Map of Spain | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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Background: A powerful world empire in the 16th and 17th centuries, Spain ultimately yielded command of the seas to England, beginning with the defeat of the Armada in 1588. Spain subsequently failed to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions and fell behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power. Spain remained neutral in World Wars I and II. In the second half of the 20th century Spain played a catch-up role in the western international community. Continuing problems are large-scale unemployment and the Basque separatist movement.


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Location: Southwestern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, between Portugal and France

Geographic coordinates

Map reference: Africa, Europe, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area
Total area total: 504,750 km²
Land: 499,400 km²

Land boundaries: total 1,903.2 km, Andorra 65 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km, Portugal 1,214 km

Coastline: 4,964 km

Maritime claims
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast

Terrain: large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees in north

Elevation

Natural resources: coal, lignite, iron ore, uranium, mercury, pyrites, fluorspar, gypsum, zinc, lead, tungsten, copper, kaolin, potash, hydropower

Land use
Arable land: 31%
Permanent crops: 10%
Meadows and pastures: 21%
Forest and woodland: 31%
Other: 7%

Irrigated land: 33,600 km² (1989 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: NA

Geography
Note: strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar


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Population: 39,302,665 (July 1994 est.)
Growth rate: 0.25% (1994 est.)

Nationality: noun:Spaniard(s)

Ethnic groups: composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types

Languages: Castilian Spanish, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%

Religions: Roman Catholic 99%, other sects 1%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 0.25% (1994 est.)

Birth rate: 11.05 births/1000 population (1994 est.)

Death rate: 8.82 deaths/1000 population (1994 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.27 migrant(s)/1000 population (1994 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from untreated sewage and effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas; air pollution; deforestation; desertification

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 6.9 deaths/1000 live births (1994 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 77.71 years
Male: 74.45 years
Female: 81.21 years (1994 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.4 children born/woman (1994 est.)

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: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Total population: 95%
Male: 97%
Female: 93%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain
Conventional short form: local short form: Espana

Government type: parliamentary monarchy

Capital: Madrid

Administrative divisions: 17 autonomous communities (comunidades autonomas, singular - comunidad autonoma); Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Canarias, Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y Leon, Cataluna, Communidad Valencia, Extremadura, Galicia, Islas Baleares, La Rioja, Madrid, Murcia, Navarra, Pais Vasco
Note: there are five places of sovereignty on and off the coast of Morocco (Ceuta, Mellila, Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera) with administrative status unknown

Dependent areas

Independence: 1492 (expulsion of the Moors and unification)

National holiday: National Day, 12 October

Constitution: 6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978

Legal system: civil law system, with regional applications; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: King JUAN CARLOS I (since 22 November 1975)
Head of government: Prime Minister Felipe GONZALEZ Marquez (since 2 December 1982); Deputy Prime Minister Narcis SERRA y Serra (since 13 March 1991)

Legislative branch: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Civil Guard, National Police, Coastal Civil Guard
Senate Senado: elections last held 6 June 1993 (next to be held by NA June 1997); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (255 total) PSOE 117, PP 107, CiU 15, PNV 5, IU 2, other 9
Congress of Deputies Congreso de los Diputados: elections last held 6 June 1993 (next to be held by NA June 1997); results by percent of party NA; seats - (350 total) PSOE 159, PP 141, IU 18, CiU 17, PNV 5, CN 4, HB 2, other 4

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Tribunal Supremo)

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: AG (observer), AsDB, Australian Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, COCOM, CSCE, EBRD, AfDB, EC, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, ESA, FAO, G-8, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), LORCS, MTRC, NACC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUSAL, PCA, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMOZ, UNPROFOR, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Richard N. GARDNER
From the us chancery: 2,700 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20,009
From the us telephone: [34] (1) 577-4,000
From the us consulates general: Barcelona
From the us embassy: Serrano 75, 28,006 Madrid
From the us mailing address: APO AE 9,642
From the us FAX: [34] (1) 577-5,735
From the us consulates: Bilbao

Flag description: three horizontal bands of red (top), yellow (double width), and red with the national coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band; the coat of arms includes the royal seal framed by the Pillars of Hercules, which are the two promontories (Gibraltar and Ceuta) on either side of the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: After the economic boom of 1986-90, the Spanish economy fell into recession along with the economies of other EU member states. Real GDP barely grew in 1992 and declined by approximately 1% in 1993. Unemployment, now nearly one-fourth of the workforce, and the sharp downturn in business investment have contributed to sagging domestic demand. Devaluation of the peseta since September 1992 has made Spanish exports more competitive, but an export-led recovery in 1994 will depend largely on economic recovery in Spain's major market - the other EU nations. A solid recovery will also require appropriate domestic policy actions, including controlling the budget deficit and wage increases, reforming labor market regulations, and possibly loosening monetary policy another notch. Foreign investors, principally from other EU countries, have invested over $60 billion in Spain since 1986. Despite the recession, inflation remained at about 5% in 1993. The main source of inflationary pressure is the fiscal deficit.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: -1% (1993)

Real gdp per capita: $12,700 (1993)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: accounts for about 5% of GDP and 14% of labor force; major products - grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus fruit, beef, pork, poultry, dairy; largely self-sufficient in food; fish catch of 1.4 million metric tons is among top 20 nations

Industries: textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages, metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles, machine tools, tourism

Industrial production growth rate: -1.7% (1992)

Labor force: 14.621 million
By occupation services: 53%
By occupation industry: 24%
By occupation agriculture: 14%
By occupation construction: 9% (1988)

Unemployment rate: 22% (yearend 1993)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget: revenues:$97.7 billion

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: $72.8 billion (f.o.b., 1993)
Commodities: cars and trucks, semifinished manufactured goods, foodstuffs, machinery
Partners: EC 71.2%, US 4.8%, other developed countries 7.9% (1992)

Imports: $92.5 billion (c.i.f., 1993)
Commodities: machinery, transport equipment, fuels, semifinished goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, chemicals
Partners: EC 60.7%, US 7.4%, other developed countries 11.5%, Middle East 5.9% (1992)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $90 billion (1993 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: pesetas (Ptas) per US$1 - 136.6 (May 1994), 127.26 (1993), 102.38 (1992), 103.91 (1991), 101.93 (1990), 118.38 (1989)


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Electricity
Capacity: 46,600,000 kW
Production: 157 billion kWh
Consumption per capita: 4,000 kWh (1992)

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
Dollar figure: exchange rate conversion - $5.8 billion, 1.3% of GDP (1994 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: 105
Usable: 99
With permanentsurface runways: 60
With runways over 3659 m: 4
With runways 2440-3659 m: 22
With runways 1220-2439 m: 26

Heliports

Pipelines: crude oil 265 km; petroleum products 1,794 km; natural gas 1,666 km

Railways

Roadways

Waterways: 1,045 km, but of minor economic importance

Merchant marine: 192 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,328,730 GRT/2,213,671 DWT, bulk 21, cargo 55, chemical tanker 14, container 11, liquefied gas 5, oil tanker 29, passenger 2, refrigerated cargo 12, roll-on/roll-off cargo 33, short-sea passenger 6, specialized tanker 3, vehicle carrier 1

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: Gibraltar question with UK; Spain controls five places of sovereignty (plazas de soberania) on and off the coast of Morocco - the coastal enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, which Morocco contests, as well as the islands of Penon de Alhucemas, Penon de Velez de la Gomera, and Islas Chafarinas

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: key European gateway country for Latin American cocaine and North African hashish entering the European market