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| Background: | Britain oversaw foreign relations and defense for the ruling Kuwaiti AL-SABAH dynasty from 1899 until independence in 1961. Kuwait was attacked and overrun by Iraq on 2 August 1990. Following several weeks of aerial bombardment, a US-led, UN coalition began a ground assault on 23 February 1991 that liberated Kuwait in four days. Kuwait spent more than $5 billion to repair oil infrastructure damaged during 1990-91. The AL-SABAH family has ruled since returning to power in 1991, and reestablished an elected legislature that in recent years has become increasingly assertive. |
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| Geography |
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| Location: | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia |
| Geographic coordinates: | 29 30 N, 45 45 E |
| Map references: | Middle East |
| Area: | total: 17,820 sq km
land: 17,820 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
| Area—comparative: | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
| Land boundaries: | total: 462 km
border countries: Iraq 240 km, Saudi Arabia 222 km |
| Coastline: | 499 km |
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm |
| Climate: | dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters |
| Terrain: | flat to slightly undulating desert plain |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 306 m |
| Natural resources: | petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas |
| Land use: | arable land: 0.84%
permanent crops: 0.17%
other: 98.99% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: | 130 sq km (2003) |
| Total renewable water resources: | 0.02 cu km (1997) |
| Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): | total: 0.44 cu km/yr (45%/2%/52%)
per capita: 164 cu m/yr (2000) |
| Natural hazards: | sudden cloudbursts are common from October to April and bring heavy rain, which can damage roads and houses; sandstorms and dust storms occur throughout the year, but are most common between March and August |
| Environment—current issues: | limited natural fresh water resources; some of world’s largest and most sophisticated desalination facilities provide much of the water; air and water pollution; desertification |
| Environment—international agreements: | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping |
| Geography—note: | strategic location at head of Persian Gulf |
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| People |
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| Population: | 2,505,559
note: includes 1,291,354 non-nationals (July 2007 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 26.7% (male 340,814/female 328,663)
15-64 years: 70.5% (male 1,128,231/female 636,967)
65 years and over: 2.8% (male 44,542/female 26,342) (2007 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 26 years
male: 27.9 years
female: 22.4 years (2007 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 3.561%
note: this rate reflects a return to pre-Gulf crisis immigration of expatriates (2007 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 21.95 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Death rate: | 2.39 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | 16.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.037 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.771 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.691 male(s)/female
total population: 1.526 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 9.47 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.48 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 8.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 77.36 years
male: 76.25 years
female: 78.52 years (2007 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 2.86 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS—adult prevalence rate: | 0.12% (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS—people living with HIV/AIDS: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS—deaths: | NA |
| Nationality: | noun: Kuwaiti(s)
adjective: Kuwaiti |
| Ethnic groups: | Kuwaiti 45%, other Arab 35%, South Asian 9%, Iranian 4%, other 7% |
| Religions: | Muslim 85% (Sunni 70%, Shi’a 30%), other (includes Christian, Hindu, Parsi) 15% |
| Languages: | Arabic (official), English widely spoken |
| Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.3%
male: 94.4%
female: 91% (2005 census) |
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| Government |
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| Country name: | conventional long form: State of Kuwait
conventional short form: Kuwait
local long form: Dawlat al Kuwayt
local short form: Al Kuwayt |
| Government type: | constitutional emirate |
| Capital: | name: Kuwait
geographic coordinates: 29 22 N, 47 58 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Administrative divisions: | 6 governorates (muhafazat, singular – muhafazah); Al Ahmadi, Al ‘Asimah, Al Farwaniyah, Al Jahra’, Hawalli, Mubarak Al Kabir |
| Independence: | 19 June 1961 (from UK) |
| National holiday: | National Day, 25 February (1950) |
| Constitution: | approved and promulgated 11 November 1962 |
| Legal system: | civil law system with Islamic law significant in personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Suffrage: | NA years of age; universal (adult); note – males in the military or police are not allowed to vote; adult females were allowed to vote as of 16 May 2005; all voters must have been citizens for 20 years |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: Amir SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah (since 29 January 2006); Crown Prince NAWAF al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah
