<text><span class="style42"></span><span class="style12">EL SALVADOR</span><span class="style42">Official name:</span><span class="style13"> La Rep├║blica de El Salvador (The Republic of El Salvador)</span><span class="style42">Member of: </span><span class="style13">UN, OAS, CACM</span><span class="style42">Area: </span><span class="style13">21393 km2 (8260 sq mi)</span><span class="style42">Population: </span><span class="style13">5517000 (1993 est)</span><span class="style42">Capital: </span><span class="style13">San Salvador 1522000 (city 423000; 1992 est)</span><span class="style42">Other major city: </span><span class="style13"> Santa Ana 202000 (city 145000; 1992 est)</span><span class="style42">Language: </span><span class="style13">Spanish (official)</span><span class="style42">Religion: </span><span class="style13">Roman Catholic (82%)</span><span class="style42">GOVERNMENT</span><span class="style13">The President ΓÇô who appoints a Cabinet of Ministers ΓÇô is elected by universal adult suffrage for a single five-year term. Every three years, direct elections are also held for the 84-member National Assembly.</span><span class="style42">GEOGRAPHY</span><span class="style13">The country is mountainous, with ranges along the border with Honduras and a higher volcanic chain in the south, rising to 2381 m (7812 ft). </span><span class="style42">Climate: </span><span class="style13">The tropical coast is hot and humid, while the interior is temperate.</span><span class="style42">ECONOMY</span><span class="style13">Agricultural products, in particular coffee and sugar cane, account for nearly two thirds of the countryΓÇÖs exports. The economy declined from the 1970s to 1992 owing to the state of near civil war. </span><span class="style42">Currency:</span><span class="style13"> Colon.</span><span class="style42">HISTORY</span><span class="style13">Spain conquered the area in 1524 and governed it as part of Guatemala. El Salvador was liberated in 1821, but remained in the Central American Federation until 1838. The country has suffered frequent coups and political violence. In 1932 a peasant uprising was harshly suppressed. El SalvadorΓÇÖs overpopulation has been partially relieved by migration to neighboring states. After a soccer match between El Salvador and Honduras in 1969, war broke out because of illegal immigration by Salvadoreans into Honduras. Political and economic power is concentrated into the hands of a few families, and this has led to social tension. A state of virtual civil war existed from the late 1970s to 1992 with the US-backed military, assisted by extreme right-wing death squads, combating left-wing guerrillas. The government and guerrillas signed a peace agreement, which came into effect in 1992, when constitutional multi-party rule was restored.</span></text>