Syria

Map of Syria

Flag of Syria

Facts

Population: 19,314,747 note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2007 est.).

Age structure: 0-14 years: 36.5% (male 3,633,562/female 3,423,435) 15-64 years: 60.1% (male 5,952,275/female 5,664,236) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 303,346/female 337,893) (2007 est.).

Population growth rate: 2.244% (2007 est.).

Birth rate: 27.19 births/1,000 population (2007 est.).

Death rate: 4.74 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.).

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.).

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.061 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.051 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.898 male(s)/female total population: 1.049 male(s)/female (2007 est.).

Infant mortality rate: total: 27.7 deaths/1,000 live births male: 27.94 deaths/1,000 live births female: 27.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.).

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 70.61 years male: 69.27 years female: 72.02 years (2007 est.).

Total fertility rate: 3.31 children born/woman (2007 est.).

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.).

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: less than 500 (2003 est.).

HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.).

Nationality: noun: Syrian(s) adjective: Syrian.

Ethnic groups: Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%.

Religions: Sunni Muslim 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo).

Languages: Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood.

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 79.6% male: 86% female: 73.6% (2004 census).

GDP (purchasing power parity): $77.66 billion (2006 est.).

GDP - real growth rate: 3.5% (2006 est.).

GDP - per capita (PPP): $4,100 (2006 est.).

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 24% industry: 18% services: 58% (2005 est.).

Labor force: 5.505 million (2006 est.).

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 26% industry: 14% services: 60% (2003 est.).

Population below poverty line: 11.9% (2006 est.).

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%.

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 8% (2006 est.).

Unemployment rate: 12.5% (2005 est.).

Budget: revenues: $8.7 billion expenditures: $9.9 billion; including capital expenditures of $3.82 billion (2006 est.).

Agriculture - products: wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk.

Industries: petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining, cement, oil seeds crushing.

Industrial production growth rate: 1.5% (2005).

Electricity - production: 34.94 billion kWh (2005 est.).

Electricity - consumption: 34 billion kWh (2005 est.).

Electricity - exports: 0.2 kWh (2005).

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2005).

Exports: $6.923 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.).

Exports - commodities: crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat.

Exports - partners: Iraq 26.3%, Italy 10%, Germany 9.9%, Lebanon 9.1%, Egypt 5.1%, France 4.9%, Saudi Arabia 4.6% (2005).

Imports: $6.634 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.).

Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper.

Imports - partners: Saudi Arabia 11.6%, China 6.1%, Egypt 5.9%, Italy 5.8%, UAE 5.7%, Ukraine 4.6%, Germany 4.5%, Iran 4.2% (2005).

Debt - external: $8.355 billion; note - excludes military debt and debt to Russia (2006 est.).

Economic aid - recipient: $180 million (2002 est.).

Currency (code): Syrian pound (SYP).

Exchange rates: Syrian pounds per US dollar - 51.689 (2006), 50 (2005), 48.5 (2004), 52.8 (2003), 52.4 (2002) note: data for 2004-06 are the public sector rate; data for 2002-03 are the parallel market rate in 'Amman and Beirut; the official rate for repaying loans was 11.25 Syrian pounds per US dollars during 2004-06,.

Fiscal year: calendar year.