El Salvador

El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost about 75,000 lives, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms.

• tropical;
• rainy season (May to October);
• dry season (November to April);
• tropical on coast;
• temperate in uplands

total:

1.28 cu km/yr (25%/16%/59%)

per capita:

186 cu m/yr (2000)

• known as the Land of Volcanoes;
• frequent and sometimes destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity;
• extremely susceptible to hurricanes

• deforestation;
• soil erosion;
• water pollution;
• contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Law of the Sea

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.91 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.78 male(s)/female

total population:

0.95 male(s)/female (2009 est.)

degree of risk:

high

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases:

dengue fever

water contact disease:

leptospirosis (2009)

noun:

Salvadoran(s)

adjective:

Salvadoran

conventional long form:

Republic of El Salvador

conventional short form:

El Salvador

local long form:

Republica de El Salvador

local short form:

El Salvador

name:

San Salvador

geographic coordinates:

13 42 N, 89 12 W

time difference:

UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)

• 14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento);
• Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, San Vicente, Santa Ana, Sonsonate, Usulutan

• based on civil and Roman law with traces of common law;
• judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court;
• has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

chief of state:

• President Mauricio FUNES Cartagena (since 1 June 2009);
• Vice President Salvador SANCHEZ CEREN (since 1 June 2009);
• note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:

President Mauricio FUNES Cartagena (since 1 June 2009); Vice President Salvador SANCHEZ CEREN (since 1 June 2009)

cabinet:

Council of Ministers selected by the president

elections:

• president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single five-year term;
• election last held 15 March 2009 (next to be held in March 2014)

election results:

Mauricio FUNES Cartagena elected president; percent of vote - Mauricio FUNES Cartagena 51.3%, Rodrigo AVILA 48.7%

• Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER];
• Democratic Convergence or CD [Hector DADA HIREZI] (formerly United Democratic Center or CDU);
• Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Medardo GONZALEZ];
• National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ ZEPEDA];
• Nationalist Republican Alliance or ARENA [Rodrigo AVILA];
• Popular Social Christian Party or PPSC [Rene AGUILUZ];
• Revolutionary Democratic Front or FDR [Julio Cesar HERNANDEZ Carcamo]

• labor organizations - Electrical Industry Union of El Salvador or SIES;
• Federation of the Construction Industry, Similar Transport and other activities, or FESINCONTRANS;
• National Confederation of Salvadoran Workers or CNTS;
• National Union of Salvadoran Workers or UNTS;
• Port Industry Union of El Salvador or SIPES;
• Salvadoran Union of Ex-Petrolleros and Peasant Workers or USEPOC;
• Salvadoran Workers Central or CTS;
• Workers Union of Electrical Corporation or STCEL;
• business organizations - National Association of Small Enterprise or ANEP;
• Salvadoran Assembly Industry Association or ASIC;
• Salvadoran Industrial Association or ASI

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Robert BLAU

embassy:

Final Boulevard Santa Elena Sur, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador

mailing address:

Unit 3450, APO AA 34023; 3450 San Salvador Place, Washington, DC 20521-3450

telephone:

[503] 2501-2999

FAX:

[503] 2501-2150

• three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band;
• the coat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL;
• similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band - it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom;
• also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band

agriculture:

19%

industry:

23%

services:

58% (2006 est.)

lowest 10%:

1%

highest 10%:

37% (2005)

general assessment:

• multiple mobile-cellular service providers are expanding services rapidly and in 2008 mobile-cellular density stood at nearly 100 per 100 persons;
• growth in fixed-line services has slowed in the face of mobile-cellular competition

domestic:

nationwide microwave radio relay system

international:

• country code - 503;
• satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean);
• connected to Central American Microwave System (2008)

total:

283 km

country comparison to the world: 123

narrow gauge:

283 km 0.914-m gauge

note: railways have been inoperable since 2005 because of disuse and high costs that led to a lack of maintenance (2008)

total:

10,886 km

country comparison to the world: 136

paved:

2,827 km (includes 327 km of expressways)

unpaved:

8,059 km (2000)

• 18 years of age for selective compulsory military service;
• 16-22 years of age for voluntary male or female service;
• service obligation - 12 months, with 11 months for officers and NCOs (2009)

males age 16-49:

1,634,816

females age 16-49:

1,775,474 (2008 est.)

males age 16-49:

1,201,290

females age 16-49:

1,547,278 (2009 est.)

male:

77,473

female:

74,655 (2009 est.)

• International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, in 1992, with final agreement by the parties in 2006 after an Organization of American States (OAS) survey and a further ICJ ruling in 2003;
• the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca advocating Honduran access to the Pacific;
• El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not identified in the ICJ decision, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca

• transshipment point for cocaine;
• small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption;
• significant use of cocaine