1996 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1996 (Project Gutenberg)
Introduction
Location
24 30 N, 13 00 W -- Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco
Geography
Area
- comparative area
- about the size of Colorado
- land area
- 266,000 sq km
- total area
- 266,000 sq km
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
- international agreements
- 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
Geographic coordinates
24 30 N, 13 00 W
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 in effect since September 1991
Irrigated land
NA sq km
Land boundaries
- border countries
- Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km
- total
- 2,046 km
Land use
- arable land
- 0%
- forest and woodland
- 0%
- meadows and pastures
- 19%
- other
- 81%
- permanent crops
- 0%
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
- highest point
- unnamed location 463 m
- lowest point
- Sebjet Tah -55 m
People and Society
Age structure
0-14 years: NA 15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA
Birth rate
46.51 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate
18.02 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Ethnic divisions
Arab, Berber
Infant mortality rate
145.82 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Languages
Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic
Life expectancy at birth
- female
- 48.34 years (1996 est.)
- male
- 46 years
- total population
- 47.01 years
Literacy
NA
Nationality
- adjective
- Sahrawian, Sahraouian
- noun
- Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
Net migration rate
-3.94 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Population
222,631 (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate
2.46% (1996 est.)
Religions
Muslim
Sex ratio
- all ages
- NA male(s)/female
- at birth
- NA male(s)/female
- under 15 years
- NA male(s)/female 15-64 years: NA male(s)/female 65 years and over: NA male(s)/female
Total fertility rate
6.85 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Government
Administrative divisions
none (under defacto control of Morocco)
Capital
none
Data code
WI
Diplomatic representation in US
none
Executive branch
none
International organization participation
none
Name of country
- conventional long form
- none
- conventional short form
- Western Sahara
Type of government
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
fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by the nomads)
Budget
- expenditures
- $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
- revenues
- $NA
Currency
1 Moroccan dirham (DH) = 100 centimes
Economic aid
- recipient
- ODA, $NA
Economic 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.
Electricity
- capacity
- 60,000 kW
- consumption per capita
- 339 kWh (1993)
- production
- 79 million kWh
Exchange rates
Moroccan dirhams (DH) per US$1 - 8.607 (January 1996), 8.540 (1995), 9.203 (1994), 9.299 (1993), 8.538 (1992), 8.707 (1991)
Exports
- $NA
- commodities
- phosphates 62%
- partners
- Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts
External debt
$NA
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
purchasing power parity - $NA
GDP composition by sector
- agriculture
- NA%
- industry
- NA%
- services
- NA%
GDP per capita
$NA
GDP real growth rate
NA%
Imports
- $NA
- 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%
Labor force
- 12,000
- by occupation
- animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50%
Unemployment rate
NA%
Communications
Branches
NA
Defense expenditures
$NA, NA% of GDP
Manpower availability
- males age 15-49
- NA
- males fit for military service
- NA
Radio broadcast stations
AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0
Radios
NA
Telephone system
- sparse and limited system
- domestic
- NA
- international
- tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco
Telephones
2,000
Television broadcast stations
2
Televisions
NA Defense
Transportation
Airports
- total
- 12
- with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m
- 3
- with paved runways under 914 m
- 3
- with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m
- 1
- with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m
- 5 (1995 est.)
Heliports
1 (1995 est.)
Highways
- paved
- 0 km
- total
- 6,200 km
- unpaved
- 6,200 km
Ports
Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, El Aaiun
Railways
0 km