Background:
Andorra is a small landlocked country in western Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France. It’s capital is Andorra la Vella. It is currently a prosperous country mainly because of tourism and its status as a tax haven. The people of Andorra are currently listed as having the second highest human life expectancy in the world, right after Macau, at an average of 83 years at birth (2008 est). Andorra is the sixth smallest nation in Europe. Its name is thought to be derived from an ancient Basque tribe, the Andosinos, who are believed to have inhabited that region of the Pyrenees thousands of years ago.
Culture:
The official and historic language is Catalan. Because of immigration, historical links, and close geographic proximity, other languages such as French, Portuguese and Spanish are also commonly spoken.
Andorra is home to folk dances like the contrapàs and marratxa.
Geography:
Andorra consists predominantly of rugged mountains of an average height of 1,996 metres (6,549 ft) with the highest being the Coma Pedrosa at 2,946 metres (9,665 ft) Andorra's surface area is 468 square kilometres (181 sq mi).
Climate: Temperate; snowy, cold winter and warm, dry summers
Natural Resources: hydropower, mineral water, timber, iron ore, lead
People:
Population: 83,888 (July 2009 est.)
Age Structure: 0-14 years: 15.5% (male 6,710/female 6,305)
15-64 years: 72.2% (male 31,604/female 28,925)
65 years and over: 12.3% (male 5,113/female 5,231) (2009 est.)
Median Age: total: 39.4 years
male: 39.7 years
female: 39.1 years (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
Total population: 82.67 years
Male: 80.35 years
Female: 85.14 years (2008 est)
Religion:
The population of Andorra is predominantly Roman Catholic. Their patron saint is Our Lady of Meritxell.
Education:
By law, students must attend school until age 16. Education is provided by both French- and Spanish-language schools. The French government partially subsidizes education in Andorra's French-language schools; schools in the southern section, near Spain, are supported by the church.
About 50% of Andorran children attend French primary schools, and the rest attend Spanish or Andorran school. In general, Andorran schools follow the Spanish curriculum, and their diplomas are recognized by Spain.
The University of Andorra was established in July 1997. It has a small enrollment and mostly offers long-distance courses through universities in Spain and France. The majority of secondary graduates who continue their education attend schools in France or Spain. Virtually the entire adult population is literate. Andorra also has a nursing school and a school of computer science.
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andorra
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/print/an.html
http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Europe/Andorra-EDUCATION.html
Collated by:
1. Kong Yu Qi (5A)
2. Ching Qi (5A)
