2015 Edition

Background

Western Sahara is a disputed territory on the northwest coast of Africa bordered by Morocco, Mauritania, and Algeria. After Spain withdrew from its former colony of Spanish Sahara in 1976, Morocco annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara and claimed the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Morocco's sovereignty ended in a 1991 cease-fire and the establishment of a UN peacekeeping operation. As part of this effort, the UN sought to offer a choice to the peoples of the Western Sahara between independence (favored by the Polisario Front) or integration into Morocco. A proposed referendum never took place due to lack of agreement on voter eligibility. The 2,700 km- (1,700 mi-) long defensive sand berm, built by the Moroccans from 1980 to 1987 and running the length of the territory, continues to separate the opposing forces with Morocco controlling the roughly 80 percent of the territory west of the berm. Local demonstrations criticizing the Moroccan authorities occur regularly, and there are periodic ethnic tensions between the native Sahrawi population and Moroccan immigrants. Morocco maintains a heavy security presence in the territory.

Area

land

266,000 sq km

total

266,000 sq km

water

0 sq km

Area - comparative

about the size of Colorado

Climate

hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew

Coastline

1,110 km

Elevation extremes

highest point

unnamed elevation 805 m

lowest point

Sebjet Tah -55 m

Environment - current issues

sparse water and lack of arable land

Geographic coordinates

24 30 N, 13 00 W

Geography - note

the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas

Irrigated land

NA

Land boundaries

border countries (3)

Algeria 41 km, Mauritania 1,564 km, Morocco 444 km

total

2,049 km

Land use

arable land 0%; permanent crops 0%; permanent pasture 18.8%

agricultural land

18.8%

forest

2.7%

other

78.5% (2011 est.)

Location

Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco

Map references

Africa

Maritime claims

contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue

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

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

Age structure

0-14 years

37.83% (male 109,147/female 106,789)

15-24 years

19.63% (male 56,412/female 55,624)

25-54 years

33.93% (male 95,296/female 98,391)

55-64 years

4.87% (male 12,974/female 14,829)

65 years and over

3.75% (male 9,406/female 11,998) (2015 est.)

Birth rate

30.24 births/1,000 population (2015 est.)

Death rate

8.34 deaths/1,000 population (2015 est.)

Dependency ratios

elderly dependency ratio

4.1%

potential support ratio

24.4% (2015 est.)

total dependency ratio

40.2%

youth dependency ratio

36.1%

Ethnic groups

Arab, Berber

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

NA

Infant mortality rate

female

49.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2015 est.)

male

59.61 deaths/1,000 live births

total

54.7 deaths/1,000 live births

Languages

Standard Arabic (national), Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic

Life expectancy at birth

female

65.02 years (2015 est.)

male

60.35 years

total population

62.64 years

Major urban areas - population

Laayoune 262,000 (2014)

Median age

female

21.4 years (2015 est.)

male

20.5 years

total

20.9 years

Nationality

adjective

Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian

noun

Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)

Population

570,866 (July 2013 est.)

note

estimate is based on projections by age, sex, fertility, mortality, and migration; fertility and mortality are based on data from neighboring countries (July 2015 est.)

Population growth rate

2.82% (2015 est.)

Religions

Muslim

Sex ratio

0-14 years

1.02 male(s)/female

15-24 years

1.01 male(s)/female

25-54 years

0.97 male(s)/female

55-64 years

0.88 male(s)/female

65 years and over

0.78 male(s)/female

at birth

1.04 male(s)/female

total population

0.99 male(s)/female (2015 est.)

Total fertility rate

4 children born/woman (2015 est.)

Urbanization

rate of urbanization

3.27% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

urban population

80.9% of total population (2015)

Administrative divisions

none officially, the territory west of the Moroccan berm falls under de facto Moroccan control; Morocco claims the territory of Western Sahara, the political status of which is considered undetermined by the US Government; portions of the regions Guelmim-Es Smara and Laayoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra as claimed by Morocco lie within Western Sahara; Morocco also claims Oued Eddahab-Lagouira, another region that falls entirely within Western Sahara

Capital

Laayoune (administrative center)

daylight saving time

+1hr, begins last Sunday in April; ends last Sunday in September

time difference

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Country name

conventional long form

none

conventional short form

Western Sahara

former

Rio de Oro, Saguia el Hamra, Spanish Sahara

Diplomatic representation from the US

none

Diplomatic representation in the US

none

Executive branch

none

Government type

legal status of territory and issue 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, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), based out of refugee camps near Tindouf, Algeria, led by President Mohamed ABDELAZIZ

