Everytime I see a data map on some topic, Western Sahara is always filed under ”No Data” or something similar. I know that the area is disputed by Morocco and some self governing body in the area, but that’s all I know. Is this like an Israel-Palestine thing, or something else?
From what I can gather, that is pretty much the reason.
The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is the self governing body you mentioned but it is only recognised by about 50 nations.
My guess is that, to avoid upsetting Morocco most demographers just give it the “No Data” flag and move on.
That’s part of it, but the other part is that, like its name suggests, it’s the Sahara. Most of it is unknown territory for most of the world. Maybe a tribe here or there has been through it, but that’s it.
I’m a bit confused by your comment and what you mean by “a tribe here or there has been through it” and that it’s unknown territory? It’s sparsely populated, but according to Wikipedia about 500k people live there, and they’re mostly in urban areas. Surely the lack of data is more down to the political disputes over who governs it? I’d imagine the locals are reluctant to share information with the Moroccan government who they see as the occupiers.
Exactly. There are a few urban areas, a few tiny villages, and a lot of nothing but desert. We have satellite pictures of that desert, but that’s about it. You’re not going to have much data about who governs those areas at all, because they’re not really governed by anyone.
I’m not trying to diminish Morocco’s unwarranted pseudo-annexation of a sovereign nation, I’m saying there’s more than one element at play here.
Are you sure that something like that has happened? I have heard it the other way round (but I am not sure about my source either).
Was it one before?