Economy of Western Sahara

Economy of Western Sahara

Currency	Moroccan Dirham (MAD) de facto
Fiscal year	calendar year
Trade organisations	Morocco claims and administers most of Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts. The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic laying claim to the territory has ratified AEC treaty, but is not active;
Statistics
GDP	$908.9 million (2007 est)
GDP per capita	2,500 (2007 est)
Labour force	144,000 (2012)
Labour force by occupation	agriculture (50%), services (50%)
Main industries	Phosphates, fishing
External
Export goods	phosphates 62%
Import goods	fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs
Public finances
Public debt	N/A
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Bou Craa phosphate mine 100 kilometers (about 60 miles) from the coastal city of El Aaiún, Western Sahara. Two Landsat images show growth of the mine between 1987 and 2000.

Background

The majority of the territory of Western Sahara is currently administered by the Kingdom of Morocco. As such, the vast majority of the economical activity of Western Sahara happens in the framework of the economy of Morocco.

In the Moroccan-administered territory, fishing and phosphate mining are the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, that's why most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan government, as usual in Western Sahara. Morocco has signed a fishing treaty with the EU including Western Sahara as part of Morocco, although it was declared illegal by the legal services of the European Union. Moroccan Energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, but some companies had abandoned since then.

The Free Zone (POLISARIO-administered territory) is mainly uninhabited. There is practically no economical infrastructure and the main activity is camel herding nomadism. The government-in-exile of the Polisario Front had also signed contracts for oil exploration, but there is no practical work, due to the fact that the zones given are on the Moroccan-controlled part of the territory. According to POLISARIO officials,

The licensing initiative we are introducing today prepares for the day when the Saharawi Republic will exercise full sovereignty over all its rightful territory, including our offshore waters and our natural resources.

— Mohamed Khadad. Houston,(Texas). 05-02-2008.

Fishing and oil exploration contracts concerning Western Sahara are sources of political tension.

Key agricultural products include fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads.)

Energy consumption

• Electricity - production: 85 GWh (2003)
• Electricity - production by source:
  • Fossil fuel: 100%
  • Hydro: 0%
  • Nuclear: 0%
  • Other: 0%
• Electricity - consumption: 83.7 GWh (2003)
• Electricity - exports: 0 kWh
• Electricity - imports: 0 kWh
• Oil - production: 0.5 barrels per day (0.079 m³/d)
• Oil - consumption: 1,750 barrels per day (278 m³/d) (2003)

Legal status, exploitation of natural resources and economic consequences on foreign corporations

In December 2004, French oil company Total S.A. decided not to renew their license off Western Sahara, leaving Kerr-McGee as the unique oil company exploring in the Moroccan-occupied part of Western Sahara.

In May 2006, Kerr-McGee finally decided to not renew the contract signed with the Moroccan Authorities, in part due to the desinvestments of invest funds and the pressures of international corporate ethics groups.

In March 2009, four Norwegian shipping companies desisted from Western Sahara trade. Also, the Norwegian grocery store chain Coop Marked stopped their import of tomatoes from Dakhla, labelled as Moroccans.

Desertec is an energy project launched in Munich in 2009, consisting on the use of solar and wind technology in the Sahara desert, with the aim to provide that energy generated to African and European countries.

In April 2010, a Desertec spokesperson confirmed to the English newspaper The Guardian that the project will not be placed in disputed Western Sahara, saying: "We want to confirm… officially that our reference projects will not be located in the West Sahara. When looking for project sites, Desertec Industrial Initiative will also take political, ecological or cultural issues into consideration. This procedure is in line with the funding policies of international development banks."

Also that month, the Norwegian state-owned company EWOS stopped the purchases of fish oil from Western Sahara and Morocco (with an amount of around 10 million euros annually, and estimated between 12.000 and 20.000 tons of fish oil in total), for "not being in line with the norwegian authorities recommendations".

See also

• Economy of Morocco
• Legal status of Western Sahara
• Western Saharan cuisine
• Western Sahara portal

External links

• Economy of Western Sahara at DMOZ
• SADR Oil and Gas exploration, licence offering
• Economy of Western Sahara