head of government: Prime Minister NASIR MUHAMMAD al-Ahmad al-Sabah (since 3 April 2007); First Deputy Prime Minister JABIR Mubarak al-Hamad al-Sabah (since 9 February 2006); Deputy Prime Ministers MUHAMMAD al-Sabah al-Salim al-Sabah (since 9 February 2006) and Faysal al-HAJJI (since 5 April 2007)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister and approved by the amir
elections: none; the amir is hereditary; the amir appoints the prime minister and deputy prime ministers |
| Legislative branch: | unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Umma (50 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms; all cabinet ministers are also ex officio voting members of the National Assembly)
elections: last held 29 June 2006 (next election to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by bloc – NA; seats by bloc – Islamic Bloc (Sunni) 17, Popular Bloc 9, National Action Bloc (liberals) 8, independents 16 |
| Judicial branch: | High Court of Appeal |
| Political parties and leaders: | none; formation of political parties is in practice illegal, but is not forbidden by law |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | a number of political groups act as de facto parties; several legislative blocs operate in the National Assembly: tribal groups, merchants, Shi’a activists, Islamists, secular liberals and pro-government deputies; in mid-2006, a coalition of Islamists, liberals, and Shia campaigned successfully for electoral reform to reduce corruption |
| International organization participation: | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador SALIM al-Abdallah al-Jabir al-Sabah
chancery: 2940 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 966-0702
FAX: [1] (202) 966-0517 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d’Affaires Alan MISENHEIMER
embassy: Bayan 36302, Area 14, Al-Masjed Al-Aqsa Street (near the Bayan palace), Kuwait City
mailing address: P. O. Box 77 Safat 13001 Kuwait; or PSC 1280 APO AE 09880-9000
telephone: [965] 259-1001
FAX: [965] 538-0282 |
| Flag description: | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a black trapezoid based on the hoist side; design, which dates to 1961, based on the Arab revolt flag of World War I |
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| Economy |
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| Economy—overview: | Kuwait is a small, rich, relatively open economy with self-reported crude oil reserves of about 104 billion barrels – 10% of world reserves. Petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP, 95% of export revenues, and 80% of government income. High oil prices in recent years have helped build Kuwait’s budget and trade surpluses and foreign reserves. As a result of this positive fiscal situation, the need for economic reforms is less urgent and the government has not earnestly pushed through new initiatives. Despite its vast oil reserves, Kuwait experienced power outages during the summer months in 2006 and 2007 because demand exceeded power generating capacity. Power outages are likely to worsen, given its high population growth rates, unless the government can increase generating capacity. In May 2007 Kuwait changed its currency peg from the US dollar to a basket of currencies in order to curb inflation and to reduce its vulnerability to external shocks. |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | $138.6 billion (2007 est.) |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | $103.4 billion (2007 est.) |
| GDP—real growth rate: | 5.6% (2007 est.) |
| GDP—per capita (PPP): | $55,300 (2007 est.) |
| GDP—composition by sector: | agriculture: 0.4%
industry: 54.7%
services: 44.9% (2007 est.) |
| Labor force: | 1.167 million
note: non-Kuwaitis represent about 80% of the labor force (2007 est.) |
| Labor force—by occupation: | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
| Unemployment rate: | 2.2% (2004 est.) |
| Population below poverty line: | NA% |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 3.9% (2007 est.) |
| Investment (gross fixed): | 20.9% of GDP (2007 est.) |
| Budget: | revenues: $66.92 billion
expenditures: $36.39 billion (2007 est.) |
| Public debt: | 7.8% of GDP (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture—products: | practically no crops; fish |
| Industries: | petroleum, petrochemicals, cement, shipbuilding and repair, water desalination, food processing, construction materials |
| Industrial production growth rate: | 0.8% (2007 est.) |
| Electricity—production: | 41.11 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity—consumption: | 36.28 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity—exports: | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity—imports: | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Oil—production: | 2.669 million bbl/day (2005 est.) |
| Oil—consumption: | 333,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
| Oil—exports: | 2.2 million bbl/day (2004) |
| Oil—imports: | 2,611 bbl/day (2004) |
| Oil—proved reserves: | 104 billion bbl (1 January 2006 est.) |
| Natural gas—production: | 11.8 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Natural gas—consumption: | 11.8 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Natural gas—exports: | 0 cu m (2005 est.) |
| Natural gas—imports: | 0 cu m (2005) |
| Natural gas—proved reserves: | 1.521 trillion cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
| Current account balance: | $51.49 billion (2007 est.) |
| Exports: | $59.57 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
