress in fiscal reform and prudent macroeconomic management, a downturn in tourist arrivals in 2001 threatens government spending in 2002. Grenada relies on tourism as its main source of foreign exchange, although it also supports a small agriculture sector and a developing offshore financial industry. Short-term concerns include a rising fiscal deficit and the deterioration in the external account balance. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (2002) | 102.3 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (2002) | 110 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Arab, Berber | black 82%, mixed black and European 13%, European and East Indian 5% , and trace of Arawak/Carib Amerindian |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003), 11.0206 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.6256 (2000) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) |
Executive branch | none | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Daniel WILLIAMS (since 9 August 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Keith MITCHELL (since 22 June 1995) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
Exports | NA | $78 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | phosphates 62% | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace |
Exports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | Caricom 32.3%, UK 20%, US 13%, Netherlands 8.8% (1991) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | - | a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (top and bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with a red border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointed stars with three centered in the top red border, three centered in the bottom red border, and one on a red disk superimposed at the center of the flag; there is also a symbolic nutmeg pod on the hoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's second-largest producer of nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars represent the seven administrative divisions |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $424 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: 40% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 24% services: 68% (2000) (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | purchasing power parity - $4,750 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 6.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 24 30 N, 13 00 W | 12 07 N, 61 40 W |
Geography - note | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada |
Highways | total: 6,200 km
paved: 1,350 km unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est) |
total: 1,040 km
paved: 638 km unpaved: 402 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana and cocaine to US |
Imports | NA | $270 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs | food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel (1989) |
Imports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | US 31.2%, Caricom 23.6%, UK 13.8%, Japan 7.1% (1991) |
Independence | - | 7 February 1974 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 0.7% (1997 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, handicrafts | food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
14.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 2.8% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | none | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 14 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada) |
Labor force | 12,000 | 42,300 (1996) (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% | services 62%, agriculture 24%, industry 14% (1999 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: 5.88%
permanent crops: 26.47% other: 67.65% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic | English (official), French patois |
Legal system | - | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | - | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 13-member body, 10 appointed by the government and three by the leader of the opposition) and the House of Representatives (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 18 January 1999 (next to be held by NA October 2004) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NNP 14, GULP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
total population: 64.52 years
male: 62.74 years female: 66.31 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | - | Royal Grenada Police Force, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 7 February (1974) |
Nationality | noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
noun: Grenadian(s)
adjective: Grenadian |
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 | lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November |
Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore | timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors |
Net migration rate | - | -15.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Grenada United Labor Party or GULP [Herbert PREUDHOMME]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [leader vacant]; New National Party or NNP [George McGUIRE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 273,008 (July 2005 est.) | 89,211 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | NA | 0.02% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) | Grenville, Saint George's |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 57,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Muslim | Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2% |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.08 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: automatic, islandwide telephone system
domestic: interisland VHF and UHF radiotelephone links international: new SHF radiotelephone links to Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Vincent; VHF and UHF radio links to Trinidad |
Telephones - main lines in use | about 2,000 (1999 est.) | 27,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1999) | 976 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast | volcanic in origin with central mountains |
Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman | 2.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 11.5% (1999) (1999) |
Waterways | - | none |