International organization participation

AU, CAN (observer), WFTU (NGOs)

Political pressure groups and leaders

none

Suffrage

none; (residents of Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara participate in Moroccan elections)

Agriculture - products

fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads); fish

Budget

expenditures

$NA

revenues

$NA

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)

NA%

Debt - external

$NA

Economy - overview

Western Sahara has a small market-based economy whose main industries are fishing, phosphate mining, and pastoral nomadism. The territory's arid desert climate makes sedentary agriculture difficult, and Western Sahara imports much of its food. The Moroccan Government administers Western Sahara's economy and is a key source of employment, infrastructure development, and social spending in the territory. Western Sahara's unresolved legal status makes the exploitation of its natural resources a contentious issue between Morocco and the Polisario. Morocco and the EU in December 2013 finalized a four-year agreement allowing European vessels to fish off the coast of Morocco, including disputed waters off the coast of Western Sahara. Oil has never been found in Western Sahara in commercially significant quantities, but Morocco and the Polisario have quarreled over who has the right to authorize and benefit from oil exploration in the territory. Western Sahara's main long-term economic challenge is the development of a more diverse set of industries capable of providing greater employment and income to the territory.

Exchange rates

Moroccan dirhams (MAD) per US dollar -

8.3798 (2014)

8.3803 (2013)

8.6 (2012)

8.0899 (2011)

8.4172 (2010)

Exports

$NA

Exports - commodities

phosphates 62% (2012 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP - composition, by sector of origin

agriculture

NA%

industry

NA%

services

40% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$2,500 (2007 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

NA%

GDP (official exchange rate)

$NA

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$906.5 million (2007 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

highest 10%

NA%

lowest 10%

NA%

Imports

$NA

Imports - commodities

fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs

Industrial production growth rate

NA%

Industries

phosphate mining, handicrafts

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

NA%

Labor force

144,000 (2010 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture

50%

industry and services

50% (2005 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Taxes and other revenues

NA%

Unemployment rate

NA%

Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy

316,100 Mt (2012 est.)

Crude oil - exports

0 bbl/day (2012 est.)

Crude oil - imports

0 bbl/day (2012 est.)

Crude oil - production

0 bbl/day (2014 est.)

Crude oil - proved reserves

0 bbl (1 January 2015 est.)

Electricity - consumption

83.7 million kWh (2012 est.)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2013 est.)

Electricity - from fossil fuels

100% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

Electricity - from hydroelectric plants

0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

Electricity - from nuclear fuels

0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

Electricity - from other renewable sources

0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

Electricity - imports

0 kWh (2013 est.)

Electricity - installed generating capacity

58,000 kW (2012 est.)

Electricity - production

90 million kWh (2012 est.)

Natural gas - consumption

0 cu m (2013 est.)

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2013 est.)

Natural gas - imports

0 cu m (2013 est.)

Natural gas - production

0 cu m (2013 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

0 cu m (1 January 2014 est.)

Refined petroleum products - consumption

1,700 bbl/day (2013 est.)

Refined petroleum products - exports

0 bbl/day (2012 est.)

Refined petroleum products - imports

1,702 bbl/day (2012 est.)

Refined petroleum products - production

0 bbl/day (2012 est.)

Broadcast media

Morocco's state-owned broadcaster, Radio-Television Marocaine (RTM), operates a radio service from Laayoune and relays TV service; a Polisario-backed radio station also broadcasts (2008)

Internet country code

.eh

Radio broadcast stations

AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998)

Telephone system

domestic

NA

general assessment

sparse and limited system

international

country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco (2008)

Television broadcast stations

NA

Airports

6 (2013)

Airports - with paved runways

2,438 to 3,047 m

3 (2013)

total

3

Airports - with unpaved runways

1 (2013)

1,524 to 2,437 m

1

914 to 1,523 m

1

total

3

Ports and terminals

major seaport(s)

Ad Dakhla, Laayoune (El Aaiun)

Manpower fit for military service

females age 16-49

87,362 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49

79,489

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually

female

5,429 (2010 est.)

male

5,523

Disputes - international

many neighboring states reject Moroccan administration of Western Sahara; 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; approximately 90,000 Sahrawi refugees continue to be sheltered in camps in Tindouf, Algeria, which has hosted Sahrawi refugees since the 1980s