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| Introduction | Spain |
| Background: | Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power. Spain remained neutral in World Wars I and II, but suffered through a devastating civil war (1936-39). In the second half of the 20th century, Spain has played a catch-up role in the western international community; it joined the EU in 1986. Continuing challenges include Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) terrorism and further reductions in unemployment. |
| People | Spain |
| Population: | 40,280,780 (July 2004 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 14.4% (male 2,989,053; female 2,811,350) 15-64 years: 68% (male 13,748,998; female 13,652,852) 65 years and over: 17.6% (male 2,958,387; female 4,120,140) (2004 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 39.1 years male: 37.8 years female: 40.5 years (2004 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 0.16% (2004 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 10.11 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Death rate: | 9.55 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | 0.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 4.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 4.88 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 79.37 years male: 76.03 years female: 82.94 years (2004 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 1.27 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 0.5% (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 130,000 (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | 2,300 (2001 est.) |
| Nationality: | noun: Spaniard(s) adjective: Spanish |
| Ethnic groups: | composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types |
| Religions: | Roman Catholic 94%, other 6% |
| Languages: | Castilian Spanish 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2% note: Castilian is the official language nationwide; the other languages are official regionally |
| Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.9% male: 98.7% female: 97.2% (2003 est.) |
| Government | Spain |
| Country name: | conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain conventional short form: Spain local short form: Espana |
| Government type: | parliamentary monarchy |
| Capital: | Madrid |
| Administrative divisions: | 19 autonomous communities (comunidades autonomas, singular - comunidad autonoma); Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Baleares (Balearic Islands), Ceuta, Canarias (Canary Islands), Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y Leon, Cataluna, Communidad Valenciana, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Melilla, Murcia, Navarra, Pais Vasco (Basque Country) note: three small Spanish possessions are located off the coast of Morocco: Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera; Ceuta and Melilla on the coast of North Africa gained limited autonomous status in 1994 |
| Independence: | the Iberian peninsula was characterized by a variety of independent kingdoms prior to the Moslem occupation that began in the early 8th Century A. D. and lasted nearly seven centuries; the small Christian redoubts of the north began the reconquest almost immediately, culminating in the seizure of Granada in 1492; this event completed the unification of several kingdoms and is traditionally considered the forging of present-day Spain |
| National holiday: | National Day, 12 October |
| Constitution: | 6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978 |
| Legal system: | civil law system, with regional applications; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: King JUAN CARLOS I (since 22 November 1975); Heir Apparent Prince FELIPE, son of the monarch, born 30 January 1968 head of government: President of the Government Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (since 17 April 2004); First Vice President (and Minister of the Presidency) Maria Teresa FERNANDEZ DE LA VEGA(since 18 April 2004) and Second Vice President (and Minister of Economy and Finance) Pedro SOLBES (since 18 April 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers designated by the president note: there is also a Council of State that is the supreme consultative organ of the government election results: Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (PSOE) elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 52.29% elections: the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually proposed president by the monarch and elected by the National Assembly; election last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held NA March 2008); vice presidents appointed by the monarch on the proposal of the president |
| Legislative branch: | bicameral; General Courts or National Assembly or Las Cortes Generales consists of the Senate or Senado (259 seats - 208 members directly elected by popular vote and the other 51 appointed by the regional legislatures to serve four-year terms) and the Congress of Deputies or Congreso de los Diputados (350 seats; members are elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional representation to serve four-year terms) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PP 102, PSOE 81, Entesa Catalona de Progress 12, CiU 4, PNV 4, CC 3, other 2; Congress of Deputies - percent of vote by party - PSOE 42.6%, PP 37.6%, CiU 3.2%, ERC 2.5%, PNV 1.6%, IU 5.0%, CC 0.9%; seats by party - PSOE 164, PP 148, CiU 10, ERC 8 PNV 7, IU 5, CC 3, other 5 elections: Senate - last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held NA March 2008); Congress of Deputies - last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held NA March 2008) |
| Judicial branch: | Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo |
