1995 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1995 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 266,000 sq km land area: 266,000 sq km comparative area: slightly smaller than Colorado
Climate
hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew
Coastline
1,110 km
Environment
current issues: sparse water and arable land 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 international agreements: NA
International disputes
claimed and administered by Morocco, but sovereignty is unresolved and the UN is attempting to hold a referendum on the issue; the UN-administered cease-fire has been currently in effect since September 1991
Irrigated land
NA sq km
Land boundaries
total 2,046 km, Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km
Land use
arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 19% forest and woodland: 0% other: 81%
Location
Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco
Map references
Africa
Maritime claims
contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue
Natural resources
phosphates, iron ore
Terrain
mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast
People and Society
Age structure
0-14 years: NA 15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA
Birth rate
46.9 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate
18.52 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Ethnic divisions
Arab, Berber
Infant mortality rate
148.95 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Labor force
12,000 by occupation: animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50%
Languages
Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 46.31 years male: 45.34 years female: 47.59 years (1995 est.)
Literacy
NA%
Nationality
noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s) adjective: Sahrawian, Sahraouian
Net migration rate
-3.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Population
217,211 (July 1995 est.)
Population growth rate
2.48% (1995 est.)
Religions
Muslim
Total fertility rate
6.91 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Government
Administrative divisions
none (under de facto control of Morocco)
Capital
none
Digraph
WI
Diplomatic representation in US
none
Executive branch
none
Member of
none
Names
conventional long form: none conventional short form: Western Sahara
Type
legal status of territory and question of sovereignty unresolved; territory contested by Morocco and Polisario Front (Popular Front for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro), which in February 1976 formally proclaimed a government in exile of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR); territory partitioned between Morocco and Mauritania in April 1976, with Morocco acquiring northern two-thirds; Mauritania, under pressure from Polisario guerrillas, abandoned all claims to its portion in August 1979; Morocco moved to occupy that sector shortly thereafter and has since asserted administrative control; the Polisario's government in exile was seated as an OAU member in 1984; guerrilla activities continued sporadically, until a UN-monitored cease-fire was implemented 6 September 1991
US diplomatic representation
none
Economy
Agriculture
limited largely to subsistence agriculture and fishing; some barley is grown in nondrought years; fruit and vegetables are grown in the few oases; food imports are essential; camels, sheep, and goats are kept by the nomadic natives; cash economy exists largely for the garrison forces
Budget
revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Currency
1 Moroccan dirham (DH) = 100 centimes
Economic aid
$NA
Electricity
capacity: 60,000 kW production: 79 million kWh consumption per capita: 339 kWh (1993)
Exchange rates
Moroccan dirhams (DH) per US$1 - 8.892 (January 1995), 9.203 (1994), 9.299 (1993), 8.538 (1992), 8.707 (1991), 8.242 (1990)
Exports
$8 million (f.o.b., 1982 est.) commodities: phosphates 62% partners: Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts
External debt
$NA
Fiscal year
NA
Imports
$30 million (c.i.f., 1982 est.) commodities: fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs partners: Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts
Industrial production
growth rate NA%
Industries
phosphate mining, handicrafts
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
NA%
National product
GDP $NA
National product per capita
$NA
National product real growth rate
NA%
Overview
Western Sahara, a territory poor in natural resources and having little rainfall, depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. Most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Incomes and standards of living are substantially below the Moroccan level.
Unemployment rate
NA%
Communications
Radio
broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 radios: NA
Telephone system
2,000 telephones; sparse and limited system local: NA intercity: NA international: tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, troposcatter, and 2 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean) earth stations linked to Rabat, Morocco
Television
broadcast stations: 2 televisions: NA
Transportation
Airports
total: 14 with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 with paved runways under 914 m: 3 with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 1 with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 7
Highways
total: 6,200 km unpaved: gravel 1,450 km; improved, unimproved earth, tracks 4,750 km
Ports
Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, El Aaiun
Railroads
0 km
Military and Security
Branches
NA
Defense expenditures
$NA, NA% of GDP ________________________________________________________________________ WESTERN SAMOA