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

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Background: Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976 and the rest of the territory in 1979 following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 cease-fire; a referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed and is not expected to occur until at least 2002.


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

Geographic coordinates: 24 30 N, 13 00 W

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 266,000 km²
Land: 266,000 km²
Water: 0 km²
Comparative: about the size of Colorado

Land boundaries
Total: 2,046 km
Border countries: (3) Algeria 42 km; , Mauritania 1,561 km; , Morocco 443 km

Coastline: 1,110 km

Maritime claims: contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue

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

Terrain: mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
Extremes highest point: unnamed location 463 m

Natural resources: phosphates, iron ore

Land use
Arable land: 0%
Permanent crops: 0%
Permanent pastures: 19%
Forests and woodland: 0%
Other: 81%

Irrigated land: NA km²

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

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

Geography


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Population: 239,333 (July 1999 est.)
Growth rate: 2.34% (1999 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
Adjective: Sahrawian, Sahraouian

Ethnic groups: Arab, Berber

Languages: Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic

Religions: Muslim

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA
65 years and over: NA

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 2.34% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 45.42 births/1000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 16.58 deaths/1000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: -5.41 migrant(s)/1000 population (1999 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: sparse water and arable land
International agreements party to: none of the selected agreements
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 136.67 deaths/1000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 49.1 years
Male: 47.98 years
Female: 50.57 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 6.7 children born/woman (1999 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: NA

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: none
Conventional short form: Western Sahara

Government 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)

Dependent areas

Independence

National holiday

Constitution

Legal system

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: none; a UN sponsored voter identification campaign has yet to be completed

Executive branch: none

Legislative branch

Judicial branch

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: none

Diplomatic representation
In the us: none
From the us: none

Flag description

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Western Sahara, a territory poor in natural resources and lacking sufficient 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.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: NA%

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity: $NA

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: NA%
Industry: NA%
Services: 40%-45% (1996 est.)

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

Industries: phosphate mining, handicrafts

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Labor force: 12,000
By occupation: animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50%