MOROCCO GEOGRAPHY Total area: 446,550 km2; land area: 446,300 km2 Comparative area: slightly larger than California Land boundaries: 2,002 km total; Algeria 1,559 km, Western Sahara 443 km Coastline: 1,835 km Maritime claims: Contiguous zone: 24 nm; Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation; Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; Territorial sea: 12 nm Disputes: claims and administers Western Sahara, but sovereignty is unresolved; armed conflict in Western Sahara; 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, and the islands of Penon de Alhucemas, Penon de Velez de la Gomera, and Islas Chafarinas Climate: Mediterranean, becoming more extreme in the interior Terrain: mostly mountains with rich coastal plains Natural resources: phosphates, iron ore, manganese, lead, zinc, fish, salt Land use: arable land 18%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures 28%; forest and woodland 12%; other 41%; includes irrigated 1% Environment: northern mountains geologically unstable and subject to earthquakes; desertification Note: strategic location along Strait of Gibraltar PEOPLE Population: 26,181,889 (July 1991), growth rate 2.1% (1991) Birth rate: 30 births/1,000 population (1991) Death rate: 8 deaths/1,000 population (1991) Net migration rate: - 1 migrant/1,000 population (1991) Infant mortality rate: 76 deaths/1,000 live births (1991) Life expectancy at birth: 63 years male, 66 years female (1991) Total fertility rate: 3.8 children born/woman (1991) Nationality: noun--Moroccan(s); adjective--Moroccan Ethnic divisions: Arab-Berber 99.1%, non-Moroccan 0.7%, Jewish 0.2% Religion: Muslim 98.7%, Christian 1.1%, Jewish 0.2% Language: Arabic (official); several Berber dialects; French is language of business, government, diplomacy, and postprimary education Literacy: 50% (male 61%, female 38%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) Labor force: 7,400,000; agriculture 50%, services 26%, industry 15%, other 9% (1985) Organized labor: about 5% of the labor force, mainly in the Union of Moroccan Workers (UMT) and the Democratic Confederation of Labor (CDT) GOVERNMENT Long-form name: Kingdom of Morocco Type: constitutional monarchy Capital: Rabat Administrative divisions: 37 provinces (aqalim, singular--iqlim) and 5 municipalities* (wilayat, singular--wilayah); Agadir, Al Hoceima, Azilal, Beni Mellal, Ben Slimane, Boulemane, Casablanca*, Chaouen, El Jadida, El Kelaa des Srarhna, Er Rachidia, Essaouira, Fes, Fes*, Figuig, Guelmim, Ifrane, Kenitra, Khemisset, Khenifra, Khouribga, Laayoune, Larache, Marrakech, Marrakech*, Meknes, Meknes*, Nador, Ouarzazate, Oujda, Rabat-Sale*, Safi, Settat, Sidi Kacem, Tanger, Tan-Tan, Taounate, Taroudannt, Tata, Taza, Tetouan, Tiznit Independence: 2 March 1956 (from France) Constitution: 10 March 1972 Legal system: based on Islamic law and French and Spanish civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of Supreme Court National holiday: National Day (anniversary of King Hassan II's accession to the throne), 3 March (1961) Executive branch: monarch, prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet) Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives (Majlis Nawab) Judicial branch: Supreme Court Leaders: Chief of State--King HASSAN II (since 3 March 1961); Head of Government--Prime Minister Dr. Azzedine LARAKI (since 30 September 1986) Political parties and leaders: Morocco has 15 political parties; the major ones are Istiqlal Party, M'Hamed BOUCETTA; Socialist Union of Popular Forces (USFP), Abderrahim BOUABID; Popular Movement (MP), Secretariat General; National Assembly of Independents (RNI), Ahmed OSMAN; National Democratic Party (PND), Mohamed Arsalane EL-JADIDI; Party for Progress and Socialism (PPS), Ali YATA; Constitutional Union (UC), Maati BOUABID Suffrage: universal at age 21 Elections: Chamber of Representatives--last held on 14 September 1984 (were scheduled for September 1990, but postponed until NA 1992); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(306 total, 206 elected) CU 83, RNI 61, MP 47, Istiqlal 41, USFP 36, PND 24, other 14 Communists: about 2,000 Member of: ABEDA, ACCT (associate), AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CCC, EBRD, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IIB, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, OAS (observer), NAM, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Mohamed BELKHAYAT; Chancery at 1601 21st Street NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone (202) 462-7979; there is a Moroccan Consulate General in New York; US--Ambassador E. Michael USSERY; Embassy at 2 Avenue de Marrakech, Rabat (mailing address is P. O. Box 120, Rabat, or APO New York 09284); telephone 