| Political parties and leaders: | Basque Nationalist Party or PNV [Josu Jon IMAZ]; Canarian Coalition or CC (a coalition of five parties) [Paulino RIVERO Baute]; Convergence and Union or CiU [Artur MAS i Gavarro] (a coalition of the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia or CDC [Artur MAS i Gavarro] and the Democratic Union of Catalonia or UDC [Josep Antoni DURAN y LLEIDA]); Entesa Catalonia de Progress [leader NA]; Galician Nationalist Bloc or BNG [Anxo Manuel QUINTANA]; Party of Independents from Lanzarote or PIL [Dimas MARTIN Martin]; Popular Party or PP [Mariano RAJOY]; Republican Left of Catalonia [leader NA]; Spanish Socialist Workers Party or PSOE [Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO]; United Left or IU (a coalition of parties including the PCE and other small parties) [Gaspar LLAMAZARES] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | business and landowning interests; Catholic Church; free labor unions (authorized in April 1977); Socialist General Union of Workers or UGT and the smaller independent Workers Syndical Union or USO; university students; Workers Confederation or CC.OO; Nunca Mais (Galician for "Never Again"; formed in response to the oil tanker Prestige oil spill) |
| International organization participation: | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Carlos WESTENDORP chancery: 2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) FAX: [1] (202) 833-5670 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0100, 728-2340 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador George L. ARGYROS embassy: Serrano 75, 28006 Madrid mailing address: PSC 61, APO AE 09642 telephone: [34] (91) 587-2200 FAX: [34] (91) 587-2303 consulate(s) general: Barcelona |
| 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 |
| Communications | Spain |
| Telephones - main lines in use: | 17,567,500 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular: | 37,506,700 (2003) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: generally adequate, modern facilities; teledensity is 44 main lines for each 100 persons domestic: NA international: country code - 34; 22 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to adjacent countries |
| Radio broadcast stations: | AM 208, FM 715, shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Radios: | 13.1 million (1997) |
| Television broadcast stations: | 224 (plus 2,105 repeaters) note: these figures include 11 television broadcast stations and 88 repeaters in the Canary Islands (1995) |
| Televisions: | 16.2 million (1997) |
| Internet country code: | .es |
| Internet hosts: | 1,056,950 (2004) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 56 (2000) |
| Internet users: | 9.789 million (2003) |
| Transportation | Spain |
| Railways: | total: 14,268 km (7,718 km electrified) broad gauge: 11,804 km 1.668-m gauge (6,409 km electrified) standard gauge: 526 km 1.435-m gauge (526 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,910 km 1.000-m gauge (755 km electrified); 28 km 0.914-m gauge (28 km electrified) (2003) |
| Highways: | total: 663,795 km paved: 657,157 km (including 10,317 km of expressways) unpaved: 6,638 km (1999) |
| Waterways: | 1,045 km (2003) |
| Pipelines: | gas 7,306 km; oil 730 km; refined products 3,512 km (2004) |
| Ports and harbors: | Aviles, Barcelona, Bilbao, Cadiz, Cartagena, Castellon de la Plana, Ceuta, Huelva, A Coruna, Las Palmas (Canary Islands), Malaga, Melilla, Pasajes, Gijon, Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands), Santander, Tarragona, Valencia, Vigo |
| Merchant marine: | total: 149 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,740,974 GRT/2,157,551 DWT by type: bulk 9, cargo 29, chemical tanker 13, container 17, liquefied gas 6, livestock carrier 1, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 21, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 32, short-sea/passenger 7, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 7 registered in other countries: 115 (2003 est.) foreign-owned: Chile 1, Cuba 1, Denmark 1, Germany 9, Italy 2, Netherlands 1, Norway 6, Sweden 1, Uruguay 1 |
| Airports: | 156 (2003 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways: | total: 95 over 3,047 m: 15 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 28 (2004 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 |
| Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 61 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 44 (2004 est.) |
| Heliports: | 8 (2003 est.) |
| Military | Spain |
| Military branches: | Army, Navy, Air Force (Ejercito del Aire, EdA), Marines |
| Military manpower - military age and obligation: | 20 years of age (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - availability: | males age 15-49: 10,482,753 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service: | males age 15-49: 8,336,273 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually: | males: 245,007 (2004 est.) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure: | $9,906.5 million (2003) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | 1.2% (2003) |
| Transnational Issues | Spain |
| Disputes - international: | since Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum in 2003 against a "total shared sovereignty" arrangement, talks between the UK and Spain over the fate of the 300-year old UK colony have stalled; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomy; Morocco protests Spain's control over the coastal enclaves of Ceuta, Melilla, and the islands of Penon de Velez de la Gomera, Penon de Alhucemas and Islas Chafarinas, and surrounding waters; Morocco serves as the primary launching area of illegal migration into Spain from North Africa; Morocco rejected Spain's unilateral designation of a median line from the Canary Islands in 2002 to set limits to undersea resource exploration and refugee interdiction, but agreed in 2003 to discuss a comprehensive maritime delimitation; some Portuguese groups assert dormant claims to territories ceded to Spain around the town of Olivenza |
| Illicit drugs: | key European gateway country and consumer for Latin American cocaine and North African hashish entering the European market; destination and minor transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin; money laundering site for European earnings of Colombian narcotics trafficking organizations |
| This page was last updated on 16 December, 2004 |
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