Morocco
Morocco is a country of northwest
Africa. It has a long coastline on the
Atlantic Ocean which reaches past the
Strait of Gibraltar into the
Mediterranean Sea.
Morocco has annexed
Western Sahara, but this is not universally recognised.
History
\nMain article: History of Morocco
Morocco was a French protectorate from 1912, remaining a Kingdom, and achieved independence in 1956, and it took control over Tangier, formerly an international city. It annexed Western Sahara in the 1970s, but this has not been recognised by many nations.
Morocco was the first nation to recognize the fledging American republic in 1777, and has the oldest non-broken friendship treaty with this country since 1783 : the Moroccan-American Treaty of Friendship. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were the American signatories. The US legation (embassy) in Tangier, now a museum, is one of the oldest US's official building outside the US.
Politics
\nMain article: Politics of Morocco
The King of Morocco is an active leader, although decreasingly so. Political parties are legal, and a plethora of them exist.
See also: List of political parties in Morocco
Provinces
\nProvinces of Morocco
Morocco is divided into 37 provinces and 2 wilayas*: Agadir, Al Hoceima, Azilal, Beni Mellal, Ben Slimane, Boulemane, Casablanca*, Chaouen, El Jadida, El Kelaa des Sraghna, Er Rachidia, Essaouira, Fes, Figuig, Guelmim, Ifrane, Kenitra, Khemisset, Khenifra, Khouribga, Laayoune, Larache, Marrakech, Meknes, Nador, Ouarzazate, Oujda, Rabat-Sale*, Safi, Settat, Sidi Kacem, Tanger, Tan-Tan, Taounate, Taroudannt, Tata, Taza, Tetouan, Tiznit; three additional provinces of Ad Dakhla (Oued Eddahab), Boujdour, and Es Smara as well as parts of Tan-Tan and Laayoune fall within Moroccan-claimed Western Sahara
note: as part of a 1997 decentralization/regionalization law passed by the legislature 16 new regions (provided below) were created although full details and scope of the reorganization are limited : Casablanca, Chaouia-Ourdigha, Doukkala-Abda, Fes-Boulmane, Gharb-Chrarda-Beni Hssen, Guelmim-Es Smara, Laayoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra, Marrakech-Tensift-El Haouz, Meknes-Tafilalet, Oriental, Oued Eddahab-Lagouira, Rabat-Sale-Zemmour-Zaer, Souss-Massa-Draa, Tadla-Azilal, Tangier-Tetouan, Taza-Al Hoceima-Taounate
Geography
\nGeography of Morocco
Neighbouring countries are Mauritania to the southwest and Algeria to the east and southeast (the Algerian border is closed [1]). \nThere are also four Spanish enclaves on the Mediterranean coast: Ceuta, Melilla Peņon Velez de la Gomera and Peņon de Alhucemas, as well as several islands including Perejil and Chafarinas. Off the Atlantic coast are the Canary Islands and Madeira and across the Mediterranean to the north is Spain.
The capital city is Rabat. Its largest city is Casablanca.
Other cities include \nAgadir,\nDakhla,\nEssaouira,\nFes,\nLaayoune,\nMarrakech,\nMeknes,\nOujda,\nSafi,\nSmara,\nTanger,\nTiznit,\nSalč and\nTan-Tan.
Economy
\nEconomy of Morocco
Morocco has signed a Free Trade Agreement with the European Union and the
US
Demographics
\nDemographics of Morocco
Culture
\nCulture of Morocco
Miscellaneous topics
Seel also
External links
Much of the material in these articles comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2002 U.S. Department of State website.
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Category:African countries\nCategory:Maghreb\nCategory:Arab League\nCategory:Monarchies\nCategory:Morocco
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