Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, also known as the Sahrawi Republic and Western Sahara, is a partially recognized state, recognised by 46 UN member states and South Ossetia, located in the western Maghreb, which claims the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara, but controls only the easternmost one-fifth of that territory. Between 1884 and 1975, Western Sahara was known as Spanish Sahara, a Spanish colony (later an overseas province). The SADR is one of the two African states in which Spanish is a significant language, the other being Equatorial Guinea.
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic | |
|---|---|
| Motto: حرية، ديمقراطية، وحدة (Arabic) Libertad, Democracia, Unidad (Spanish) "Freedom, Democracy, Unity" | |
| Anthem: يا بني الصحراء Yā Banī aṣ-Ṣaḥrāʾ "Oh, Sons of the Sahara!" | |
| Status | State partially recognised by 46 UN member states and South Ossetia |
| Capital and largest city | El Aaiún (de jure) 27°9′N 13°12′W |
| Capital-in-exile |
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| Official languages | |
| Spoken languages | |
| Religion | Islam (official) |
| Demonym(s) | |
| Government | Unitary one-party semi-presidential republic |
| Brahim Ghali | |
| Bucharaya Hammudi Beyun | |
| Legislature | Sahrawi National Council |
| Formation | |
| 14 November 1975 | |
• Republic declared | 27 February 1976 |
• Sovereignty disputed with Morocco | Ongoing |
| Area | |
• Total | 266,000 km2 (103,000 sq mi) (claimed) 90,000 km2 (35,000 sq mi) (controlled) (77th) |
• Water (%) | Negligible |
| Currency | Sahrawi peseta (de jure) (EHP) De facto |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (WAT) |
| Date format | dd/mm/yyyy (AD) |
| Driving side | right |
| ISO 3166 code | EH |
| Internet TLD | .eh (reserved) |
| Part of a series on the |
| Western Sahara conflict |
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| Background |
| Regions |
| Politics |
| Clashes |
| Issues |
| Peace process |
The SADR was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on 27 February 1976, in Bir Lehlou, Western Sahara. The SADR government calls the territories under its control the Liberated Territories or the Free Zone. Morocco controls and administers the rest of the disputed territory, and calls these lands its Southern Provinces. The claimed capital city of the SADR is El-Aaiún (Laayoune) (the former capital of Western Sahara). Since SADR does not control El-Aaiún, it has a temporary capital in Tifariti. The seat of the SADR government is in the Sahrawi refugee camps in Tindouf, Algeria.
The SADR maintains diplomatic relations with 46 United Nations states, and is a full member of the African Union. With a population of about half a million, it is the most sparsely populated in Africa, and the second-most sparsely populated in the world.