Population:
206,629 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.52% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
47.54 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
19.57 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
-2.79 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
155.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
44.88 years
male:
43.98 years
female:
46.06 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
7.01 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality: noun:
Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective:
Sahrawian, Sahraouian
Ethnic divisions:
Arab, Berber
Religions:
Muslim
Languages:
Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic
Literacy:
total population:
NA%
male:
NA%
female:
NA%
Labor force:
12,000
by occupation:
animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50%
*Western Sahara, Government
Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Western Sahara
Digraph:
WI
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
Capital:
none
Administrative divisions:
none (under de facto control of Morocco)
Leaders:
none
Member of:
none
Diplomatic representation in US:
none
US diplomatic representation:
none
*Western Sahara, Economy
Overview:
Western Sahara, a territory poor in natural resources and having little
rainfall, has a per capita GDP of roughly $300. Pastoral nomadism, fishing,
and phosphate mining are 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.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $60 million (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate:
NA%
National product per capita:
$300 (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues $NA; expenditures $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
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
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
External debt:
$NA
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%
Electricity:
60,000 kW capacity; 79 million kWh produced, 425 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries:
phosphate mining, fishing, handicrafts
Agriculture:
limited largely to subsistence agriculture; 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
Economic aid:
NA
Currency:
1 Moroccan dirham (DH) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates:
Moroccan dirhams (DH) per US$1 - 9.034 (January 1993), 8.538 (1992), 8.707
(1991), 8.242 (1990), 8.488 (1989), 8.209 (1988)
Fiscal year:
NA
*Western Sahara, Communications
Highways:
6,200 km total; 1,450 km surfaced, 4,750 km improved and unimproved earth
roads and tracks
Ports:
El Aaiun, Ad Dakhla
Airports:
total:
14
usable:
14
with permanent-surface runways:
3
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
3
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
5
Telecommunications:
sparse and limited system; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio
relay, troposcatter, and 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations linked to
Rabat, Morocco; 2,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 2 AM, no FM, 2 TV
*Western Sahara, Defense Forces
Branches:
NA
Manpower availability:
NA
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GDP
*Western Samoa, Geography