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Geography of Morocco

Location:Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Western Sahara
Geographic coordinates:32 00 N, 5 00 W
Map references:Africa
Area:total: 446,550 sq km
land: 446,300 sq km
water: 250 sq km
Area - comparative:slightly larger than California
Land boundaries:total: 2,017.9 km
border countries: Algeria 1,559 km, Western Sahara 443 km, Spain (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Spain (Melilla) 9.6 km
Coastline:1,835 km
Maritime claims:territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:Mediterranean, becoming more extreme in the interior
Terrain:northern coast and interior are mountainous with large areas of bordering plateaus, intermontane valleys, and rich coastal plains
Elevation extremes:lowest point: Sebkha Tah -55 m
highest point: Jebel Toubkal 4,165 m
Natural resources:phosphates, iron ore, manganese, lead, zinc, fish, salt
Land use:arable land: 19%
permanent crops: 2%
other: 79% (2005)
Irrigated land:14,450 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:northern mountains geologically unstable and subject to earthquakes; periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:land degradation/desertification (soil erosion resulting from farming of marginal areas, overgrazing, destruction of vegetation); water supplies contaminated by raw sewage; siltation of reservoirs; oil pollution of coastal waters
Environment - international agreements:party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea
Geography - note:strategic location along Strait of Gibraltar

Morocco Quickstats

  • Population: 33,757,175 (July 2007 est.)
  • Area: 446,550 sq km
  • Density: 70 /km² (122nd)
  • GDP (total): $152.5 billion (54th)
  • GDP (per capita): $152.5 billion (54th)
  • Literacy: 52.3%

Languages of Morocco

Useful to know

  • Currency: Moroccan dirham (MAD)
  • Dial code: +212

International Trade

External sites

More Resources

Morocco Internet

  • Usage: 4,600,000
  • Penetration: 15.1 %
  • Top Domain: .mo

WT eBusiness info:

  • Success Ranking: 100
  • Market testing: Untested
  • Overall risk: High
  • Overall reward: Low

e-maturity:

  • Tourism: 10%
  • eCommerce: 10%
  • Gaming: 10%
  • eLearning: 10%

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