Spain

Kingdom of Spain conventional short form: Spain local short form: Espana

parliamentary monarchyIndependence 1492 (expulsion of the Moors and unification)

Spain as the 2001 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 119 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalMadrid
Position40 00 N, 4 00 W
LocationSouthwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains, southwest of France
2001

Every edition of Spain

Populationas each edition published it
40.04 million July 2001 est. · 39.27m in 1990
Population growth% a year
0.1% 2001 est. · 0.24% in 1993
Median ageyears
Not in this edition 38.7 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
78.93 years 2001 est. · 77.51 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
1.15 children per woman 2001 est. · 1.4 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
4.92 deaths per 1,000 live births 2001 est. · 6 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
$18,000 2000 est. · $13,200 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
4% 2000 est. · 1% in 1993

Introduction

1 field

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, it has played a catch-up role in the western international community. Continuing concerns are large-scale unemployment and the Basque separatist movement.

Geography

Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains, southwest of France

18 fields
Coastline
4,964km
contiguous zone: 24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM (applies only to the Atlantic Ocean) territorial sea: 12 NM
Irrigated land
34,530sq km
(1993 est.)

Location

Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains, southwest of France

Geographic coordinates

40 00 N, 4 00 W

Area

total: 504,782 sq km land: 499,542 sq km water: 5,240 sq km note: includes Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, and five places of sovereignty (plazas de soberania) on and off the coast of Morocco - Ceuta, Melilla, Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera

Land boundaries

total: 1,917.8 km border countries: Andorra 63.7 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km, Portugal 1,214 km, Morocco (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Morocco (Melilla) 9.6 km

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 extremes

lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico de Teide (Tenerife) on Canary Islands 3,718 m

Natural resources

coal, lignite, iron ore, uranium, mercury, pyrites, fluorspar, gypsum, zinc, lead, tungsten, copper, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land

Land use

arable land: 30% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 21% forests and woodland: 32% other: 8% (1993 est.)

Natural hazards

periodic droughts

Environment - current issues

  • pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas;
  • water quality and quantity nationwide;
  • air pollution;
  • deforestation;
  • desertification

Environment - international agreements

party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification

Geography - note

strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar

People

18 fields
Population
40,037,995
(July 2001 est.)growth rate: 0.1% (2001 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2001 est.)

Birth
9.26Death
9.13Net migration
0.87

Age structure

0-14 years: 14.62% (male 3,015,851; female 2,835,763) 15-64 years: 68.2% (male 13,701,065; female 13,605,314) 65 years and over: 17.18% (male 2,881,334; female 3,998,668) (2001 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 (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate

4.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 78.93 years male: 75.47 years female: 82.62 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.15 children born/woman (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

2,000 (1999 est.)

Nationality

noun: Spaniard(s) adjective: Spanish

Ethnic groups

composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types

Religions

Roman Catholic 99%, other 1%

Languages

Castilian Spanish (official) 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: NA% female: NA%

Government

Parliamentary monarchy; King JUAN CARLOS I (since 22 November 1975)

21 fields

Legislature, 350 seatsseats by party

PP 183PSOE 125CiU 15IU 8PNV 7CC 4BNG 3other 5

Country name

conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain conventional short form: Spain local short form: Espana

Government type

parliamentary monarchy

Capital

Madrid

Administrative divisions

  • 17 autonomous communities (comunidades autonomas, singular - comunidad autonoma);
  • Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Baleares (Balearic Islands), Canarias (Canary Islands), Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y Leon, Cataluna, Communidad Valencian, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Murcia, Navarra, Pais Vasco (Basque Country) note: there are five places of sovereignty on and off the coast of

Morocco

  • Ceuta and Melilla are administered as autonomous communities;
  • Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera are under direct Spanish administration

Independence

1492 (expulsion of the Moors and unification)

National holiday

Hispanic Day, 12 October

Constitution

6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978

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 Maria AZNAR Lopez (since 5 May 1996);
  • First Vice President Juan Jose LUCAS (since 28 February 2000) and Second Vice President (and Minister of Economy) Rodrigo RATO Figaredo (since 5 May 1996) 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 elections: the monarch is hereditary;
  • president proposed by the monarch and elected by the National Assembly following legislative elections;
  • election last held 12 March 2000 (next to be held NA March 2004);
  • vice presidents appointed by the monarch on proposal of the president election results: Jose Maria AZNAR Lopez (PP) elected president;
  • percent of National Assembly vote - 44%

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) elections: Senate - last held 12 March 2000 (next to be held NA March 2004);
  • Congress of Deputies - last held 12 March 2000 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%;
  • seats by party - PP 127, PSOE 61, CiU 8, PNV 6, CC 5, PIL 1;
  • Congress of Deputies - percent of vote by party - PP 44.5%, PSOE 34%, CiU 4.2%, IU 5.4%, PNV 1.5%, CC 1%, BNG 1.3%;
  • seats by party - PP 183, PSOE 125, CiU 15, IU 8, PNV 7, CC 4, BNG 3, other 5

