The 2003 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency
levels, and total exports have grown
substantially. The trade deficit has been offset by annual
remittances of almost $2 billion from Salvadorans living abroad and
by external aid. The US dollar is now the legal tender. Because
competitor countries have fluctuating exchange rates, El Salvador
must face the challenge of raising productivity and lowering costs.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $29.41 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
2.1% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $4,600 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 10% industry: 30% services: 60% (2001)
Population below poverty line: 48% (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 1.4% highest 10%: 39.3% (2001)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
52.2 (1998)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3.8% (2001 est.)
Labor force:
2.35 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 30%, industry 15%, services 55% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate:
10% - but the economy has much underemployment. (2001 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $2.1 billion
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(2001 est.)
Industries:
food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer,
textiles, furniture, light metals
Industrial production growth rate:
3% (2002 est.)
Electricity - production:
3.729 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 44% hydro: 30.9% other: 25.1% (2001) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
3.777 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
44 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
353 million kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
39,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA (2001)
Oil - imports:
NA (2001)
Agriculture - products:
coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp;
beef, dairy products
Exports:
$3 billion (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities:
offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles,
chemicals, electricity
Exports - partners:
US 63.3%, Guatemala 12%, Honduras 6.8%, Nicaragua 4.5% (2002)
Imports:
$4.9 billion (2002)
Imports - commodities:
raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs,
petroleum, electricity
Imports - partners:
US 39%, Guatemala 10.1%, Mexico 7.2%, France 4% (2002)
Debt - external:
$5.6 billion (2001 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
total $252 million; $57 million from US (1999 est.)
Currency:
US dollar (USD)
Currency code:
USD
Exchange rates:
8.75 the US dollar is the legal tender
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications El Salvador
Telephones - main lines in use:
380,000 (1998)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
40,163 (1997)
Telephone system:
general assessment: NA
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system
international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic
Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios:
2.75 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
5 (1997)
Televisions:
600,000 (1990)
Internet country code:
.sv
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
4 (2000)
Internet users:
40,000 (2000)
Transportation El Salvador
Railways:
total: 283 km
narrow gauge: 283 km 0.914-m gauge
note: length of operational route reduced from 562 km to 283 km by
disuse and lack of maintenance (2002)
Highways:
total: 10,029 km
paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways)
unpaved: 8,043 km (1999 est.)
Waterways:
Rio Lempa partially navigable
Ports and harbors:
Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco, La Libertad, La Union, Puerto El Triunfo
Merchant marine:
none (2002 est.)
Airports:
82 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 78 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 61 (2002)
Heliports: 1 (2002)
Military El Salvador
Military branches:
Army, Navy (FNES), Air Force
Military manpower - military age:
18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15–49: 1,536,230 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military