Spain
lies in the south-west of Europe and runs
from the Pyrenees in the north to the straits
of Gibraltar in the south. It covers an
area of nearly 195,000 square miles, and
consists of 50 provinces in 17 autonomous
regions.
The
Spanish mainland has at its heart the Meseta
Central ("Inner Plateau"), which
is surrounded by mountains. The Balearic
and the Canary Islands, the two autonomous
cities of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa,
and the Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas
and Penon de Velez de la Gomera off the
coast of Morocco make up the remainder of
Spain as a whole.
Spain
has borders with Portugal, France, Andorra,
Morocco and the British province of Gibraltar.
Natural
resources include coal, copper, fluorspar,
gypsum, iron ore, kaolin, lead, lignite,
magnesite, mercury, potash, pyrites, sepiolite,
tungsten, uranium and zinc.
Madrid
is the capital city. Other large cities
include Barcelona, Valencia and Seville.
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Spain History, Population,
Language and Culture
Spain
commanded a large empire built up with the
aid of a powerful shipping fleet in the 16th
and 17th centuries. The industrial revolution
was not fully embraced in Spain and subsequently
countries such as the UK, Germany and France
became the major players in industry.
Spain
remained neutral during the First and Second
World Wars but a bitter civil war saw Spain
in turmoil from 1936 to 1939. General Franco
overthrew the Republican Government and led
Spain under a dictatorship until his death
in 1975.
Franco’s
death was followed by a transition to democracy
and rapid economic growth. Spain joined the
EU in 1986.
Spain’s
population is over 40.5 million and the official
language is Castilian Spanish. Around 94%
of Spaniards are Catholic.
A
number of ethnic groups have kept their own
identity both in customs and language. The
main groups are the Catalans, Galicians and
Basques. The terrorist group ETA, campaigning
for a separate Basque homeland, continues
its violent struggle to this day.
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Spain Government
Spain
is a parliamentary monarchy with King Juan
Carlos I as Chief of State. After elections,
the monarch proposes the leader of the majority
party as Prime Minister who is then elected
by the National Assembly.
The
bicameral parliament consists of the Senate
(comprising 264 seats – 208 members
elected by popular vote, plus 56 members appointed
by the regional legislatures) and the Congress
of Deputies (comprising 350 seats –
the 50 electoral provinces each has at least
two seats, Ceuta and Melilla have one seat
each, and the remainder are determined by
proportional representation based on popular
vote on block lists who serve four-year terms).
The
Senate and Congress of Deputies together form
the National Assembly. The next elections
are to be held in 2012.
The
current Prime Minister is Jose Luis Rodriguez
Zapatero.
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Spain Economy and
Currency
The
credit crunch and collapse in real estate
in 2008 has had a devastating effect on Spain
and unemployment (as at March 2010) is at
nearly 20%. Having experienced growth of around
3.6% of GDP in 2007, by comparison growth
fell by 3.6% of GDP in 2009. GDP per capita
in 2009 was approximately USD33,700.
In
March 2010, the government announced new incentives
for the building and real estate industry
in the hope of reviving the market.
Spain’s
tourism industry, a major contributor to its
GDP, has declined in the last few years. This
is partly due to the world economic crisis
but also to higher holiday and general costs
in Spain that are making many tourists opt
for destinations outside the Euro Zone.
The
currency is the Euro (EUR).
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