Judicial branch

Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo

Political parties and leaders

  • Basque Nationalist Party or PNV [Xabier ARZALLUS Antia];
  • Canarian Coalition or CC (a coalition of five parties) [Paulino RIVERO];
  • Convergence and Union or CiU [Jordi PUJOL i Soley, secretary general] (a coalition of the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia or CDC [Jordi PUJOL i Soley] and the Democratic Union of Catalonia or UDC [Josep Antoni DURAN y LLEIDA]);
  • Galician Nationalist Bloc or BNG [Xose Manuel BEIRAS];
  • Party of Independents from Lanzarote or PIL [Dimas MARTIN Martin];
  • Popular Party or PP [Jose Maria AZNAR Lopez];
  • 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;
  • Euskal Herritarok or EH [Herri BATASUNA];
  • free labor unions (authorized in April 1977);
  • on the extreme left, the Basque Fatherland and Liberty or ETA and the First of October Antifascist Resistance Group or GRAPO use terrorism to oppose the government;
  • Opus Dei;
  • Socialist General Union of Workers or UGT and the smaller independent Workers Syndical Union or USO;
  • university students;
  • Workers Confederation or CC.OO

International organization participation

AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Francisco Javier RUPEREZ chancery: 2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0100, 728-2340

FAX

[1] (202) 833-5670 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Edward L. ROMERO embassy: Serrano 75, 28006 Madrid mailing address: 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

Economy

Spain's mixed capitalist economy supports a GDP that on a per capita basis is 80% that of the four leading West European economies.

32 fields
Real growth rate
4%
(2000 est.)industrial production growth: 4.5% (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate
14%
(2000 est.)
Labor force
17million
(2000)

Electricity

Electricity production
197.694 billion (1999)Electricity consumption
189.57 billion (1999)Electricity exports
6.23 billion (1999)Electricity imports
11.945 billion (1999)

Economy - overview

Spain's mixed capitalist economy supports a GDP that on a per capita basis is 80% that of the four leading West European economies. Its center-right government successfully worked to gain admission to the first group of countries launching the European single currency on 1 January 1999.

The AZNAR administration has continued to advocate liberalization, privatization, and deregulation of the economy and has introduced some tax reforms to that end. Unemployment has been steadily falling under the AZNAR administration but remains the highest in the EU at 14%. The government intends to make further progress in changing labor laws and reforming pension schemes, which are key to the sustainability of both Spain's internal economic advances and its competitiveness in a single currency area.

Adjusting to the monetary and other economic policies of an integrated Europe - and further reducing unemployment - will pose challenges to Spain in the next few years.

GDP

purchasing power parity - $720.8 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $18,000 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 4% industry: 31% services: 65% (1999)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 2.8% highest 10%: 25.2% (1990)

Labor force - by occupation

services 64%, manufacturing, mining, and construction 28%, agriculture 8% (1997 est.)

Budget

revenues: $105 billion expenditures: $109 billion, including capital expenditures of $12.8 billion (2000 est.)

Industries

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

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel: 57.71% hydro: 12.1% nuclear: 28.28% other: 1.91% (1999)

Agriculture - products

  • grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus;
  • beef, pork, poultry, dairy products;
  • fish

Exports

$120.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Exports - commodities

machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, other consumer goods

Exports - partners

EU 71% (France 20%, Germany 12%, Italy 9%, Portugal 9%, UK 8%), Latin America 6%, US 5% (2000)

Imports

$153.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Imports - commodities

machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods; foodstuffs, consumer goods (1997)

Imports - partners

EU 68% (France 18%, Germany 16%, Italy 9%, UK 7%, Benelux 8%), US 8%, OPEC 5%, Latin America 4%, Japan 3% (1999)

Debt - external

$90 billion (1993 est.)

Economic aid - donor

ODA, $1.3 billion (1995)

Currency

Spanish peseta (ESP); euro (EUR) note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Spain at a fixed rate of 166.386 Spanish pesetas per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002

Exchange rates

euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); pesetas per US dollar - 149.40 (1998), 146.41 (1997), 126.66 (1996)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

10 fields
Mobile cellular
8.394 million
(1999)
Fixed lines
17.336 million
(1999) · country code .es

Telephone system

general assessment:
  • generally adequate, modern facilities;
  • teledensity is 44 main lines for each 100 persons domestic: NA international: 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 users

4.6 million (2000)

Transportation

10 fields

Railways

total: 13,950 km broad gauge: 12,781 km 1.668-m gauge (6,358 km electrified; 2,295 km double track) standard gauge: 525 km 1.435-m gauge (525 km electrified) narrow gauge: 644 km 1.000-m gauge (438 km electrified) (1998)

Highways

total: 346,858 km paved: 343,389 km (including 9,063 km of expressways) unpaved: 3,469 km (1997)

Waterways

1,045 km (of minor economic importance)

Pipelines

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

Ports and harbors

Aviles, Barcelona, Bilbao, Cadiz, Cartagena, Castellon de la Plana, Ceuta, Huelva, La Coruna, Las Palmas (Canary Islands), Malaga, Melilla, Pasajes, Gijon, Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands), Santander, Tarragona, Valencia, Vigo

Merchant marine

total: 135 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,208,730 GRT/1,773,378 DWT ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 26, chemical tanker 10, container 9, liquefied gas 2, livestock carrier 1, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 24, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 35, short-sea passenger 8, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 3 (2000 est.)

Airports

110 (2000 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 75 over 3,047 m: 15 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 13 (2000 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 35 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.)

Heliports

2 (2000 est.)

Military

Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Civil Guard, National Police, Coastal Civil Guard

7 fields

Military branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Civil Guard, National Police, Coastal Civil Guard

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 10,551,945 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 8,448,150 (2001 est.)

Transnational Issues

2 fields

Disputes - international

Gibraltar issue 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

Illicit drugs

  • key European gateway country for Latin American cocaine and North African hashish entering the European market;
  • transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin

Central Intelligence Agency. “Spain.” The World Factbook 2001. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/spain/2001.

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