1994 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1994 (Project Gutenberg)
Introduction
Administrative divisions
14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Vicente, Sonsonate, Usulutan
Agriculture
accounts for 24% of GDP and 40% of labor force (including fishing and forestry); coffee most important commercial crop; other products - sugarcane, corn, rice, beans, oilseeds, beef, dairy products, shrimp; not self-sufficient in food
Airports
total: 107 usable: 76 with permanent-surface runways: 5 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 6
Area
total area: 21,040 sq km land area: 20,720 sq km comparative area: slightly smaller than Massachusetts
Birth rate
32.81 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Branches
Army, Navy, Air Force
Budget
revenues: $846 million expenditures: $890 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1992 est.)
Capital
San Salvador
Climate
tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April)
Coastline
307 km
Constitution
20 December 1983
Currency
1 Salvadoran colon (C) = 100 centavos
Death rate
6.36 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $104 million, 1.1% of GDP (1994 est.)
Digraph
ES
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: Ambassador Ana Cristina SOL chancery: 2308 California Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 265-9671 or 9672 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco
Economic aid
recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-90), $2.95 billion (plus $250 million for 1992-96); Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $525 million
Electricity
capacity: 713,800 kW production: 2.19 billion kWh consumption per capita: 390 kWh (1992)
Environment
current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes natural hazards: known as the Land of Volcanoes, subject to frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea
Ethnic divisions
mestizo 94%, Indian 5%, white 1%
Exchange rates
Salvadoran colones (C) per US$1 - 8.720 (January 1994), 8.670 (1993), 8.4500 (1992), 8.080 (1991), 8.0300 (1990), fixed rate of 5.000 (1986-1989)
Executive branch
chief of state and head of government: President Armando CALDERON SOL (since 1 June 1994); Vice President Enrique BORGO Bustamante (since 1 June 1994) election last held 20 March 1994 (next to be held March 1999); results - Armando CALDERON SOL (ARENA) 49.03%, Ruben ZAMORA Rivas (CD/FMLN/MNR) 24.09%, Fidel CHAVEZ Mena (PDC) 16.39%, other 10.49%; because no candidate received a majority, run off election was held 24 April 1994; results - Armando CALDERON SOL (ARENA) 68.35%, Ruben ZAMORA Rivas (CD/FMLN/MNR) 31.65% cabinet: Council of Ministers
Exports
$730 million (f.o.b., 1993) commodities: coffee, sugarcane, shrimp partners: US, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Germany
External debt
$2.6 billion (December 1992)
FAX
[503] 78-6011
Fiscal year
calendar year
Flag
three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band - it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band
Highways
total: 10,000 km paved: 1,500 km unpaved: gravel 4,100 km; improved, unimproved earth 4,400 km
Illicit drugs
transshipment point for cocaine; marijuana produced for local consumption
Imports
$1.9 billion (c.i.f., 1993) commodities: raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods partners: US, Guatemala, Mexico, Venezuela, Germany
Independence
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Industrial production
growth rate 7.6% (1993)
Industries
food processing, beverages, petroleum, nonmetallic products, tobacco, chemicals, textiles, furniture
Infant mortality rate
40.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
12% (1993 est.)
Inland waterways
Rio Lempa partially navigable
International disputes
land boundary dispute with Honduras mostly resolved by 11 September 1992 International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision; ICJ referred the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca to an earlier agreement in this century and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua likely would be required
Irrigated land
1,200 sq km (1989)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court (Corte Suprema)
Labor force
1.7 million (1982 est.) by occupation: agriculture 40%, commerce 16%, manufacturing 15%, government 13%, financial services 9%, transportation 6%, other 1% note: shortage of skilled labor and a large pool of unskilled labor, but manpower training programs improving situation (1984 est.)
Land boundaries
total 545 km, Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km
Land use
arable land: 27% permanent crops: 8% meadows and pastures: 29% forest and woodland: 6% other: 30%
Languages
Spanish, Nahua (among some Indians)
Legal system
based on civil and Roman law, with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative Assembly (Asamblea Legislativa)
elections last held 20 March 1994 (next to be held March 1997); results - ARENA 46.4%, FMLN 25.0%, PDC 21.4%, PCN 4.8%, other 2.4%; seats - (84 total) ARENA 39, FMLN 21, PDC 18, PCN 4, other 2
Legislative branch
unicameral
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 66.99 years male: 64.41 years female: 69.71 years (1994 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 73% male: 76% female: 70%
Location
Middle America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean between Guatemala and Honduras
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 1,351,641; fit for military service 866,010; reach military age (18) annually 74,181 (1994 est.)
Map references
Central America and the Caribbean, North America, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
territorial sea: 200 nm; overflight and navigation permitted beyond 12 nm
Member of
BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), LORCS, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Names
conventional long form: Republic of El Salvador conventional short form: El Salvador local long form: Republica de El Salvador local short form: El Salvador
National holiday
Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
National product
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $14.2 billion (1993 est.)
National product per capita
$2,500 (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate
5% (1993 est.)
Nationality
noun: Salvadoran(s) adjective: Salvadoran
Natural resources
hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum
Net migration rate
-6.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Note
smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea
Other political or pressure groups
labor organizations: Salvadoran Communal Union (UCS), peasant association; General Confederation of Workers (CGT), moderate; United Workers Front (FUT) business organizations: Productive Alliance (AP), conservative; National Federation of Salvadoran Small Businessmen (FENAPES), conservative
Overview
The agricultural sector accounts for 24% of GDP, employs about 40% of the labor force, and contributes about 66% to total exports. Coffee is the major commercial crop, accounting for 45% of export earnings. The manufacturing sector, based largely on food and beverage processing, accounts for 19% of GDP and 15% of employment. In 1992-93 the government made substantial progress toward privatization and deregulation of the economy. Growth in national output in 1990-93 exceeded growth in population for the first time since 1987, and inflation in 1993 of 12% was down from 17% in 1992
Political parties and leaders
National Republican Alliance (ARENA); Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN) has five factions - Popular Liberation Forces (FPL), Armed Forces of National Resistance (FARN), Popular Expression of Renewal (ERP), Salvadoran Communist Party (PCES), and Central American Workers' Revolutionary Party (PRTC); Christian Democratic Party (PDC); National Conciliation Party (PCN); Democratic Convergence (CD), a coalition of three parties - the Social Democratic Party (PSD), Democratic Nationalist Union (UDN), and the Popular Social Christian Movement (MPSC); Authentic Christian Movement (MAC) note: new party leaders not yet designated at time of publication
Population
5,752,511 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate
2.04% (1994 est.)
Ports
Acajutla, Cutuco
Railroads
602 km 0.914-meter gauge, single track; some sections abandoned, unusable, or operating at reduced capacity
Religions
Roman Catholic 75% note: Roman Catholic about 75%; there is extensive activity by Protestant groups throughout the country; by the end of 1992, there were an estimated 1 million Protestant evangelicals in El Salvador
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Telecommunications
nationwide trunk microwave radio relay system; connection into Central American Microwave System; 116,000 telephones (21 telephones per 1,000 persons); broadcast stations - 77 AM, no FM, 5 TV, 2 shortwave; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
Terrain
mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau
Total fertility rate
3.78 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Type
republic
Unemployment rate
6.7% (1993)
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: Ambassador Alan H. FLANIGAN embassy: Final Boulevard, Station Antigua Cuscatlan, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, San Salvador; APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 78-4444