Western Sahara (2005) | Western Sahara (2008) | |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
0-14 years: 45.4% (male 88,176/female 85,421)
15-64 years: 52.3% (male 98,345/female 101,895) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 3,705/female 5,075) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads); fish |
Airports | 11 (2004 est.) | 9 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2007) |
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: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
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. | 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. In April 2007, Morocco presented an autonomy plan for the territory to the UN, which the U.S. considers serious and credible. The Polisario also presented a plan to the UN in 2007. Since August 2007, representatives from the Government of Morocco and the Polisario Front have met three times to negotiate the status of Western Sahara, with a fourth round of negotiations planned for March 2008. |
Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population | NA 39.95 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | none | none
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | NA |
Debt - external | NA | $NA |
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 | 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; several states have extended diplomatic relations to the "Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic" represented by the Polisario Front in exile in Algeria, while others recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara; most of the approximately 102,000 Sahrawi refugees are sheltered in camps in Tindouf, Algeria |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $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. | 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. Incomes in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. The Moroccan Government controls all trade and other economic activities in Western Sahara. Morocco and the EU signed a four-year agreement in July 2006 allowing European vessels to fish off the coast of Morocco, including the disputed waters off the coast of Western Sahara. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. However, in 2006 the Polisario awarded similar exploration licenses in the disputed territory, which would come into force if Morocco and the Polisario resolve their dispute over Western Sahara. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (2002) | 79.05 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (2002) | 85 million kWh (2005) |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003), 11.0206 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.6256 (2000) | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.2827 (2007), 8.7722 (2006), 8.865 (2005), 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003) |
Exports | NA | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2006) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: 40% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: 40% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | NA% |
Highways | total: 6,200 km
paved: 1,350 km unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA | 1,698 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2006) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | NA% |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% | agriculture: 50%
industry and services: 50% |
Land use | arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2001) |
arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2005) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
NA |
Population | 273,008 (July 2005 est.) | 382,617
note: estimate is based on projections by age, sex, fertility, mortality, and migration; fertility and mortality are based on data from neighboring countries (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Ports and harbors | Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) | - |
Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman | NA |
Unemployment rate | NA | NA% |