212 (7) 76-22-65; there are US Consulates General in Casablanca Flag: red with a green pentacle (five-pointed, linear star) known as Solomon's seal in the center of the flag; green is the traditional color of Islam ECONOMY Overview: The economy recovered moderately in 1990 because of the resolution of a trade dispute with India over phosphoric acid sales, a rebound in textile sales to the EC, and lower prices for food imports. In addition, a dramatic increase in worker remittances, increased Arab donor aid, and generous debt rescheduling agreements helped ease foreign payments pressures. On the down side, higher oil import costs fueled inflation. Servicing the $21 billion foreign debt, high unemployment, and Morocco's vulnerability to external forces remain severe problems for the 1990s. GDP: $25.4 billion, per capita $990; real growth rate 2.5% (1990 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.6% (1990 est.) Unemployment rate: 16% (1990 est.) Budget: revenues $6.6 billion; expenditures $7.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (1990 est.) Exports: $4.0 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.); commodities--food and beverages 30%, semiprocessed goods 23%, consumer goods 21%, phosphates 17%; partners--EC 58%, India 7%, Japan 5%, USSR 3%, US 2% Imports: $5.9 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.); commodities--capital goods 24%, semiprocessed goods 22%, raw materials 16%, fuel and lubricants 16%, food and beverages 13%, consumer goods 9%; partners--EC 53%, US 11%, Canada 4%, Iraq 3%, USSR 3%, Japan 2% External debt: $21 billion (1990) Industrial production: growth rate 4% (1989 est.); accounts for an estimated 20% of GDP Electricity: 2,262,000 kW capacity; 8,140 million kWh produced, 320 kWh per capita (1990) Industries: phosphate rock mining and processing, food processing, leather goods, textiles, construction, tourism Agriculture: 50% of employment and 30% of export value; not self-sufficient in food; cereal farming and livestock raising predominate; barley, wheat, citrus fruit, wine, vegetables, olives; fishing catch of 491,000 metric tons in 1987 Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis; trafficking on the increase for both domestic and international drug markets; shipments of cannabis mostly directed to Western Europe; occasional transit point for cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe. Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.3 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $7.0 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $4.8 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $2.5 billion Currency: Moroccan dirham (plural--dirhams); 1 Moroccan dirham (DH) = 100 centimes Exchange rates: Moroccan dirhams (DH) per US$1--8.071 (January 1991), 8.242 (1990), 8.488 (1989), 8.209 (1988), 8.359 (1987), 9.104 (1986), 10.062 (1985) Fiscal year: calendar year COMMUNICATIONS Railroads: 1,893 km 1.435-meter standard gauge (246 km double track, 974 km electrified) Highways: 59,198 km total; 27,740 km bituminous treated, 31,458 km gravel, crushed stone, improved earth, and unimproved earth Pipelines: 362 km crude oil; 491 km (abandoned) refined products; 241 km natural gas Ports: Agadir, Casablanca, El Jorf Lasfar, Kenitra, Mohammedia, Nador, Safi, Tangier; also Spanish-controlled Ceuta and Melilla Merchant marine: 51 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 315,169 GRT/487,490 DWT; includes 10 cargo, 2 container, 12 refrigerated cargo, 6 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 3 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 11 chemical tanker, 4 bulk, 3 short-sea passenger Civil air: 23 major transport aircraft Airports: 75 total, 67 usable; 26 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 13 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 27 with runways 1,220-2,439 m Telecommunications: good system composed of wire lines, cables, and radio relay links; principal centers are Casablanca and Rabat, secondary centers are Fes, Marrakech, Oujda, Tangier, and Tetouan; 280,000 telephones; stations--14 AM, 6 FM, 47 TV; 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations--2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 ARABSAT; radio relay to Gibraltar, Spain, and Western Sahara; coaxial cable to Algeria; microwave network linking Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco DEFENSE FORCES Branches: Royal Moroccan Army, Royal Moroccan Navy, Royal Moroccan Air Force, Royal Gendarmerie, Auxiliary Forces Manpower availability: males 15-49, 6,437,152; 4,092,027 fit for military service; 299,535 reach military age (18) annually; limited conscription Defense expenditures: $1.4 billion, 5.2% of GDP