Legend:
 Definition
 Field Listing
 Rank Order
|
Background:
|
Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and claimed 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 the territory's 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 that called for independence. Representatives from the Government of Morocco and the Polisario Front have met four times since June 2007 to negotiate the status of Western Sahara, but talks have stalled since the UN envoy to the territory stated in April 2008 that independence is unrealistic.
|
|
Location:
|
Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco
|
|
Geographic coordinates:
|
24 30 N, 13 00 W
|
|
Map references:
|
Africa
|
|
Area:
|
total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km
water: 0 sq km
|
|
Area - comparative:
|
about the size of Colorado
|
|
Land boundaries:
|
total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km
|
|
Coastline:
|
1,110 km
|
|
Maritime claims:
|
contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue
|
|
Climate:
|
hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew
|
|
Terrain:
|
mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast
|
|
Elevation extremes:
|
lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed elevation 805 m
|
|
Natural resources:
|
phosphates, iron ore
|
|
Land use:
|
arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 99.98% (2005)
|
|
Irrigated land:
|
NA
|
|
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
|
|
Environment - current issues:
|
sparse water and lack of arable land
|
|
Environment - international agreements:
|
party to: none of the selected agreements
|
|
Geography - note:
|
the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas
|
|
Population:
|
405,210
note: estimate is based on projections by age, sex, fertility, mortality, and migration; fertility and mortality are based on data from neighboring countries (July 2009 est.)
|
|
Age structure:
|
0-14 years: 44.9% (male 92,428/female 89,570)
15-64 years: 52.8% (male 105,191/female 108,803)
65 years and over: 2.3% (male 3,881/female 5,337) (2009 est.)
|
|
Median age:
|
total: 17.3 years
male: 16.8 years
female: 17.8 years (2009 est.)
|
|
Population growth rate:
|
2.829% NA (2009 est.)
|
|
Birth rate:
|
39.54 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
|
|
Death rate:
|
11.74 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
|
|
Urbanization:
|
urban population: 81% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 4% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
|
|
Sex ratio:
|
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
|
|
Infant mortality rate:
|
total: 69.66 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 69.84 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 69.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
|
|
Life expectancy at birth:
|
total population: 54.32 years
male: 52 years
female: 56.73 years (2009 est.)
|
|
Total fertility rate:
|
NA 5.61 children born/woman (2009 est.)
|
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
|
NA
|
|
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
|
NA
|
|
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
|
NA
|
|
Nationality:
|
noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian
|
|
Ethnic groups:
|
Arab, Berber
|
|
Religions:
|
Muslim
|
|
Languages:
|
Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic
|
|
Literacy:
|
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. 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.
|
|
GDP (purchasing power parity):
|
$900 million (2007 est.)
|
|
GDP (official exchange rate):
|
$NA
|
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
NA%
|
|
GDP - per capita (PPP):
|
$2,500 (2007 est.)
|
|
GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: 40% (2007 est.)
|
|
Labor force:
|
12,000 (2005 est.)
|
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
agriculture: 50%
industry and services: 50% (2005 est.)
|
|
Unemployment rate:
|
NA%
|
|
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
|
|
Budget:
|
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA
|
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
NA%
|
|
Agriculture - products:
|
fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads); fish
|
|
Industries:
|
phosphate mining, handicrafts
|
|
Industrial production growth rate:
|
NA%
|
|
Electricity - production:
|
90 million kWh (2006 est.)
|
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
83.7 million kWh (2006 est.)
|
|
Electricity - exports:
|
0 kWh (2007)
|
|
Electricity - imports:
|
0 kWh (2007 est.)
|
|
Oil - production:
|
0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
|
|
Oil - consumption:
|
1,760 bbl/day (2006 est.)
|
|
Oil - exports:
|
0 bbl/day (2005)
|
|
Oil - imports:
|
1,925 bbl/day (2005)
|
|
Oil - proved reserves:
|
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - production:
|
0 cu m (2007 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - consumption:
|
0 cu m (2007 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - exports:
|
0 cu m (2007 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - imports:
|
0 cu m (2007 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - proved reserves:
|
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
|
|
Exports:
|
$NA
|
|
Exports - commodities:
|
phosphates 62%
|
|
Imports:
|
$NA
|
|
Imports - commodities:
|
fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs
|
|
Debt - external:
|
$NA
|
|
Exchange rates:
|
Moroccan dirhams (MAD) per US dollar - 7.526 (2008 est.), 8.3563 (2007), 8.7722 (2006), 8.865 (2005), 8.868 (2004)
|
|
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; 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
|
This page was last updated on 14 May 2009
|
