Land boundaries: total: 545 km border countries: Guatemala 203 km,
Honduras 342 km

Coastline: 307 km

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 200 NM

Climate: tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November
to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands

Terrain: mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point:
Cerro El Pital 2,730 m

Natural resources: hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land

Land use: arable land: 27% permanent crops: 12% other: 61% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 360 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes
very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible
to hurricanes

Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; water
pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection,
Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Geography - note: smallest Central American country and only one without
a coastline on Caribbean Sea

People El Salvador

Population: 6,353,681 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 37.4% (male 1,211,156; female 1,162,317)
15-64 years: 57.5% (male 1,735,744; female 1,922,395) 65 years and over:
5.1% (male 144,864; female 177,205) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.83% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 28.3 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 6.1 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: -3.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04
male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82
male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 27.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: 74.11 years (2002 est.) male: Total fertility
rate: 3.29 children born/woman (2002 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.6% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 25,000 (2000 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 1,300 (1999 est.)

Nationality: noun: Salvadoran(s) adjective: Salvadoran

Ethnic groups: mestizo 90%, Amerindian 1%, white 9%

Religions: Roman Cath