Map of Syria | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976 Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. Talks with Israel over the return of the Golan Heights have recently been revived.


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Location

Geographic coordinates

Map reference

Area

Land boundaries:

Coastline: 193 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 6 nm beyond territorial sea limit
Territorial sea: 35 nm

Climate: mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast

Terrain: primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west

Elevation

Natural resources: crude oil, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum

Land use: arable land: 28%; permanent crops: 3%; meadows and pastures 46%; forest and woodland 3%; other 20%; includes irrigated 3%

Irrigated land

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards

Geography
Note: there are 38 Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights


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Population: 12,965,996 (July 1991), growth rate 3.8% (1991; in addition, there are at least 12,000 Druze and 13,000 Jewish settlers in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (1990 est.)

Nationality: noun--Syrian(s; adjective--Syrian

Ethnic groups: Arab 90.3%; Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%

Languages: Arabic (official), Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian; French widely understood

Religions: Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, tiny Jewish communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate

Birth rate: 43 births/1000 population (1991)

Death rate: 5 deaths/1000 population (1991)

Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1000 population (1991)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 37 deaths/1000 live births (1991)

Life expectancy at birth: 68 years male, 71 years female (1991)

Total fertility rate: 6.7 children born/woman (1991)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy: 64% (male 78%, female 51%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name: conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic

Government type: republic; under leftwing military regime since March 1963

Capital: Damascus

Administrative divisions: 14 provinces (muhafazat, singular--muhafazah; Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda, Dara, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus

Dependent areas

Independence: 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration; formerly United Arab Republic

National holiday: National Day, 17 April (1946)

Constitution: 13 March 1973

Legal system: based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: universal at age 18

Executive branch: Chief of State--President Hafiz al-ASAD (since 22 February 1971; Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim KHADDAM, Rifat al-ASAD, and Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984; Head of Government--Prime Minister Mahmud ZUBI (since 1 November 1987; Deputy Prime Minister Lt. Gen. Mustafa TALAS (since 11 March 1984; Deputy Prime Minister Salim YASIN (since NA December 1981; Deputy Prime Minister Mahmud QADDUR (since NA May 1985)

Legislative branch: Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force, Syrian Arab Air Defense Forces, Police and Security Force

Judicial branch: Supreme Constitutional Court, High Judicial Council, Court of Cassation, State Security Courts

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us: Ambassador Walid MOUALEM; Chancery at 2,215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington DC 20,008; telephone (202) 232-6,313; US--Ambassador Edward P. DJEREJIAN; Embassy at Abu Rumaneh, Al Mansur Street No.2, Damascus (mailing address is P. O. Box 29, Damascus; telephone [963] (11) 333,052 or 332,557, 330,416, 332,814, 332,315, 714,108, 337,178, 333,232, 334,352

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Yemen which has a plain white band and of Iraq which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt which has a symbolic eagle centered in the white band Syria SyriaSyria

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Syria's rigidly structured Bathist economy turned out slightly more goods in 1990 than in 1983, when the population was 20% smaller. Economic difficulties are attributable, in part, to severe drought in several recent years, costly but unsuccessful attempts to match Israel's military strength, a falloff in Arab aid, and insufficient foreign exchange earnings to buy needed inputs for industry and agriculture. Socialist policy, embodied in a thicket of bureaucratic regulations, in many instances has driven away or pushed underground the mercantile and entrepreneurial spirit for which Syrian businessmen have
Long been famous. Two bright spots: a sizable number of villagers have benefited from land redistribution, electrification, and other rural development programs; and a recent find of light crude oil has enabled Syria to cut oil imports. A long-term concern is the additional drain of upstream Euphrates water by Turkey when its vast dam and irrigation projects are completed toward the end of the 1990s. Output in 1990 rebounded from the very bad year of 1989, as agricultural production and oil revenues increased substantially.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate

Real gdp per capita

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: accounts for 27% of GDP and one-third of labor force; all major crops (wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas) grown mainly on rainfed land causing wide swings in production; animal products--beef, lamb, eggs, poultry, milk; not self-sufficient in grain or livestock products

Industries: textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining, petroleum

Industrial production growth rate: 17% (1990 est.), accounts for 19% of GDP

Labor force: 2,400,000; miscellaneous and government services 36%, agriculture 32%, industry and construction 32%; majority unskilled; shortage of skilled labor (1984)

Unemployment rate: NA%

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget: revenues $4.8 billion; expenditures $5.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.1 billion (1990 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $2.3 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.)
Commodities: petroleum 40%, textiles 30%, farm products 13%, phosphates (1989)
Partners: USSR and Eastern Europe 42%, EC 31%, Arab countries 17%, US/Canada 2% (1989)

Imports: $2.5 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.)
Commodities: foodstuffs and beverages 21%, metal and metal products 16%, machinery 14%, textiles, petroleum (1989)
Partners: EC 42%, USSR and Eastern Europe 13%, other Europe 13%, US/Canada 8%, Arab countries 6% (1989)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $5.2 billion in hard currency (1990 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Syrian pounds (5S) per US$1--11.2250 (fixed rate since 1987), 3.9250 (fixed rate 1976-87)


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Electricity
Capacity: 2,867,000 kW capacity; 6,000 million kWh produced, 500 kWh per capita (1989)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: $1.6 billion, 10.9% of GDP (1988 est.)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 99 total, 96 usable; 24 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 21 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 4 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Heliports

Pipelines: 1,304 km crude oil; 515 km refined products

Railways

Roadways

Waterways: 672 km; of little economic importance

Merchant marine: 22 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 61,951 GRT/86,552 DWT; includes 18 cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 1 vehicle carrier, 1 bulk

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: separated from Israel by the 1949 Armistice Line; Golan Heights is Israeli occupied; Hatay question with Turkey; periodic disputes with Iraq over Euphrates water rights; ongoing dispute over water development plans by Turkey for the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers; Kurdish question among Iran, Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and the USSR

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs