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Portugal
Portugal (English: Portugal) is a country located in the Iberian Peninsula region on the western side of the continent of Europe, surrounded by Spain on the north and east sides, and on the south and west sides it overlooks the Atlantic Ocean, and the system of governance is republican.
The Republican Council (Parliament) is responsible for passing laws in Portugal. It is elected every four years by Portuguese citizens in general elections. Also, citizens choose the President of the Republic by elections, and he receives the position of government for a period of five years, and one of his tasks is to appoint the Prime Minister, and often he is the President The party that received the highest representation in Parliament.
Portugal’s national government participates with its president, members of the cabinet in managing state affairs, Portugal is divided locally and administratively into 22 states and territories, and citizens choose the governor in each state to administer their local and government affairs, and the highest courts in Portugal are responsible for the judiciary. The Court of Appeal is the highest court in the country, and the Portuguese Armed Forces are divided into air, sea, and land forces.
The capital of Portugal
Lisbon is the official capital of Portugal, and the main political, commercial and tourist center of the metropolitan area, and the largest city among Portuguese cities. This city is located in the western side of Portugal near the Tigo River, which is the main port of the state.
Lisbon was the main center of Portuguese searches and discovery in the fifteenth century AD, and the city center was destroyed as a result of violent earthquakes in 1755 AD, but it was rebuilt and now contains many houses and buildings of various colors, and beautiful green gardens. In 1994, the city of Lisbon was chosen to be the capital of European culture, and with the occurrence of many important international events on its soil, this contributed to its development, which was clearly shown in the public infrastructure of transportation, and civilized places such as shopping malls, hotels and others.
Geography of Portugal
Portugal contains a group of geographical terrain: hills and mountains constitute a third of the geographical area of the north of the country, and it is also shared by the extension of the Santander Mountains from Spain. Within the maritime coasts of the Atlantic Ocean, the lands that start from the slopes and reach the plains and hills are spread in the southern and western regions, and the vast coastal plains are part of it.
Al-Jarf is located on the southern side of Portugal, and is characterized by the spread of plains on its lands with a few mountains and islands of various sizes, between large and small, and is one of the areas that contain ancient stone caves. There is a group of rivers running on the lands of Portugal, including the Guadiana River, the Douro River, and other rivers, but their interior lands do not contain lakes. As for the water bodies, the water is stored by relying on dams.
Demographics in Portugal
The estimated number of Portuguese residents is 10,833,816, according to the statistics of 2016. The population density in Portuguese society constitutes a variety of ethnic groups, including immigrants from the Mediterranean region, and people of African descent who migrated to during the colonial period, and also a group of European citizens lives in Portugal Oriental, the Portuguese language is the official language in Portugal, and the traditional Mirandese language is used locally, and Catholic Christianity is the most prevalent religion among the population by 81%. Government spending on education in Portugal accounts for 5.3% of gross domestic product, according to 2013 statistics.
Climate of Portugal
The general climate in Portugal is affected by regional and seasonal changes on the weather condition, as the climate is moderate in the interior regions, while in the northern side, the influence of the ocean climate appears, in which the summer is cold, and the winter is a lot of rain, and its average precipitation ranges between 125 – 152 cm during The year, sometimes accompanied by snowfall, and the climate condition is different in the central regions that witness a fluctuating summer between heat and cold, with rainy winters, the average annual rainfall ranges between 50 – 75 cm annually.
The dry climate in Portugal affects the southern regions, and the rainfall does not exceed 50 cm in the coastal areas. The average temperature in the capital Lisbon ranges between 24 ° C in July and 4 ° C in January, while the average General temperatures in Portugal reach 16 ° C.
The economy of Portugal
The economy in Portugal depends on the services sector, since 1986 when it joined the European Union, and during the past decades, the governments in Portugal privatized many companies that were owned by the state, and the main economic domains were liberalized, specifically the financial system and communications, and after Portugal joined the European Union The euro participated in the single currency, which began trading in it since 2002, to apply monetary particiAl Bahahn with the member states of the Union.
Since 1990, the Portuguese economy has witnessed successive growth, but it retreated in 2001 and suffered a contraction that affected it in 2009, as well as in the time period between 2011-2014. This has resulted in a reduction in government financial expenditures, with an increase in taxes to conform to the special conditions In the financial rescue of Portugal, imposed by the International Monetary Fund and the European Union.
The economy sector in Portugal managed to recover with the increase in exports and the development of consumption, accompanied by taking a set of measures to reduce the budget deficit, and this led to support for investments and the ability to consume in 2016, and the budget deficit was estimated at about 3.5% in 2015. In 2010, it reached 11.2% of the total value of the GDP.