| Exports—commodities: | oil and refined products, fertilizers |
| Exports—partners: | Japan 20.4%, South Korea 16.2%, Taiwan 10.8%, Singapore 9.7%, US 9%, Netherlands 5.3%, China 4.1% (2006) |
| Imports: | $17.74 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
| Imports—commodities: | food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing |
| Imports—partners: | US 14.1%, Germany 7.9%, Japan 7.8%, Saudi Arabia 6.8%, China 5.7%, UK 5.4%, Italy 4.6% (2006) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $19.63 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
| Debt—external: | $33.61 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment—at home: | $818 million (2006 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment—abroad: | $13.3 billion (2006 est.) |
| Market value of publicly traded shares: | $128.9 billion (2006) |
| Economic aid—recipient: | $2.6 million (2004) |
| Currency (code): | Kuwaiti dinar (KD) |
| Exchange rates: | Kuwaiti dinars per US dollar – 0.2844 (2007), 0.29 (2006), 0.292 (2005), 0.2947 (2004), 0.298 (2003) |
| Fiscal year: | 1 April – 31 March |
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| Communications |
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| Telephones—main lines in use: | 510,300 (2005) |
| Telephones—mobile cellular: | 2.536 million (2006) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: the quality of service is excellent
domestic: new telephone exchanges provide a large capacity for new subscribers; trunk traffic is carried by microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and open-wire and fiber-optic cable; a cellular telephone system operates throughout Kuwait, and the country is well supplied with pay telephones
international: country code – 965; linked to international submarine cable Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); linked to Bahrain, Qatar, UAE via the Fiber-Optic Gulf (FOG) cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations – 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 2 Arabsat |
| Radio broadcast stations: | AM 6, FM 11, shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Television broadcast stations: | 13 (plus several satellite channels) (1997) |
| Internet country code: | .kw |
| Internet hosts: | 2,013 (2007) |
| Internet users: | 816,700 (2006) |
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| Transportation |
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| Airports: | 7 (2007) |
| Airports—with paved runways: | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
| Airports—with unpaved runways: | total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
| Heliports: | 4 (2007) |
| Pipelines: | gas 269 km; oil 540 km; refined products 57 km (2007) |
| Roadways: | total: 5,749 km
paved: 4,887 km
unpaved: 862 km (2004) |
| Merchant marine: | total: 38 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,195,831 GRT/3,566,308 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 1, container 6, liquefied gas 5, livestock carrier 3, petroleum tanker 21
registered in other countries: 28 (Bahrain 3, Comoros 1, Liberia 1, Libya 1, Panama 1, Qatar 7, Saudi Arabia 6, UAE 8) (2007) |
| Ports and terminals: | Ash Shu’aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Az Zawr (Mina’ Sa’ud), Mina’ ‘Abd Allah, Mina’ al Ahmadi |
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| Military |
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| Military branches: | Land Forces, Kuwaiti Navy, Kuwaiti Air Force (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Kuwaitiya), National Guard (2007) |
| Military service age and obligation: | 18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; reserve obligation to age 40 with 1 month annual training; women have served in police forces since 1999 (2006) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 18-49: 864,745
females age 18-49: 467,120 (2005 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 18-49: 737,292
females age 18-49: 405,207 (2005 est.) |
| Manpower reaching military service age annually: | males age 18-49: 18,743
females age 18-49: 20,065 (2005 est.) |
| Military expenditures—percent of GDP: | 5.3% (2006) |
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| Transnational Issues |
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| Disputes—international: | Kuwait and Saudi Arabia continue negotiating a joint maritime boundary with Iran; no maritime boundary exists with Iraq in the Persian Gulf |
| Trafficking in persons: | current situation: Kuwait is a destination country for men and women who migrate legally from South and Southeast Asia for domestic or low-skilled labor, but are subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude by employers in Kuwait including conditions of physical and sexual abuse, non-payment of wages, confinement to the home, and withholding of passports to restrict their freedom of movement; Kuwait is reportedly a transit point for South and East Asian workers recruited for low-skilled work in Iraq; some of these workers are deceived as to the true location and nature of this work, and others are subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude in Iraq; in past years, Kuwait was also a destination country for children exploited as camel jockeys, but this form of trafficking appears to have ceased
tier rating: Tier 3 – insufficient efforts in 2006 to prosecute and punish abusive employers and those who traffic women for sexual exploitation; the government failed for the third year in a row to live up to promises to provide shelter and protective services for victims of involuntary domestic servitude and other forms of trafficking |
