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NAVIGATION
Kingdom of Spain
Espana
GOVERNMENT
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain
conventional short form: Spain local short form: Espana |
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Government type:
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parliamentary monarchy |
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Capital:
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Madrid |
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Administrative divisions:
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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 Valencian, 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 |
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Independence:
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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 |
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National holiday:
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Hispanic Day, 12 October |
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Constitution:
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6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978 |
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Legal system:
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civil law system, with regional applications; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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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 (and Minister of Interior) Mariano Rajoy BREY (since 27 April 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 election results: Jose Maria AZNAR Lopez (PP) elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 44.54%; note - the Popular Party (PP) obtained an absolute majority of seats in both the Congress of Deputies and the Senate as a result of the March 2000 elections 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 12 March 2000 (next to be held NA March 2004); vice presidents appointed by the monarch on the proposal of the president |
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Legislative branch:
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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 - PP 44.6%, PSOE 34.1%, CiU 4.2%, PNV 1.5%, CC 1.1%, PIL 0%; 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 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) |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo |
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Political parties and leaders:
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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] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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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) |
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International organization participation:
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AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, 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, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Francisco Javier RUPEREZ
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 |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador George L. ARGYROS
embassy: Serrano 75, 28006 Madrid mailing address: APO AE 09642 telephone: [34] (91) 587-2200 FAX: [34] (91) 587-2303 consulate(s) general: Barcelona |
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Flag description:
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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
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Economy - overview:
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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 high at 11.3%. 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. A general strike in mid-2002 reduced cooperation between labor and government. Adjusting to the monetary and other economic policies of an integrated Europe - and further reducing unemployment - will pose challenges to Spain over the next few years. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $828 billion (2002 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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2% (2002 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $20,700 (2002 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 4%
industry: 31% services: 65% (2000 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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NA% |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 25.2% (1990) |
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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32.5 (1990) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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3% (2002 est.) |
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Labor force:
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17.1 million (2001) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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services 64%, manufacturing, mining, and construction 29%, agriculture 7% (2001 est.) |
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Unemployment rate:
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11.3% (2002 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $105 billion
expenditures: $109 billion, including capital expenditures of $12.8 billion (2000 est.) |
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Industries:
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textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages, metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles, machine tools, tourism |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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1.2% (2002 est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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222.5 billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel: 50.4%
hydro: 18.2% other: 4.2% (2001) nuclear: 27.2% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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210.4 billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - exports:
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4.138 billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - imports:
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7.588 billion kWh (2001) |
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Oil - production:
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7,099 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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1.497 million bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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135,100 bbl/day (2001) |
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Oil - imports:
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1.582 million bbl/day (2001) |
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Oil - proved reserves:
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10.5 million bbl (January 2002 est.) |
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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254.9 million cu m (January 2002 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish |
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Exports:
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$122.2 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, other consumer goods |
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Exports - partners:
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EU 71.3% (France 19.5%, Germany 11.8%, Portugal 10.0%, Italy 9.0%, UK 8.9%), Latin America 6.1%, US 4.4%, (2000) |
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Imports:
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$156.6 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods; foodstuffs, consumer goods (1997) |
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Imports - partners:
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EU 63.9% (France 16.8%, Germany 15.5%, Italy 9.1%, Benelux 7.3%, UK 7.0%), OPEC 7.3%, US 4.6%, Japan 2.5%, Latin America 4.2% (2000) |
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Debt - external:
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$90 billion (1993 est.) |
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Economic aid - donor:
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ODA, $1.33 billion (1999) |
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Currency:
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euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by the financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions with the member countries |
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Currency code:
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EUR |
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Exchange rates:
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euros per US dollar - 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year |