Western Sahara country profile

Lead Author: Maggie Surface (other articles)
Content Source: Central Intelligence Agency (other articles)
This article has been reviewed and approved by the following Topic Editor: Lakhdar Boukerrou (other articles)
Last Updated: August 25, 2008

Source: CIA
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Source: CIA

Atlantic coast, Western Sahara. (Photograph by SaharaMet)
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Atlantic coast, Western Sahara. (Photograph by SaharaMet)

Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. In April 2007, Morocco presented an autonomy plan for the territory to the UN, which the U.S. considers serious and credible. The Polisario also presented a plan to the UN in 2007. Since August 2007, representatives from the Government of Morocco and the Polisario Front have met three times to negotiate the status of Western Sahara, with a fourth round of negotiations planned for March 2008.

  1. General overview
  2. Water in Western Sahara
  3. Energy in Western Sahara
  4. Human Development Index
  5. Ecoregions:
    1. Atlantic coastal desert

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Citation
Surface, Maggie (Lead Author); Central Intelligence Agency (Content source); Lakhdar Boukerrou (Topic Editor). 2008. "Western Sahara country profile." In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth June 4, 2008; Last revised August 25, 2008; Retrieved November 20, 2008]. <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Western_Sahara_country_profile>
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